Lowcountry Chapter Field Trips and Activities

Lowcountry Chapter Meetings

The Lowcountry Chapter meets monthly in Charleston September through May (except December). Monthly meetings for our lecture series are typically held on the third Tuesday of the month at 6:30 pm at the Biology Auditorium, 101 Duckett Hall, at The Citadel. Park in any visitor spot, Kovat’s Lot, or the lot behind Capers Hall. Download a parking pass or pick one up at the first meeting in September. For directions and further information visit: http://www.citadel.edu/publicsafety/citadelmaps.html

***Great news! Jen Bremer from Fast and French is going to cater our meetings starting in September, 2011. Members can bring additional dishes or drinks to supplement their offerings. Find Fast and French on Facebook or check out their website at www.fastandfrench.org.

Tuesday, February 21, 6:30 pm Biology Auditorium, 101 Duckett Hall at The Citadel - The Magnolias of South Carolina - Their origin, distribution and evolutionary History

Richard Figlar Richard is one of the world’s foremost authorities on the genus Magnoliaceae and past president of the Magnolia Society. He will discuss the six magnolia species native to our state (and three varieties or subspecies) in detail, supplemented with images of trees in habitat as well as in cultivation. You might be surprised to learn that two of our magnolia species are more closely related to those from China than to the other American magnolias.

Tuesday, March 20, 6:30 pm Biology Auditorium, 101 Duckett Hall at The Citadel - How Botanical Illustration Changed the World

Jennifer Landin, PhD, Assistant Professor, North Carolina State University
Botany has an incredible, often-overlooked, influence in our daily lives and cultural history. Medicine, printing technology, exploration, education, and even religion were greatly transformed by botany and botanical illustration. Learn more as Dr. Landin discusses the importance of botanical illustrations in changing human society.

Tuesday, April 17, 6:30 pm Biology Auditorium, 101 Duckett Hall at The Citadel - Ethnobotanical thoughts on the Lowcountry

Dr. Karen Hall, Clemson Extension, Coordinator, SC Master Naturalist Program; Lecturer, Forestry and Natural Resources and Biological Sciences Ethnobotany is the scientific study of how human cultures find meaning through plants, whether by direct use of plants or their understanding of how other plants fit in the context of the surrounding ecology (ethnoecology). Contextualizing science in this way can provide valuable insights into our relationship with nature that may help us change our actions upon it. This may be particularly valuable since the actions of humans are ever-reflected on landscapes. In the lowcountry region of South Carolina with its cultural milieu, these landscape changes, wrought through differing worldviews, have created the habitats in which increasing numbers of us now live. As we look toward our future, what lessons can we learn from these overlaps of nature and culture? In this talk, Dr. Hall will cover some of the basic ideas that ethnobotany brings to the table as well as some specific examples of plants particularly important to South Carolina.

Tuesday, May 15, 6:30 pm NOTE: Location TBD, This meeting will be our year-end get-together. Stay tuned for details… How to evict an invasive plant off an island

Lori Sheridan Wilson, Environmental Program Director, Dewees Island Property Owner Association Lori will discuss restoring the native plant community on Dewees Island through the treatment of the Chinese tallow tree. She will explain how Chinese tallow is negatively impacting Dewees Island, and what plant communities it threatens. She will also discuss how is it being removed, successes and failures, restoration and future projects.

Lowcountry Chapter Field Trips and Activities

Saturday, February 25, 9:00 am - 12 noon Dugannon Heritage Preserve

Tour Dungannon Heritage Preserve with SCDNR’s Billy McCord. Dungannon Heritage Preserve is a 600+ acre section of the original Dungannon Plantation, containing large wood stork, egret and heron rookeries. A shell dike and new boardwalk allow visitors to view native plants including swamp dogwoods. Meet on site at 9:00 am. For directions and more information visit: https://www.dnr.sc.gov/mlands/managedland?p_id=120 Wear comfortable shoes and pack a lunch to enjoy after the tour. Contact Lisa Lord for more information llord@tnc.org or 843-937-8807x13.

Saturday, March 17, SPRING NATIVE PLANT SALE, Charles Towne Landing Parking Lot, 9 am - 12 noon. Members can shop early at 8:30 am.

Charles Towne Landing parking lot, 1500 Old Towne Road, Charleston SC
Come shop early this year and get your spring garden started! A plant list with prices will be available a few weeks before the sale on our website. Admission to the plant sale is free. Cash or check only for plant purchases. If you wish to explore Charles Towne Landing on your own, please pay admission in the Visitor Center. For more information, contact Colette DeGarady, cdegarady@tnc.org, or 937-8807 ex 15.

Saturday, April 21, 8:30 am - 12 noon
Francis Marion National Forest Botanical Hike

Spend a morning botanizing with your fellow NPS members in the Francis Marion. Field trip leader TBD. We’ll meet at 8:15 am at the Sweetgrass Bi-Lo shopping center in Mount Pleasant at the intersection of Hwy 17 and IOP connector to carpool and depart by 8:30 am for the FMNF. Wear comfortable shoes, bring field guides, lunch, water, and bug spray. Contact Jeff Jackson for more details lowcountryroots@aol.com, (843) 478-5827.

Saturday, May 19, 8:45 am - 12 noon
Dewees Island - *Must Register in advance*

We will meet at the Dewees Marina on the Isle of Palms, 41st Ave. at 8:45 am. The ferry leaves at 9 am sharp. The drive to the marina is just after the fire station on the right. If you arrive at the Isle of Palms Marina you have gone too far. Once on Dewees the tour will be a combination of riding and walking with about one mile total of walking broken up throughout the day. Walking will be on designated paths, boardwalks and beach (no bushwhacking). Wear comfortable shoes, bring field guides, lunch, water, and bug spray. Limited participation. Contact Jeff Jackson to register: lowcountryroots@aol.com, (843) 478-5827.