Research Grant Reports
First Hints of Spring – Willow Trees in Flower
Flowers on willow trees are usually dioecious, or with female flowers on one tree and male flowers on others. The male flowers as pictured here can be quite colorful.In our snowy and variable spring this year the bright yellow and orange colors of willow twigs were...
April 23, 2023 General Board Meeting
General Board Meeting of the Colorado Native Plant SocietySunday, April 23, 4:00-5:00pmDRAFT MinutesPresent: Alex Crochet (at large), Alex Smith (at large), Amy Yarger, Ann Grant (OC/ Northern Chapter),Barb Valenti (SE Chapter), Deryn Davidson (at large/ OC), Gwen...
A Unique Native Shrub for Shade: Creeping Barberry
When talking about native plants for landscaping or restoration we normally think of colorful flowers that can grow well out in the sun in dry landscapes. But ecologists learned long ago that diversity and ecological function in most places is tied to a diversity of...
Challenges of Being a Wildflower in Early Spring
By Paul Alaback, Professor Emeritus of Ecology, University of Montana How can early spring wildflowers produce seeds when it is so cold and pollinators are scarce? I have been following the parade of flowers that emerge each spring for many years. It is usually quite...
CoNPS Comments on Clinton Gulch Reservoir Expansion
April 7, 2023 Benjamin Wilson, Senior Project ManagerUS Army Corps of Engineers, Albuquerque District400 Rood Avenue, Room 224Grand Junction, CO 81501-2520 Re: PUBLIC NOTICE: SPK-2014-00518 Clinton Gulch Reservoir Expansion Project Dear Mr. Wilson, Thank you...
Great Galls!
This time of year exploring around our grasslands and forests you can see many interesting things relating to native plants even before the official growing season starts. For example the other day I saw these galls on a bur oak (Quercus macrocarpa) that are called...
Peatland Seeps in Northwest Colorado
This article is re-printed here from The Bog Blogger, with the kind permission of Grant McKown, author, and Sarah Dodgin, blog owner. Great photos all by Mr. Mckown. My crew and I were expecting a nice graminoid meadow – one that had been flooded early on in the...
Yes, You Can Prairie Up!
You’ve been yearning to design a garden, yard, or meadow space but can’t seem to get a grip on which plants to include or how to design the site. Or maybe you’re in the middle of planning one of those spaces but myriad choices have you frozen with indecision. Help has...
2022 Conservation Committee Report
2022 was an active year for the Conservation Committee. We contributed four articles for our Conservation Corner column in Aquilegia covering subjects from using the iNaturalist app to fens, alpine ecology and the threats to Parachute Penstemon. We wrote...
Ozone Effects of Oil & Gas Development – CoNPS Comments
On December 2, 2022 these Comments are submitted by the Colorado Native Plant Society to the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission. We urge the Commission to grant the petition by WildEarth Guardians, 350 Colorado, Womxn from the Mountain, Physicians for Social...