All Things Botanically Related Presentation Series
Upcoming Presentations
Summary Block
Join Chico State entomologist Don Miller to learn about the distinct changes in butterfly species abundance and composition in the Big Chico Creek Ecological Reserve following the 2024 Park Fire.
Discover one of California's most extraordinary yet under-recognized landscapes, located less than 2 hours drive west and south of Chico – the Berryessa Snow Mountain region. Our speaker, Marc Hoshovsky, will help us better understand this region, why the region is so fascinating, and why it is now designated as the Berryessa Snow Mountain National Monument.
Joanna Clines will describe her work with photographer Stephen Sharnoff to produce their new book, Flowering Plants of the Sierra Nevada, featuring over 1,000 species of flowering herbs and shrubs. The book covers the entire Sierra Nevada range, from the western foothills over the crest to about 6,000 ft elevation on the east slope.
Invasive plants often outcompete co-occurring natives, in part due to higher photosynthetic capacity. However, it remains unclear whether these advantages arise from evolutionary shifts after introduction or reflect preadaptation in their native range. In this talk, Dr. Griffin-Nolan presents a large-scale home-away comparison of 27 invasive species (and 17 co-occurring native species) across temperate forest and field habitats on three continents.
UC Jepson Herbarium volunteer and researcher Vanessa C. Stevens has been organizing and curating the collection of California botanist, Mary E. Pulsifer Ames (1843-1902). Specimens in the Ames collection range from 120 to 150 years old, and include vascular plants, marine algae, and cryptograms collected in California, the continental United States and around the world. Vanessa is working to integrate this collection into the University and Jepson Herbaria, housed at UC Berkeley.
We hear about prescribed fires, forest thinning projects, and post-fire restoration projects. But how do people actually choose when and where these projects should happen? And, in a changing and much-changed world, how should we decide if they're even good or not? Wolfy will discuss the challenges, compromises, and new ways of seeing that resulted from some ecological restoration projects she took on.
Ephemeral geophytes at high elevations are only available for study for five to six weeks after snowmelt and therefore are rarely investigated. From 2009 to 2021, Hal Mackey and Rob Schlising collected life history data on the closely related Dicentra uniflora and Dicentra pauciflora in the Cascade Range of northeastern Butte County, California, through field surveys and plantings. Join us to learn how these 16 years of data have provided insights into recovery times and persistence after major forest fires.
Presented by Tawny Bolinas, 2023 Jim Jokerst Field Botany Grant Award Winner.
Join Kyle Mason from the Big Chico Creek Ecological Reserve to hear about the history of fire in Butte County, how it's been used, and why. Kyle will follow-up with a discussion of how fire management might look in the future.
Join the authors of Firescaping Your Home: A Manual for Readiness in Wildfire Country to explore paradigms that get in the way of landscaping for defensible space or supporting native biodiversity. We will focus on psychological conventions in landscaping that often complicate the adoption of firesafe strategies, including foundation plantings, fences, wind patterns, and habitat fragmentation. We will wrap up with a discussion on support for biodiversity and fire insurance challenges.
The Siskiyou Crest has one of the highest concentrations of officially designated botanical areas on National Forest lands in the country. This presentation will take you on a photographic exploration of these unique Botanical Areas and highlight many of the rare and endemic species that grow in each area.
Join Forest Service Ecologist, Kyle Merriam to learn about the status and distribution of Baker cypress and Macnab cypress, two iconic, fire adapted species in northern California.
Join John Whittlesey, author of Plant Lovers Guide to Salvias to learn about the evolution and adaptation of salvias generally, their specific California habitats, and the pollinators with whom they co-evolved.
Herbarium specimens form an invaluable record of plant diversity and distribution. Join the Curator of the Ahart Herbarium, Lawrence Janeway, to hear about the importance of collecting plant specimens, how anyone can do it, and get some helpful hints on how you can ensure that what you collect is useful to the herbarium and researchers in general.
The 2024 Park Fire impacted a diverse range of woodland and forest habitats, including the Beaver Creek Pinery, a unique old-growth forest shaped by frequent fires. Join US Forest Service Research Ecologist Eric Knapp to learn about the factors that allowed the Pinery to withstand historical fires and how his research may inform forest management strategies under today’s fire climate.
Fire is an integral process in many California Ecosystems which have largely been shaped through Indigenous fire stewardship. In this presentation, Dr. Don Hankins will illustrate the interconnected nature of Indigenous knowledge to shape ecocultural relationships through fire stewardship to restore ecosystems and enhance climate and social resilience.
Here is some background on ecocultural stewardship in a paper that Dr. Hankins published in PNAS: Climate resilience through ecocultural stewardship
Join Naomi Fraga, Director of Conservation Programs at the California Botanic Garden, to learn about rare alkali wetland plants and her research supporting conservation of four at-risk species.
Join Aaron Sims, Director of the Rare Plant Program for the California Native Plant Society (CNPS) to celebrate five decades of rare plant conservation and the people that make it possible.
