Gardening within our Means Presented by JEANETTE ALOSI Butte County Master Gardener Atmosphere River NASA n 2010, after retiring from CSU, Chico, I joined the UC Butte County Master Gardener program. At CSUC, I worked as a data analyst with J a life-long interest in graphs and charts. Climate change and the ongo¬ ing California dry period has produced a wealth of graphical information from historical charts to satellite images depicting our current conditions. I became intrigued with this information and how it related to gardening in California. We live in a “Hotspot,” the California Floristic Provence. It’s 1 of 5 Medi¬ terranean climates, all characterized by long, hot, dry summers. Yet, the landscapes we design and the plants we select are not climate appropri¬ ate. So, what does the historical climate record reveal for precipitation and temperature? How have groundwater levels changed overtime? What do these historical trends portend for our future? By understanding our climate, we can, hopefully, learn to garden within our means. DECEMBER 2016 t-k • The • Pipevme Newsletter of the Mount Lassen Chapter CALIFORNIA NATIVE PLANT SOCIETY General Meeting DECEMBER 7, 2016 Wednesday 7:00 pm Butte Couny Library, Chico Understanding our CLIMATE CENTERVILLE FLUME BUTTE CREEK CANYON December 4 Saturday Meet at Chico Park & Ride at 9 am or at the trailhead on Centerville Road (where it crosses the PG&E ditch, about a mile beyond the museum) at 9:45 am. This is one of Chico’s most delightful walks to see the last of summer’s blooms and the first of the winter ones like Manzanita, bay, mistletoe. We have recorded more than 24 species in bloom along here over the past years. Easy walking along the ditchbank but there are also occasional narrow trestles over the flume. Bring lunch and water. About 4 miles overall. Leader: Marjorie McNairn 530-343-2397 HMVfMinriM BANANA BELT UPPER BIDWELL PARK January 1 Sunday Meet at 10 am at Horseshoe Lake parking lot E with lunch and drink. Wear hiking shoes for the scramble up to the north ridge to see the first of the new year’s flowers. On- cold, clear, windless nights it is 10 degrees warmer up there (banana belt) so we have a better chance of seeing flowers. With good fall rains, we may see blue dicks, pur¬ ple mouse ears, goldfields, and some of the last Indian paintbrush and gaping penstemon. If the weather is sup¬ portive, we will lunch at an Indian rock shelter equipped with 30 bedrock mortars and running water. Manzanita flowers on the return down the park road. About 2 miles overall. Leader: Marjorie McNairn 530-343-2397 DeSable Ditch by Woody Elliott 2 . The Pipevine December 2016 WINTER BREAK THE NEXT Executive Board Meeting will be on January 18, 2017 General Meeting will be on February 1,2017 and the Pipevine will be the February issue HAPPY HOLIDAYS 1 - —. - - J NEW 2017 CHAPTER EXECUTIVE BOARD ELECTED by JIM BISHOP, Nominating Committee Chair Legislative Notes by DAVID ANDERSON FINALLY, A TREATY ON GLOBAL WARMING he Paris Accord (i. e., United Nations Framework Conven¬ tion on Climate Change) became effective on November 4, 2016. Signed by representatives of 195 nations on December 12, 2015, it has now been ratified by 100 nations, including the U.S., China and India, the biggest producers of greenhouse gas emissions. The pact is the result of many years of efforts to get agreement on the necessity and method of reducing greenhouse gas emissions and man-made global warming. It is a loose treaty which obligates parties to make the effort to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, but leaves it to each party to set its own goals. How effective this loose agreement will be remains to be seen, but at least it is a big step in the right direction. A t our November 2 General Meeting the members present elected, by unanimous motion, the Mount Lassen Chapter Executive Board for 2017. President: Vice President: Secretary: Treasurer: WOODY ELLIOTT JIM BISHOP CHRISTIAN SMIT NANCY PRAIZLER This treaty is particularly welcome in California, which has pio¬ neered legislation to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Although its impact is not fully known, there is no doubt that global warm¬ ing is a threat to many of California’s precious native plants and ecosystems. ANNIE B’S COMMUNITY DRIVE SUCCESS Members-at-large: MERYL BOND HESH KAPLAN CINDY WEINER Past President: CAT IE BISHOP We welcome new board member Christian Smit, and former board member Hesh Kaplan. And