The Tucson chapter holds meetings between September and May each year, with a summer break. We meet on the second Thursday of each month at 7:00 pm. We hold “hybrid” meetings, where we meet both in person and also on Zoom. The live meetings will be in the ENR2 (Environment and Natural Resources 2) building at the University of Arizona, located on 6th street near Park. We meet in Room S215. Parking is available in the 6th St parking garage adjacent to ENR2. A credit card is required to pay for garage parking. If you are not on our mailing list and wish to attend one of our meetings on Zoom, email us at NativePlantsTucson@gmail.com to request the Zoom link. Videos of past meetings can be found on our YouTube channel.
Chapter meeting for December, 2024
MEMBER’S SHOWCASE AND HOLIDAY GATHERING
December 12, 2024 meeting, presentation, 7pm
U of A campus, Environment and Natural Resources Building (ENR2), Room S255
1064 E. Lowell Street, U of A Campus, Tucson, AZ
MEMBER’S SHOWCASE AND HOLIDAY GATHERING
Jillian Cowles – Chasing Wildflowers
Logan Phillips – Tucson’s Birthplace Open Space Coalition
Our December meeting will feature the Member’s Showcase. Two of our esteemed AZNPS members will regale us with presentations about topics in which they have a particular interest. After the talks, we will have a social hour, with cider and goodies and the chance to chat with friends. If you are able, please bring a holiday food treat to share.
Jillian Cowles will share her amazing photographs of some rare cactus and other plants that she has sought out over the past year. Jillian is the author of “Amazing Arachnids,” an amazing book published by Princeton University Press about the arachnids (spiders, mites, and other cool stuff) of the Southwest. Her photos are always a delight.
Logan Phillips is a Tucson poet, educator, and community activist who will tell us about the Tucson’s Birthplace Open Space Program (https://tucsonopenspace.org/). This effort, in which he is deeply involved, is focused on restoring the area between A Mountain and the Santa Cruz River, in the area near Mission Garden, into an open space and urban wildlife refuge that will honor the history of the Santa Cruz basin.
Save the date: January 9, 2025, at 7:00 pm. Wendy Hodgson from the Desert Botanical Garden in Phoenix will talk about “Yuccas and their Moths.”
JOIN OUR CHAPTER E-LIST
Join Our Chapter E-list: If you would like to receive announcements about field trips and meetings via e-mail, send a note to the Tucson Chapter email to be added to the list. Stay informed by joining us on Facebook.
Usually the most up-to-date information about upcoming chapter events can be found on our Facebook page.
Caring for agave and baby cacti? Consider volunteer opportunities at the Pima County Native Plant Nursery! Located at 5845 N. Camino de la Tierra, the Pima County Native Plant Nursery grows native plants for public projects and is looking for volunteers to help with weeding, watering and propagation. The nursery is open Monday to Friday 7:00am to 3:30 pm. Email Amy for available times/days and details. Plant salvage at Cortaro Farms from Camino Del Oeste to Thornydate prior to road improvement project.
Chapter News
Grass Identification Class
Posted on Jun 01, 2023
This is a two-day combination lecture and hands-on workshop for students serious about doing grass i.d. work. The goals are to impart sufficient knowledge for students to make wise decisions regarding collection of grasses, to provide complete information on grass morphology, and to teach the use of keys for identification of most Arizona species. Handout materials, dissecting scopes, tools, and pressed grass specimens for study will be provided. The first day will be lecture mixed with hands-on work. The second day can be for review if needed or desired and questions, plus working with keys from various references. Instructor: Mike Bauer Sponsors: University of Arizona Herbarium and Arizona Native Plant Society When: August 11 and 25, 9:00 AM to 3:00 PM Where: University of Arizona Herbarium, Herring Hall Cost: $25 Registration contact: Doug Ripley (jdougripley@gmail.com
Estelle Stern-Eilers is a Ben’s Bells Bellee
Posted on Apr 13, 2022
Howard Weiss nominated Estelle for her work in the Rillito Bend neighborhood in Tucson and in April 2022 Estelle was awarded a Ben’s Bell.
Congratulations, Estelle!
Estelle Stern-Eilers has been the catalyst for improving and beautifying the Rillito Bend neighborhood in Tucson. Through her leadership and example she has identified streetscape projects along Cactus Boulevard that have resulted in the planting of hundreds of plants and trees. Her efforts have turned a once-barren street into a flowering desert landscape. She has organized neighborhood residents who have contributed hundreds of hours of their time to make a neighborhood beautiful while providing habitat for native species of plants, animals, birds and insects.
Our neighborhood and Tucson are better because of Estelle.
October field trip at the Amerind Foundation in Texas Canyon
Posted on Nov 03, 2021
Twenty avid plant seekers assembled at the Amerind Foundation, in Dragoon, AZ, on October 16 to enjoy a beautiful autumn morning and indulge in wonderful views of native plants and rock formations. We found lots of fall yellow members of the Asteraceae (fondly known as DYCs, or “damn yellow composites”), as well as many other interesting species. Our best finds were a wonderful finger-leaf gourd, Cucurbita digitata, draped over a large boulder, and the vegetative stems of Asclepia nummularia, tufted milkweed, looking like a couple of stray cabbage plants in the midst of the grasslands.
rare cactus and other plants that she has sought out over the past year. Jillian is the author of “Amazing Arachnids,” an amazing book published by Princeton University Press about the arachnids (spiders, mites, and other cool stuff) of the Southwest. Her photos are always a delight.
