CLAYTONIA

Newsletter of the Arkansas Native Plant Society

Vol. 26 No. 1
Spring/ Summer 2006

In this issue:

President’s Greeting
page 2

New Members
Page 3

Bylaw Amendments
page 3

New Ecoregion Map
Page 4

Arkansas Twistflower
page 5

Spring Meeting Info
page 6

Fall Meeting Minutes
page 8

Announcements
Page 9

Events & Reid Trips
Page 1 0

Book Reviews
Page 1 1

The Mycorrhizal Fungi and Orchid Symbiosis

or

A See One, Do One, Teach One

by Carl Slaughter, MD

In my past surgical training and
education there was a presumptuous
proclamation we would promulgate about
our ability to perform a particular
surgical procedure. We would declare
that we would observe one being
performed, then we would perform one,
and then we would be endowed with the
skill and knowledge to teach others how
to do the surgical procedure. (See one,
do one, teach one)

This pretty well sums up my sentiment
concerning today’s topic about orchids
and the mycorrhizal fungi. We all know
that one of the characteristics that
differentiate orchids from other
angiosperms (vascular plants that have
seeds inside an ovary) is that they have a
multitude, sometimes in the millions, of
very small seeds. They are small,
because they lack endosperm.

Endosperm is a layer of cells within the
seed coat that is concerned with the
nutrition of the embryo. Orchids lack
this; so how do they receive their nutrition?

Snowy orchid ( Platanthera nivea). Known
in Arkansas only from an 1883 collection
from a wet prairie in Arkansas County.
Photo (from Texas) by Carl Slaughter.

The orchid cannot survive without help; and the help comes from a group of
fungi called mycorrhizal fungi. They supply the orchid with the needed food.
There are a number of different fungi that can be involved in this endeavor. A
few of the genera involved are: Ceratorhiza, Moniliopsis, and Epulorhiza. The
genus Epulorhiza has five species that are associated with temperate terrestrial
orchid mycorrhizae. How do they do this you ask?

They penetrate the seed’s testa and invade the embryo
through its suspensor region. After penetration they
produce pelotons, which are tightly interwoven coils of
proliferating fungal hyphae. The seed, either in search
of nutrition or as a protective measure, produces a
substance that dissolves the pelotons causing the release
of nutrient matter (carbohydrates, etc.) that the seed uses
for growth and germination. The fungus does not just
transfer nutrients from the ground or air into the seed,
but sacrifices itself or some of its body parts.

Some fungi are more aggressive than others. The more
aggressive fungi can overcome the seed and destroy it.
The more timid fungi can be destroyed by the seed’s
hunger or protective measures. This is a very delicate
relationship and the orchids must be good “fungus
managers”. According to Zettler, from the Illinois
College, this relationship must last until photosynthesis
occurs. We will forget about the amino acids and other
organic compounds that are produced.

This orchid and fungus relationship is said to be a
symbiotic one where there is mutual benefit to both
subjects. The only benefit that I can see is that they get
to eat each other. In my way of thinking, this is a
parasitic relationship. Oh well, back to Pope’s Pierian
Spring. A mutual benefit has been shown between fungi
and other non-orchid plants.

Some, if not all, of the Spiranthes (ladies’ tresses) will
spend one to several years beneath the ground without
sprouting. I used to say they were just dormant (resting
or non-vegetative) and leave it at that. Recently, several
investigators have suggested that they are able to stay
underground because the mycorrhizal fungi are able to
supply them with the necessary nutrition that they
require during their subterranean retreat. Does this mean
that the need to initiate seed production stimulates the
vegetative state?

In the distant past, in teaching medical school, in
research activity, in writing papers and in talks and
presentations, I never wanted the subject to be something
about which I was knowledgeable. The subjects that I
was attracted to were those about which I possessed a
great deal of ignorance. My reasoning was - how would
I learn anything if I presented subjects about which I was
already knowledgeable. I could learn much more if I
researched a subject about which I had a deficit of
information. In the past I believed this, but now, after
many years, I believe that it just goes back to that axiom
of my student days: see one, do one, teach one.

And this article is one!

President’s Greeting

On January 30 th , my porch still sported an unbumed
petunia, in bloom, and on the ledge of the carport, a
ruellia stubbornly refused to get blasted and render up
the pot that I wanted to use for some pansies. Oh well,
if we're not fretting over our clement weather, we're
complaining about the inclement weather.

This year holds excitement for me and the Arkansas
Native Plant Society. The Executive Board just met in
January and we have made good progress in charting a
course for the coming months. More about some of the
particulars below.

As it is a new year, let me encourage you with all my
august official powers (insert knowing wink here) to
ensure that your membership to the Society is paid and
current. During the recent mailing of the memorial issue
of the Claytonia, I counted the number of delinquent
memberships, and just the ones expiring in 2003 and
2004 numbered almost 80, out of a total membership of
about 340.

We are certainly not cash strapped as a Society, but
please remember that membership dues not paid equate
to projects not attempted when we plan how to further
the goals of education, conservation and
preservation. Our primary income is from dues, and
subtracting another 90 or so life memberships, you can
do the math and see how this impacts our
budget. Enough with the wet noodle beatings; we have
plants to discuss.

I am very pleased to announce progress on the Carl
Hunter memorial project we had announced at the Ft.
Smith meeting in the fall. The Ozark Society, through
its agent, the University of Arkansas Press, has agreed to
give the ANPS a substantial discount in our campaign to
place at least one of Carl Hunter's books in every public
library in Arkansas. The libraries that already do have a
copy often must restrict circulation to a reference book,
and this donation should free up at least one copy to be
checked out and see the light of meadow and mount.

The Executive Board agreed to set a goal of placing at
least a single copy of Wildflowers of Arkansas in each
library for the great price of $4,860. The exact number
I'm being deliberately vague about here in print since our
partners, UA Press, indicated they didn't want to make
any current retailers jealous of our purchase price. Trust
me, it is a generous discount. We actively solicit

2

memorial donations to the Society to help reduce the
amount of drain on the Operating Funds. Donations
should be either given at the Spring Meeting or can be
mailed to the treasurer.

I have also been actively seeking out either an Arkansas
based company or a foundation in order to partner with
ANPS on this worthwhile project. Any additional
donation given from a partner could help us place perhaps
a complete set of Hunter's book in each public library, and
eventually even do the same for the school libraries in the
state. At present I already have one favorable response
and am hopeful I can announce something at the Mena
meeting.

On a related note, the Executive Board also voted to again
support the Arkansas Envirothon and the Audubon Camp,
projects we have donated to in the past. We are proud to
be sending contributions to those great educational
activities, and appreciate those who organize them and
help future generations understand the responsibility we
all have of protecting our beautiful planet.

Additionally, we will initiate an annual ANPS Award for
$100 at the Arkansas Science Fair (the state -level
competition). The project that best exemplifies
conservation, and when possible, Arkansas flora, will be
selected for the honor.

During the Board's planning session, we addressed the
structure of the officers of the Society and how best to
balance the work among us. Previously, we had noticed
the bylaws seemed to really assign no continuing duties to
the President-Elect, so we pounced on that and reasoned
that publicity and communications was a good area that
needed an extra push. To that end, please note in this
Claytonia a revision of the necessary bylaw to precede a
vote in the General Meeting in Mena. There are also two
other recommended changes. The Arkansas Conservation
Coalition no longer is extant, so all references to it in our
bylaws have been stricken. The other change proposed is
the consolidation of the Historian duties with the Secretary
position. It has been difficult to get substantive work in
the Historian position, so we reasoned it has added to
Board size without increasing Board output, challenging
our ability to reach a quorum at some meetings.

There are more details of plans we will discuss for the
Society at Mena, but I have waxed long already. Please
make every effort to attend the Spring Meeting and, as I
said last year, BRING A FRIEND!

Waiting for the blizzard that never comes,

Jason K. Anders
ANPS President

New ANPS Members

The following people have joined the Arkansas Native
Plant Society since the last issue of Claytonia:

Mike Amason (Calion, AR)

Danny Barron (Chelsea, OK)

Yvonne Becker (Hot Springs Village, AR)

Cathie Connaughton (Conway, AR)

Josie Farrell (Hot Springs Village, AR)

Maranda Henley (Rison, AR)

Thomas H. Hooper (Fort Smith, AR)

Kathryn Huie (Drasco, AR)

Don Kurz (Jefferson City, MO)

Nonnan & Cheryl Lavers (Jonesboro, AR)

Bonnie Leonhardt (Muscatine, IA)

Donald Long (Jasper, AR)

Barbara & Donald Massey (Pine Bluff, AR)

Kathy & Andy Radomski (Almyra, AR)

Mark Robertson (Little Rock, AR)

Julie Sparks (Monticello, AR)

Susie Teague (Lonsdale, AR)

Michael Weatherford (Warren, AR)

We welcome these new members to the ANPS!

Proposed Amendments
to the Bylaws

The Executive Board has reviewed the current Bylaws and
would like to announce the following proposed revisions,
to be voted on at the Spring Meeting in Mena:

1) All references to the Arkansas Conservation Coalition
Representative have been stricken from the Bylaws. The
Coalition no longer exists, so the references are all
obsolete. The current directory already reflects this
deletion, but formal approval to delete will be voted upon
in the upcoming General Meeting.

2) It is hereby proposed that Article V, Section 1 be
amended to delete the offices of Historian and
Communications/Publicity Chairperson. The recent
attempts by the Nominating Committees have proven that
these positions are not generally supported by the
membership and the functions have often remained
undone. Further, the inclusion of the offices without
persons hurts the Board in reaching quorums.

3

3) Article V, Section 4 will be
amended to include the role of
Communications and Publicity in
addition to the other stated duties.
The Board thought this a natural
fit because the Vice-President had
few previously assigned duties.

4) Article V, Section 5 will be
amended to include the duties of
archiving. The role of Historian is
assumed to be dissolved, but the
Secretary will be expected to be
the keeper of records and archives
of Society history.

The specific rewordings of the
amended bylaws, as well as
renumbering of sections after
deletions, will be presented for
review in print at the Spring
Meeting. These summary
descriptions are provided in the
Claytonia in keeping with the
spirit and intent of Article IX of
the Bylaws. Please consider these
changes in advance in order to be
prepared to vote after discussion at
the General Meeting.

Detail from the new Level IV Arkansas Ecoregion Map. Now available in pdf or hard
copy. This map helps explain the distribution of plant species and communities.

New Arkansas Ecoregion
Map & Poster Available

A number of state and federal agencies have
collaborated to produce a large format (45” x 36”), two-
sided, full-color map of the Level IV Ecoregions of
Arkansas. This “Level IV” treatment takes things a step
beyond the typical six division Level III treatment that
you are probably familiar with (Ozarks, Ouachitas,
Arkansas Valley, Coastal Plain, Mississippi Alluvial
Plain, & Crowley’s Ridge). This new map splits the
typical six major divisions into seven (by splitting the
Ozarks into the Boston Mountains and the Ozark
Highlands) and recognizes a number of subdivisions of
each (the Level IV Ecoregions). It recognizes the
following: the South Central Plains (with 6
subdivisions), the Ouachita Mountains (with 5
subdivisions), the Arkansas Valley (with 4
subdivisions), the Boston Mountains (with 2
subdivisions), the Ozark Highlands (with 4
subdivisions), the Mississippi Alluvial Plain (with 10

subdivisions), and the Mississippi Valley Loess Plains
(1 division).

