Dear fellow plant enthusiasts,
We are happy to announce the schedule for the upcoming Native Plants and Permaculture Gathering at Lost Valley Educational Center. Early registration continues through March 31; regular registration continues until the event or until we are full. Check www.lostvalley.org/nature for updated information. We hope to see you there!
Native Plants and Permaculture: A Gathering of Plant Enthusiasts
May 11-13, 2007, at Lost Valley Educational Center, Dexter, OR
We will be seeking common ground between the Native Plant and Permaculture communities in developing ecologically-integrated self-sustenance and native habitat preservation in the Pacific Northwest.
Schedule (subject to change):
Friday, May 11: getting to know the site and one another
3 pm Registration and check-in begin
3:30 pm-6 pm Nature Trail, Permaculture, and Garden Walks, Tours, and Activities — Tobias Policha (Institute of Contemporary Ethnobotany), Devon Bonady (Fern Hill Nursery), Rick Valley, Marcus Lorusso, Chris Roth (Lost Valley Educational Center), and others
6 pm Dinner
7:30 pm Welcome and Meeting Circle facilitated by Michael Pilarski (Friends of the Trees Society), followed by Networking, Resource-Sharing, and Music
Saturday, May 12: natives, nonnatives, and finding common ground
7:30 am Breakfast
9 am Introduction — Michael Pilarski (Friends of the Trees Society), Melanie Rios (Maitreya Ecovillage), and Sharon Blick (School Garden Project)
9:10 am Why Native Plants?: A Brief Overview – Marcia Cutler (Native Plant Society of Oregon)
9:20 am False Brome Control at Buford Park: An Integrated Approach to Vegetation Management — Jason Blazar (Friends of Buford Park, Camas Educational Network)
9:40 am The Challenges of Native Habitat Conservation and Restoration — Ed Alverson (The Nature Conservancy)
10 am Sustainable Approaches to Ecological Restoration and Habitat Mending — Stephanie Schroeder (Walama Restoration Project)
(10:20 am break)
10:30 am Wildcrafting Weeds in the Pacific Northwest — Michael Pilarski (Friends of the Trees Society)
10:50 am Invasion Biology: Science or Pseudoscience? — David Theodoropoulos (author, Invasion Biology: Critique of a Pseudoscience)
11:10 am What Did You Eat for Breakfast?: Native Plants, Local Foodsheds, and Wildlife Restoration — Toby Hemenway (author, Gaia’s Garden)
(11:30 am break)
11:40 am Finding Common Ground (panel and open discussion) with Heiko Koester (Eugene Permaculture Guild), Sharon Blick, Joshua Smith (Ecoscape Environmental Services), Aryana Ferguson (Native Plant Society of Oregon), Nick Routledge (Seed Ambassadors Project)
12:30 pm Lunch
2 pm-4:30 pm Breakout Sessions:
* Plant Walks – Marcia Cutler (Native Plant Society of Oregon), Aryana Ferguson (Native Plant Society of Oregon)
* Sustainable Local Foodsheds and the “Third Way” with Jude Hobbs (Agro-Ecology Northwest), Nick Routledge, Toby Hemenway, Tobias Policha (Institute of Contemporary Ethnobotany), Joshua Smith
* Invasion Biology: An In-Depth Look — David Theodoropoulos
4:30 pm Finding Common Ground: Preserving and Enhancing Diversity and Ecological Health (whole group and small groups)
6 pm Dinner
8 pm Concert — Laura Kemp (in lodge); Networking Opportunities (in classrooms)
Sunday, May 13: restoring and enhancing the roles of native plants in our lives
7:30 am Breakfast
9 am Introduction
9:10 am How Birds Select Habitats in Native Plant Communities: Who Lives Where and Why? — Dave Bontrager (Lane County Audubon Society)
9:30 am Native Plants and Butterflies — Sharon Blick (North American Butterfly Association, Eugene-Springfield chapter)
9:40 am Edible and Useful Native Plants and their Associations — Joshua Smith (Ecoscape Environmental Services)
10 am Substituting Natives for Nonnatives in Home Landscapes — Heiko Koester (Eugene Permaculture Guild)
10:20 am Native Plants in the Multi-Functional Hedgerow — Jude Hobbs (Agro-Ecology Northwest)
(10:40 am break)
10:50 am Kalapuya Uses of Native Plants — Bill Burwell (Kalapuya researcher)