During the first portion of this pictorial reminisce (All Things Botanical, May 16, 2024), John Dittes introduced us to Lowell, retired rancher and farmer, renowned Northern California botanist and plant collector, and namesake of the Herbarium at CSU Chico. We learned of Lowell’s early days, growing up on The Peter Ahart Ranch, and how he became the accomplished botanist we know today. We’ll continue from there, enjoying photos and stories of botanical projects, Northern California landscapes, and interesting people met along the way, from 2013 to present.
Dr. Frankie will touch on a variety of topics that illustrate his concern for pollinator conservation: The use of bee hotels (pros and cons), collecting pollinators, data basing of collections and value of museums, bee conservation and the need for citizen action. He will also discuss developing pollinator habitat gardens and native versus non-native plants in these gardens.
Nevada County and the cross-section of the Sierra Nevada it spans offer diverse habitats and a diverse set of plant species that inhabit them. For the first time, a true Flora of Nevada County is in the works. Join Shane Hanofee to hear about the process of making a flora, the botanical history of Nevada County, and some exciting discoveries made in the production of this work.
Join us as we reminisce on the botanical works and travels of renowned Northern California botanist and plant collector Lowell Ahart, in accompaniment of John and his life and business partner, Josephine. Seasoned botanists and those “new to botany” alike will enjoy this story and visual overview of the landscapes explored, botanical discoveries made, and interesting people met along the way.
Every year, thousands of visitors traverse North Table Mountain Ecological Reserve in Butte County, California. Most are drawn to the spectacular patterned displays of native wildflowers that peak for a few weeks during each spring. Which species are responsible for these displays? And how do the climate, geology, and hydrology of the Table Mountain mesa combine to create these striking floral designs? Learn from our speaker, Samantha (Sam) Hillaire, who is a co-author of the popular field guide, “Wildflowers of Table Mountain, a Naturalist’s Guide.”
Join BLM biologist Steve Laymon and botanist Brooke Thompson to learn about the unique flora of Hog Lake and the exciting Rancho Briesgau riparian restoration project in Tehama County.
Andrea Craig will take you on a tour of the rugged, remote, and richly biodiverse landscape of the Lassen Foothills. This conservation story will focus on Dye Creek Preserve and is about getting to know an elusive volcanic landscape, with over a century of grazing and development, and the diversity that has persevered.
Through soil seedbank studies ‘lost’ vegetation may be rediscovered, past composition highlighted, resiliency potential established and future trajectory imagined. Join Chico State Masters student Kaylie DeLuca to hear about her research on the seedbank of a restored meadow in Lassen Volcanic National Park.
Bumble bees are among the most charismatic, noticeable (visible and audible!), as well as critically important pollinating insects. In this talk, John Whittlesey will share photos taken over the last 8 years of bumble bees while weaving a discussion of their life history along with anecdotes of “living with bumble bees,” ending the talk with plants to plant if you too would like to invite bumble bees to live in your garden.
Join botanist Rob Preston to learn about the geophyte life style. Rob will share some of the findings from his research on Brodiaea and Dipterostemon and provide an overview of geophytes in the California flora.
Join author and radio host Jennifer Jewell to explore how the power of gardens and gardeners can be viewed through a lens of seeds, and the general state of seeds in our gardened lives: how they grow, where they grow, who grows them, who sells and/or controls them, and their care up and down the seedsheds of our world.
Join Travis Columbus, Research Scientist at the California Botanic Garden, to learn about Eriogonum, one of the most diverse genera of California native plants. Travis will give an overview of California's wild buckwheats with a focus on the Oligogonum subgenus and including new findings from his research.
Join Shaine Hill, the Chico State Biological Sciences Greenhouse Manager, to learn about the unique plants in the greenhouse, some of the accomplishments over the past year, and exciting plans for the Conservancy’s future.
Learn about the beautiful—and sometimes confusing—Sedums in section Gormania. Barbara Wilson, coauthor of the revised taxonomic treatment of the species, will guide us through the recent research and remaining mysteries surrounding this unique group of succulents.
Join Chris McCarron from the Great Basin Institute to learn about the rich flora and exciting recent discoveries at the Whiskeytown National Recreation Area.
Carol Witham will help us to explore the short-lived, weird-looking, fascinating fauna that evolved millions of years ago, and dazzling swaths of tens of thousands of tiny flowers that change from week to week through a two- to- three month “season”.
Join restoration ecologist Pat Reynolds to learn about the steps that go into the design, implementation and maintenance of habitat gardens dominated by native herbaceous vegetation and include the incorporation of habitat features designed to maximize ecological values and habitat function.
This talk will briefly discuss the ecology and natural history of the California Deserts, explore the adaptations of plants not only growing, but thriving in these environments, and take a virtual floristic tour of some of the beautiful desert wildflowers found in this region.
Shane Hanofee will take you on a tour of the ferns of the northern Sierra Nevada, discussing identification tips, highlighting adaptive traits, and sharing interesting factoids that will have you pushing past the flowers and cones in pursuit of fronds to flip.
Do alpine communities experience greater plant-pollinator phenological mismatch than lowland habitats? Join Laura Lampe to hear about her research utilizing herbarium and insect specimen data to examine changes in the timing of flowering and flight periods of plants and pollinators in Northern California.