This is more than just a map though. There are detailed
descriptions of each of the 32 Level IV Ecoregions,
discussing landforms, geology, soils, vegetation,
climate, and land use. There are also a bunch of color
photos and tables. The map also includes a smaller map
showing the level III Ecoregions for the entire
conterminous U.S., so you can see how Arkansas fits in
to the bigger picture. It would be difficult for the reader
to comprehend the immense amount of information
contained in this poster without seeing it for themselves,
so check it out.

The poster is available for download as a pdf file in the
full format or in two abbreviated formats from the EPA
website at www.epa.gov/wed/pages/ecoregions/
ar eco.htm . The map is also available for download as a
shapefile for ArcView. Hard copies are available for
purchase from the U.S. Geological Survey.

4

CVr?

PLANT OF THE ISSUE: ARKANSAS TW I STFUOWER

Arkansas twistflower (Streptanthus maculatus subsp.
obtusifolius). West Pulaski County. Photo by Theo Wits ell.

Several years ago, near the end of April, I was climbing
a steep sandstone outcrop near the top of Blue Mountain,
the western-most peak of the Maumelle Pinnacles, west
of Little Rock. I came up over a ledge to find an
absolutely breathtaking display of color. Above the
ledge was a steep open glade of blue-grey Jackfork
sandstone, spotted with large patches of Xanthoria, a
brilliant orange lichen. Scattered among these, on
vertical rock faces and under small overhangs were
patches of the fluorescent yellowish-green gold dust
lichen ( Chrysothrix cande laris). Wherever a little soil
had accumulated there were tufts of the woolly lip fern
( Cheilanthes tomentosa), brilliant yellow coreopsis, and
four colors of Ohio spiderwort (white, purple, blue, and
pink). Scattered among all of these was one of the most
beautiful wildflowers I had ever seen, which I was at a
loss to identify. This last species had big erect spires of
brilliant four-petaled purple and pink flowers, and large,
grey-green leaves with a waxy, whitish coating. I sat
down smiling, in awe of this magnificent scene, framed
with gnarly old post and blackjack oaks, with scraggly
farkleberry shrubs and hoptrees growing here and there
out of cracks in the sandstone.

I took a small piece of this last species home with me to
key out and was thrilled to find that I had found
something rare, a species whose common name alludes
to its status as something all our own: Arkansas

twistflower. In Arkansas we have three twistflowers, all
in the genus Streptanthus , of the mustard family
(Brassicaceae or Cruciferae). All are rare, in one sense
or another, and all are annuals. One, Streptanthus
hyacinthoides, is found in Arkansas only in the deep
Gulf Coastal Plain sand barrens of Ouachita, Nevada,
and Miller Counties, but is also found in Texas,
Oklahoma, and Kansas. The second, S. squamiformis, is
a Ouachita Mountain endemic, occurring in both
Arkansas and Oklahoma, but nowhere else in the world.
The third, S. maculatus subsp. obtusifolius , is found only
in the Ouachita Mountain and Arkansas River Valley in
Arkansas. It was this last one that I had found that
wonderful day atop Blue Mountain!

Arkansas twistflower cannot tolerate the dense shade
that often accompanies richer, deeper soils, and so is
confined to the most rocky and barren habitats. You can
find it just west of Little Rock in sandstone glades and
outcrops at Pinnacle Mountain State Park, in novaculite
(chert) glades from Hot Springs to Albert Pike
Recreation Area, and in shale barrens around Lake
Ouachita. It blooms in late April and early May and is
certainly one of the showiest plants in the flora. It is
presently known only from Faulkner, Garland, Hot
Spring, Howard, Montgomery, Pike, Polk, Pulaski and
Saline Counties, Arkansas. Like most of our glade and
rock outcrop plants, Arkansas twistflower responds very
well to fire and has increased at a number of sites where
regular burning occurs.

Typical Arkansas twistflower habitat in the Ouachita
Mountains. Blue Mountain. West Pulaski County. Photo
by Theo Witsell.

5

ARKAN SAS N ATI V E PLAN T SOa ETY
SPRING 2006 MEETING

APRIL28-30, 2006

Rich Mountain Community College (RMCQ
Mena, AR

The Friday and Saturday Meetings will be held on the campus
of Rich Mountain Community College, 1100 College Drive.
Registration, refreshments, and socializing will take place in
the Tower Room of the Ode Maddox Building with programs
to be held in the Lecture Hall of the Spencer Building (the two
buildings are next to one another and are connected by a
hallway).

The main highway in Mena is Hwy 71 and many of you will
be entering town on this highway. Directions to RMCC from
Hwy 71 are as follows: from the north (before historic
downtown), turn right at the stoplight on Morrow Street North
(this is the first stoplight from the north). Then turn right on
College Avenue (also called Bush Street, as it is on the map
below). RMCC is on the left. From the south (after going
through historic downtown), turn left at the aforementioned
stoplight on Morrow Street North and follow directions as
above. (Hwy 71 is the wider line extending from the top right
to lower left of the map. It is labeled as Hwy 59 on this map.
The star indicates the location of RMCC.)

Registration will be in the Tower Room from 4:30 pm - 7 pm
Friday. Lana Ewing will treat us to a slideshow program on
the local flora at 7 pm! The Executive Board Meeting will
follow the program.

Saturday morning we will be traveling to the Cossatot River
State Park - Natural Area Visitor Center for a program/hike
led by Park Interpreter and ANPS member, Stephen Walker.
There will be several additional hiking opportunities
throughout the day, all to be announced Friday night. At 7 pm
our own Lori Spencer will give us a program on butterflies!
The Business Meeting will follow her program.

Lodging information is provided below.

I look forward to seeing you all in the BEAUTIFUL Ouachita
Mountains in April! !

If you have questions or need assistance, contact:

Brent Baker

btb2001 @hotmail.com

479-970-9143

Lodging;

Sun Country Inn
1309 Hwy 71 N
Mena, AR 71953

479_394_7477

Toll free at:

1-877-394-7477

www.suncountrvinn.com

This is the newest motel in Mena. It is just a couple blocks
from RMCC on the main highway (71). Coming from the
north on Hwy 71 , it will be on the left a little before the first
stoplight (see directions to RMCC) or on the right a little past
the stoplight if you are coming from the south. We have 20
rooms reserved here at a discount rate of $59 plus tax (13%).
This rate is for 2 people per room; each additional person is
$6 extra. You must mention ANPS to get this rate and must
reserve by April 10. Pets are not allowed at this one.

Limetree Inn

804 Hwy 71 N

Mena, AR 71953

479-394-6350

Toll free at:

1-800-536-4366

www.limetreeinn.com

6

This is an older motel, although it has had some remodeling.
The standard rate is $59 plus tax (13%) for a double room (2
people). It is also on the main highway (71) just a few blocks
from RMCC. Coming from the north on Hwy 71, it is on the
right immediately past the first stoplight (see directions to
RMCC) or on the left immediately before the stoplight coming
from the south. Small pets are allowed.

Budget Inn
1018 Hwy 71 S
Mena, AR 71953
479-394-2400

This is an older, smaller motel, and is a little cheaper.
However, it is across town from RMCC on Hwy 71 South.
Standard rates run in the lower to mid- $40 range plus tax.

For those of you who like to camp or stay in cabins, a few
possibilities are listed below (there are numerous other
possibilities, some of which can be found at
www.gomenaarkansas.com) :

In Memory

Two former ANPS members were not included in the
recent Memorial Issue of the Claytonia and deserve
special recognition here. Oralee Price of Drasco and
Gwen Barber of Russellville both died recently.

Oralee was a long-time ANPS member and led field trips
in the Greer’s Ferry lake area, including more than one
to Big Creek Natural Area. She and her husband found
the globally rare ovate-leaf catchfly at this site and
documented it for the Arkansas Natural Heritage
Commission. Oralee ’s family requested that interested
people might make donations in her name and friends
and family sent a total of $300 to the ANPS. Thanks to
all of them for their generosity in Oralee ’s name.

Queen Wilhelmina State Park

3877 Hwy 88 West (13 mi. west of Mena on Rich Mountain)
Mena, AR 71953
479-394-2863
Toll free at:

1-800-264-2477

www.queenwilhelmina.com

Tent sites (starting at $9/night) and RV sites ($17. 50/night) are
both available and can be reserved. In addition to campsites,
the lodge offers rooms as well, with a double running about
$ 82/night.

Wolf Pen ATV Campground
559 Polk 61
Mena, AR 71953
479_394_0404
www.wolfpenatv.com

Tent, RV sites as well as cabins available.

Renegade Ranch
3680 Hwy 88 East
Mena, AR 71953
479-394-3848

Tent sites ($5/night) and RV sites ($ 12/night) are both
available. Cabins are also available.

Shadow Mountain RV Park

3708 Hwy 71 South (6 mi. south of Mena)

Mena, AR 71953

479_394_3494

www.shadowmountaincampground.com

Gwen was also a long-time member of the Society. She
worked recently at the Arkansas Tech University
Herbarium, going through the entire collection
confirming the identifications on the specimens for the
Arkansas Flora Project. Her work in this capacity went a
long way toward keeping erroneous reports out of the
upcoming Flora Project publications. She did her
masters thesis on the Flora of Franklin County, Arkansas
and was a member of the Arkansas Vascular Flora
Committee.

Both of these fine long-time members of the ANPS will
be missed. Our thoughts are with their families.

7

ARKAN SAS N ATI V E PLAN T SOa ETY
FALL 2005 GENERAL MEETING MINUTES

Barbara Little moved that the minutes from the Spring
2005 meeting be accepted as they appeared in the
Claytonia. Don Culwell seconded and the minutes were
unanimously approved.

Barbara announced that the auction on Friday night
brought in $1,764.00. She passed out the financial report,
noting one correction. The current balance was
$21,506.12, totaled among all funds. Jean Crone moved
that the financial report be accepted. Gene Ford seconded.
All agreed.

Eric Sundell gave a report on the status of the Arkansas
Flora Project’s upcoming Checklist of the Vascular Flora
of Arkansas, saying that the final touches were being put
on the checklist now by staff at the U of A Fayetteville
Herbarium and Dr. George Johnson of Arkansas Tech.

The new checklist will be very different from the ones in
Ed Smith’s Atlas and Annotated List of the Flora of
Arkansas (1988) and his Keys to the Flora of Arkansas
(1994), with many new species added and some omitted
(on the basis of erroneous reports). Eric said he hoped that
two more years of work would get the new Atlas out.
Several people asked if the checklist would be available
online. Eric said not immediately. Mary Ann King
pointed out that the existing online version of Ed Smith’s
Atlas (on the Texas A & M Bio informatics website) will
conflict with the new effort and suggested that this be
brought up at the next Arkansas Flora Committee Meeting.

Burnetta Hinterthuer reported that the Executive Board is
exploring ideas of what the Society will do to memorialize
Carl Hunter and asked the membership for ideas. Carl
Slaughter asked that people send in writings for the
memorial issue of the Claytonia. Theo Witsell said that
only two pieces had been received so far. Jason Anders
remarked that this is an issue to memorialize any member
of the Society who has passed on. Jason said the deadline
is Thanksgiving.

Jason reported that Society member Lou Burrows had
died.

