Calendar of Events Field Trips, page 4 Sunday, March 3, 2:00 - 4:00 p.m., Bird Trail, Chabot Regional Park, Oakland Sunday, March 24, 2:00 p.m., San Pedro Valley- County Park on the slopes of Montara Mountain Sunday, April 7, 2:00 p.m., Mitchell Canyon Trail, Mount Diablo State Park Native Here Nursery, page 5 March 1, 8, 15, 22, 29 (Fridays): 9 - noon March 2, 9, 16, 23, 30 (Saturdays): 10 - 1 April 5, 12, 19, 26 (Fridays): 9 - noon April 6, 13, 20, 27 (Saturdays): 10-1 East Bay Chapter Board Meeting March 6, 7:30 p.m., home of Charli Danielsen CNPS Says Vote YES on EBRPD Measure K The Board of Directors of the CNPS East Bay Chapter supports a YES vote on Measure K, the $12 per year parcel tax measure that will help maintain and protect the extraordinary natural areas of our East Bay Regional Parks. Our Regional Parks receive fourteen million visitors* per year! We do use our parks and derive great benefit, enjoyment and solace from them; we need to make sure we don’t use them up. CNPS-EB is working actively with the EBRPD to assure that the rich biodiversity of our Regional Parks is adequately protected and managed — your YES vote on Measure K will provide the added resources required to pursue this critical protection. *In comparison. Grand Canyon National Park receives five million visitors annually. Membership Meeting, see below Garden Room, Orinda Library Wednesday, March 27, 7:30 p.m Chapter Plant Sale Activities, page 5 March 5, 12, 19, 26 (Tuesdays), 9:00 a.m. - 2 p.m. Native Plant Restoration Team, page 5 Saturday, March 2, 9:30 a.m. Saturday, April 6, 10 a.m. Saturday, May 4 East Bay Regional Parks Botanic Garden Plant Sale, page 5 Tilden Park, Saturday, April 20, 10:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m. Membership Meeting Mariposa Lilies and Friends Speaker: Stephen Lowens Wednesday, March 27, 7:30 p.m. Garden Room, Orinda Library To see a World in a Grain of Sand And a Heaven in a Wild Flower Hold Infinity in the palm of your hand And Eternity in an hour — William Blake, from Auguries of Innocence The genus Calochortus has in it some of California’s most aristocratic flowering bulbs ... I find that the rather questionable epithet “Swell” appears oftener in my notes on Calochorti than in those on any other genus.) — Lester Rowntree, from Hardy Californians To celebrate the beginning of spring, Stephen Lowens, an avid wildflower watcher and amateur photographer and a long-time member of the Marin chapter, will take us on a visual tour of the genus Calochortus in California and beyond. His slide show/lecture presentation will feature virtu- ally all known species of the genus that grow in continued on page 2 Membership Meeting continued jrompoge 1 the United States. While California has the highest number of species and the most rare species, interesting things happen beyond our border. Utah, you know, has a Calochortus as its state flower, and it also has the most aromatic Calochortus. Steve will also present a brief history of the tax- onomy of the genus, as well as general descrip- tions and maps of where the species grow. This will be an evening for feasting on the beauty of the flowers — technical detail will be kept to an absolute minimum! East Bay CNPS membership meetings are free and open to everyone. This month’s meeting will again take place in the Garden Room of the Orinda Public Library at 24 Orinda Way in Orinda Village. The Garden Room is on the second floor of the building, accessible by stairs or elevator. The room will open at 7:00 p.m., and the meeting begins at 7:30 p.m. Refreshments will be served after the meeting. CNPS books and other publica- tions will be on display and available for purchase. Please contact Sue Rosenthal, 510-496-6016 or rosacalifornica@earthlink.net if you have any questions. Directions to Orinda Public Library at 24 Orinda Way: From the west, take Highway 24 to the Orinda/ Moraga exit. Turn left on Camino Pablo (toward Orinda Village) , right on Santa Maria Way (the signal after the BART station and freeway entrance), and left on Orinda Way. From the east, take Highway 24 to the Orinda exit. Follow the ramp to Orinda Village. Turn right on Santa Maria Way (the first signal) and left on Orinda Way. Go one short block on