we much appreciate the con¬ tinued service of Woody, Catie, Jim, Nancy, Meryl, and Cindy. Our thanks to all of you. We fielded a functional Board for the coming year. But our President’s service is with the understanding that he is likely to move out of the area after the first half of the year. And Vice President and Past President have agreed to lead the chapter for the last half of the year. But those positions will all be open next year, so please be considering serving yourself, or offering suggested candidates. The 2018 elections will be here before we know it. Your Elections Committee: Jim Bishop, Catie Bishop, Janna Lathrop by WOODY ELLIOTT, President A nnie B’s Community Drive was again a significant success. The two-month donation window (August - September), ably administered by the North Valley Community Foundation, caused more than $4000 (including a 6.5% match from _ corporate donors) to flow into the coffers of Mount Lassen Chapter. Thanks to all of you that contributed in 2016 and past years which has enabled the Chapter to advance the appreciation and preservation of native plants and their plant communities. This is the last year of the ten-year Annie B’s Community Drive which has been a major boon to a growing number of nonprofit organizations in and around Butte County. Hopefully, North Valley Community Foundation will reengage some sort of their respected and fruitful Community Fund Drive in year 2017. Otherwise, the Chapter can make its own fund drive happen, so we don’t lose the donation habit. CHEERS to your generosity. The Pipevine December 2016 3. HOSPITALITY THANKS YOU by KARROLYNN YELLS, Hospitality Chair m ^ n m‘ f by JANNA LATHROP, Events Chair THANK YOU TABLE STAFFERS T he Mount Lassen Chapter was well represented at two local events this fall. Nancy Hawley, Letha Albright, Elizabeth Tice, Ann Elliott and Woody Elliott helped me staff our display table at the Home and Garden Show in late October. We had an information table as well as sold native plants during the Farm City Celebra¬ tion Harvest Festival on November 5. It was a picture perfect autumn Saturday with lots of families, farm animals and fun. Our booth was very successful dispensing information and selling lots of native plants. THANK YOU to our plant and seed donors and suppliers: Nancy Schleiger of Native Springs Nursery, John Whittlesey, Jim Dempsey, Cindy Weiner and Woody Elliott. I very much appreciated all the help from Nancy Praizler, KarroLynn Yells, Meryl Bond, Elizabeth Tice, Catie Bishop and Jim Bishop during the Festival meeting, greeting, selling plants or sharing their knowledge and passion for California native plants. LOOKING FORWARD TO 2017 The annual Snow Goose Festival will be January 27-29. Helpful bodies will be needed for our outreach table. Look forward to see¬ ing you then. Janna at 228-0010 orjlathrop4mlc@comcast.net T HANK YOU to Letha Albright, Meryl Bond and Janna Lathrop for bringing wonderful, delicious desserts for our General Meetings between September though December 2016. We are so lucky to have such dedicated bakers. Between February and May of 2017 there is a need for you tal¬ ented baker’s to provide goodies for one of the months General Meetings. The request for desserts notebook will be located on the Hospitality table or contact KarroLynn Yells at 534-3551 or karrolynny@att.net THANK YOU! HAPPY HOLIDAYS Maidu Medicine Talk with Wes Dempsey at the Alice Hecker Native Plant Garden, Chico Creek Nature Center. October 16, 2016 by Woody Elliott wm ALICE HECKER NATIVE PLANT GARDEN CHICO CREEK NATURE CENTER BlDWELL PARK DEC 15 JAN 17 8 -10 am Contact ANN ELLIOTT 530-521-4402 4. The Pipevine December 2016 by ANN ELLIOTT De Sabla Ditch and Flume Fall Color Walk T he De Sabla Ditch (Butte Creek Canal) dates to the gold mining era. Within it flows a portion of Butte Creek which is diverted 13 miles above and into the De Sabla reservoir. Then this cool, clear water falls to the De Sabla Powerhouse and back into Butte Creek. A dozen intrepid souls (including dog Bandita) enjoyed this walk along PG & E’s ditch and flume system on November 6. Mist and light showers with occasional spots of blue sky highlighted the evergreens and fall- colored foliage. Mushrooms and puff balls were scattered along the trails edge, a product of this year’s early storms. Another treat was California newts crossing the ditch trail toward pools of water and the opposite sex. Tree and bush identification dominated our botanizing