Eric said he wanted to formally thank Jason for writing the
second obituary for Carl Amason that appeared in the
Araknsas Democrat-Gazette. Many members echoed this
sentiment and said that it did a good job of setting the
record straight after an earlier obituary characterized Carl
as a recluse (not true!).

Theo reported that, due to financial and time constraints,
the Claytonia would come out twice a year, not four times
as has been the goal.

Thera Lou Adams pointed out that the mailing list needs
cleaning up, having a number of deceased persons still on
it. Eric asked that if anyone knew of a deceased person
still on the list (see the new directory), they should please
let him know.

Burnetta said that the Executive Committee will meet in
January and get the issue of a memorial for Carl Hunter
and Carl Amason worked out. For now, donations in Carl
Amason’ s name will be set aside. It was reported that the
Louisiana Native Plant Society had sent $200 in memory
of Carl Amason. Eric reported that he had also received
several donations in his name.

Burnetta said that she will take over as chair of the
Scholarship Committee with Eric Sundell and George
Johnson on the Committee. She will report on the
committee’s activities at the Spring Meeting. The
Nominating Committee is seeking a nominee for Vice
President for when Brent Baker rotates into the President
Elect position.

Jason reported that the Executive Committee voted to take
the proceeds from the auction, which normally go into the
Aileen McWilliams Scholarship Fund, and put them into
the General Fund to be sure there were enough finances to
publish the next Claytonia and cover other expenses. This
was voted on and approved. Jason also noted the need to
vote on the amended bylaws as published in the last issue
of Claytonia. Mary Ann moved to approve them as
published. Jason seconded. It was approved unanimously.

Thera Lou announced that Carl Amason’s property was
now owned by his nephew, who needs help in identifying
plants in Carl’s gardens. She asked that anyone who could
help in this effort call Carl’s number and offer to come
down and help. She suggested that we pick a date and
offer to send a team down to help. The date was discussed
and set for October 29, 2005.

Jason Anders moved to adjourn. Jean Crone seconded.

Respectfully submitted,

Theo Witsell (Acting Secretary)

Classifieds

application form for the camp are at www.arbirds.org or
folks can e-mail Liz Fulton, the Executive Director, at
efulton@aristotle .net or phone her at 501.663.9380.

Invasives Species Field Guide Needs Help from ANPS
Members — Jude Jardine is still working on updates to the
Invasive Species Field Guide. She needs good photos of a
number of common exotic invasive plant species. For a
list of images needed, please contact Jude at
ikiardine@netscape.com or call 501.676.5535.

Announcements

Botanical Training Center Workshops

The Institute of Botanical Training is offering a number of
plant identification classes throughout the Midwest in 2006
which will cover a variety of topics. Classes this year will
take place in MO, IL, IN, KY, OH, MI and WI. Workshop
topics include: Wetland Flora, Advanced Wetland Flora,
Midwestern Flora, Ozarks Upland Flora, Prairie Flora,

Tree Identification and "Grasses, Sedges and
Rushes". Workshops are 3-4 days long, depending on the
topic and take place primarily in the field. These classes
are perfect for people who need to hone their botanical
skills for professional purposes, or for serious amateur
botanists.

The 2006 Workshop Schedule and detailed information is
posted on their website at www. botan vtrain in g. com . To
register for a course or if you have questions, please call
317-430-6566. Participants who register before April 1,
2006 will receive $50 off the price of a class.

New Website Featuring Arkansas Plants and Scenic
Images

ANPS member Craig Fraiser has launched a website that
features some outstanding photos or Arkansas plants,
waterfalls, and other impressive scenery. You can visit the
site and post comments at http://www.pbase.com/cmf46 .

Audubon Ecology Summer Camp

The Arkansas Audubon Society is sponsoring an Ecology
Camp for 1 1 and 12 year old kids at Camp Clearfork west
of Hot Springs in the Ouachita Mountains. This summer’s
camps, each 6 days, will run June 11-16 and June 18-23.
Great facility, great food, great great staff, and great great
great experience for kids. More information and

Audubon Arkansas Natural History Workshops

The Arkansas Audubon Society is also sponsoring adult
natural history workshops in the fall at Femcliff
Presbyterian Camp just west of Little Rock. There will be
two to three workshops, each running Friday noon to
Sunday noon, Oct. 6-8, 2006. Dr. Eric Sundell will be
teaching a tree identification workshop for beginners and
intermediates. Dr. Jim Edson will be offering a geology,
rocks & minerals, and land forms workshop with evening
activities on monarch butterflies (Jim is also the monarch
coordinator for Arkansas and does a lot of butterfly
banding, larvae raising, milkweed growing, and monarch
watching work with school kids). There may be a third
workshop on insects. Folks interested in attending should
contact Barry Haas at bhaas@sbcglobal.net . Each
workshop will have room for 12 participants and will
include board and for folks from the hinterlands, motel-
type rooms at Femcliff. The food and accommodations are
excellent.

Arkansas Flora Project Memorials

A donation was made to the Flora of Arkansas Project in
memory of Lou Burrows from Don Crank.

Yellow honeysuckle (Lonicera dioica). Photo by John Felton

Oh, take me home to Arkansas,
Where redbuds bloom,

Where the streams flow clear.

I have a bond with Arkansas,
And when my days are done,

I’ll die in Arkansas.

- Song by Bill Shepherd

9

UPCOMING EVENTS & FI ELD TRIPS

April 1st 10:00 a.m. Johnson Pear Farm/Round
Mountain. South of Fayetteville on Hogeye Road. Meet at
9:30 a.m. at the U of A Baseball Field on Razorback Road, just
south of Hwy. 16, and we will car pool or follow the leader to
the site. This site is now an Ozark Regional Land Trust site; a
group has formed to explore environmentally-sound housing
and land-use options for a portion of this land. The group is
hoping to identify species that are rare/endangered and those
that are invasive. Call Burnetta at 479-619-4394 for further
information or if you are interested in volunteering with the
group in identifying plants.

April 7th & 8th Arkansas Academy of Sciences Meeting at
Lyon College in Batesville. For more information see
www.lvon.edu/webdata/groups/science/aas 2006/ .

April 22nd 7 p.m. Prairie Mole Cricket Count on Chesney
Prairie, Siloam Springs, AR. For the past three years, Joe
Woolbright has invited ANPS members to help count prairie
mole crickets on Chesney Prairie. The success of the count is
always dependent on the weather and varies from year to
year. If you are interested, please give Joe a call at 479-427-
4277 the week before the 22nd to make arrangements and for
directions on where to meet. You will get to see this amazing
prairie that Joe has helped restore as well as many early
wildflowers. Last year, the shooting stars were resplendent.

April 28-30th Mena, Arkansas. State ANPS Meeting. Rich
Mountain Community College. See detailed info elsewhere in
this issue.

May 13 th 10:00 am. Trip to Larry Buford’s property near
Taylor, Arkansas. Larry will lead this trip to see his collection
of trees and shrubs. Larry has 85 kinds of oaks on his place as
well as many more unusual trees and a large collection of
daylilies. Directions: from Magnolia, take 371 south to
Taylor. Continue south 6 more miles to the Welcome
community sign (note: this is almost in Louisiana). Turn left
onto Columbia County Road 21 . Larry’s house is the second
one on the left. Give Larry a call at 870.859.4786 so he knows
how many to expect.

May 20th 10:00 a.m. "Hole in the Rock" - Bill McNamara
will lead us to Hole in the Rock. This natural area is located
near the Sweden Creek Natural Heritage site. Park opposite
the Elkhom Road at the Elkhorn Church parking lot which is
just north of Hwy. 21, across from the Sweden Creek road that
leads to Hole in the Rock. We will meet there and carpool to
the site. Please contact Burnetta at 479-582-0317 so she can
get a head count.

in Garland County on May 27 th at 10:00 am. The hike will be
on trails and is easy walking. The site has yellow lady slippers,
green trilliums, wild ginger, pawpaw, etc. It also features a
shale glade. Meet at the Castleberry Store at the intersection of
Hwy 7 and Hwy 298. Bring a lunch. Contact Susan Hooks for
more info or to reserve a spot. 501 .321 .5323 or email:
shooks@fs.fed.us .

May 27th 10:00 a.m. Zee Reader purchased land in the King's
River drainage that she is hoping to preserve, perhaps as a
wildlife refuge. The land has a large cedar glade,
bottomland fields, and fronts a tributary of King's
River. Perhaps we will find earleaf gerardia habitat on the
glade; this is a species we found two years ago at Saunders
Heights in Berry ville. If coming from Fayetteville or points
west, meet at Pine Mountain Village parking lot in Eureka
Springs at 9:30 a.m. and there will be a guide to follow to
site. PMV is just past the intersection of Hwys. 23 and 62
about 1/4 mile on the left. If coming from the east, meet at the
Frontier Outpost, a convenience store that is just west of
Berryville city limits. A guide will meet you there. Zee and
Steve Smith will give us a tour of the property. Call Burnetta if
you have further questions 479-619-4394.

June 10th 10:00 a.m. Field Trip to the Shortleaf Pine -
Bluestem Ecosystem Restoration Area, Ouachita National
Forest, near Waldron, AR. Bring a sack lunch, water and
comfortable hiking shoes.

The pine-bluestem project is an ongoing effort by the
USDA Forest Service to restore a once widespread habitat in
the Ouachita Mountains. The project area includes approx.
200,000 acres in western Arkansas and eastern Oklahoma.

This habitat consists primarily of shortleaf pines and mixed-
species hardwoods, in open stands, with the openness obtained
by thinning harvests and maintained with prescribed burning.
This is habitat for the Red-cockaded Woodpecker, a Federally-
listed Endangered species, plus numerous other plants and
animals that require the open, sunny conditions of woodland
habitat. The flora is highly diverse and includes showy species
like pale-purple coneflowers, rare insects like the Diana
fritillary, and many species typical of Tallgrass Prairies.

Meet at the Forest Service office in Waldron at 10 AM.
The office is located just off the intersection of US 71 and 248
at Waldron. Note the sign at this intersection. The office is
visible in the southwest corner of the intersection. If you are
traveling on 71, turn West on 248, travel no more than one
block, and make the first left turn onto the drive to the Forest
Service office.

For additional information about the pine-bluestem
project, contact Forest Service biologist Joe Neal 479-637-4174
(Waldron) or 479-521-1858 (Fayetteville).

May 27 th 10:00 am. Moccasin Creek Field Trip. Susan
Hooks will be leading a field trip to a site on Moccasin Creek

10

BOOK REVIEWS

The Orchids of Lovell Hollow and Heartsong Retreat
Center: An Enumeration and Description of the Wild
Orchids of Lovell Hollow in Newton County, Arkansas

Text and photos by Olin Karch

This fiill-color 29 page booklet
features very detailed
treatments of 14 species of
native orchids that the author
found and photographed in
Lovell Hollow adjacent to the
Upper Buffalo River in
Newton County, Arkansas. It
is extremely well done, with
beautiful photographs (three or
more per species) showing
various parts of each plant.

The treatments include
common and latin names, blooming period, range maps
(by both state and county within Arkansas), habitat,
description, ecology, history of use, and natural history.
Also includes a nice introduction with general information
about orchids, a chart showing in which months the
foliage and flowers of each species can be seen, and an
index.

A must for anyone interested in Arkansas’ orchids!

