MNPS chose the Dogbane family, which includes milkweeds, for our theme this year. As we continue learning about the fascinating Apocynaceae, we welcome entomologist Warren E. Steiner who can tell us more about the interactions between these plants and their many associated insects.

Speaker: Warren Steiner.
Warren has served as President of the Entomological Society of Washington (1998) and the Botanical Society of Washington (2005). He has published more than 65 scientific articles in entomology, including the description of a new family of water beetles co-discovered with Paul Spangler, and a recent listing of the “darkling beetles” known to occur in Maryland with historical records from Plummers Island.

Location: Kensington Library, 4201 Knowles Ave, Kensington, MD.

Doors open at 7:00 PM. The program is free and open to the public. Registration is not required.

Topic: Mapping Lakota Plants: Spatial Distributions of Culturally Important Plants of the Lakota at Wind Cave National Park, South Dakota 

Speaker: Ellie Green, Applied Ecology and Conservation Biology MS Student, Frostburg State University

The prairie is the pantry and the medicine cabinet of the Lakota. Short-grass prairies of the Midwest are the most endangered ecosystems on the planet. Green will discuss several cultural keystone plants of South Dakota and their traditional uses. She will also discuss the history of Wind Cave, the first National Park designated to protect a cave, and the Lakota origin site. This free program will begin promptly at 7:00 pm; the public is welcome to attend.

Ellie Green is working towards her MS degree in Applied Ecology and Conservation Biology, specializing in ethnobotany and spatial ecology at Frostburg State University. Ellie has a BS in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology from UMD College Park and is a graduate of Northern High School in Accident, MD. She has worked as a Natural Resource Adviser and Environmental Education Specialist for the Bureau of Land Management in Coos Bay, Oregon and has a research background in neuroscience, agroecology, dendrochronology, and entomology. She hopes to get her PhD in spatial ecology to develop quantitative techniques for land managers to make decisions about sustainable plant harvesting.

Directions: From I-68 take exit 33 (Braddock Rd & Midlothian Rd exit). Follow Braddock Road approximately 1.3 miles to stop sign. Turn left onto Park Avenue. Drive a short distance and turn left, following signs for the Compton Parking Lot.

No registration.

Speaker: Steve Dryden

Description: Steve's Rock Creek Songbirds project has focused on restoring habitat for migratory birds in Rock Creek's Piney Branch stream valley for the past five years. Some of you were on his recent walk exploring the sites. Join us to enjoy his slides of this diverse section of the park - some wet spots, some dry; areas where new trees and wildflowers/grasses have been planted, and spots of native diversity that have been protected, allowing a natural "re-greening" of the area. Steve will also speak about the Songbird outreach initiative aimed at the Latino community in the neighborhoods close to Piney Branch.  See Steve's article about Piney Branch and its history in the Spring 2018 issue of Marilandica.

Doors open at 7:00. At 7:30 there will be a very short Annual Meeting of the Maryland Native Plant Society, at which the results of the election of Directors and Officers for 2019 will be announced. Steve's presentation will follow immediately.

Location: Kensington Library, 4201 Knowles Ave, Kensington, MD.

The program is free and open to the public. Registration is not required.