Annual Conference

2024 Annual Meeting & Conference

The TNPS 2024 Annual Meeting and Conference will be held at Roan Mountain, tentatively the weekend of June 21-23. More details coming.

Registration is currently closed.

2023 Annual Meeting & Conference

The TNPS 2023 Annual Conference was held in conjunction with the Elsie Quarterman Cedar Glade Festival Friday, May 5, and Saturday, May 6, at Cedars of Lebanon State Park. It started with a casual opening reception and barbeque dinner on Friday at Cedar Forest Lodge. Following the dinner, Hobart Aiken, state cultural interpretive specialist, spoke on the History of Park Architecture and Todd Crabtree, state botanist, spoke on the Tennessee Rare Plant Program.

On Saturday, TNPS members took advantage of several Festival events, including an early morning bird-watching hike, morning and afternoon cedar glade field hikes, and botany by bike. There were also programs on photography, painting a wildflower, geology, wild edible foods, garde

ning with native plants, managing cedar glades in action, and activities for children.

After our Saturday activities, we had a delicious lasagna dinner followed by the annual TNPS members meeting. Following the meeting we had a drawing for a beautiful blue bird box made by Mark Fraley. Terri Joyce was the lucky winner of the box and it is already home to a family of bluebirds in her yard. There were also an assortment of native plants for sale in the lodge. Our final speaker after the business meeting was Pandy Upchurch, who spoke on Conservation Challenges Facing the Unique Habitats of the Central Basin.

On Sunday morning, TNPS members were treated to a hike in Couchville Glade/Long Hunter State Park led by Jason Allen and Ranger Leslie Anne Rawlings.