Copies are available from the author for $15 postpaid.
Write to Olin Karch / HC 62 Box 826 / Deer, AR 72628
— Reviewed by Theo Witsell

The Terrestrial Natural Communities of Missouri
(Revised 2005 Edition)

By Paul W. Nelson

Hardcover. 567 pages. 300
color plates. Produced by the
Missouri Natural Areas
Committee. Available from the
Missouri Department of Natural
Resources. Cover price =

$29.98, plus $6.00 s&h. Call 1-
800-334-6946 or download an
order form at www.mostateparks.com/
termatcom order.pdf .

This remarkable update of the 1985 book by the same
name is one of the most exciting and comprehensive
works on the ecology and native plant communities of the
region. Ever. Without a doubt, this will be the bible of
ecologists and land managers in Missouri for years to
come. It is applicable to much of Arkansas as well, not
only the Ozarks and the Mississippi Alluvial Plain, which
we share with Missouri, but to other areas as well. It also
explains a lot of the principles of conservation planning,
ecological land management, and ecological restoration
that are being adopted by state and federal agencies and
private conservation organizations.

Chapters include Biogeography of Missouri, Ecological
Management, Conservation Goals and Planning, and
Describing Terrestrial Natural Communities. There is also
a lengthy bibliography, a detailed glossary, and five
appendices including a key to the natural communities.

A total of 85 types of 9 different general communities are
described in detail. The general communities, followed by
the number of types of each, are: Forest (15 types),
Woodland (18 types), Savanna (6 types), Prairie (12
types), Glade (5 types), Cliff/Talus (11 types), Stream
Edge (3 types), Wetland (13 types), and Cave (2 types).

As an example, under the general prairie community, the
following types are treated: 1) dry loess/glacial till prairie,
2) dry-mesic loess/glacial till prairie, 3) mesic loess/glacial
till prairie, 4) dry limestone/dolomite prairie, 5) dry-mesic
limestone/dolomite prairie, 6) dry-mesic chert prairie, 7)
dry-mesic sandstone/shale prairie, 8) prairie swale, 9) sand
prairie, 10) hardpan prairie, 11) wet-mesic bottomland
prairie, 12) wet bottomland prairie.

For each general community (e.g. forest, savanna, etc.),
there is a discussion describing the general character and
structure of the community, natural and manmade
disturbances, threats, protection and management, and
animals (from bison to ants), Each community type entry
includes a section on vegetation description, physical
characterization, natural processes, dominant plants
(canopy, understory, shrubs and vines, herbaceous layer,
even lichens for some communities!), characteristic plants,
plants restricted to the community (if any), community
variation and subtypes, associated natural communities,
presettlement distribution and size, representative sites,
status, threats, and management considerations. There are
also color maps showing the range and abundance of the
type in Missouri.

11

BOOK REVIEWS

This book includes a wealth of historical data outlining
the effects of human activities on the landscape from
prehistoric times to today. Nelson draws on all the
available evidence, from studies of pollen profiles in
the soil to tree growth ring and fire scar analysis to
archaeological evidence, to document and explain the
changes in plant community structure and composition
in the region.

Perhaps the most impressive thing about this book,
aside from the staggering amount of information and
detail, is the wealth of excellent color photographs and
artwork! These, combined with an abundance of color
maps, charts, and tables, make this a very well-
illustrated volume. — Reviewed by Theo Wits ell

Editor’s note: Two books with the same name have come
out in recent years on the subject of Ozark wildflowers, and
it seemed like a good idea to review them together. Thanks
to Bill Shepherd for doing the bulk of the careful work of
reviewing these.

Ozark Wildflowers: A Field Guide to Common Ozark
Wildflowers. DonKurz.

1999. Falcon Publishing.

Introductory matter. 355
species illustrated with color
photographs by the author,
another 84 species
discussed. 262 pp.

Softcover, $19.95.

and Ozark Wildflowers:

An Ecological Guide to
Flowering Plants in the
Region. Thomas E.

Hemmerly. 2002.

University of Georgia Press.

Introductory matter.

Illustrated with "more than
250" color photographs, all
but one of them by the author. "More than 600 species "
differentiated in text. 240pp. Softcover, $24.96.

We are lucky to be living in affluent times, a day when
collections of beautiful wildflower portraits can be published
in books that address the floras of states already well covered
by earlier field guides that were themselves well illustrated
with color photographs. We are referring, in particular, to
the book by Carl G. Hunter that covers Arkansas wildflowers
and those of Edgar Dennison and Bill Summers covering
Missouri wildflowers. Neither of the two new books
reviewed here was truly needed in the sense that people

needed their predecessors.

But that's all right. If a book gives pleasure and is
instructive, no further reason for publishing it is required.

One would hope, however, for accuracy in information. And
that goal is unequally achieved by the two authors.

The reader of the Hemmerly tome gets fair warning that
there are going to be problems when he reads in the second
sentence of the Author's Notes that the Jot-em-down Store of
old-time radio duo Lum and Abner was set in "Pine Bluff,
Arkansas." (As many will recall, the fictitious general
merchandise store was located, not in Pine Bluff, but in the
fictitious village of Pine Ridge , a name that eventually was
assumed by a hamlet in Polk County in order to cash in on
the fame that the imaginary town acquired.)

To be charitable, we wonder if Hemmerly originally had
another title in mind for his book, perhaps with a wider
geographical focus, and that his publisher suggested the title
that was finally used. Unfortunately, the final product fails
in several particulars to measure up to the promise of the
title, perhaps because too little time remained for revising the
contents to conform with it. Though Hemmerly uses an

extremely broad definition of
the "Ozarks," a definition that
encompasses the Ouachita
Mountains, his book still
includes a few plant species
that can't be considered part
of the Ozark flora even by
Hemmerly' s expanded
definition (e.g. silky camellia,
known in Arkansas only from
Ouachita County, and two-
wing silverbell, known in
Arkansas only from Lafayette
Co., both counties located
entirely in the West Gulf
Coastal Plain).

While both books are remarkably free of typographical
errors (though the Hemmerly opus misspells Spiraea twice
on p. 152 and again on p. 153), Hemmerly does manage to
make several errors of plant identification. These are worth
pointing out, lest they mislead the unwary.

• The photograph on p. 59 supposedly representing
foxglove beardtongue ( Penstemon digitalis) portrays another
white-flowered species of that genus.

• Similary, the plant labeled on p. 95 as the common
meadow parsnip ( Thaspium trifoliatum) is actually hairyjoint
meadow parsnip (T. barbinode ) and the " Coreopsis palmata

12

" on p. 99 is actually C. grandiflora.

• On p. 105 a species of green eyes ( Berlandiera sp.) is
misidentified as ashy sunflower (Helianthus mollis).

• And the common bluestar "Amsonia tabernaemontana"
on p. 183 is shining bluestar (A. illustris) instead.

• More seriously, the plant identified on p. 207 as the
harmless false nettle ( Boehmeria cylindrica ) is, in fact, wood
nettle ( Laportea canadensis ), a nettle that can cause
considerable pain when its leaves or stems touch human skin.

Hemmerly’s loose grasp of Arkansas county geography shows
on p. 134, where he puts Jefferson County in the "Ozarks,"
and on p. 1 52, where the central Arkansas population of
steeple-bush is placed in the Ozarks "near the Arkansas
River." (It is entirely within the West Gulf Coastal Plain.)

What is Hemmerly talking about on p. 68 when he states that
"the genus Prunus includes native Ozarkian trees called cherry
and peach ' [emphasis added]? A native peach? Certainly
news to us!

Such gaffes should have been corrected before the book went
to press, and could have been if an appropriate specialist or
two had been asked to review the material at the right step in
the production process. One wonders who the "two
anonymous reviewers" mentioned in the acknowledgments
might have been, as they appear to have been poorly chosen
and let so many inaccuracies slip by.

The photographs in both books will please regardless. Both
volumes were printed in Korea, and the quality of the color
reproduction does the Korean printing firm or firms credit.

All the more remarkable because the photographers
presumably were not present in the printing plant(s) and thus
were unable to critique and adjust the color balance as the
pages rolled off the press.

Both Kurz and Hemmerly organize their books according to
flower color rather than by plant family. While this
arrangement sometimes frustrates those who prefer to group
families together, each book has a good index, so everyone
should be able to find what they are looking for.

A quick look at the numbers presented at the head of this
review will indicate that the potential book buyer can get more
for his or her money by choosing the Kurz work. One
explanation is the increasing cost of publication; so the earlier
volume costs less. On the other hand, Kurz limits his scope
strictly to the Ozark Mountains as that region is commonly
understood, so his book does not deal with species that
distinguish the Ouachitas.

But isn’t it great that there is so much interest in our native
flora! We’d raise no objections to publication of even more
books on the subject. — Reviewed by Bill Shepherd and Theo
Witsell.

Arkansas Native Plant Society Membership Application

Please check the appropriate box below.

Membership Categories:

$10 Student

$15 Regular

$20 Supporting

_ $25 Family Membership

$30 Contributing

$150... Lifetime Membership (55 and over)

$300... Lifetime Membership (under 55)

New Member

Renewal

_ Address Change

NAME(S)

ADDRESS:

Street or Box

City

State Zip Code

Telephone - -

Email address

Please cut and send this form along with any dues to:

Eric Sundell, Membership ANPS
114 Briarcliff
Monticello, AR 71655

13

Please check your mailing label! If
your mailing label has an 05 or earlier
it is time to renew!

Life members will have an LF.

Please fill in the information form on the
opposite side of this page and send it with your
renewals, applications for membership, changes
of name, address, email, or telephone numbers to
the address given on the form: [Not to the
editor]. Thank you.

The purpose of the Arkansas Native Plant Society is to promote the preservation, conservation,
and study of the wild plants and vegetation of Arkansas, the education of the publicto the
value of the native flora and its habitat, and the publication of related information.

CLAYTONIA

Theo Witsell, Editor
219 Beechwood St.
Little Rock, AR 72205

anpsclaytonia@yahoo.com

PLEASE SEND SUBMISSIONS/ SUGGESTIONS TO:
219 Beechwood St. / Little Rock, AR 72205
anpsdaytonia@yahoo.com

2005-2006 ANPS OFFICERS

President

Jason Anders

j ason. anders@aeroj et. com
870-836-0452

President Elect

Brent Baker

btb200 1 @hotmail . com

479.970.9143

Vice President

Linda Chambers

Lindachamb3ers@yahoo.com

501.918.3083

Treasurer

Barbara Little-Schoenike

pogrilittle@yahoo.com

870.935.6905

Secretary

Judith Jardine

jkjardine@netscape.com

501.676.5535

Awards & Scholarships

Burnetta Hinterthuer
bhintert@nwacc . edu
479.582.0317

Membership Chair

Eric Sundell
sundell@uamont. edu
870.367.2652

Editor

Theo Witsell

anpsclaytonia@yahoo.com

501.614.8465

CLAYTONIA

Newsletter of the Arkansas Native Plant Society

Vol. 26 No. 2

Fall/ Winter 2006

New Checklist of the Vascular Plants
of Arkansas Available

In this issue:

President’s Greeting
page 2

Carl Amason Award Given
Page 3

Scholarship Awards
Page 4

Ouachita Blazing Star
page 5

Fall Meeting Info
page 6

Spring Meeting Minutes
page 8

Eric Sundell Retires
Page 9

New Members
Page 9

Events, Reid Trips, &

Announcements
Page 1 0

Book Reviews
Page 1 1

After much anticipation, the new Checklist
of the Vascular Plants of Arkansas will
officially be available on September 1 1 ,

2006. The checklist, compiled by the
Arkansas Flora Committee after an
extensive inventory of more than 250,000
herbarium specimens from Arkansas,
documents the 2,896 kinds of vascular
plants known to occur outside of
cultivation in Arkansas.

