The History of Plant Press Arizona

The first publication of the Arizona Native Plant Society was in 1977 as the “Arizona Native Plant Society Newsletter.” It functioned as both a source of information on current Society events and information on plants related to plant biology, horticulture and conservation. In the spring of 1981, the newsletter’s name was changed to the “Arizona Native Plant Society Bulletin” and one issue later it was renamed again to “The Plant Press,” a name submitted by June Hirsch as part of a naming competition among Society members. “The Plant Press” continued to function as the Society’s newsletter but over time began to develop more in-depth content on native plants.

Beginning in 2005, the Society began to publish “Happenings” as a quarterly newsletter for all state and chapter activities. In 2021 the name of the Society’s journal was modified to “Plant Press Arizona” in an effort to give some geographical reference to the Journal and to eliminate a duplication of the name with a newsletter published by the Natural History Museum of the Smithsonian Institution.