as there were few blossoms this time of year. The forest was dominated by tan-bark oak and Douglas-fir. Splashes of seasonal color from mountain dogwood, Indian rhubarb, vine maple, black oak and big-leaf maple contrasted with their green and that of other evergreens, mainly incense-cedar and ponderosa pine. We noted the rare occurrence of expansive nurseries of California nutmeg trees along with some sizeable trees. Several dif¬ ferent mosses and ferns softened the canal edge and slopes above. I love the look of the delicate fronds of the five-fingered fern which is often seen in redwood coastal forests. Everyone enjoyed the relaxing and easy hiking. Robert Fischer and Marjorie McNarin had fun keying out one of the few blossoms found along the ditch trail, a DYC (damned yellow composite). fems along the DeSab]e Ditch by Woody Elliott NATIVE PLANT SCIENCE Happening in Our NEIGHBORHOOD W oody and I took the opportunity to learn more about the climate change research being undertaken by the U.S. Forest Service in cooperation with UCLA after hearing a talk at the September CNPS Chapter Council Meeting in Morro Bay. Two common gardens of California valley oaks from acorns (ecotypes) col¬ lected throughout California are the basis for this long-term study. One garden is at the Mendocino National Forest Chico Seed Orchard (formerly Plant Introduction Center) (200’ elev.). The other common garden is at the Institute for Forest Genet¬ ics in Placerville (1800’ elev.). The trees planted from seedlings three years ago are now being monitored as saplings. Comparisons of their physical traits among and between ecotypes in these common gardens may indicate where they may grow in the future as climate changes. In late October, Woody and I spent a Sunday in the Chico common garden with the research team. We collected leaves from 300 saplings which will be analyzed for physical traits: weight, shape, area and perimeter, as well as functional traits, such as number of stomata. A graduate student from UCLA will be doing these measure¬ ments and analyzing the results for genotypic and phenotypic variability. This may indicate which ecotypes of valley oaks may be best adapted to survive in new loca¬ tions as the climate changes. Krista Beckley UCLA and Christina Liang USFS The Pipevine December 2016 5. NORTHERN CALIFORNIA BOTANISTS to Present a SYMPOSIUM O n January 9-10, 2017, the Northern California Botanists will be presenting a two-day symposium titled “Diverse Environments: How Plants Succeed in Northern California,” to be held at California State University, Chico. The symposium will include an exciting line-up of topics ranging from soil seedbanks to Northern California botanical discoveries, a poster session, and a third day of workshops to choose from. The symposium will also include an evening reception, banquet, and keynote speaker Hugh Safford, of the US Forest Service, address¬ ing “Fear and Loathing in the Sierra Nevada: Confronting a Wicked Problem.” The symposium is open to anyone: botanical enthusiasts, professionals, and students. For a detailed program and registration information, www.norcalbotanists.org CALI^ilPC by DOUG JOHNSON Executive Director California Invasive Plant Council D EAR CNPS CHAPTERS - Thank you for sponsoring last week’s Cal-IPC Symposium! Together, your 14 chapters combined for a $5,000 Silver Sponsorship. All sponsoring chapters -- Kern, Napa, Marin, Los Angeles/Santa Monica Mountains, San Gabriel Mountains, Orange County, San Diego, Sacramento Valley, North Coast, Bristle- cone, El Dorado, MOUNT LASSEN, Santa Cruz County, and River- side-San Bernardino -- were listed on our sponsor poster and recog¬ nized before the Friday morning plenary. We had 350 attendees sharing information, ideas and connections for two days of sessions, a day of trainings and a day of field trips. The weather was perfect and field trippers visited Yosemite Valley, the Mer¬ ced River canyon, and the Sierra National Forest to learn from restora¬ tion case studies. At our awards banquet we recognized several NPS partners in honor of their agency’s centennial. (In case you don’t know, last year Cindy Burrascano of the San Diego Chapter took home our Jake Sigg Award for Vision and Dedicated Service.) We greatly appreciate your support in putting on this year’s Sympo¬ sium, as well as all the amazing work you do in your parts of the state. Here’s to continued partnership on invasive plant management and native plant conservation in the future! These businesses support the goals of the CALIFORNIA NATIVE PLANT SOCIETY MEMBERS GET 10% DISCOUNT FLORAL NATIVE NURSERY 2511 Floral Avenue Chico, California 95973-2511 Telephone,Tax: {530) 892-2511 E-mail: canalive@shoddng.com illH Heicnni?Js T Herbs Nilivc Tree 1 - jntE Shniha ■Nancy .Scbseiger Certified 'Pen uacul tuk Designer By appointment na;ivvs?rii>ginwser]i' § gmaiUpm 5?9,774.41fi2 1 l’;i nttmSgs Lrn? Durfumi. CA9.