Orinda Way to the parking lot on the southeast side of the new 2-stoiy building on your right. There is additional free parking beneath the building as well as on the street. From BART (four blocks) : As you leave the Orinda station, turn right and cross a pedes- trian bridge, then cross a second pedestrian bridge on the left. Go one short block on the sidewalk to the third pedestrian bridge. Go two blocks on Orinda Way to the Orinda Libraiy. Upcoming Programs April 24, 2002 Tom Bruns: Mycorrhizal interac- tions with native plants. May 22, 2002 Deborah Rogers: Biological expe- dition to Guadalupe and Cedros. Sue Rosenthal Plant Communities Wanted! Wetland and Grassland Information Vegetation is a good indicator of biological richness (the number of organisms) and the diversity of environmental conditions in the landscape. Con- servation of our native flora through vegetation types is efficient and provides for the greatest long- term viability when done at an ecosystem level using vegetation to identify biological richness. Yet our understanding of the nature and diversity of plant communities, or vegetation types is far behind our understanding of the taxa of which they are comprised. Because vegetation in the East Bay is diverse and describing all of it is a daunting task, we are focusing on wetlands and grasslands. effort. This data will give us a better idea of the diversity and distribution of these plant communi- ties in our chapter. The information we compile will be useful for conservation planning, focusing restoration efforts, and providing informed com- ments on EIRs regarding vegetation. We are looking for grassland or wetland sites that have integrity (i.e. are relatively undisturbed by hu- mans and have a large proportion of native spe- cies), are unusual, or are extensive. In addition to native perennial grasslands, we are interested in sites that may not support native perennial grasses but have native forbs. Please write or call me regarding locations of East Bay wetlands and grasslands (or any other vegetation type you think is interesting) , or if you are interested in helping with data collection. The vegetation committee is compiling information on locations of East Bay wetlands and grasslands in preparation of a data collection and description 2 Susan Bainbridge Northwest California Rare Plant Conference The conference on rare plant ecology and manage- ment hosted by the North Coast Chapter of CNPS at Areata from Feb 6 th to 8 th was outstanding. The focus was on species found in northwest California and southwest Oregon. Talks and posters were presented on themes ranging from rare plant ecology to management, restoration, rediscovery of “lost” populations, monitoring methods, and overviews of rare species within particular regions. Several talks focused on particular species, such as Cypripediumfasciculatum, Liliiim occidentcde, Howellia aquatilis and Erysimum menziesii ssp.eurekense. The Howellia was rediscovered in California recently for the first time since its origi- nal collection by Alice Eastwood. It is related to Downingia and other members of the Lobelioid section of the Campanulaceae and was inadvert- ently omitted from the Jepson Manual. Other talks focused on the complex nature of threats to rare plants, including development, changes in grazing regimes, legal and bureaucratic issues, and genetic swamping by hybridization with inva- sive exotics. A speaker from the Berry Botanical Garden in Oregon explained the important contri- bution that seed banking and horticulture can make as an “insurance policy” for the basic sur- vival of our rarest species and for genetic conser- vation of disjunct populations. About 160 people attended the Conference. Holly Forbes and I were present from the East Bay Chapter Board. Holly, along with Ellen Simms and Richard Henderson, represented the UC Botanical Garden, Berkeley. Brent Mischler and Bruce Baldwin were invited speakers from Berkeley’s UC/Jepson Herbaria. Brent gave a provocative talk about the limitations of the Lin- naean system of taxonomy and the need for new methods for assessing diversity. Bruce spoke about the role of molecular systematic methods in defining new populations and “cryptic” species that warrant