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September 2023 — Volume XXIX, Number 5 — Published by the Georgia Native Plant Society
September is Georgia Native Plants Month!
Governor Brian Kemp recently signed a proclamation designating the month of September as Georgia Native Plants Month. A collaborative effort between Georgia Audubon and Georgia Native Plant Society, Georgia Native Plants Month is designed to highlight the importance of using native plants in our landscape and the key role that native plants play for birds and other wildlife. Georgia Audubon and Georgia Native Plant Society are hosting a number of collaborative events in September to help Georgians learn more about gardening for birds and other wildlife using native plants.
The signature event, "Transforming Your Green Space” Round Robin at the Trees Atlanta Kendeda Tree House in Atlanta on Saturday September 9 will feature Carol Hight of the West Georgia Chapter. Carol will speak about propagating native plants at home, and other speakers will discuss how to build a wildlife sanctuary in your own landscape, control invasive plants, and build and manage native landscapes for birds and other pollinators. This event and many of the GNPS Chapter programs and plant sales are included in the list of events. Click here for more information on all of Georgia Grows Native for Birds month happenings.
Plant Spotlight: Cardinal Flower
Ellen Honeycutt
Georgia has a number of native species of Lobelia but for this spotlight, we’re focusing on cardinal flower, the only red one (the other species are blue and white). Cardinal flower (Lobelia cardinalis) is an easy-to-grow and popular native perennial with a natural range throughout Georgia (all 5 ecoregions!). It was selected in 2006 by our members as the GNPS Plant of the Year. It enjoys moist conditions and will even tolerate standing water. You might spot it blooming now; I recently saw a group of it blooming along the Chattahoochee River in metro Atlanta. Its blooms are a favorite of hummingbirds and butterflies, particularly the cloudless Sulphur.
Lobelia is part of the Campanulaceae family (the Bellflower family). It shares the trait of milky sap (pull a leaf off to see) with many other members of that family. Lobelias have another unusual trait: they have resupinate flowers. This means that their flowers are inverted – what appears to be the top of the flower is actually the bottom. You can see in the photos that they have an “upper lip” of two petals and a “lower lip” of 3 petals. In reality, the lip with 3 petals is the top of the flower which has been inverted 180 degrees. The blooms open from the bottom up, seeds forming in the lower capsules even as the plant is still blooming. Cardinal flower is a short-lived perennial. It may grow for several years, usually creating offsets beside the original stem. It will also self-seed to form new plants. Lobelias in general do not have "pretty" foliage. The leaves are usually rather coarse looking, often dull and sometimes with rough edges. I caution those that grow it for the first time to expect a weedy-looking rosette of leaves at first and to be careful not to weed it out by accident. It also does not want to be covered over the winter, so keep it cleared of leaves or mulch.
Cardinal flower is one of our most donated perennials for our chapter plant sales thanks to its abundance in our members’ gardens. It is usually also for sale by our small native plant nurseries. In bigger nurseries, you might find pink flowered forms like Lobelia x 'Ruby Slippers;' as indicated by the “x” in the name, these are hybrids, usually of two native species: L. cardinalis and L. siphilitica.
In Case You Missed It... Georgia Grasslands Initiative Webinar Recording
We would like to extend a big thank you to Will Rogers of the State Botanical Garden of Georgia for his presentation on the Georgia Grasslands Initiative iNaturalist Project. Click here to access the webinar recording on YouTube and learn how you can get involved with grassland conservation.
Statewide Volunteer Opportunities
Serve on the GNPS State Board of Directors
It is an exciting time for GNPS as we plan for our future growth and move closer to our vision of growing a better landscape in Georgia. The GNPS State Board of Directors is putting together a slate of board candidates to serve a 3-year term beginning in January 2024. The State Board is charged with leading the organization in its mission to promote the conservation and stewardship of Georgia’s native plants and their habitats. In particular, we are looking for individuals with time and talent in the areas of finance or accounting, information technology, landscaping and design, marketing and education to help move our strategies forward. Work is done remotely via virtual meetings allowing participation from any part of Georgia. If you are interested in learning more, please email Chadd Reynolds, GNPS State Governance Co-Chair, at chadd.reynolds@gnps.org.
Graphic Design for Statewide Resources
GNPS is ramping up its outreach and programs, and along with that, resources to complement and enhance the work. We are looking for help with handouts, infographics, sign design, templates, and updating our style guide to reflect our refreshed logo. Student volunteers are welcome! If you are interested in lending your time and talent, please contact Executive Director Nikki Belmonte, at nbelmonte@gnps.org.
Chapter Updates
Athens-East Piedmont
Upcoming meetings
Sunday, September 10, 2:00-3:30 p.m., Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Athens
Nikki Belmonte, our new GNPS Executive Director, will describe her vision for the organization and how our Chapter can best contribute to the state goals. We are looking forward to meeting Nikki and having her address our questions!