Join Jennifer Ackerfield from the Denver Botanic Garden to learn about EcoFlora, an innovative program model for connecting people to plant life and plant science through public gardens in urban areas.
Scientific names provide a common language to discuss and learn about plants from around the world. Join botanist and author, Ann Willyard to learn about scientific names for plants and how using them can strengthen collaborations between native plant enthusiasts, amateur naturalists, and academic botanists.
Join Brett Hall to learn about the wide ranging California native plant programs at the UC Santa Cruz Arboretum and Botanic Garden.
Identifying a monkeyflower to species isn’t quite as straightforward as it used to be, but don’t be discouraged! Join Steve Schoenig to become more familiar with the currently recognized monkeyflower species and get some tips to accurately identify these charismatic little plants.
Join Bureau of Land Management Biologist, Steve Laymon, to learn about Clarkias, a beautiful and complex group of western North American wildflowers.
Join author and professor emeritus, Tom Parker, to learn about the complex pathways of evolution in Arctostaphylos, one of the most distinctive groups of California native plants.
Join Butte College Biology professor, Nijmah Ali, to learn about the elegantly simple design of mosses, the “amphibians” of the plant world.
In this enlightening review, carnivorous plant expert, Barry Rice will review exactly what carnivorous plants are, and you'll see that the boundary between carnivorous and noncarnivorous plants is grayer than you might expect.
Join Chico State Biology professor Chris Ivey to learn about the reproductive barriers that may (or may not?) be keeping two northern California monkeyflower species distinct.
Learn about the influence of fire and fire severity on tree regeneration and understory diversity in California’s subalpine forests in this presentation by Emily Brodie, National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellow in the UC Davis Graduate Group in Ecology.
How do alpine plants survive where trees cannot, and handle the severe environmental stresses? We’ll consider these questions and others, and we’ll look at the varied microclimatic conditions that shape the habitats for alpine plants, along with physiological adaptations that suit them to this demanding world.
Join us for this timely presentation to learn how you can minimize wildfire risk while optimizing the ecological integrity of your home landscape.
Join NRCS Soil Scientist, Andrew Conlin, to hear about his investigation of an extinct lake and the evidence of its rapid drainage.
Two former recipients of the Jokerst Field Botany Award, Constantin Raether and Drew Gilberti, will present their interesting research on the plant-animal interactions focusing on valley oak, a native oak species of California. Please join us.
This presentation by Rob Schlising, retired professor from Chico State University, is meant to compensate a bit for the scarcity or lack of group fieldtrips to vernal pool landscapes during the pandemic in the springs of 2020 and 2021. Close-up photographs from several landscapes will celebrate both common and rare vernal pool specialists.
Join Barbara M. Thiers—director of the William and Lynda Steere Herbarium at the New York Botanical Garden and author of Herbarium: The Quest to Preserve & Classify the World’s Plants—to learn how herbaria emerged and have changed over time, and why they remain such an important source of data for their new role: understanding how the world’s flora is changing.
The soil landscape creates recognizable patterns on the land and these patterns are most often expressed in the vegetation that covers soil geologic landforms. Join Joe Silveira, retired Wildlife Refuge Manager at the Sacramento National Wildlife Refuge Complex, to learn about the importance of soils for the development and implementation of vegetation/ habitat restoration plans.
Why are native orchids so interesting? Join retired Forest Service botanist Linnea Hanson to learn about the distribution of native orchids in North America and their pollination and fungal associations. She will introduce you to approximately 40 species of native orchids—including the purple fringeless orchid, Platanthera peramoena—in their habitats in North America.
Dr. Natalie Love will discuss how they use imaged herbarium specimens to study intra-specific variation in phenological responses in a widely distributed California wildflower, the mountain jewel flower (Streptanthus tortuosus; Brassicaceae).
In this talk John Whittlesey will share photos taken from his homestead of bumble bee inhabitants while weaving a discussion of their life history along with anecdotes of ‘living with bumble bees,’ ending the talk with plants to plant if you too would like to invite bumble bees to live in your garden.
Join Professor Emeritus Rob Schlising to learn about the field study he and Hal Mackey (also a retired biologist) have pursued now for over 10 years. Focus will be on the phenology and biology of the Steer's-head, mainly observed in three sites in higher-elevation Butte County, California. Details will be presented on both above-ground and below-ground aspects of this smallest species of Dicentra, emphasizing unusual morphological and behavioral aspects of the plants.
Announcing an upcoming talk by Linnea Hanson, Northern California Botanists and Friends of the Chico State Herbarium board member. Linnea will talk about how she became interested in plants and the work that she did as a botanist on the Plumas National Forest.
Dr. Miller will provide a brief overview of the history of the study of butterflies in our region, with particular reference to 19th‐century naturalists. He will highlight the biology, ecology and behavior of representative families and species, in the context of their host‐plant affinities and habitat requirements. He will also discuss ongoing efforts towards wise stewardship of our butterflies, their host plants and habitats in the Anthropocene.
Click here to view the presentation.