< I U8 twtivffiipringntturs cry. com • Serving Children and Adults with Disabilities i nmer ot Hth Wall Streel ■ < hko ■ 891-9100 Unique Permit inis. Annuals, Garden Art & More! LittleRedHen.org discount applies only to plants 1367 East Ave, Chico | 530.894,5410 | www.MagnoliaGardening.com 6 . The Pipevine December 2016 Officers & Chairs FRIENDS of the HERBARIUM December 3, 2016 WREATH MAKING WORKSHOP Bring a little native plant cheer into your Holiday Season. Make one or two 12-15 inch wreaths for your home or for gifts. Learn some history about wreaths and the plants they are made from. The instructors for this workshop are JENNIFER JEWELL, writer, photographer and host of the public radio garden podcast “Culti¬ vating Place” and native plant garden curator at the Gateway Sci¬ ence Museum, CSU, Chico Qjewell1@mac.com) and ADRIENNE EDWARDS, Adjunct Faculty at Chico State; botanist, ecologist and arborist (aledwards@csuchico.edu) Please register in ad¬ vance with the Friends of the Chico State Herbarium. For more information about these and other upcoming work¬ shops please contact: www.friendsofthechicostateherbarium. com/eventsviewcalendar/ For more information about registration please contact the Biology office at (530)898-5356 or chatfield@csuchico.edu MEMBERSHIP MLC If you have changed your. . . address, phone number or e-mail or leave temporarily please notify Mount Lassen Chapter CNPS Membership Chair, MERYL BOND at 707-971-9272 or merylbond@sbcglobal.net This will help eliminate returned Pipevines from the Post Office. Thank You Keep up with MLC Activities on our website and Facebook California Native Plant Society, Mount Lassen Chapter and LIKE US facebook ELECTED OFFICERS President Past-President Vice-President Secretary Treasurer Members-at-Large ( 530 ) 588-2555 WOODY ELLIOTT woodyelliott@gmail.com CAT IE BISHOP cjbishop1991@sbcglobal.net JIM BISHOP cj bi shop 1991 @sbcg lobal.net JIM DEMPSEY 868-4913 q34.lobata@gmail.com NANCY PRAIZLER 899-1333 praizlermom@gmail.com LETHA ALBRIGHT 230-9951 letha_albright@yahoo.com MERYL BOND (707) 971 -9272 merylbond@sbcglobal.net CINDY WEINER 588-1906 wildflowermaven@comcast.net JOHN WHITTLESEY 774-4955 johnccnd@gmail.com CHAIRS Conservation / Web Administrator WOODY ELLIOTT Education Events Field Trips Horticulture Hospitality Invasive Plants Membership/Mailing MERYL BOND 588-2555 woodyelliott@gmail.com OPEN JANNA LATHROP 228 0010 jlathrop4mlc@comcast.net MARJORIE MCNAIRN 343-2397 mlmcnairn@aol.com OPEN KARROLYNN YELLS 534-3551 karrolynny@att.net OPEN (707) 971-9272 merylbond@sbcglobal.net DENISE DEVINE 345-8444 dsrdevine@hotmail.com JIM BISHOP cjbishop1991@sbcglobal.net WOODY ELLIOTT 588-2555 woodyelliott@gmail.com CINDY WEINER 588-1906 wildflowermaven@comcast.net OPEN NANCY PRAIZLER 899-1333 praizlermom@gmail.com Vol. Recognition / Chapter Council Delegate CAT IE BISHOP cjbishop1991@sbcglobal.net STEPHEN OVERLOCK 892-0635 stephenoverlock@sbcglobal.net ANN ELLIOTT 521-4402 annonfire@gmail.com Newsletter Editor Programs Co-chairs Publicity Rare Plants Sales Yahi Trail CCNC Gardens mountlassen.cnps.org The Pipevine December 2016 7. MOUNT LASSEN CHAPTER CALIFORNIA NATIVE PLANT SOCIETY P O. BOX 3212 CHICO, CA 95927-3212 Nonprofit Org. U.S. Postage PAID Chico, CA Permit No. 553 RETURN SERVICE REQUESTED Time Value DECEMBER 2016 issue Phyllis would say Join Today ! MEMBERSHIP APPLICATION CALIFORNIA NATIVE PLANT SOCIETY I wish to affiliate with the Mount Lassen Chapter renew Name _ Address _ City _ State _ Zip _ Phone _ Email _ Send Membership Application to: CNPS 2707 K STREET, SUITE 1 SACRAMENTO, CA 95816-5113 mountlassen.cnps.org Student / Limited Income. $25 Individual. $45 Family / Library. $75 Plant Lover. $100 Patron. $300 Benefactor. $600 Calendar H ® 1=1 H ^ December 4 - Centerville Walk 7 - General Meeting 15 - CCNC Garden Workday NO Ex Board Meeting January 1 - Banana Belt Bidwell Park 9-10- Nor Cal Botanist Sym 17 - CCNC Garden Work Party 18 - Ex Board Meeting 27 - 29 - Snow Goose Festival February 1 - General Meeting 15 - Ex Board Meeting