conservation, using the Tarweed Alliance as example. A local rarity that he dis- cussed is Deinandra bacigcdupi, known only from grassland near Livermore. The genus Deinandra is a segregate from Hemizonia, and the plants near Livermore have only recently been fully recognized (through Bruce’s research) as a distinct species. If they had not been studied by careful systematic methods, they might have been destroyed before they were recognized as unique. A panel discussion was held after the formal presentations, using questions from the audience as topics. The consensus was that, despite our best efforts, major challenges to plant conserva- tion lie ahead. One example of the complexity of the issues concerns grazing. A speaker who had worked with Lilium occidentale explained that when a government agency establishes an ecologi- cal reserve on land that was formerly private, it is frequently very difficult to arrange the limited grazing that may be needed to maintain the exist- ing plant community. This is in part because a complex official process must be gone through to ensure the perception of fairness when allowing private cattle owners to put cows on public land. In addition, because of the costs of moving cattle, it is difficult to have cows on public reserves for a brief period of time when they do not belong to the owners of adjacent or nearby ranchland. Posters included one on lichen conservation and one (from me) on rare ferns of NW California. Other posters demonstrated the tremendous richness and detail of our flora, especially in the northwest of the State. After the meeting, alter- nate field trips took participants to the Lanphere- Christensen Dunes reserve on the coast, or inland to private lumber company land to see emerging leaves of the rare Montia howellii and a small but healthy patch of the club-moss fern ally Lycopo- dium clavatum. Since this is a pteridophyte I had not previously seen inside California, I naturally chose this trip. The next day, Holly, along with me and some others, observed another rare Californian club-moss, Lycopodiella inundata, at Big Lagoon. This conference established the North Coast Chapter as the clear leader in Rare Plant Conser- vation within CNPS. The hard work of the orga- nizers paid off in excellent attendance by many individuals from consulting firms, government agencies, academia, and neighboring CNPS chap- ters. This kind of energy and enthusiasm is a model for what is needed elsewhere. Currently, it seems that plants that are “spoken for” and worked on by an individual, a CNPS chapter or an agency are the ones most likely to survive, and perhaps this model can eventually be applied to all our species. John Game 3 Cypripediumfcisciculatum, an uncommon orchid photo- graphed in the Siskiyou Mountains by John Game Desert Field Trip The CNPS Desert Issues Group will gather for a field trip and meeting on April 19-21 at Joshua Tree National Park. We will be camping at the Lost Horse Campground, reserved especially for our group. We will have field trips, some weeding if there are weeds, and a meeting (Saturday late afternoon and evening) . The meeting is to discuss what role a CNPS Desert Issues group should play in the new CNPS structure and how we should coordinate given the advent of a Mojave Chapter and the resurgent vitality of the Riverside /San Bernardino Chapter. Also, this would be the time to discuss issues on which we would like to see CNPS policies written, or anything else you’d like to discuss relating to CNPS and the desert. Tentative agenda: Friday, April 19, 8:00 a. m.: Meet at Big Morongo Wildlife Preserve for bird watching and a nature walk. At around noon we will leave Big Morongo and drive into Joshua Tree NP as a caravan, stopping along the way if there are flow- ers, and then on to Lost Horse Campground to set up camp. Friday afternoon will include various hikes to survey for Monardella, and Friday night will include a night hike. Note: Lost Horse Camp- ground has a porta-potty but no water. Saturday, April 20: Caravan to hiking/weeding locations during the day. Meeting around the campfire in the evening. Sunday, April 2 1 : Drive south to Cottonwood Springs with stops on the way at various places and visit “Native Canyon” to