Flagstaff

Chapter Meetings

Chapter meetings and evening programs are held on the 3rd Thursday of each month from March through October, beginning at 7:00 pm. Our monthly meetings are held at the Shepherd of the Hills Lutheran Church, 1601 North San Francisco St. Monthly field trips are usually on the following weekend, and are announced via email and the Arizona Daily Sun. These events are free and open to the public. Unless otherwise announced, meet for carpooling to field trips at 8:30 a.m., at the OneAZ Credit Union parking lot at the southwest corner of Beaver and Butler. Bring sun and/or rain protection, water, snacks, lunch, and a car or gas money for carpooling. For more information about field trips, email Barbara Phillips at bagphillips@yahoocom.

JOIN OUR CHAPTER E-LIST

Join Our Chapter E-list: If you would like to receive reminders and announcements about field trips and meetings via e-mail, send a note to Sue Holiday to be added to the list. Stay informed by joining us on Facebook.

Usually the most up-do-date information about upcoming chapter events can be found on our Facebook page.

Chapter Leadership

Name	Role	Contact
Kirstin Phillips	President	KPhillips@musnaz.org
Melissa Amberson	Chapter Contact	azmelissa@yahoo.com
Sue Holiday	Email Distribution	naris123@cs.com
Barbara Phillips	Hike Information	bagphillips@yahoo.com

Volunteering Opportunities

Want to get involved? We've got just the thing!

Northern Arizona University, Deaver Herbarium
We are looking for dedicated volunteers to help mount pressed specimens for the permanent collection. No experience necessary, training will be provided. No reply needed, just show up and join a fun group.Work sessions will take place every first and third Friday of the month at 1:30 to 3:30pm in the Deaver herbarium in the Biological Sciences Bldg on 617 S, Beaver Street. The herbarium is located in room 314 on the south side of the third floor.

Next Sessions:

October 18
November 1
November 15

Parking near the NAU campus is very difficult, but the Mountain Line #10 bus stops right in front of the building. For more information visit the Deaver website or contact session organizers Gisela Kluwin or Vera Markgraf

Museum of Northern Arizona
The Museum of Northern Arizona is looking for dedicated volunteers to assist in the curation of herbarium specimens including identifying specimens, mounting pressed specimens, filing pressed specimens into the herbarium, and georeferencing specimens. The Museum is also looking for volunteers to help plant, weed, and prune the native plants in the Colton Research Garden, at the Colton House, and around the Museum grounds. For more information, please contact Museum botanist, Kirstin Phillips.

The Arboretum at Flagstaff
Our Southwest Butterfly House is open Wednesday-Monday from 10:00-4:00. We are looking for volunteers to assist staff on weekends Shifts are 10:00-1:00 and 1:00-4:00. Training and resoures are provided. Contact Volunteer Coordinator Shannon Benjamin at Shannon.benjamin@thearb.org or 928-774-1442 ext. 127.

Grow Flagstaff Seed Library
The Grow Flagstaff Seed Library is looking for volunteers to help create seed packets to add to the growing seed library. For more information, please contact Jackee Alston.

Plant Atlas Project of Arizona
here are several plant ongoing plant atlas projects in northern Arizona. The Plant Atlas Project of Arizona (PAPAZ) is a statewide partnership between the Arizona Native Plant Society, Grand Canyon Trust, Desert Botanical Garden, Northern Arizona University, Museum of Northern Arizona, and the U.S. Forest Service to document the diversity and distribution of Arizona’s flora. For more information, see the Plant Atlas Project website or contact Kirstin Phillips.

Weed Warrior Activities
The AZNPS Flagstaff Chapter will join forces with the Grand Canyon Trust, Master Gardeners, and other local organizations to tackle the enormous weed problem along Fort Valley Road between the Fire Station, Trust’s headquarters, Pioneer Museum and the Museum of Northern Arizona.

Invasive plant species tend to be aggressive, to outcompete native plants for resources and space, and to decrease biodiversity. Diffuse Knapweed, Kochia, Bull Thistle (below), Cheatgrass and many other species are present throughout our project focus area. Together we can work to remove them and increase the chances for native grasses and flowers to flourish. There has already been major improvement at the Pioneer Museum, and native species are filling in among the native grasses. However, there is still more work to do. Details about these projects are on the Grand Canyon Trust’s website. Please come out and join local weed warriors and plant enthusiasts for one or all three workdays of weed removal, exercise, and fun. Please contact Dorothy Lamm with questions or just register at the website. See you there.

Chapter News

Tuesday, October 15: Tina Ayers. Namibia and Namaqualand

Posted on Sep 03, 2019

In August, Tina made the trip of a lifetime with Randy Scott and Vera Markgraf to visit the Namib Desert. Tina’s presentation will chronicle their two-week adventure to ﬁnd the desert in bloom and to visit one of the more bizarre plants on earth, Welwitschia mirabilis. Surreal landscapes and succulents will be the emphasis of this presentation. There will also be a seed exchange of NATIVE ARIZONA plants. Tina is Director and Curator of Deaver Herbarium, Northern Arizona University

Tuesday, September 17, Charlie DeMarco:The Natural History of Galls

Posted on Aug 03, 2019

About six years ago while hiking the trails at the Highland Center for Natural History in Prescott AZ, I noticed something that had been there all along but had escaped my attention on all my previous outings. It was a small round red ball on a scrub oak leaf about three quarters of an inch in diameter. It looked like a tiny red apple. As I examined this curiosity, I noticed there were others just like it on the scrub oaks all around me. What was I looking at? At first it appeared to be a fruit but it felt hollow and most oddly was attached to the leaf and not at the bud, in fact it appeared to have emerged right out of the middle of the leaf! Strange indeed. I then thought it must be an insect’s nest of some kind. Even more curious now I went back to the Center’s office and when I inquired, I was told it was a gall. What is a gall? Little did I know at that time I would be spending many hours over the next six years delving deeply into this question.

Charlie DeMarco is the founder of the Pinecrest Gall Research Station in Prescott.

Tuesday, August 20: Ahsa Jensen, Grand Canyon’s Federally-Listed Endangered Plant, Sentry Milk- Vetch

Posted on Jul 17, 2019

Grand Canyon has one federally-listed endangered plant, the sentry milkvetch (Astragalus cremnophylax var. cremnophylax). The sentry milk-vetch is endemic to Grand Canyon and is only found in soil pockets located in the Kaibab Limestone, on the edge of the canyon. With limited populations, the park’s Science and Resource Management Division has partnered with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the Arboretum at Flagstaff, and the Grand Canyon Conservancy to implement a recovery plan that includes reintroduction sites to remove the plant from the federal list of Threatened and Endangered Species.

Ahsa Jensen is Grand Canyon’s Native Plant Nursery Manager and has worked with the propagation, outplanting, and monitoring of the sentry milk-vetch for the last six years. She will present on the park’s reintroduction efforts for sites on the south rim of Grand Canyon.

Gallery

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