Meredith Clebsch After 25 years as proprietrix of Native Gardens, a native plant nursery, Meredith was delighted to have the opportunity to assist Foothills Land Conservancy. She currently serves as Biologist for the FLC. Her formal education focused on botany and ecology along with agricultural training in animal science and horticulture, including some Peace Corps time in Costa Rica. Meredith enjoyed many years as a member of the Steering Committee for the annual Landscaping with Native Plants Conference in Cullowhee,…

Bart Jones Bart Jones is Past President of TNPS. His indoor job is as an infectious disease scientist at St. Jude, but he spends every spare moment outside researching native plants and butterflies. He says no rock, wildflower or butterfly is safe from his curiosity. Bart also claims familiarity with the 50 species of orchids native to Tennessee and has been studying their pollination strategies. Check out his article on "The Native Orchids of Tennessee" in the March/April issue of…

Description: This is a joint outing for TNPS and TCWP. We will have an opportunity to see fall wildflowers on the Cumberland Mountain ridgetop and see views. As usual hikers may turn around at any point, but most flowers will be on top. We will hike from a trailhead (Sarvis) which is about halfway up the mountain. The climb is a about 1,000 feet from the trailhead to the top. Meeting Place: Dollar General on TN 63 east of La…

Pandy Upchurch Andrea (Pandy) Upchurch has been an interpretive naturalist for 35 years at such places as the Nature Station at Land Between the Lakes, Dunbar Cave State Natural Area and the Warner Parks Nature Center. In 2003, she worked as the Outreach Coordinator for the Center for Environmental Education at Middle Tennessee State University. She was the Middle Tennessee Wildlife Diversity Coordinator for the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency for 7 years and a planner for the State Wildlife Action…

Description: We will travel from the 412 Market to the natural area. Here we will explore the upland grasslands. These grasslands add diversity to the plant and animal richness of the natural area. Leaders will identify plants and animals, collect seed (for conservation initiatives) and discuss the importance of grasslands. We will contribute important data to the Southeastern Grasslands Initiative by adding plant and animal records to iNaturalist. All data will be used to understand the region’s grasslands and provide…

Description:  This trip will focus on all the other things that grow out of the ground (and even from plants).  We should encounter numerous species of mushrooms, fungi, lichens, and slime molds that are all weird and wonderful.  And we won’t ignore the plants, particularly red turtlehead (Chelone obliqua). Directions/Meeting Place:  Take US Hwy. 45E north through Greenfield. Turn left onto TN Hwy. 445 (Kimmery Store Rd.). Turn right onto Big Cypress Rd. and follow to the playground/picnic area where…

Robin Whitfield Robin paints on location with watercolor and experiments with foraged wild pigments. She takes a special interest in exploring native habitats on public land in Mississippi. Relating what’s happening with the paint to what is perceived from nature is a dance of addition and subtraction; an act of filtering, distilling and synthesizing what is loved, sensed and understood. Robin's seminar on The Color of Conservation: cultivating creativity and curiosity as a way to connect to place shows her…