Wednesday, October 11, 6:00-7:30 p.m., Sandy Creek Nature Center
Linda Chafin, retired conservation botanist from the State Botanical Gardens and author of two books, will present a program about identifying common native warm season grasses and their role in our ecosystems.
Garden Tours
Monday, September 5, 9:30-10:30 a.m.
Tour of Kandy Duke’s GNPS gold certified habitat yard. Kandy’s garden features a wide assortment of native plants, lots of eclectic art, and sustainable features like a rain garden. Registration required. Please see our Facebook page or group for details.
Monday, October 2, 1:00-2:00 p.m.
Tour of Kathy Stege’s diverse yard. Kathy has used the principles of permaculture plus food forest techniques from First Nation peoples to inform her unique landscape composed mostly of native plants. Registration required. Please see our Facebook page or group for details.
Volunteer Projects
Rivers Alive stream and river cleanup and restoration with Athens-Clarke County Office of Sustainability, October 21. Details TBA.
Save the Date! Invasive Species Workshop, September 30
On Saturday September 30, our chapter is partnering with the ACC Extension Service, UGA Center for Invasive Species and Ecosystem Health, and the Georgia Exotic Pest Plant Council to present a workshop for the identification and control of invasive plants. Details will be available soon.
Coastal Plain
Fall Plant Sales
Plant sales resume on Saturday, September 23, with two events on the same day: the Coastal Wildscapes Fall Plant Sale at the Ashantilly Center in Darien and and the Water, Wings, and Wildlife Festival at the Flint Riverquarium in Albany.
The Wiregrass Farmers Market in Tifton will be the location of the third fall native plant sale on Saturday, October 21. Pre-orders are encouraged, with a minimum order of $30. Click here to check the plant list that is updated regularly. For questions, contact cpcgnps@gmail.com.
Field Trip in McIntosh County, October 7
On Saturday, October 7, Coastal Plain Chapter members are invited to join a Georgia Botanical Society field trip in McIntosh County. Participants will explore a 10-acre private property that includes Florabundance Gardens Native Plant Nursery, its perennial meadow gardens, surrounding marsh edge and undisturbed wetland forests. Directions will be sent upon registration. To register, contact Deborah Sheppard at Florabundancegardens@gmail.com or 912-217-4892.
Annual Coastal Plain Chapter Meeting, November 4
Plans are underway for the annual meeting, set for Saturday, November 4 at Altama Plantation Wildlife Management Area near Brunswick. Members will enjoy educational sessions, a seed swap and a nature walk to see the native groundcover seed production nursery at Altama Plantation. The chapter is celebrating its 10th anniversary and a celebratory t-shirt will be available for pickup at the meeting.
Fringed Campion
Native Plant Projects around Middle Georgia
Chapter members have been busy installing native plant gardens in middle GA. Planting has been completed or mostly completed. We encourage you to visit our sites!
When in Milledgeville, make a point to visit the Main Street Adopt a Planter walking tour. Enjoy our native plant pollinator friendly containers, numbers 39 and 40, on the corner of Floyd L. Griffin Jr. St. and N. Wayne.
Amerson River Park Native Plant Garden and Monarch Waystation, located in north Macon, has already been the site of several events and meetings.
Old City Cemetery in Macon has beds at the entrance and there is a meadow in progress.
Centerville Library Native Plant and Pollinator Garden has one large and two small beds located near the entrance of the library on Gunn Rd.
Left: Volunteers install plants at Centerville Library. Right: The entrance to Amerson River Park Native Plant Garden and Monarch Waystation.
In the News!
Chapter member Greg Lewis, owner of Flat Creek Native Nursery, has been quite the celebrity recently, promoting native plants and GNPS. He was featured in an article in the August edition of Georgia Magazine titled “Gardening by the Rule of Three”. He was also interviewed for a segment on a local news station, 41NBC, discussing the importance of native plants.
Please join us for the second annual Intown Atlanta GNPS Native Garden Tour on Saturday, September 30 from 10:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m.! Tickets include admission to five habitat sites. The self-guided tour is an opportunity to find inspiration for ways to add biodiversity to your own yard or patio as you wander through beautiful habitats created to support pollinators and other animals. Come see bees, butterflies and birds feasting on nectar and berries. The gardens are private properties that have been certified as GNPS Native Plant Habitats; click here to read about each property. The gardens can be visited in any order and the onsite tour is self-guided. At each property, GNPS volunteers will be available to answer questions.
Invite your friends and neighbors! Tickets are limited and may sell out so purchase your tickets early. Children under 12 and volunteers attend for free. Ticket proceeds support the Intown Atlanta Chapter’s educational, restoration, and advocacy activities focused on inspiring Atlanta to grow and preserve native plants. The tour takes place rain or shine.
