This is a story from Chris Ludwig, former chief biologist for the state of Virginia, about his quest to relocate two plant species that had never been found elsewhere in the Commonwealth and how conservation of one species led to another…
Cues of Care, Helping People See Plants in Georgia
The Georgia State Botanical Garden and the Georgia Native Plant Initiative are collaborating through a host of programs to “cure plant blindness” in the state. This includes “resetting” the land toward diversity, preventing species extinctions, and providing “cues of care” to those who cannot yet recognize the beauty of a native grassland.
The Importance of Rights-of-Way to Sun-Loving Grassland Species
The flat to gently rolling surface of the Cumberland Plateau has grasslands, yet they are hard to come by today. Once common and widespread, these formerly open pine and oak savannas, prairies, glades, and acidic open wetlands have largely disappeared, and with them many of the species they supported. For this reason, the Tennessee Valley Authority is working with SGI to support an inventory and assessment of Rights-of-Way (ROWs) in the Cumberland Plateau, and field work began May 2019.
The Flora and Rare Plants of the Clear Fork Riverscour on the Cumberland Plateau
May 2019 marked the kick-off of SGI’s project exploring and documenting riverscour grasslands in the Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area along the rugged and beautiful Clear Fork River. This work, funded by the National Park Service, will document the flora and plant communities of open habitats in the riparian corridor as well as map populations of rare and invasive species.
Chardonnay Gets Its Day—And So Does Prairie (National Prairie Day in 2019 is June 1)
Six Good Clues that a Southeastern Grassland was Here
It was on the northeastern edge of the Southeast that Euro-American settlers first began the slow process of obliterating the ancient grasslands, and the loss of these ecosystems spread from here to the south and west. Many of these grasslands were gone before they could be described, studied by naturalists, painted, or photographed.
Context for Native Grassland Conservation: Five things every supporter should know
THE SOUTHEASTERN GRASSLANDS INITIATIVE: BRINGING CHICAGO-STYLE CONSERVATION TO THE SOUTH (Full Story)
Parts 1-6: As Executive Director of a new but rapidly growing conservation organization, one of the most frequently asked questions that I get is, “how can you conserve Southeastern grasslands when most types have disappeared by more than 90 percent?” This is the full 6-part blog post from Dwayne Estes that answers that question!
