Activities

2008 Annual State Meeting
AT THE CROSSROADS
Hosted by the Las Cruces Chapter
September 25-28, 2008
Program Details and Registration Form

The NPSNM currently has eight chapters (including one from Texas) that work to promote the objectives of the organization, and educate the local population so they might better understand their regional flora through field trips, lectures, plant sales and seed exchanges. The talents, interests and skills of chapter members greatly influence the activities and programs offered.

Many chapters schedule activities during the year and visitors are almost always welcome. Check out chapter websites below.

Albuquerque - Middle Rio Grande Basin	Las Cruces - Chihuahuan Desert regions of the southcentral part of the state	San Juan - centered in Farmington and covers the region of the Colorado Plateau in the northwestern portion of state
El Paso - El Paso-Juarez, far west Texas and adjacent New Mexico	Otero - centered in Alamogordo and covers the southcentral portion of the state	Santa Fe - plains and southern Rocky Mountains of the northcentral and northeastern portions of the state
Gila - centered in Silver City and covers the mountain areas and Chihuahuan Desert regions of the southwestern part of the state		Taos - Rocky Mountains and Upper Rio Grande Basin of the northcentral portion of the state

Activities are also listed in the latest quarterly newsletter.

Past Activities

August 2007 - Native Plant Society of New Mexico - Otero Chapter Scholarship Awards

Two outstanding New Mexico State University graduate students, Kathy Whiteman and Patrick Alexander, are the 2007 Otero Chapter scholarship recipients. Kathy is working on the ecology of woody plant encroachment in the Gila Wilderness and National Forest. Patrick's work on the flora of the Organ Mountains can be seen at organmountainsflora.com. A beautiful and useful flora identification tool can be found on Patrick's website polyploid.net .

President Helgi Osterreich presented each with a one thousand dollar check at a luncheon held in the University Golf Club restaurant on August 21st. Five hundred dollars of the money had been donated in memory of the NPSNM's former treasurer, Don Tribble.

Judy Tribble, Chris Baker, Patrick Alexander, Kathy Whiteman, and Helgi Osterreich

August 2006 - Native Plant Society of New Mexico - Otero Chapter Scholarship Awards

Three New Mexico State University students, Sandy Cervantes, Sarah Ricketts, and Jeanne Tenorio shared the $2,000 scholarship awarded by the Otero Chapter of the Native Plant Society of New Mexico.

Sandy is a biology major who is interested in studying the effect of habitat fragmentation on native vegetation and has done plant surveys for the Nature Conservancy. Sarah is an environmental science major who has been studying the carbon metabolism of Chihuahuan desert plants and intends to do master degree research in phytoremediation. Jeanne is a biology major who has worked on the Jornada Long-Term Ecological Research site studying how native plants withstand the heat loads in the southern NM summers and wants to do graduate work in plant taxonomy.

The awards were presented at a luncheon hosted by the Biology Department on August 23rd. The chapter hopes to continue awarding yearly scholarships to NMSU students majoring or doing graduate work in a field of the biological sciences that will foster the understanding and conservation of the flora of New Mexico. In addition to the scholarship, the chapter donates yearly to the NMSU Herbarium Endowment Fund in memory of the chapter's founder, Bill Mayfield.

Otero Chapter President Helgi Osterreich with 2006 Scholarship Awardees

October 2005 - Native Plant Society of New Mexico - Otero Chapter Scholarship Awards

The Otero Chapter awarded one thousand dollars each to two New Mexico State University students, Lisa Schauer and Brady Allred. Lisa has experience in forest conservation and currently is working in the NMC herbarium at New Mexico State University. Brady is interested in range physiology, specifically grass physiology. With a grant from the National Science Foundation and Long Term Ecological Research, Brady has been studying the physiological responses of black grama and purple threeawn grasses to prescribed burning. Both have firm plans to continue with graduate training in these areas.

$2,000 scholarship(s) will be awarded in 2006 to New Mexico State University student(s) majoring in a field of the biological sciences that will foster the understanding and conservation of the flora of New Mexico. In addition to the scholarship, the chapter donates yearly to the NMC Herbarium Endowment Fund in memory of the chapter's founder, Bill Mayfield.

Otero Chapter President Helgi Osterreich with Lisa Schauer and Brady Allred

April 2004- Native Plant Conservation Workshops - Carlsbad Caverns

Throughout April 2004 the Carlsbad Caverns/Guadalupe Mountain Associaiton sponsored the second-annual Native Plant Convervation Workshop.

September 2002 - The "Sevilleta Synantherologist Association"

thus the group of participants in the Native Plant Society's Asteraceae Workshop at Sevilleta dubbed themselves (synantherologists specialize in the study of flowers in which the anthers are fused). The workshop, taught by Dr. Tim Lowrey, the curator of the University of New Mexico Herbarium, took place September 6th through 8th and attracted about 25 people eager to learn about the large, complex, and important Asteraceae or Compositae family. The workshop included plenty of hands-on time with dissecting scopes in the lab at the Sevilleta Research Station and field identification in the Manzanos, where this photo was taken by Bob Sivinski. --sandra lynn

Aster Workshop Participants, Sevilleta, NM (Photo: Bob Sivinski)

April 2001 - Cactus Identification Workshops

The workshops were held in Alamogordo and led by Ken Heil, Professor at San Juan College. Each workshop had classroom instruction and field trips to Dog Canyon and White Sands. The Otero Chapter, Ken Heil and Bob Sivinski did a great job in organizing and planning the workshops. The photos below show some of photos taken at Oliver Lee State Park, near the entrance to Dog Canyon. Some folks opted to stay near the cactus garden at the park, while others hiked part of the canyon.

July 2001 - Plant Drawing Workshop

A 2 day plant drawing workshop was conducted by author/illustrator Dorothy Hoard. The workshop was held in the Biology Department at the University of New Mexico (Albuquerque). Wynn Anderson (El Paso Chapter) assisted in the instruction and Lolly Jones (Albuquerque) was instrumental in organizing the workshop. The first day consisted of classroom discussion on techniques and materials. The second day was in field observing, collecting, and sketching. This workshop, like the Cactus Identification Workshop, was a big hit with our members.

Drawing workshop field trip (Photo: R. Sivinski)

Base Camp Botany

In early August 2001, Bob Sivinski, President of the NPSNM and Charlie McDonald of the New Mexico Hiking Society formed the first Base Camp Botany Field Trip. The purpose was to make an inventory and collect specimens focusing on remote areas that seldom have been visited by botanists. In 2001, the southern peaks of the San Mateo Mountains in the Apache Kid Wilderness was selected. The base camp was at the beautiful Springtime Campground and more than 20 members of the NPSNM and the NM Hiking Society made the strenuous hike up an elevation of 3,000 feet.