pull weeds (if any). RSVP to naturebase@aol.com. I will send detailed instructions via email to all respondents prior to the trip. Steve Hartman - CNPS Desert Issues Chair Field Trips March 3, Sunday 2:00-4:00 p.m. Field Trip to Bird Trail, Chabot Regional Park in Oakland. This short trail (about 1/2 mile, insignificant elevation gain) is located in a transition zone between redwood forest and mixed evergreen (mostly oak/bay) forest. As a result, it is botani- cally very interesting, being particularly rich in shrubs. At this relatively early date in the season, there will be osoberry, flowering currant, goose- berries, and lots of western leatherwood in bloom, along with early wildflowers such as Trillium chloropetalum. Directions: Take Redwood Road exit from High- way 13 south (13 is Ashby Ave. in Berkeley, and is accessible form the north end of Broadway in Oakland; junction of 13 with Highway 24 in either direction is just west of the Caldecott Tunnel. Once on Redwood Road, go east, past Skyline Blvd. Look for the MacDonald Staging area on the right, just before the entrance (on the left) to Redwood Regional Park. From Castro Valley: take Redwood Road north to the MacDonald Staging Area, on the left just after the entrance to Red- wood Regional Park. Contact David Margolies (510) 654-0283, or dm@franz.com for information, or just show up. March 24, Sunday, 2:00 p.m. Field trip to San Pedro Valley County Park, on the slopes of Montara Mountain, with many interesting plants of the coastal chapparal communities. See the Spring 200 1 issue of Bay Nature for a background article on the plant communities of Montara Mountain. Directions: San Pedro Valley County Park is lo- cated at 600 Oddstad Boulevard in Pacifica. Take 1-280 south to Highway 1. Then drive south on Highway 1 through Pacifica to the Linda Mar intersection (the southernmost stoplight in Paci- fica) . Turn inland 2 miles until Linda Mar Boule- vard ends at Oddstad. Turn right and then imme- continued on page 5 4 F i e I d Tr i pS continued from page 4 diately left into the park. There is a parking fee that must be paid even if the booth is not staffed. April 7, Sunday, 2:00 p.m. Mitchell Canyon Trail at Mount Diablo State Park. We will walk half a mile or so up the canyon and return the same way. Those who want more can drive to the top and take the Fire Interpretive Trail around the summit. Directions: From west of the East Bay hills, take Highway 24 east through the Caldecott Tunnel into Walnut Creek, where 24 ends at 1-680. Take 1-680 north and immediately exit onto Ignacio Valley Road. Take a right (onto Ignacio Valley Road) at the light. From east of the hills, get onto Ignacio Valley Road. Continue for several miles through open area to Clayton Boulevard. Take a right at Clayton Boulevard and to Mitchell Canyon Road (at a light). Take a right and continue to the end, where you’ll find the parking lot. Janet Gawthrop Plant Sale Activities Propagation and Potting Sessions Tuesdays: March 5, 12, 19, 26 9:00 a.m. to 2 p.m. Merritt College, Oakland Landscape Horticulture Area Rain does not cancel. Parking fee $.50 Everyone is welcome. Join us for all or part of the sessions. Spring is our busy potting time. Bring a bag lunch for the noon break. For more information call 925-376-4095 Plant Sale Committee EBRPD Native Plant Sale The annual spring sale of California native plants at the Regional Parks Botanic Garden will take place on Saturday, April 20, 2002, 10:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m. Please bring cardboard boxes, if pos- sible, to carry your purchases, and an umbrella in case it rains. Volunteers will also sell refresh- ments. The garden is located on Wildcat Canyon Road at the foot of South Park Drive in Tilden Regional Park, in the hills above Berkeley. Admission is free. For more information, call 510-841-8732 or visit the web site at www. nativeplants . org. Sue Rosenthal Native Plant Restoration Team On Saturday, March 2: join with SPAWNERS at the El Sobrante Library. Left off San Pablo Dam Road onto Appian Way; first left and first left again into the Library parking lot. Meet at 9:30 a.m. Thanks to Gudrun Kleist for hosting. Saturday, April 6, 10 a.m.: Native Here work party and planning