With members on the Palouse, and in the Lewiston-Clarkston Valley and Central Idaho
2024 Archive Calendar
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Thursday, January 18, 2024. 7:00 pm PST. White Pine Chapter Meeting
Program: Superbloom 2023
Presenter: Pam Brunsfeld
Location: Lecompte Auditorium, 2nd floor, 1912 Center, Moscow, ID
Presentation: The Mojave Desert of southern California experienced an exceptional "Superbloom" in March and April 2023. Pam Brunsfeld will share her visit to this area which included visits to the Antelope Valley Poppy Preserve and Carrizo Plain showing photos of millions of annual flowers in bloom simultaneously.
Pam Brunsfeld has been a professional botanist for 50 years. She is the retired Director of the University of Idaho Stillinger Herbarium, Systematic Botany instructor, Forest Service botanist, and currently owner of Brunsfeld Botanical consulting firm. Since her retirement in 2014 she has visited the Southwest deserts every year to learn a new flora and has been able to witness three superblooms.
Flyer:Brunsfeld Superbloom
Recording is available: The recorded presentation can be found on the chapter YouTube channel Superbloom by Pam Brunsfeld
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Thursday, February 15, 2024. 7:00 pm White Pine Chapter Meeting
Program: The Ecological Importance of Mature Juniper Woodlands
Presenters: Eva Strand and Steve Bunting, Professors of Rangeland Ecology, University of Idaho
Physical location: Lecompte Auditorium on the 2nd floor of the 1912 Center in Moscow, Idaho
Stands of mature juniper woodland are rare on the landscape, but they contribute unique habitats for wildlife and add landscape level diversity throughout the Great Basin, U.S.A. Juniper grow slowly in the semi-arid western mountains, but they can become over 1000 years old. The oldest juniper tree is estimated to be over 3000 years in age. Prior to Euro-American settlement wildfire was more common in the landscape and the mature juniper stands were often located in rocky outcrops, plateaus between canyons, or other areas that were fuel limited or protected from fire spread.
The presenters have collectively conducted research in Idaho's juniper woodlands for three decades. They have published research documenting plant communities along successional gradients as sagebrush vegetation transitions to juniper woodlands including those plants unique to old-growth juniper. The presentation is illustrated with photos of some of Idaho's oldest trees.
Flyer: Mature Juniper Woodlands
Recording is available: The recorded presentation can be found on the chapter YouTube channel Mature Juniper Woodlands by S. Bunting and E. Strand
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Thursday, March 21, 2024. 7 pm PDT, White Pine Chapter Meeting
Program: Breeding and Raising White Pine Blister Rust Resistant Tree Seedlings
Location: Lecompte Auditorium, 2nd floor, 1912 Center, Moscow, Idaho
Presenter: Aram Eramian, Superintendent of the Coeur d'Alene Nursery, USFS
This presentation will primarily be about how the Nursery supports the US Forest Service Region 1 Genetic Resource Program in providing rust resistant Western White Pine and Whitebark Pine seedlings for reforestation and restoration programs. There will be a brief discussion of the history of the program and how blister rust was introduced.The bulk of the talk will be about testing candidate trees for White Pine and Whitebark Pine and how we produce seedlings for outplanting on lands managed by the Forest Service, Park Service and Bureau of Land Management. Additionally, he will discuss the production of native species for restoration purposes.
Aram Eramian has an extensive Forest Service career concentrating mostly in silviculture and fire ecology. He came to the Coeur d’Alene Nursery in 1992 and served as the Tree Improvement program manager for 11 years, Bareroot Production manager for 13 years before assuming the Nursery Superintendent role in 2016. Someone once told him "your career finds you". Aram thinks he understands that now.
Flyer: Raising White Pine Rust Resistant Seedlings
Recording is available: The recorded presentation can be found on the chapter YouTube channel Raising White Pine Rust Resistant Seedlings by Aram Eramian
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Thursday, April 18, 2024. 7:00 pm. White Pine Chapter Meeting
Program: Converting a Wheat Field into Palouse Prairie
Location: Lecompte Auditorium, 2nd floor, 1912 Center, Moscow, Idaho
Presenter: Tom Besser
Tom will walk us through his attempt to reconstruct Palouse Prairie on a few acres of a former wheat field. His project was initially seeded in September 2017 and so is about to start its 7th growing season. Why did they do it? How did they go about it? Which aspects went well and which not so well? Are invasive weeds going to do it in? He hopes this presentation will celebrate the beauty and resiliency of the native plant community as seen through the eyes of a non-botanist.