This work replaces the list appearing in the
second edition of Dr. Ed Smith’s Atlas and
Annotated List of the Vascular Plants of
Arkansas, which was published in 1988
and has long been out-of-print and
unavailable. Smith’s A tlas, while a great
resource, is incomplete, based primarily on
the collection at the U of A Herbarium at
Fayetteville with data from only partial
inventories at selected other in- state
herbaria. This new checklist is the first based on a comprehensive inventory of all in-
state herbaria, as well as the University of Louisiana at Monroe, where the extensive
Arkansas collections of Dr. R. Dale Thomas and a number of his graduate students
reside. Each name appearing in the checklist is vouchered by at least one herbarium
specimen.

In addition to the inclusion of 427 plants not included in Smith’s Atlas, the new
checklist brings the Arkansas flora up to date with modern, accepted taxonomy and
classification of plant families and genera. Also, the list is annotated to show whether
or not each plant is native, invasive, endemic, or of conservation concern. It includes
introductory material with a history of Arkansas botany and an appendix listing the state
species of conservation concern with their state and global conservation status ranks.
There is also a comprehensive index to names, including synonyms used in Ed Smith’s
Atlas and his Keys to the Flora of Arkansas (1994), as well as helpful tips for finding
species that are in different families than those that people are used to.

Big taxonomic changes users will notice since Smith’s books include: 1) the splitting up
of the genus Aster into the following genera: Symphyotrichum, Eurybia, Doellingeria,
and Ionactis, and 2) division of the Liliaceae (lily family) into 14 families: Agavaceae,
Alliaceae, Amaryllidaceae, Asparagaceae, Colchicaceae, Hemerocallidaceae,

Checklist of the Vascular
Plants of Arkansas

Arkansas Vascular Flora Committee

Hyacinthaceae, Hypoxidaceae, Liliaceae, Melanthiaceae,
Nartheciaceae, Ruscaceae, Smilacaceae, and Themidaceae.
Fortunately, all this is covered in the index so you’ll be able to
navigate these changes without a lot of hassle.

Funding and other support for the project (including field
work in under-collected counties) was provided by the
Arkansas Native Plant Society, the Arkansas Natural Heritage
Commission (an agency of the Department of Arkansas
Heritage), the Ouachita National Forest, and the Arkansas
Game and Fish Commission.

This checklist lays the foundation for the upcoming Atlas of
the Vascular Plants of Arkansas, which will provide county
level distribution maps for each species on the checklist. Data
collected from specimens examined for the checklist are being
entered into a database which is being used to generate the
county level distribution maps at the U of A Herbarium at
Fayetteville.

Copies are available for $22.50 postpaid from: Coordinating
Office / Arkansas Vascular Flora Project / University of
Arkansas Herbarium / Biomass Research Center 141 /
University of Arkansas / Fayetteville, AR 72701 / ATTN:
Johnnie L. Gentry. All shipments will be sent book rate via
US Postal Service. Make checks payable to the University of
Arkansas Herbarium for the AVF Checklist.

A DISCOUNTED RATE OF $20.00 POSTAGE PAID WILL
BE OFFERED TO ALL ANPS MEMBERS . — Theo Witsell

President’s Greeting

As I write this, the hot wind blows across the Serengeti and a
pack of wild dogs barely stirs amid the dry brush at noon
time. No, wait. That's just my two dogs on the front
lawn. Dry, dry, dry, and I don't just mean my humor.

Still, even in the grips of scattered drought in Arkansas, it is
ever interesting to be observing the transition of the native
landscape as it adapts to a changing climate, be it a short term
fluctuation or a long term trend. Some species buck up and
show their stuff under the added pressures of the shift to arid,
while other reveal just how narrow is their hold on life in
Arkansas. No doubt this is stressful for many to behold and
contemplate, and there may not be "solutions" to the changes
we are perceiving about us, but we can observe and make
helpful notes that can benefit conservation and preservation in
recording characteristics of our native species.

On a more human scale, it has been a blur of a year for me as
president. How do Bush, Clinton and the rest ever get
anything done in four year terms, much less a one year? In all
seriousness, I guess it's not reasonable to expect some huge
change in the ANPS in one officer's term, and we want
sustainability and reliability along with progress, so we press
on.

That brings me to an actionable point. Our Nominating
Committee has done a fine job of securing a nominee for
Treasurer and for Membership Chair, but as yet, we are still
without a Vice-President nominee. I am disappointed to
report that this has become a trend in the Society over the last
several years. Many members may assume that a total
membership of over 300 means that there is a large pool of
potential workers in the Society, but that may be
misleading. Of the total number, there are several institutional
memberships, several out of state, and then several who are
unable to attend the meetings. This leaves a smaller core of
active members to do the work of advancing the worthy goals
of the Society. That may mean moving up the ANPS in the
priorities ranking, or considering rotating back in a former
officer. My appeal is not a hand-wringing or an alarm, but
from my experience over the last 20 years as a member, this is
a growing concern in terms of viability. As an advocate for
the causes of education, preservation, and conservation of
Arkansas' native plants, I am not ashamed to ask for help in
our endeavor. Please consider what you might be able to do to
make the Society a more effective organization.

The Executive Board just met in early August for the third
session of the year, and there are several ongoing activities to
report:

1) The Society continues to work toward placing a copy of
one of Carl Hunter's books in each of Arkansas' more than 200
public libraries. The cost will be over $5,000 even with a
generous discount off the cover price. As we work to find a
possible corporate partner, we are again resuming our
application for charitable status as a 501 (c)3 organization for
tax purposes. Of course, we don't want to rely solely on
getting outside donations, but we simply don't have the means
in our Operating Fund to underwrite this large project before
year end. This may mean we are not able to complete this
goal until somet im e in 2007.

2) The Carl Amason Conservation Award to Mary Alice Beer
is scheduled for presentation at a special gathering in late
September. There is a separate article on this elsewhere
within the Claytonia.

3) The creation of a bank of slide and/or a Powerpoint
presentation for a Speakers Bureau on native plants is still
underway, and we hope to have an example in hand at the Fall
Meeting in Russellville.

4) Brent Baker has done great General Meeting preparation
again and we are slated to meet at Dardanelle State Park
Visitors Center at Russellville on October 20-22.

5) Unpaid memberships limit the Society's ability to fund
Ecology camps, grant scholarships, print newsletters, fund
special projects like The Flora of Arkansas, etc. If your
address label on this newsletter has a '04 or '05 on it, please
renew soon.

6) The annual plant auction is great fun and is our only
primary fundraiser other than memberships. Please plan to
bring seeds, plants, books, fresh persimmons, garden

2

Carl Amason Conservation Award
Given to Mary Alice Beer

paraphernalia, preserves, old spells used to kill wisteria, or
whatever you think would sell. If you just can't find anything to
donate, bring your pocketbook! It's a great cause and always
great fun.

7) The Society is again printing color brochures to use in
promoting new membership. There will be copies available at
the Fall Meeting.

Finally, I want to thank the Society for giving me the
opportunity to serve this year. It is always an honor to be
associated with people who value botany, ecology, beauty,
simplicity, complexity, folk history, and good company. I hope
to see all of you at Dardanelle.

Jason Anders , ANPS President

A Personal Note From the
President Beet

Hello! First of all, I want to thank everyone for a wonderful
Spring Meeting in Mena! I really appreciate everyone who
assisted, gave presentations, led hikes, and all those who
attended probably one of the wettest meetings in ANPS
history! ! ! Thanks so much for taking the rain in stride!
(Speaking of rain. . .does anyone know where I can buy a
drop??! ! I don’t know about all of you, but the drought and heat
have not been kind to plants at my house this summer! !)

I also want to thank everyone for their compassion and
sympathy when I received news of my grandmother’s passing
that Saturday evening. I also received numerous cards and notes
from ANPS members the next week. They were all very lovely
gestures. Thank you.

The Awards and
Scholarship Committee
and the ANPS Board of
Directors are pleased to
announce that the 2006
Carl Amason
Conservation Award is
being given to Mary
Alice Beer of Fairfield
Bay, Arkansas. Mary
Alice was chosen
because of her longtime
commitment to the
conservation of native
plants and their habitat,
for her contributions to
our scientific knowledge
of the Flora of Arkansas,
and for her public-
mindedness and
dedication to sharing her
knowledge and love of
the native flora, all of

which she has done on

her own and on a volunteer basis. Among her accomplishments
and contributions are the preservation and maintenance of the
Terrace Glade Preserve in Fairfield Bay (Van Buren County),
her monitoring of rare species in her area, and her collections of
thousands of plant specimens for the U of A Herbarium at
Fayetteville.

Mary Alice points out an interesting
plant behind her house at the Fall
2004 ANPS meeting. Photo by Clint
Sowards.

In regards ,to the Fall Meeting, we’re meeting a little later in the
year than we typically have been in the recent past. I received
quite a few requests for a slightly later meeting and was
originally aiming for early to mid-October. However,
circumstances and conflicts pushed the meeting to the third
weekend in October. I hope this is acceptable to the
membership and we shall see how things go. Your feedback, as
always, will be much appreciated. At least maybe it will be
cooler (hard to imagine at the moment with the forecast for the
next few days showing 100 plus degrees! !)

I look forward to seeing you all in Russellville!

Sincerely,

Brent Baker
ANPS President Elect

When Mary Alice first walked into what would eventually
become the Terrace Glade Preserve, a three acre sandstone glade
adjacent to a condominium complex in Fairfield Bay, it was so
beautiful she thought she was trespassing in someone’s flower
garden. At the time, the glade was owned by Fairfield Bay and
was being used as a dump for construction debris and other
trash. Mary Alice got some “no dumping” signs erected and
petitioned the Fairfield Bay Community Club to formally
protect the glade. She then built and has continued to maintain a
system of trails through the preserve, doing much of the work
herself but occasionally hiring help at her own expense. She
regularly visits the glade with her loppers, controlling invasive
brush and vines and keeping the habitat suitable for the sun-
loving glade and woodland species. She led an excellent field
trip to the glades for the ANPS at the Fall 2004 meeting. In
addition to her work at the Terrace Glade Preserve, Mary Alice
has created (and maintains) a lengthy trail along a creek on
common land behind her home called the “Beer Run Trail”. She
also maintains the Indian Rock and Lost Horse Canyon Trails in
Fairfield Bay and helps out with the River Trail at Shirley.

3

Mary Alice began her plant collecting efforts for Dr. Ed Smith
(now retired) of the U of A Herbarium at Fayetteville in 1988.
For five years, she collected thousands of specimens from
Cleburne Independence, Searcy, Stone, and Van Buren
Counties which she pressed, dried, and sent to Dr. Smith along
with locality and collection data. These specimens filled many
gaps in our knowledge of the flora of these counties and are a
valuable part of the permanent collection of the U of A
Herbarium. Van Buren County, for example, went from 65 th
to 17 th out of the 75 Arkansas Counties in the number of
documented species as a result of her collecting. She still
collects and has also sent detailed data on populations of
species of conservation concern in her neck of the woods to the
Arkansas Natural Heritage Commission. She has faithfully
monitored the rarest of these species on an annual basis,
reporting her counts back to the ANHC.

