Our next field trip is Saturday, July 17th. Please see our chapter page for further details on our upcoming programs and field trips.

    Jul 17, 2010 (Sat)    

FIELD TRIP - Mary Ann Menck, “Placing Native Shrubs in Your Landscape,” field trip to Mary Ann’s Michigan Trees and Shrubs, Paw Paw.

Mary Ann Menck will host our Wild Ones field trip Saturday, July 17, at her plant nursery near Paw Paw, Mary Ann's Michigan Trees and Shrubs. In her program on "Placing Native Shrubs in Your Landscape," beginning at 10 a.m., she’ll offer numerous ideas on how native shrubs could enhance your yard not just for you but also for your visitors: the butterflies, moths, and birds. Her program will include illustrations and live shrubs to demonstrate possible landscaping ideas. The one-hour talk will include time for discussion and questions.

The program will be outdoors, with a limited amount of seating provided, so you may want to bring a chair of your own. Cold water and lemonade will be provided. If you bring a brown bag lunch, that should allow ample time to browse through the nursery and choose native shrubs for your landscaping project. The field trip will be held rain or shine.

Mary Ann Menck established her native-plant nursery business, Mary Ann's Michigan Trees and Shrubs, eight years ago after retiring as an elementary-school counselor. She is an Advanced Master Gardener, a Master Woodland Manager, and a graduate of MSU workshops on "Tilling the Soil of Opportunity." She’s a member and secretary of the Michigan Native Plant Producers Association, a member of the Wildflower Association of Michigan, and a member and secretary of Kalamazoo Area Wild Ones. For more information and plant lists, go to www.maryannstrees.com

Directions: I-94 to Paw Paw, Exit 60. Turn north on M-40 to the intersection of M-40 and M-43. Continue north on M-40. Look for the restaurant on the left (west) side. Two houses past the restaurant you will see a row of pine trees. Just past the pine trees, at the top of the hill, you’ll see the nursery, Mary Ann's Michigan Trees and Shrubs, on the left. You may park in front of the barn basement.

Since many will want room in their vehicles for shrubs and trees, we’ll not try to organize car-pooling; but we encourage you to carpool with friends who don’t mind sharing space with plants.

    Aug 21, 2010 (Sat)    

FIELD TRIP - Russ Schipper, Ilse Gebhard and Kalman & Becky Csia, A Tour of Members’ Yards (Emphasis on Sustaining the Community of Life). Open to the general public.

On Saturday, August 21, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., Kalamazoo Wild Ones will visit two rural native-plant restorations at the homes of Wild Ones Ilse Gebhard and Russ Schipper and Becky and Kalman Csia, both quite nearby in northwestern Kalamazoo County.

We’ll begin at 10 a.m. at Ilse and Russ’s, 6450 N. 2nd St., where there are both a variety of plantings around the house and a large 55-acre prairie planting, the Sand Creek Preserve, which they established on an old field adjoining their home property and which is now a Southwest Michigan Land Conservancy preserve.

Ilse reports that every year they replace more and more of their former lawn with rather wild areas of native plants, including a tall-grass prairie planting and a short-grass one. There’s a fern bed with about 10 native ferns and several areas of shade-loving plants. Wetland plants are growing along the edge of Sand Creek and the pond, close by the house. This variety of native plants provides habitat for many insect species, which therefore attract more birds.
If there’s time we might take a brief look across the creek at the Sand Creek Preserve prairie planting of 55 acres. For a longer look at the preserve, join the Michigan Botanical Club field trip on Saturday, August 28th.

Then, at about 11:30, we’ll backtrack a bit to Becky and Kalman’s, 2831 N. 2nd St. According to presettlement surveys, the 10-acre Csia property was once part of a sandy black oak barrens, remnants of which still existed when Kalman and Becky moved there 13 years ago. Since then, they’ve been working to transform a former pasture with scattered oaks & pines into a wildflower meadow featuring wild lupine, goat’s rue, leadplant, blazing star, butterfly weed and three kinds of coreopsis. We’ll see gardens near the house and then walk the meadow (on paths) as they describe their management objectives, techniques and challenges in their ongoing efforts to protect and restore plants associated with sandy oak-dominated communities.

DIRECTIONS TO ILSE AND RUSS’S: Drive west on M-43 (West Main) past US-131 until you get to 2nd St. Turn right (north) and go about four miles. There’s a slight jog in the road at G Ave., but keep going north on 2nd past FG Ave. on the right. The driveway is the last one on the right just before you get to EF Ave. (which goes off to the left). There are two driveways next to each other; take the second one (furthest north). The house is not visible from the road. Number (6450) is by the driveway.

DIRECTIONS TO BECKY AND KALMAN’S: From Russ and Ilse’s, return south on 2nd St. About 0.3 of a mile south of H Ave., turn
right into the driveway at 2831, marked by little orange flags.
If you’re joining the tour at 11:30, without first going to Russ and Ilse’s, take M-43 west, go about 1.7 miles north on 2nd St., and turn left into the driveway shortly after you pass J Ave. There will be little orange flags by the driveway.

    Aug 29, 2010 (Sun)    

PLANT EXCHANGE - Tom Small and the Wild Ones, hosts for the Wild Ones Fall Plant and Seed Exchange. Tom Small’s Home

    Sep 11, 2010 (Sat)    

FIELD TRIP - Nate Fuller, field trip to explore the Diversity of Plant Life in the Bow in the Clouds Preserve, Kalamazoo.

    Oct 27, 2010 (Wed)    

PROGRAM - Sharon Gill, “Urban Ecology: The Lives of Plants and Animals in the City.

    Nov 17, 2010 (Wed)    

PROGRAM - Tom Small, “Working with Nature to Sustain the Community of Life.”