Tom is a retired WSU researcher in veterinary microbiology. He first became interested in native plants through chance encounters with native bunchgrass prairie remnants then later through participating in field trips and seeing presentations sponsored by the White Pine Chapter INPS and the Palouse Prairie Foundation. This project wouldn't have been possible without the efforts of the dedicated and passionate group of Palouse Prairie advocates who have done so much to write the educational materials and build the physical resources (seeds and equipment) that make projects like this possible.
Flyer: Converting a Wheat Field into Palouse Prairie
Recording is available: The recorded presentation can be found on the chapter YouTube channel Converting a Wheat Field into Palouse Prairie by Tom Besser
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Tuesday, May 7, 2024. White Pine Field Trip: Spring Flowers on Craig Mountain
** Postponed until Monday May 20 **
Hosts: Sally and Bruce Konen
Event postponed to Monday May 20 because of inclement weather forecast and few plants are blooming yet. Carpooling from Moscow: We will be leaving Moscow promptly at 8:00 a.m. from the Troy Highway side of the Eastside Marketplace on Monday, May 20. If you want to carpool from Moscow, meet us there by 7:50 a.m.
Directions: Take US-95 from Moscow to Sweetwater, Idaho (45 miles about 50 minutes), • Turn right onto Webb Road at Sweetwater (Webb Rd. is also known as Nez Perce County 506/ P2). • Travel 6 miles on Webb Road (do NOT turn onto Webb Ridge Rd) keep going on Webb Rd and turn left turn onto Waha Rd. • Travel 10.6 miles on Waha Rd and pull off at the turnout at Stagecoach Rd, which is about half a mile past Waha Lake. Sally and Bruce will rendezvous with us there. Try to pull in and leave room for other cars. It will take about one hour and 20 minutes from Moscow. Please plan to be there by 9:30 am.
Sally and Bruce have generously invited us to enjoy the spring flowers on their property on Craig Mountain. We hope you will join us for this enjoyable outing. Arrowleaf balsamroot, biscuitroot, and serviceberry are all currently blooming, so penstemon, anemone, and pussytoes should be starting to bloom in early May. Please bring drinking water and lunch. If you are interested in birds, bring your binoculars. Please wear sturdy walking shoes or hiking boots. Everyone is welcome to join us.
Folks coming from the Lewiston area: please take the route which will get you to the pullout at Stagecoach Road. We will meet there at about 9:30 a.m.
Questions: reply to this email. Judy Fulkerson is the chapter contact.
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May15-18, 2024 Annual White Pine Native Plant Sale
As with last year's sale it will include shrub reserve opportunity, online sale with in-person pickup, followed by an in-person sale
Location: Latah County Fairgrounds Depot Building
Full details including the availability list, preview URL, and detailed instructions will be available on the chapter website about May 5.
INPS White Pine Chapter website
The list of plant species that will be available in our 2024 plant sale will be posted on the event calendar and on the
www.whitepineinps.org home page by Friday, May 3. It will be refreshed every few days so please check back for updates.
2024 Availability List.pdf
Over 4000 plants and over 100 native species will be available.
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Sunday, May 25, 2024 Whitepine Chapter Field trip. Wetland and Basalt Upland Field Trip
Hosts: Christine McDonald and Tara Oar.
Location: 2901 Brayton Road, Pullman, WA 99163 (McDonald)
Christine and Tara are neighbors. Both are interested in native plants. Christine and her husband are restoring wetland habitat, and Tara and her husband are cherishing a remnant of basalt upland. We have been invited to see both on a field trip May 25.
Tara and her husband bought a house with a remnant of Palouse grassland over a basalt substrate. In the spring, this remnant was alive with wildflowers, arrowleaf balsamroot, biscuitroot and many others. Like every other plot of land, it also has weed encroachment, but because of the basalt these are primarily annual weeds. They do not want to use chemical control. They are protecting their prairie remnant from disturbance and construction.
Christine and her husband started the restoration of about 180 feet of wetland pond in 2022. They will be completing the planting this spring. They started by manually and mechanically removing reed canarygrass, bull thistle, and other weedy vegetation. They rescued native grass and forbs during the site preparation. In 2022, they planted soft rush, Idaho fescue, bluebunch wheatgrass and thick-headed rush. Sword-leaf rush, toad rush, fringed willowherb, lady's thumb, and marsh cudweed came in naturally. They transplanted several native species from other parts of their property. In 2023, they planted three species of native shrubs, Douglas spiraea, Douglas hawthorn and thinleaf alder. The goal of this project was to restore native vegetation along the bank of the wetland and the pond perimeter in order to increase species diversity for pollinators, amphibians, waterfowl, and other wildlife species that use the pond. The pond is eight to 10 feet deep year-round. They protect amphibians and other species by using nonchemical methods to control invasive species.
