June 21-25 (Sunday to Thursday)
Joint Field Meeting (BotSoc)
Dingmans Ferry, Pike County, PA
The Joint Field Meeting of the Botanical Society of America, the Torrey Botanical Society, and the Philadelphia Botanical Club
will be held at the Pocono Environmental Education Center (PEEC), a private, non-profit education facility located within the 67,000-acre
Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area.
Program: The program will include three full days of field trips to nearby river shores, hemlock ravines, waterfalls, limestone outcrops, wetlands, and forests.
Beginning on Sunday, there will be programs each evening, dealing with topics of botanical and ecological interest.
Housing, Meals, and Registration Fee: Most housing will be in duplex (two-unit) cabins, with six bunk beds and one bathroom per unit.
The price for the field meeting will be $280.00 per person. This includes housing for four nights, local van transportation, the evening programs,
and meals from Sunday dinner to Thursday breakfast, including our traditional Wednesday night banquet at a nearby restaurant.
The commuter rate, for field trips and programs but no housing or meals, will be $80.00.
For additional information, download the announcement and registration form or contact William Olson, Chairperson, at 732-961-1946 or
,
or Karl Anderson, Treasurer, at 856-845-7075 or
.
28 June (Sunday)
"Britton's" Savannah, Forked River Mountains, Ocean County, NJ
More than a half mile long, this little known savannah/quaking bog complex harbors one of the largest Narthecium americanum (bog asphodel) populations in the state.
To date at least 8 other rare plants have been discovered here. There should be spectacular floral displays of the Asphodel, rose pogonia, and several Utricularias.
We will conduct a thorough inventory of all species. Be prepared for wet walking.
Directions: Meet at 9:30 at Wells Mills County Park on Route 532 (Waretown-Wells Mill Rd.), ca. 4 miles east of Route 72 and <4 miles west of Rt. 9 and <2 miles west of GSP exit #69. We will consolidate into 4-wheel drive vehicles. Pre-register with the leader.
Leader: Ted Gordon, 609-859 3566;
.
July 11 (Saturday)
Carnivorous Plants of the Pine Barrens: Joint Field Trip of the Philadelphia Botanical Club and Pinelands Preservation Alliance (PPA)
After a brief overview, we will carpool/caravan to various sites to observe the carnivorous plants of the Pinelands and threatened and endangered plants.
We will discuss partnerships between government agencies and non-governmental organizations for the preservation and management of state open space.
We should be back to PPA by about 4 p.m. From 4 to 6 PM there will be a workshop
focusing on work on carnivorous plants by Charles Darwin and one of his correspondents, local botanist Mary Treat (1830-1923). Drinks and snacks will be provided during the afternoon workshop. Preparation: Dress for hiking. Hike will be of moderate length and wet areas will be encountered. You should wear rubber boots or hiking shoes that you don't mind getting wet. In all likelihood, we will encounter mosquitoes and ticks, so everyone should bring insect repellent. Bring lunch, drinks and snacks.
Space may be limited. Please contact Tom Dunn at PPA to register: 609-859-8860 ext. 14 or
.
Directions: The trip will start at PPA's headquarters at Bishop Farmstead, 17 Pemberton Road, Southampton, NJ 08088. Directions are on the PPA web site.
Leaders: Ernie Schuyler (work PH #215-405-5088), e.mail
, Rob Naczi, and Gerry Moore.
July 26 (Sunday)
Fulshaw Craeg Preserve, Green Lane, Montgomery County, PA
The Fulshaw Craeg Preserve, owned by the Natural Lands Trust, features lovely scenery and a diverse flora. We will explore a boulder field, meadows (both wet and dry), and woods. The boulder field, almost devoid of vegetation in it center, is ringed with Polypodium sp. (polypody fern), Dryopteris marginalis (marginal woodfern), and a bit of Corydalis sempervirens (pale corydalis). In the meadows, the highlights include Sanguisorba canadensis (Canada burnet), Veronicastrum virginicum (culver's root), various native thistles (Cirsium spp.), Oxalis violacea (violet wood-sorrel), and Chamaelirium luteum (devil's bit). In the woods are Silene stellata (starry campion), Salvia lyrata (lyre-leaf sage), and abundant Actaea/Cimicifuga racemosa (black cohosh). Be prepared for wet ground. If you plan to walk onto the boulder field, we recommend sturdy walking shoes and/or a hiking stick.
Directions:
Meet at the Gulf Station on highway 63 in Woxall, PA (2073 Sumneytown Pike). From the Philadelphia area, take 476 north to exit 31. At the exit, bear right to get onto highway 63 west towards Harleysville. Drive 6.9 miles, then the Gulf station will be on the left at the top of a hill, next to AG Farm Market. If you reach the town of Green Lane, you have gone too far -- go back about 2 miles from the town center.
Leaders: Janet Novak,
or 215-534-6700 (cell), and
Joan King,
or 717-284-5239.
1 August (Saturday)
Savannahs of the Batsto River, Burlington County, NJ
While the focus of this trip is Platanthera orchids, we hope to see Sclerolepis uniflora, Spiranthes laciniata, Rhynchospora oligantha, and several other rare
as well as common species. Be prepared for wet walking.
Directions: Meet at 9:30 at the Atsion Ranger Station (next to the newly restored Atsion Mansion) on Route 206 just north of
Atsion Lake and Lake Shore Drive (Atsion Rd.), ca. 10.5-11 miles south of intersection of routes 206/70 (Red Lion Circle). Contact the leader to sign up.