session — bring your ideas for upcoming work party sites, events, etc. Saturday, May 4: Berkeley Waterfront with Susan Schwartz and the Friends of Five Creeks. Bring your favorite gloves or tools; we also have such to share. Call 510/840-9367 if rain is falling for a recorded update on the morning of the event. Noah Booker Native Here Nursery March 1, 8, 15, 22, 29, Fridays: Native Here Nursery open 9-noon March 2, 9, 16, 23, 30, Saturdays: Native Here Nursery open 10-1 April 5, 12, 19, 26, Fridays: Native Here Nursery open 9-noon April 6, 13, 20, 27, Saturdays: Native Here Nurs- ery open 10-1 March is a little late for planting natives in the garden or restoration site, but it is a wonderful time to walk, enjoy the earliest wildflowers, and to think about projects for the following year. As you walk, note the location of plants whose seeds might be of interest to Native Here’s seed collection group. Pass the information of what, where it is growing, whose land it is on, along to Charli, charlid@pacbell.net. The nursery renews collect- ing permits annually from some agencies, has longer term ones from others, but may need to apply to other landowners as we learn where other good seed sources may be. Seed collection will begin Tuesday, April 30 and continues through continued on page 6 5 Native Here continued from page 5 Activities of Others the year until the end of October. Watch for notices in future Bay Leafs and plan to join in. Restorationists can be thinking about needs for the fall of 2003 and getting those orders placed so we have adequate time to collect sufficient seeds. To volunteer with plant care and growing, come any time the nursery is open. 101 Golf Course Drive in Tilden Park, across from the golf course main entrance. To place orders, or to check on availability, call 510/549-0211 or FAX 520/525- 9076. Charli Danielsen Membership/Public Outreach News Spring Fairs are coming. Please save these dates. I will need helpers to greet attendees at the fairs, sharing your interest in native plants. We will have information and a game to interest people, and some native plants. Children would be wel- come. Also, I would love some assistance in creating an attractive display. I’d like to make the display a little different each year. Here are the festivals that I know about — there will probably be more. Concord and Berkeley both have Earth Day celebrations. If you can volunteer or have suggestions, please contact me, Delia Taylor, at 510 5273912 or at this e-mail: deliataylor @mac . com April 20 West County Earth Day at the Recy cling Center in Richmond, 11-3 April 20 Plant Sale Regional Parks Botanic Garden in Tilden Park April 27 San Leandro Creek Watershed Festival at Root Park, 12-4 May 5 Heather Farms in Walnut Creek May 11-12 Oakland Museum Wildflower Show Saturdays, February 16 and March 9, 16, 30, 10 a.m.: Walnut Creek Butterfly Habitat and Creek Restoration in Civic Park. We will be removing invasives, planting natives, and improving the habitat. Please contact Dann McCright (925)825- 9236. Saturday, March 16, 10 a.m. -4p.m.: The California Lichen Society will lead a field trip to the pygmy forests of Mendocino County. The pygmy forests comprise a unique ecosystem and are dominated by stunted cypress, Bolander pine and dwarfed Bishop pine. Saturday, April 13, 10 a.m.-4 p.m.: The California Lichen Society will hold a workshop for beginners in lichen identification at Room 40 1 of Hensill Hall at San Francisco State University. Bring speci- mens, and also use the teaching set of prepared lichens. Participants will learn how to section an apothecia, identify various spores, stain ascus tips, and use keys for specimen identification. Bring lunch. Two-day workshop on Kids in Gardens. Partici- pants will engage in hands-on activities to learn the skills and techniques to create healthy, low- maintenance gardens; propagate native plants for wildlife habitat; attract beneficial insects; compost yard and household waste; garden with less water, and much more. Saturdays, March 9 & 16, 2002 from 9:00 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. at Hillview Crest Elementary, Hayward & Kitayama Elementary, Union Ciiy. Saturdays, April 13 & 20, 9:00 a.m. -4:30 p.m.: at Canyon & Vannoy Schools, Castro Valley. To register, please download a registration form at www.aoinstitute.org or contact Scott Weintraub at the Aquatic Outreach Institute at (510) 231- 5655. East Bay Fire and Watershed Convention Merritt College March 15-17, (510)434-3841 Co sponsored by the Diablo Firesafe Council Funded by the California Department of Forestry A forum for a conversation between homeowners, scientists, insurance companies, firefighters, government agencies, environmental groups, traffic and safety engineers, watershed groups, institutional landholders, park users and other stakeholders for fuel management in the East Bay Hills. 6 Board of Directors President: Tony Morosco, 2329 7 th St., Berkeley 94710, 549-2238, w/528-5426, tony-morosco@calflora.org Vice President, Administration: Elaine Jackson, 3311 Estudillo St., Martinez 94553, 925-372-0687 Treasurer: Holly Forbes, 7128 Blake St., El Cerrito 94530, 234-2913, w/643-8040 Secretaries: Recording: Michele Lee, 2923 Sheldon Dr., Richmond 94803, 243-1265 Corresponding: Joanne Kerbavaz, 1709 Berkeley Way, Apt. B, Berkeley 94703, JKERB@parks.ca.gov Past President Barbara Ertter, 1859 Catalina Ave., Berkeley 94707, h/526-4592, w/ 643-0600 Advisors Members at large: John Game, 1155 Spruce St., Berkeley 94707, 527-7855 Jim Sharp, 2663 LeConte Ave., Berkeley 94709, 644-9344 Bay Leaf Editors Brett Boltz, 2210 Spaulding Ave., Berkeley 94703, h/549-3327, w/643- 0448, bboltz@uclink2.berkeley.edu Joe Willingham, 2512 Etna St., Berkeley 94704, 841-4681, pepe@dnai.com Recorded Chapter Information: 464-4977 CNPS Home Page: http://www.cnps.org East Bay Chapter CNPS Home Page: http ://ww w. ebcnps.org See the Bay Lea\ online Chapter CNPS-EB-Alerts E-mail List: Find out more; email to listserv@usobi.org with: INFO CNPS-EB Alerts All area codes are 510 unless noted Committee Coordinators Bay Leaf Mailing: Holly Forbes, 7128 Blake St., El Cerrito 94530, 234-2913, w/643-8040, hforbes@uclink4.berkeley.edu Bryophytes: Dan Norris, 802 Lexington Ave., El Cerrito 94530, 435-2004 email dhnorris@uclink.berkeley.edu Conservation: Steve Asztalos, 839 York St., Oakland 94610, asztalos1@llnl.gov Plant Communities: Susan Bainbridge, 2408 Parker St., Berkeley 94704, 548-2918 Rare Plants: Brad Olson, 4442 Arcadia Ave., Oakland 94602, 482-0794 Unusual Plants: Dianne Lake, 1050 Bayview Farm Rd. #121, Pinole 94564, 741-8066 Donations: Sandy McCoy, 1311 Bay View Place, Berkeley 94708, wbmccoy@earthlink.net Education: Elly Bade, 2699 Shasta Rd., Berkeley 94708, 644-1656 Field Trips: Janet Gawthrop, 360 Monte Vista Ave. #214, Oakland 94610, 654 3066 Hospitality: Irene Wilkinson, 440 Camino Sobrante, Orinda 94563, 925-254-3675 Legislation: Roy Buck, 848-4169, email roybuck@msn.com Membership: Delia Taylor, 1851 Catalina Ave., Berkeley 94707, 527-3912, deliataylor@mac.com Native Here Nursery: Charli Danielsen, 101 Golf Course Dr., Berkeley 94708, 549-0211, email charlid@pacbell.net Native Plant Restoration Team: Noah Booker, 6366 Valley View Rd., Oakland 94611, h/339-1588, w/840- 9367, email casartunda@aol.com Posters: Heather Koshinsky, 2033 Carquinez Ave., El Cerrito 94530, w/522- 8180 Plant Sale: Shirley McPheeters, 104 Ivy Dr., Orinda 94563, 925-376-4095 Phoebe Watts, 1419 Grant St., Berkeley 94703, 525-6614, phoebewatts@cs.com Plant Sale Publicity: Elaine Jackson, 3311 Estudillo St., Martinez 94553, 925-372-0687 Programs: Sue Rosenthal, P.O. Box 20489, Oakland 94620, 496-6016, email rosacalifornica@earthlink.net East Bay Public Lands: Peter Rauch, 526-8155, peterr@socrates.berkeley.edu EBRP Botanic Garden Liaison: Sue Rosenthal, P.O. Box 20489, Oakland 94620, 496-6016 Membership Application Name Address Zip Telephone I wish to affiliate with: East Bay Chapter (Alameda and Contra Costa Counties) Other Membership category: Student, Retired, Limited income, $20 Individual, Library, $35 Household, Family, or Group, $45 Supporting, $75 Plant lover, $100 Benefactor, $500 Life, $1000 Mail application and check to: California Native Plant Society, 1722 J Street, Suite 17, Sacramento CA 95814 7 California Native Plant Society East Bay Chapter P.O. Box 5597, Elmwood Station Berkeley CA 94705 Nonprofit Org. U.S. Postage Paid Oakland, CA Permit No. 2018 Time Value March 2002 issue