Please bring sturdy shoes, something to drink and a snack.
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Monday, June 10, 2024. White Pine Native Plant Yard Tours
Time: 4:00pm-7:00pm
We invite you to see examples of local landscaping using native plants. Get ideas and gain inspiration on how you might use native plants to benefit pollinators and birds, conserve water, and add beauty and diversity.
Visit one of these locations below to see the gardens and to pick up a list of additional private and public gardens to visit. The private gardens are available ONLY June 10th (4:00-7:00 PM). Knowledgeable guides will be there to answer your questions.
Location 1 (831 S Hayes St., Moscow). Steve Bunting and Penny Morgan have reconstructed Palouse Prairie in their yard as they have removed the lawn. Blooming flowers amid the bluebunch wheatgrass with ponderosa pine in the background mimic Palouse Prairie vegetation. Parking is limited on this narrow one-way section of Hayes Street, so we recommend parking on Lewis or 8th Streets. You can walk or drive to nearby yards, and drive to a pollinator walkway along D Street and a beautiful yard on the northeastern side of Moscow that features a mix of native and non-native plants.
Location 2 (804 East B St, Moscow). Kali and Kevin Armitage have loved having native plants in place of some lawn. The Phoenix Conservancy helped them remove sod and plant many native wildflowers, grasses, and shrubs on their corner lot, much to the delight of people walking by and the bees and birds flying nearby. From there, you can drive to see garden beds bursting with life at a local school, a church, and a demonstration garden. Or walk the grounds of a nature center to see their native plants and a small native plant nursery.
Location 3 (406 Powers Ave., Moscow). Parents and students have an ambitious landscaping project in progress at the Palouse Prairie Charter School. They are creating learning environments as they develop the landscape around this new school building. Students are actively involved in planting, making identifying signs, and learning from observation.
Visit these public spaces at this or other times on your own:
See the native pollinator planting at the flagpole at the Moscow Federal Building (220 E. 5th St.) at any time. Staff from the Latah Soil and Water Conservation District noticed the lack of native plants around the building and planted the site in 2016. They have recently added native plants to the flowerbeds on the south side of the building.
The Appaloosa Museum and Heritage Center (2720 W. Pullman Rd., Moscow) has a collection of native plants from the Palouse. All native plants in the courtyard behind the museum were labeled through an INPS White Pine Chapter grant. Visit the courtyard during the museum’s open hours (NOT OPEN MONDAYS). Enter the Museum and then go into the courtyard beyond. There is no charge, but donations are welcome.
Please bring a friend. You are welcome to share this email with others. Please print the poster and put it someplace where others will see it.
Poster: Yard Tours poster
I hope that these yards will inspire you with ideas, for they are all quite different and fascinating. We've enjoyed getting them ready for you!
Penny Morgan, President, White Pine Chapter of the Idaho Native Plant Society
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Friday, June 14, 2024 thru Monday, June 17, 2024. INPS Statewide Annual Meeting, hosted by Calypso Chapter.
Location: Farragut State Park on the shores of Lake Pend Oreille
Updated information can be found on the Statewide Annual Meeting webpage.
2024 INPS Statewide Annual Meeting
The registration form can be filled out and mailed with a check to the Calypso chapter to ensure your participation. It is possible a Paypal option will be added in the near future.
All are welcome.
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Friday, June 21, 2024 thru Sunday, June 23, 2024. 17th annual Idaho Botanical Foray, hosted this year by Idaho State University Herbarium with help from Sawabi Chapter.
Location: Malad Summit area near the Utah / Idaho border
Updated information will be available on the Idaho Botanical Foray facebook page. It also may be mailed out when finalized.
Contact Paul Allen of Sawabi Chapter for more information by email.
All are welcome.