Volunteers attend for free. Volunteers will be asked to work about four hours at one of the gardens. If interested, email alederberg@gnps.org.
Save the Date! Intown Atlanta Chapter Annual Meeting, November 12
Join us at the Kendeda Building on Georgia Tech's Campus for our annual meeting on Sunday, November 12 from 11:00 a.m.-1:00 p.m. The Kendeda Building for Innovative Sustainable Design is a "living building" that generates more energy than it uses and offers practical solutions to benefit our planet. Surrounded by 8 acres of green space and native plants, the Kendeda Building site captures rainwater, utilizes leaf-litter mulch, and demonstrates other key sustainable gardening practices.
The Kendeda Building for Innovative Sustainable Design.
North Georgia Mountains
Fall Meetings
With fall approaching, the North Georgia Mountains chapter will be returning to our schedule of monthly meetings with presenters on the second Saturday of the month at 10:00 a.m. at Young Harris College. The September presentation will be by chapter board member and Young Harris professor, Jonathan Micancin, on the interdependence of salamanders and native plants. Although September is Georgia Grows Native for Birds month, it is our October meeting at which we will have a presentation about the connections between native plants and birds by Georgia Audubon speaker, Alex LoCastro.
Connect to Protect Pollinator Garden at Satterfield Park
Chapter members are designing and installing a Connect to Protect pollinator garden at the Satterfield OHV/Day Use Park just east of Blairsville. The site preparation will be in September with the planting in October. Look for a chapter email in coming weeks outlining opportunities to volunteer for the project.
North Metro Atlanta
Visit us at the Butterfly Experience at the Dunwoody Nature Center, September 9-10
The North Metro Chapter will be hosting a table at the Butterfly Experience 2023 - Dunwoody Nature Center on September 9th and 10th. Volunteers are needed to help staff the table and spread the word about native plants and how they benefit butterflies. Volunteers get free access to the butterfly tents! If you are interested in volunteering, please sign up here.
Native Plant Identification Walk, September 23
Join Ellen Honeycutt for a native plant identification walk at the Jean and Elwood Wright Environmental Education Center in Marietta on Saturday, September 23 at 9:00 a.m. Click here for more information.
Old Rucker Farm Native Plant Habitat Workdays
Join us for a workday at the habitat on the farm! We will be weeding and mulching the garden. If you plan on attending, please sign up with the following links:
Habitat restoration work continues at Heritage Park in central Cobb County with tasks including invasive removal, native plantings and garden maintenance. Learn more below:
The West Georgia Chapter’s Fall Plant Sale is an opportunity to shop from a variety of great nurseries. We are expecting a record number of vendors at this sale, offering native wildflowers, shrubs, ground covers, ferns, vines, and trees. The Chapter will also have its own plants for sale. The event will be held from 9:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m. on Saturday, September 16 at the Agricultural Center in Carrollton. We’ll be undercover in the Ag Center’s barn, so there is no need to worry about the weather, and there is plenty of parking available. Please join us for this fun event and take home a carload of new plants!
Carroll EMC Grant Supports Plant Signage
The Carroll Electric Membership Cooperative (EMC) Foundation has awarded a grant of $1,640 to the West Georgia Chapter for installation of plant identification signs at the chapter’s Buffalo Creek Trails restoration site. The signs will include QR codes that visitors can scan with their phone or tablet to learn more about each plant. The West Georgia Chapter’s Officers and Board of Directors are very grateful to the Foundation for its ongoing support of improvements to Buffalo Creek Trails for the benefit of the west Georgia community.
The West Georgia Chapter accepts a grant award from the Carroll EMC Foundation.
West Georgia Chapter Annual Meeting, October 17
The West Georgia Chapter’s annual meeting and election of officers will be held on Tuesday October 17, rather than in December as in past years. A brief business meeting will be followed by a presentation on native grasses by Melanie DeVore. Please join us at 6:30 p.m. for a reception with light refreshments, followed by the business meeting and presentation at 7:00 p.m. Additional information about the program will be included in the September issue of the chapter newsletter.
In Bloom! 2023 Plant of the Year Merch
Help us spread the word about this awesome native plant by wearing it! Spotted beebalm (Monarda punctata) is an exquisite summer bloomer and a source of pollen and nectar for dozens of insect pollinators. It is also a larval host for many species of moths. Get your Plant of the Year shirt to wear to your fall native plant programs and activities! Browse our new online store for a variety of styles and colors. Each design has both 100% cotton and 60/40 cotton poly blends available - click on “size and fabric info” on each product’s page for the specific details.
Our executive director is featuring the women’s T-shirt in the color Storm.
Georgia Native Plant Society PO Box 422085 Atlanta, GA 30342 (770) 343-6000 Unsubscribe