Well known in Fairfield Bay for her nature column “Come
Walk With Me” in the weekly paper, and for never heading
down a trail without her ever-present loppers, Mary Alice is a
missionary for conservation. She is listed at the Chamber of
Commerce as a contact for anyone interested in nature at
Fairfield Bay. She has offered to take anyone on a hike
anytime, anywhere in her area and has made a number of great
friends in the process. She led several field trips at our Fall
2004 meeting at Greers Ferry and opened her home to
everyone during that meeting.

She doesn’t shy away from confrontation when necessary
either; as is evident from her recent tangles with City Hall over
plans to “enhance and beautify” the view from the dining room
of the Country Club (at the expense of trees along her beloved
Indian Rock Trail). These trees are close to her heart because
she personally identified and tagged some of them and created
a trail guide to interpret them. She is also active in the
Audubon Society and is an active birder.

Mary Alice is a retired professional cellist who moved to
Arkansas in the mid 1980s after contracting environmental
illn ess and multiple chemical sensitivity, a condition she
developed after being poisoned from an accident that occurred
during the installation of cellulose insulation in her home in
Iowa. Her doctors agreed that her only hope at leading a semi-
normal life would be to move to an area with a clean
environment away from major industries, automobile exhaust,
or agricultural areas with high concentrations of pesticides,
herbicides, and fertilizers. Thus the relocation to Fairfield
Bay. While her ability to travel and attend ANPS meetings is
severely limited by her chemical sensitivity, she continues her
work behind the scenes.

The Carl Amason Conservation Award carries with it a
monetary award of $1,000.00 to be used as the recipient sees
fit. Mary Alice tells us that she will use the money to hire out
some heavy work (large brush clearing and trail maintenance)
at the Terrace Glade Preserve, among other things. If you are
in the Fairfield Bay/Greers Ferry area, stop by and walk the
Terrace Glade trails or give Mary Alice a call and let her know
you appreciate her efforts. A brief award ceremony is
scheduled for Saturday, September 30 at the Terrace Glade
Preserve. Call Theo Witsell at 501.614.8465 for more
information.

Scholarship Committee Announces
Winners for 2006

The ANPS Scholarship Committee (Eric Sundell, George
Johnson and Bumetta Hinterthuer) reviewed eight applications
for scholarships this spring. Seven scholarships were awarded
to students who are involved in studying Arkansas flora. The
eighth applicant, a very impressive candidate with a very
worthy project, was not awarded a scholarship as her studies
were involved with rainforest flora which is out of the country.
Our mission is to provide monies for work either inside the
state of Arkansas or in surrounding states with similar
ecosystems.

Recipients of the Delzie Demaree Research Grant were Brent
Baker, who is finishing his Master’s work at UCA with Dr.
Don Culwell, and Robert McElderry, who is beginning his
master’s work at the University of Arkansas with Dr. Johnnie
Gentry. Each was awarded $500. Also working at the U of A
Herbarium with Dr. Johnnie Gentry, graduate students Carey
Minteer and Marisa Williams were awarded $250 each for
their work on the invasive plants spotted knapweed ( Centaurea
stoebe ) and beefsteak plant ( Perillafrutescens ), respectively.
Jeremy Whisenhunt, who is beginning his Master’s work at the
University of Arkansas, was awarded a $200 grant. He will be
joining Carey in the spotted knapweed project.

Aileen Williams Scholarships in the amount of $300 each were
awarded to Rebecca Fry who is studying at UAFR and Kerri
McCabe who is a student at UCA.

We were very fortunate to have so many qualified applicants
this year and hope that ANPS continues to be able to award
scholarships for such important studies. If you wish to make
donations to either of the scholarship funds, be sure to indicate
this on your check or in a letter. Thank you for your support
of Arkansas flora scholarship . — Bumetta Hinterthuer

Eastern columbine (Aquilegia canadensis) can be found in
Arkansas on moist, rocky bluffs and outcrops in the Ozarks
and Ouachitas. Photo by John Felton.

4

PLANT OF THE ISSUE: OUACHITA BLAZING STAR

Ouachita blazing star (Liatris compacta). A species endemic
to the Ouachitas and to Arkansas. Photo by John Pelton.

naked eye. But once you know you have a multi-
stemmed plant with a single (or perhaps a few) flower
heads near the tip, the following key should be all you
need to tell if you have L. compacta or L. hirsuta :

la. plant hairy, at least in the inflorescence or

on the margins of the leaves L. hirsuta

lb. plant essentially hairless (except the lobes
of the petals L. compacta

Another bonus of recognizing L. compacta at the species
level is that now we don’t have to worry about having
two very different Arkansas species with nearly identical
names: Liatris squarrosa and Liatris squarrulosa. That
was confusing. True L. squarrosa, as it turns out, is not
known from Arkansas.

Of the ten species of Liatris known to occur in Arkansas,
there is one that is all our own. Known formally as
Liatris compacta (Torr. & A. Gray) Rydb., it has been
called by a number of common names, most notably the
Ouachita Mountain blazing star or the Arkansas
gayfeather. In the past, this species was treated in the
Arkansas literature as Liatris squarrosa (L.) Michx. var.
compacta Torr. & A. Gray, but was recently elevated to
full species status (as L. compacta ) in volume 21 of the
Flora of North America series. It is our earliest
blooming species of Liatris, typically beginning its
flowering in May.

You can find L. compacta in the Ouachita Mountains of
western Arkansas and nowhere else on Earth. It grows
in rocky, open woodlands on ridgetops and slopes, and
on glades and bluffs of sandstone, novaculite, or shale.

It can be identified in the field by the following
characters: 1) multiple stems (sometimes 20 or more),
each typically a foot to 1 8 inches long, arising from a
large woody corm which can be nearly as large as a fist,
2) purple flowers that occur in large heads, typically one
(but sometimes several) at the end of each stem, and 3)
leaves and stem that are smooth and hairless.

The recognition of L. compacta as its own species seems
clearly appropriate. The other Arkansas species that was
recognized as a variety of L. squarrosa, L. hirsuta Rydb.
[formerly L. squarrosa (L.) Michx. var. hirsuta Rydb. ex
Gaiser)], blooms later in the summer and has a number
of obvious differences that can readily be seen with the

Liatris compacta does well in the garden and is easy to
grow from seed, which should be collected in the early
fall. Seed will need to be sown in the fall or cold moist
stratified for 60 days or so to break dormancy. Plants
typically begin flowering the second year after being
grown from seed. Clumps will grow in size each year
and will live a long time. It does best in full to partial
sun in poor, well-drained soil. It is very drought tolerant
once established and provides a spectacular early color
display. — Theo Witsell

This rocky, ridgetop glade and woodland on North Fork
Pinnacle above the Winona Scenic Drive in the Ouachita
National Forest is the typical habitat for Ouachita blazing
star. Photo by John Pelton.

5

ARKAN SAS N ATI V E PLAN T SOa ETY
FALL 2006 MEETING

OCTOBER 20-22, 2006

Lake Dardanelle State Park Visitor Center
100 State Park Drive
Russellville, AR
479.967.5516

The Friday and Saturday Meetings will be held at the Lake
Dardanelle State Park Visitor Center.

The following directions are from 1-40. For those of you
using Hwy 7 (from the north or south), you can use the 1-40
crossing as a reference point and follow the directions below
[or take Main Street (Hwy 64) from Hwy 7 (Arkansas Ave.)
to intersection with Marina Road]:

Use 1-40 Exit 81 [labeled START on the map below]. From
the west (Ft. Smith), turn right (south) on Hwy 7 at the
stoplight. For reference, Holiday Inn is immediately to your
right. From the east (Little Rock), turn left off of the exit
ramp onto the access road (Aspen Ln.). Follow to the
stoplight at intersection with Hwy 7. Turn left (south) on
Hwy 7 and cross 1-40 to the stoplight. Everyone continue
south on Hwy 7 (also called N Arkansas Ave.) less than 0.1
mile to next stoplight at intersection with Lake Lront Drive
(also called Hwy 326). Turn right on Lake Lront Drive and
drive 1.9 miles to stoplight at intersection with Parkway, Main
Street, and Hwy 64. Go straight through stoplight onto Main
Street and drive 0.2 miles to stoplight at intersection with
Marina Road (also called Hwy 326). Turn right on Marina
Road and drive 2.8 miles to the large Lake Dardanelle State

Park sign on the right [labeled END on the map below]. The
Visitor Center is at the base of the hill on the shore of Lake
Dardanelle.

Registration will be from 4:30 pm - 7 pm Friday. The
Executive Board Meeting will convene at 5:30 pm.

The Annual Plant Auction will begin at 7:30 pm. A word
about the auction for those new to ANPS and a reminder for
others: The Annual Plant Auction is one of our major
fundraisers, is held at the fall general meeting, and is
supported by donations from members and guests. Such
donations include plants, seeds, books, garden tools, botanical
prints, carved wood items, homemade preserves/jellies, crafts,
and a multitude of other items. This is always a fun and
informative event! We had a very successful auction last
year, so I challenge everyone to bring items, as well as
checkbooks, and let’s make this one even better!

Saturday hikes will be announced Lriday night. The Saturday
evening meeting will convene at 7 pm with a program
followed by the Business Meeting.

Lodging information is provided below.

If you have questions or need assistance, contact:

Brent Baker

btb2001@hotmail.com

479-970-9143

Lodging:

A full listing of Russellville Hotels/Motels can be found at
http://www.discoverrussellville.org/lodging.php . A few of
them are listed below:

Holiday Inn

Hwy 7 N and 1-40 (2407 N Arkansas Ave.)

Russelllville, AR 72802
479-968-4300; Toll free at: 1-800-465-4329

This hotel is on Hwy 7 right next to 1-40 at Exit 81 . We have
20 rooms reserved here at a discount rate of $64.95 plus tax
per night. This rate is for a single or double. You must
mention ANPS to get this rate & must reserve by October 6.
Pets are allowed with a $10 fee. Cagle’s Mill restaurant is
adjacent to the hotel.

6

In Memory

Fairfield Inn & Suites
120 East Harrell Drive
(just off Hwy 7 near 1-40)

Russellville, AR 72802
479-967-9030

Hampton Inn
2304 N Arkansas Ave.

(on Hwy 7 near 1-40)

Russellville, AR 72802
479-858-7199

Super 8 Motel
2404 N Arkansas Ave.

(on Hwy 7 near 1-40)

Russellville, AR 72802
479-968-8898; Toll free at 1-800-800-8000

Since the last issue of the Claytonia, we have received word
that two long-time members of the Society have died.

Clementine (Clemmie) Winfrey Moore of Rudy died on
March 2, 2006, at age 88. She was a pioneer of Arkansas
botany, doing extensive work throughout the state locating and
identifying all manner of plants and trees. She was a past
president of the ANPS. She and her late husband, Dr. Dwight
M. Moore, were pioneer members of the Arkansas Native
Plant Society and developed the South Arkansas Arboretum in
El Dorado, in addition to making many other important
contributions to Arkansas botany.

Motel 6

215 West Birch Street
(near Hwy 7 and 1-40)
Russellville, AR 72802
479-968-3666

Robert E. L. Bearden of Little Rock, long-time ANPS member
and nature lover, died in August. His wife Ellen, also an
ANPS member, died last year.