Leader: Ted Gordon, 609-859-3566;
.
August 8 (Saturday)
Manumuskin River, Manantico Creek, Muskee Creek Watersheds, Cumberland County, NJ
Habitats to be visited in these three watersheds will include Atlantic white cedar (Chamaecyparis thyoides)
swamps and bogs, intermittent ponds, freshwater tidal marshes, and abandoned furnace sites.
Rare species we have a chance to see include sensitive joint vetch (Aeschynomene virginica), Elliott's beardgrass (Andropogon gyrans),
bur marigold (Bidens bidentoides), fringe tree (Chionanthus virginicus), rose coreopsis (Coreopsis rosea), elliptical rushfoil (Croton willdenowii),
smooth tick trefoil (Desmodium laevigatum), pineland trefoil (Desmodium strictum), velvety-leaved trefoil (Desmodium viridiflorum),
American waterwort (Elatine americana), Parker's pipewort (Eriocaulon parkeri), resinous boneset (Eupatorium resinosum),
Virginia hedge-hyssop (Gratiola virginiana), bearded skeleton grass (Gymnopogon ambiguus), riverbank quillwort (Isoetes riparia),
tall bush clover (Lespedeza stuevei), Canby's lobelia (Lobelia canbyi), Wright's panic grass (Panicum wrightianum),
inundated beaked-rush (Rhynchospora inundata), late goldenrod (Solidago tarda), and poison oak (Toxicodendron pubescens).
We may also be able to see in bloom the showy non-native standing cypress (Ipomopsis rubra) at a station near the railroad
that has been known for over 120 years. Prepare for extensive walking, some of it exceptionally wet and muddy.
Directions:
Meet at Cumberland Pond near the intersection of Rt. 49 and Union Rd (County Rt. 671) in eastern Millville.
Leaders: Gerry Moore,
Brooklyn Botanic Garden, 1000 Washington Avenue, Brooklyn, New York 11225; 718-623-7332 (work), 609-432-8012 (cell);
Renee Brecht, Citizens United to Protect the Maurice River and Its Tributaries, PO Box 474, Millville, New Jersey 08332;
September 26 (Saturday)
Pocono Glacial Till Barrens, Monroe County, PA
Joint fieldtrip, Philadelphia Botanical Club and Muhlenberg Botanical Society. The Pocono till barrens, together with adjoining wetlands, forests and ridgetop barrens, host 125 species on the state's endangered, threatened and rare list, 12 of which are imperiled globally. More than 8 square miles of native heathlands scattered along 30 miles of the Pocono Plateau's southern rim are remnants of a landscape managed for centuries by American Indians using fire. We will explore a dwarf-shrub savanna dominated by lowbush blueberry, sheep-laurel, scrub oak and rhodora, with scattered pitch pine, witherod, black chokeberry, gray birch, red spruce and four juneberry species. Among many likely plant sightings are Amianthium muscaetoxicum, Calamagrostis cinnoides, Carex polymorpha, Cornus canadensis, Dalibarda repens, Gentiana linearis, Glyceria obtusa, Lycopodium hickeyi, Piptatherum racemosum, Platanthera blephariglottis and Solidago puberula. We will examine results of barrens restoration and management by The Nature Conservancy using prescribed burning. Those who choose to accompany the trip leader on an optional 2-mile hike will also see northern hardwoods forest, conifer swamp, several types of shrub swamp, and Long Pond, an undammed glacial lake. Pack your lunch. Wear shoes suitable for wet walking.
Background:
If you wish to do some background reading on the Pocono glacial till barrens, the flora and ecology of this unique ecosystem are described in several articles, including Bulletin of the Torrey Botanical Club (1996) vol. 123, pp. 330-349, and Forest Ecology and Management (2003) vol. 185, pp. 21-39.
Directions:
Meet at 10 a.m. at the Hauser Nature Center (The Nature Conservancy's Pocono Mountains office) in the village of Long Pond, Monroe County. From there we will carpool 4 miles to the trailhead. To get to the nature center, leave I-80 at exit 284 (7 miles east of the interchange with the turnpike, I-476). Take Pa. 115 south 3.1 miles and turn left onto Long Pond Road (at Pocono Raceway sign). Drive 2.7 miles to the Hauser Nature Center, on the left just past the firehouse and post office.
Leader: Roger Latham
Roger Latham (office: 610-565-3405, cell phone to call only on the morning of the fieldtrip: 484-682-9648)
;
cell phone to call only on the morning of the fieldtrip: 484-682-9648)
September 26 (Saturday)
Ramapo Mountains, Bergen County, NJ
This is a repeat of the trip held in July, 2008. Botanize some of the most remote areas in northeastern New Jersey in the Ramapo Mountains. Numerous habitats will be visited, including some unusual forested wetland communities. We should be able to see excellent populations of the rare and unusual lesser floating bladderwort (Utricularia radiata). Be prepared for extensive walking, some of it on steep terrain. Bring plenty of beverage, lunch, insect repellant, and sturdy footwear.
Directions:
Contact the leader to register for the field trip and receive meeting place information.
Leader: Gerry Moore,
Brooklyn Botanic Garden, 1000 Washington Avenue, Brooklyn, New York 11225; 718-623-7332 (work), 609-432-8012 (cell);
Phlox maculata at the Fulshaw Craeg Preserve, June 7, 2009.