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Saturday, June 22, 2024. 3:00 - 6:00 pm. White Pine Chapter Field Trip
Palouse Prairie Reconstructed on a Wheat Field
Location: 3443 Foothill Rd, Moscow, Idaho, limited parking
Leaders: Tom Besser and Kathy Potter
Two hundred years ago, much of the land between the Clearwater River and Spokane, west of the forested Rocky Mountain foothills, was Palouse Prairie. One hundred years later, tillable prairie land had been completely converted to agriculture due to its outstanding ability to support wheat crops. One hundred years after that, in 2018, Tom Besser and Kathy Potter planted three and a half acres of this wheatland with Palouse Prairie seeds to try to reconstruct a bit of Palouse Prairie. This field trip is an opportunity to see the results to date, in the 7th growing season after planting. As of the end of May, it is looking great with diverse flowering plants and lush bunchgrasses.
Meet near the Rosauer's sign on the east side of the Moscow Rosauer's parking lot at 2:45 pm to arrange carpooling, then caravan to the Besser/Porter home at 3443 Foothill Rd. Limited parking is available in the Besser/Potter driveway, but those comfortable with walking in the driveway should park just across the street at the MAMBA Headwaters trailhead parking area. To reach the prairie planting from their home will require climbing a couple flights of stairs followed by a short, smooth, but uphill path. Footing is irregular in the project area and may be obscured by vegetation. A mowed path around the periphery of the prairie is a bit smoother and footing visibility is better. Wear sturdy shoes and bring your walking sticks if you use them.
Flyer: Prairie from Wheatfield
Recording is available: The recorded presentation can be found on the chapter YouTube channel Prairie reconstructed on a Wheatfield by Tom Besser.
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Thursday, October 17, 2024. 7:00 pm PDT. White Pine Chapter Regular Meeting and Membership Annual Meeting
Speaker: Derek Antonelli, botanist, president of Calypso Chapter of INPS
Location: Lecompte Auditorium, 2nd Floor, 1912 Center, 412 E. 3rd St., Moscow, Idaho
Derek Antonelli is a well-known botanist in North Idaho. He is also the President of INPS Calypso Chapter in Coeur d'Alene, and he is the Lead for the North Idaho Rare Plant Working Group. He will present a program on identification of north Idaho wetland plants, including several willows and the rare water howellia Howellia aquatilis
This presentation will be in-person. It will hopefully be recorded and uploaded to our Chapter YouTube channel at a later date. An email will be sent out when that recording is available.
Flyer: Antonelli poster
Recording is available: The recorded presentation can be found on the chapter YouTube channel Identification of Idaho Wetland Plants by Derek Antonelli
Attention White Pine Chapter members - please plan to come at 6:00 pm. for a short membership meeting and pizza. Please supply your own non-alcoholic beverages. Plates and napkins will be provided by the chapter.
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Wednesday, November 20, 2024. 7:00 pm PDT. White Pine Chapter Regular Meeting
Speaker: Bailey Hallwachs, Coordinator National Plant Germplasm System
USDA-ARS
Location: Lecompte Auditorium, 2nd Floor, 1912 Center, 412 E. 3rd St., Moscow, Idaho
Bailey Hallwachs is from Cheyenne, Wyoming, she grew up on a working cattle ranch. She developed a passion for agriculture and taking care of the land through sustainable methods of raising cow-calf operations. She was in 4-H and FFA raising sheep and pigs. She also is from Alberta, Canada where her dad farms (alfalfa, canola, hay) and ranches. She received her undergraduate degree in Agroecology and Horticulture from University of Wyoming and her masters in Horticulture from WSU where she did physiological research on the impacts of grapevine red blotch virus on wine grapes in Oregon vineyards.
The Seeds of Success (SOS) program is a large collaborative effort to collect native seed on North American landscapes for use in restoration programs. This program is managed by the USDOI Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and involves many federal and nongovernmental organizations. One of the USDA Agricultural Research Service (ARS) SOS collaborations is implemented by the National Plant Germplasm System's (NPGS) Plant Germplasm Introduction Testing and Research Unit (PGITRU) also known as the Western Regional Plant Introduction Station (WRPIS) located in Pullman, WA on the Washington State University Campus. The SOS collections managed by the USDA ARS NPGS serve important roles in agricultural research and conservation of crop relatives.
This presentation will be in-person. It will hopefully be recorded and uploaded to our chapter YouTube channel at a later date. An email will be sent out when that recording is available.
Flyer: Hallwachs poster
Recording is available: The recorded presentation can be found on the chapter YouTube channel Seeds of Success by Bailey Hallwachs.
Program is free and open to all.
PREF Creek May 0501012: Western white pine at
Priest River Experimental Forest taken by Russell Graham.