For those of you who like to camp, a few possibilities are
listed below:

Lake Dardanelle State Park (Russellville Area)

100 State Park Drive off of Marina Road
(same location as Visitor Center)

Russellville, AR 72802
479-967-5516

Campsites ranging from $15.50 to $22.50 per night.

Lake Dardanelle State Park (Dardanelle Area)

Hwy 22 northwest of Dardanelle
Contact info, same as for Russellville

Mt. Nebo State Park
16728 West State Hwy 155
Dardanelle, AR 72834
479-229-3655

Campsites $13.00 per night. Cabins also available (1-800-
264-2458).

Old Post Road Park (Army Corp of Engineers)

1063 Lock and Dam Road

(on Arkansas River near Dardanelle Lock and Dam)

Russellville, AR 72802

479-968-7962

Campsites $18.00 per night.

Featherfoil (Hottonia inflata) above and pinesap
(Monotropa hypopithys) below. Photos by Craig Fraiser.

1

ARKAN SAS N ATI V E PLAN T SOa ETY
SPRING 2006 GENERAL MEETING MINUTES

Rich Mountain Community College, Mena Arkansas.
April 29, 2006.

Jason opened the meeting and asked for a motion to
accept the minutes of the fall meeting as published in
Claytonia. No changes or comments were offered, the
motion was made and carried unanimously.

Jason asked for the financial report. Barbara explained
the format she used to keep financial records. Jason
asked for a motion to accept the report. No changes or
comments were offered, the motion was made and
carried unanimously.

It was announced that the fall meeting will be in
Russellville, 20, 21, & 22 of October. Details will be
published in the next issue of Claytonia.

Jason announced that Linda Chambers has accepted the
vice president office.

Jason reported progress on the Carl Hunter memorial
project’s goal of placing one Wildflower and one Tree
book in each public library. He has been somewhat
successful in obtaining corporate sponsorship for the
project. Donations can be earmarked for the project and
sent directly to the Treasurer.

The Scholarship & Awards committee announced their
selections. From the Delzie Demaree Research Fund:
Robert McEldery, UofA, $500; Brent Baker, UCA,

$500; Marisa Williams, UofA, $250; Carey Minteer,
UofA, $250; and Jeremy Whisenhunt, UofA, $200.

From the Aileen McWilliam scholarship Fund: Rebecca
Fry, UALR, $300; and Kerri McCabe, UCA, $300.

Jason discussed the Board decision to use the Amason
award to honor Mary Alice Beer.

Eric announced that the Arkansas Flora project will
publish a checklist in May. The checklist will eventually
contain an atlas.

Eric announced his retirement from the Scholarship &
Awards committee, and that Jason will be chairing that
committee until a scheduled election is held.

Theo reported progress on the ANPS brochure project.

He asked the membership to approved awarding a
lifetime membership to Michael Warriner for his work
on the brochure and lifetime memberships to Suzanne &
Ted Barnes for their continued work on the T-shirts.

Members were asked by a representative of the Ouachita
Watch League to educate ourselves on the role of fire in
forest management, and consider if the current forest
management plan is making the best use of fire in the
Ouachita Forest.

Dan Marsh offered to lead hikes that start later in the day
and move at a slower pace for those members who might
enjoy that.

It was announced that Mike Amason would welcome
visitors.

Mike Vernon mentioned the native species at the
Dardanelle State Park Visitor Center, and asked that
members recognize Brent for the work he has done on
the project. Brent reported the critical assistance offered
by state personnel and the Pope County Master
Gardeners. Mike mentioned a similar project at Mt
Nebo.

Jason asked the members to approve changes to the
bylaws that:

1 . Delete all reference to the defunct Arkansas

Conservation Coalition

2. Change Article 5 Section 1 to eliminate the offices of

Historian and Communications/Publicity
chairperson

3. Change Article 5 Section 4 to include the

Communication/Publicity chairperson’s role in
the office of Vice President.

4. Change Article 5 Section 5 to include the role of

archiving in the Secretary’s function

All changes were agreed to with no dispute.

Respectfully Submitted,

Jude Jardine (ANPS Secretary)

Dr. Eric Sundell Retires

Longtime University of Arkansas at Monticello professor
and ANPS Membership Chair, Dr. Eric Sundell, retired
from the University this summer. With this turn of events,
Eric has also passed the torch of ANPS Membership Chair
to Maury Baker of Hot Springs Village. Please note the
new address for membership renewals.

Originally from
New York City,
he taught several
courses at UAM
including
Regional Flora, a
field taxonomy
course that he
developed. He
has taught
hundreds of
students over the
years, leading
them on yearly
trips to study the
flora of the
western U.S, the
Smoky

Mountains, and
Eric auctions off a sweetbay magnolia at other places, as

the Fall 2004 ANPS meeting. Photo by well as the local
Clint Sowards. flora.

He did extensive inventory work with his classes at
Warren Prairie Natural Area, an area of saline soil barrens
in Drew and Bradley Counties known for its unique flora
and many rare species. He also recently helped the
Arkansas Natural Heritage Commission with inventory
efforts in the Pine Flatwoods Ecosystem of southern
Arkansas, helping to identify significant areas and set
priorities for conservation.

Eric is an expert on the milkweeds, and anyone who has
seen his program on milkweed pollination and ecology
knows that he is a gifted teacher and engages students and
audiences alike. Many of his students have gone on to
become conservation and natural resources professionals,
armed with an understanding and appreciation of our rich
flora. Eric has also led a number of workshops for the
public on plant identification, written many articles for the
Claytonia, served in ANPS officer positions, and led
countless field trips.

He has been a very active member of the Arkansas
Vascular Flora Committee since its inception in 2000. His
work toward the goals of this committee has included
identifying thousands of specimens of all sorts of plants
from all over the state, helping to make the new checklist
accurate and up to date. We thank Eric for his many years
of dedicated service to the ANPS and to our knowledge of
the Arkansas flora.

Eric and his wife Milanne plan to stay in Arkansas, so we
trust that his retirement means that he will have more time
to lead field trips for the ANPS!

New Members

The following new members have joined the ANPS since
the last issue of Claytonia:

Jennifer Akin (Lonoke, AR)

William Dark (Rogers, AR)

Kerri McCabe (Conway, AR)

Jean Ann Moles (Benton, AR)

Anne Prichard (Fayetteville, AR)

Elizabeth Sartain (Little Rock, AR)

Rosanna Taylor (Clarksville, AR)

Susan Whatley (El Dorado, AR)

Gladys S. Whitney (Little Rock, AR)

Brent & Katie Williamson (El Dorado, AR)

We welcome these new members to the Society!

Prairie rose (Rosa setigera) is one of several species of rose
native to Arkansas. It can be found in prairies , glades, open
woodlands, and on bluffs in upland areas of the state. Its
flowers are typically bright pink. Photo by John Pelton.

Upcoming Events

October 6-8 Audubon Arkansas Natural History Workshops
(see announcements).

October 7 Natural State Expo. Little Rock Statehouse
Convention Center (see announcements).

October 20-22 Arkansas Native Plant Society Fall Meeting in
Russellville, Arkansas. See detailed info elsewhere in this
issue.

November 11 Ozark Chapter ANPS (OCANPS) annual
meeting/trip. Meet at Buffalo Lodge, ca. 4 miles west of
Jasper and south of Hwy. 74, right before the Kyles Landing/
Camp Orr road to the north, at noon. Bring a sack lunch and
we will eat lunch, then hike the Buffalo River Trail from Ponca
to Steel Creek (we will arrange for a shuttle) if the weather
permits! Returning to the cabin, we will hold our business
meeting, eat a potluck dinner, and have the plant
auction. Following, those who wish can go into Jasper
to watch the musical entertainment at Ozark Cafe where
donations are taken for local charities. Those who wish can
plan a hike for Sunday morning after breakfast. Please call
Burnetta at 479-582-0317 for a total count. The lodge plus
bunkhouse can hold up to 24 people. Since OCANPS pays for
the deposit, we anticipate each individual will pay ca. $20 for
the night's stay.

Announcements

New Forest Service Wildflower Website — The Forest
Service has produced a “Celebrating Wildflowers” website
which gives information on wildflowers and activities relating
to wildflowers all over the country. The website can be
accessed at www.fs.fed.us/wildflowers/ . A link to this site
will be posted on the ANPS website at www.anps.org.

Invasives Species Field Guide Needs Help from ANPS
Members — Jude Jardine is still working on updates to the
Invasive Species Field Guide. She needs good photos of a
number of common exotic invasive plant species. For a list of
images needed, please contact Jude at ikiardine@netscape.com
or call 501.676.5535.

Audubon Arkansas Natural History Workshops — The

Arkansas Audubon Society is also sponsoring adult natural
history workshops in the fall at Ferncliff Presbyterian Camp
just west of Little Rock. There will be two to three workshops,
each running Friday noon to Sunday noon, Oct. 6-8, 2006. Dr.
Eric Sundell will be teaching a tree identification workshop for
beginners and intermediates. Dr. Jim Edson will be offering a

geology, rocks & minerals, and land forms workshop with
evening activities on monarch butterflies (Jim is also the
monarch coordinator for Arkansas and does a lot of butterfly
banding, larvae raising, milkweed growing, and monarch
watching work with school kids). There may be a third
workshop on insects. Folks interested in attending should
contact Barry Haas at bhaas@sbcglobal.net . Each workshop
will have room for 12 participants and will include board and
for folks from the hinterlands: motel-type rooms at Ferncliff.
The food and accommodations are excellent.

Natural State Expo — The ANPS will have a booth at the
first-ever Natural State Expo, to be held October 7th from 9 am
to 4 pm at Governor's Hall #1 in the Statehouse Convention
Center in Little Rock. You can check out their website
at www.naturalstateexpo.org . The focus of the event will be
on sustainability and sustainable development, which they
define as “ development that meets the needs of the present
without compromising the ability of future generations to meet
their own needs”. This fits right in with our mission promoting
the conservation of native plants. The ANPS will be one of
more than 50 exhibitors at the expo, where attendees can shop
for eco-friendly products and participate in discussions on
sustainability topics such as food, water, shelter and energy.

The expo will also include children’s activities and educational
opportunities. The entrance fee is $1.00. Drop by the ANPS
booth and say hello or call Theo Witsell at 501-614-8465 if
you’d like to volunteer to staff the table for a while. For more
info on the event itself, contact Katy Elliott at 501.837.7959 or
email naturalstateexpo@vahoo.com .

Lizard’s tail (Saururus cernuus) is a common
plant of wetlands throughout much of
Arkansas. Photo by John Felton.

10

BOOK REVIEWS

Steyermark’s Flora of Missouri Volume II
By George Yatskievych

1181 pages. Hardback. $48.00 plus $8.88 s&h. Missouri
Botanical Garden Press.

Julian Steyermark’s
Flora of Missouri
has long been held
up as the shining
example of what a
state floristic
manual should be.
Since I began my
study of plants in
the mid 1990s,
Steyermark’s book,
already long out-of-
print, was the
standard against
which all others
were measured.

I Aside from obvious
j availability
|| problems (on the
j rare occasion
that a copy

became available it was likely to fetch as much as $300 on
eBay), the original, first published in 1963, had become badly
out-of-date. In the 43 years since, a lot has changed
taxonomically and much important floristic work has been
done in Missouri, documenting many species new to the state
and expanding the known range and knowledge of many more.
Steyermark’s Flora clearly needed revision. To address this
need, the Flora of Missouri Project was formed to expand and
update Steyermark’s Flora.

Updating Steyermark’s single volume opus has turned into a
three- volume project that is now in its 18 th year. But good
things come to those who wait. The quality of the product is a
testament to the talent, time and resources that have gone into
it. Volume I, published in 1999, treated the monocots,
pteridophytes, and gymnosperms, leaving the dicots to be split
among volumes II and III. Volume II treats the dicot families
in alphabetical order, from the Acanthaceae (petunias and
relatives) through the Mimosoideae and Caesalpinoideae
subfamilies of the Fabaceae (legume family). Subfamily
Faboideae will follow in Volume III.

The species accounts are among the most detailed of any
floristic manual in North America, providing a detailed
description of every part of each plant (a feature lacking in

Steyermark’s original) as well as information on each species’
blooming period, range (county maps showing the range within
Missouri with written descriptions of the global range), habitat
needs, varieties or forms described, synonymy, and more.

The revised edition features entirely new artwork and includes
considerably more species illustrations than the original. 193 full
page plates are included in volume II, each with 5 or 6 species
illustrated by crisp, clear, well-reproduced technical line drawings
(example below). Everything is easy to see and important features
for identification are shown. Many of these illustrations are of
significantly better quality than those in the original. For the most
part, the illustrations, all of which are superb, are large enough to
do the artwork justice and provide the reader with a good look at
the important characteristics of each species. Incidentally, ANPS
member Linda Ellis illustrated the entire Asteraceae (sunflower
family) in beautiful and accurate detail. Unfortunately not every
species in the manual is illustrated, though nearly all are.

The keys function very well. In addition to some casual use over
the past month in the field, I recently sat down with some known
specimens of asters and goldenrods (two difficult groups) from the
Ozarks and Mississippi Alluvial Plain and ran them through the
keys. I found the keys to be accurate and efficient and did not
encounter any roadblocks or frustrating ambiguities (aside from
those inherent in identifying asters and goldenrods). The
Asteraceae (the largest family in the flora) is divided into and is
arranged by Tribes, making it a little easier to digest and handle.

Sample illustration from Steyermark’s Flora of Missouri Volume II .
Arnoglossum atriplicifolium (pale Indian plantain ). Art by Linda Ellis.

11

BOOK REVIEWS

The exclusion of the Subfamily Faboideae of the legumes from
Volume II is perhaps the most frustrating thing about the book,
leaving the user with access to a few, but out of luck for most
species of the bean and pea family, eagerly awaiting the
publication of the third and last volume in the series. Users
will also occasionally be let down by a species that is not
illustrated (though not very often). Last on the list of
complaints is that there is no key to fa mi lies in Volume II (it
will appear for the entire group of dicots in Volume III).
Considering the amount of time that passed between Volumes
I and II, it would have been better to have the key to families
in volume II with “(volume III)” listed after the names of those
families that don’t appear in Volume II. Minor errors, inherent
in a project as complex and exhaustive as this, will inevitably
come to light (such as the accidental switching of Virginia
sneezeweed [ Helenium virginicum\ and autumn sneezeweed
[H. autumnale ] in the key to Helenium on page 490).

To the Arkansas user, the book will be most useful for the
Ozarks, Crowley’s Ridge, and the northern part of the
Mississippi Alluvial Plain (Delta), where almost all species
encountered also occur in Missouri. As the user travels south,
they will find that the majority of the flora of the Arkansas
Valley and Ouachita Mountains is still captured, with
noticeable gaps starting to appear in the Gulf Coastal Plain.

This work is of the highest quality and George Yatskievych
has done himself and the late Julian Steyermark proud with
this excellent reference to the flora of Missouri and the region.
The price is almost unbelievable. An enormous value for a
book of this caliber and size. Volume I (introduction, ferns &
fern allies, gymnosperms, and monocots) is still available as
well. Copies are available from the MBG Press Orders /
Missouri Botanical Garden / P.O. Box 299 / St. Louis, MO
63166-0299, or call 314.577.9534 or visit www.mbgpress.org.
— Review by Theo Witsell.

The Illustrated Flora of East Texas Volume I

By George M. Diggs, Barney L. Lipscomb,
Monique D. Reed, and Robert J. O’Kennon

1594 pages. Hardback. $89.95 plus $7.50 s&h. Botanical
Research Institute of Texas Press.

Those of us interested in the flora of southwestern and
southern Arkansas and the surrounding country have eagerly
awaited the publication of a book like this for a long time. At
last, it is here, a comprehensive reference for that rich and
diverse “hole in the map” not previously covered by modem
floristic manuals! This ecologically important region of Texas
includes 3,660 kinds of vascular plants, which is more than 2/3
of the plants known from that entire state, in just 23% of the
land area. It will take three large volumes to fully describe and

illustrate this rich flora and this monumental work is the first
of those, covering the ferns and fem allies, gymnosperms, and
monocots. A total of 1,060 plants are treated in great detail.

This book has the most in-depth and impressive introductory
material I have ever seen in a flora, covering 300 pages. There
are detailed sections loaded with color maps, photographs, and
other illustrations. Topics covered include vegetation,
ecology, geology, soils, climate, pre- settlement and early
settlement conditions, floristic origins, conservation, and
botanical
history. Each
of the major,
floristically
important
ecoregions
(blackland
prairie,
piney woods,
post oak
savannah, and
red river area)
and two
unique

botanical areas
(Caddo Lake
and The Big
Thicket) are
given their
own chapters
and explored
in great detail.

There is even
a nicely

illustrated chapter on botanical art in East Texas.

A number of features were incorporated into this book to make
it useful to non-specialists. Accurate line drawings are
included for all species. Color photos are included for nearly
200 taxa (including a number of grasses and sedges, which are
rarely represented in field guides). Taxonomic treatments of
each species include information on whether a plant is native
or introduced, invasive in natural settings, endemic, or
commercially important. Also given are derivations of generic
names and specific epithets (a really interesting and useful
feature), characters helpful in family recognition in the field,
notes on useful and toxic plants, and references to supporting
literature.

There are detailed appendices on a number of topics including
phylogeny (evolutionary relationships) at the family level,
cladistics (a current controversy/approach in taxonomy),
changes in scientific names, illustration sources, collecting
herbarium specimens, endemic species, species of
conservation concern, conservation organizations, books on
native plants, suggested native ornamentals, sources to obtain

12

native plants, native plants important to wildlife, butterfly &
moth host plant information, commercially important timber
trees (with 2-page species accounts with range maps, color
photos of wood, bark, & live plants), and botanically related
internet resources. There is a lengthy, illustrated glossary, and a
very impressive literature cited section with more than 4,000
references.

Throughout this work, it is clear that the authors have taken
pains to make it usable by non-experts. While it is technically
accurate and scientifically robust, it is not overly packed with
baffling jargon and explains concepts well in common English.
Another feature that I found useful is that the range maps
provided for each species cover the distribution in the entire
state of Texas, not just East Texas. This allows the user to see
important distribution patterns within the state and infer them
over a broader geographic area.

To test the keys, I sat down with a stack of specimens of known
sedges and grasses from southwest Arkansas and keyed them
out. I found the keys to be accurate and efficient to use. Fans of
the taxonomic arrangement of the caric sedges ( Carex spp.)
according to Sections may be disappointed, as these are not
presented in the keys nor in the arrangement of the species
descriptions, though the Section of each species is given in the
respective species accounts. Similarly, the grasses are not
divided among the Tribes, but arranged alphabetically by
scientific name. Tribes, however, are given in each genus
description.

Aside from top-notch attention to accurate information and
technical detail, this manual is absolutely beautiful. The
introductory material is packed with photos, maps, and

paintings, many of them in full color. Layout is visually
appealing and the book is easy to use. The amount of
information presented is almost overwhelming, but it is
packaged into discrete sections, providing an encyclopedic
volume of pretty much everything one would ever want to know
about the flora of the region. This book is large and heavy, not
the sort of thing to carry into the field in your backpack (unless
you are training for some athletic event).

The most frustrating thing I found with the book is the small
size of the illustrations (typically about 2 by 3 inches). Details
are sometimes obscured by the reduction to that small size. I
also wonder if this volume shouldn’t have been divided into two
smaller volumes. The large size and weight make it a little
difficult to maneuver the book. It’s not a problem when sitting
and reading it by itself, but something quickly noticed when
keying out a stack of plant specimens using several manuals and
switching between them on your work space. It is also a bit
large for comfortable bedside reading. Confining it to one
volume, however, no doubt keeps the cost down.

These minor complaints aside, this is an absolutely incredible
reference. It has clearly raised the bar in terms of quality,
comprehensiveness, and appearance in a floristic manual and is
a bargain for the price, especially considering the cost of
academic textbooks with a fraction of the information presented
here. Copies are available from the Botanical Research Institute
of Texas / 509 Pecan St. / Fort Worth, TX, 76102-4060, or call
817-332-4441. An order form can be accessed at http://
www.brit.org/sida/PDF/ETF PDFOrderForm.pdf . The
Illustrated Flora of North Central Texas (a single volume) is still
available as well . — Review by Theo Witsell

Arkansas Native Plant Society Membership Application

Please check the appropriate box below.

Membership Categories:

$10 Student

$15 Regular

$20 Supporting

$25 Family Membership

$30 Contributing

$150... Lifetime Membership (55 and over)

$300. . . Lifetime Membership (under 55)

New Member

Renewal

Please make checks payable

A , j to “Arkansas Native Plant

_ Address Change society”.

NAME(S)

ADDRESS:

Street or Box

City

State Zip Code

Telephone - -

Email address

Please cut and send this form along with any dues to:

Maury Baker, Membership ANPS
29 Pandilla Way

Hot Springs Village, AR 71909-7121

13

Please check your mailing label! If
your mailing label has an 05 or earlier
it is time to renew!

Life members will have an LF.

Please fill in the information form on the
opposite side of this page and send it with your
renewals, applications for membership, changes
of name, address, email, or telephone numbers to
the address given on the form: [Not to the
editor]. Thank you.

The purpose of the Arkansas Native Plant Society is to promote the preservation, conservation,
and study of the wild plants and vegetation of Arkansas, the education of the publicto the
value of the native flora and its habitat, and the publication of related information.

CLAYTONIA

Theo Witsell, Editor
219 Beechwood St.
Little Rock, AR 72205

anpsclaytonia@yahoo.com

PLEASE SEND SUBMISSIONS/ SUGGESTIONS TO:
219 Beechwood St. / Little Rock, AR 72205
anpsdaytonia@yahoo.com

2005-2006 ANPS OFFICERS

President

Jason Anders

jasonanders@earthlink.net

870-836-0452

President Elect

Brent Baker

btb200 1 @hotmail.com

479.970.9143

Vice President

Linda Chambers

Lindachamb3ers@yahoo.com

501.918.3083

Treasurer

Barbara Little-Schoenike
pogrilittle @ yahoo .com
870.935.6905

Secretary
Judith Jardine
jkjardine@netscape.com
501.676.5535

Awards & Scholarships
Burnetta Hinterthuer
bhintert @ n wacc . edu
479.582.0317

Membership Chair

Maury Baker

mbbaker@cox.net

501.922.6077

Editor

Theo Witsell

anpsclaytonia@yahoo.com

501.614.8465