11:10 am Ethnobotany of the Willamette Valley — Jerry Hall (ethnobotanist, Lane Community College)
11:30 am Bringing Back Native Food Crops — Rick Valley (Lost Valley Educational Center)
(11:50 am break)
12:00 pm Native Plants in Our Lives–Next Steps (discussion)
12:30 pm Lunch
2 pm-5 pm Breakout Sessions:
* The Influence of Nonnative Plants on Bird Populations (nature walk and discussion–please bring binoculars) — Dave Bontrager
* Indigenous Land Management — Bill Burwell, Jerry Hall, and Rick Valley
* Practical Plant Talks (some or all may be combined or occur consecutively):
- Natives and Nonnatives in Permaculture Zones 1 through 5 – Michael Pilarski (Friends of the Trees Society)
- Incorporating Nonnatives into Restoration Projects — David Theodoropoulos (author, Invasion Biology: Critique of a Pseudoscience)
- Permaculture Uses of Native Plants in Urban and Rural Landscapes — Heiko Koester, Joshua Smith, Devon Bonady (Fern Hill Nursery), and Toby Hemenway (author, Gaia’s Garden)
5 pm Final Discussion and Closing Circle — Michael Pilarski, Melanie Rios (Maitreya Ecovillage), Sharon Blick, and whole group
6 pm Dinner
This event is supported in part by Lost Valley Nature Center, Eugene Permaculture Guild, Friends of the Trees Society, Tryon Life Community Farm, Walama Restoration Project, Institute of Contemporary Ethnobotany, Mt. Pisgah Arboretum, Fern Hill Nursery, Living Tree Paper Company, and others.
The early registration fee is $75 for the full weekend; regular registration (after March 31) is $90 for the weekend, or $50 for Saturday or Sunday only, $20 for Friday. Saturday evening’s concert is by donation to the artist. Meals, lodging, and camping are also available; see www.lostvalley.org/nativeplantspc/registrationonline.
For those wishing to do preparatory reading, article and website links are listed below. Additional material will continue to be added.
Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife: Conservation Strategy for Oregon
Oregon Department of Agriculture Plant Division
Oregon Flora Project
Native Plant Society of Oregon and Emerald Chapter, NPSO
Emerald Chapter of the Native Plant Society of Oregon: Invasive Plants
Camas Educational Network
Friends of Buford Park and Mt. Pisgah
Friends of Buford Park: Invasive Weeds at Mt. Pisgah
Mt. Pisgah Arboretum
Oregon State University: False Brome Is a Rapidly Invasive Grass in Western Oregon
Oregon State University: English Ivy Is Invasive Weed In Pacific Northwest
Oregon State University: These Ornamentals Become Too Successful In Oregon
The Nature Conservancy in Oregon
Walama Restoration Project
Friends of the Trees Society
Michael Pilarski: Native Plants, Non-Native Plants, and Weeds in Permaculture Zones 1 through 5
David Theodoropoulos: Invasion of the Aliens!
Rick Valley: Invasion Biology Resources
Toby Hemenway: Pattern Literacy and Another Kind of Genocide
Joshua Smith: Permaculture and Exotics vs. Native Plants
Eugene Permaculture Guild
The Seed Ambassadors Project
The School Garden Project
Tryon Life Community Farm
Cascadia Food Not Lawns
Institute of Contemporary Ethnobotany
Tobias Policha: Rewilding the Garden
Nick Routledge: Bringing Back the Spirit of the Wolf
Nick Routledge: Making War and Peace
Toby Hemenway and Nick Routledge: Conscious Stewardship
Nick Routledge: Kinesthetic Mapping of Natives and Exotics Attitudes
Nick Routledge: Nazi Tie-In to Forthcoming Local Permaculture Gathering
Lane County Audubon Society
North American Butterfly Association, Eugene-Springfield Chapter
Sharon Blick: Butterfly Garden Species List
Jude Hobbs: Agro-Ecology Northwest and Hedgerows
Bill Burwell: The Kalapuyan Resource Base
USDA: Ethnobotany of Common Camas and Great Camas
Esther Stutzman: The Beginnings of the Kalapuya People
Margaret Robertson: The Kalapuya of the Upper Willamette Valley
Wikipedia: Kalapuya
USDA: References on the American Indian Use of Fire in Ecosystems
Oregon Oak Communities Working Group: Oregon White Oak
Kalapuya-Amin 2006 Symposium: Bibliography
Willamalane Parks and Recreation District: Whilamut Natural Area
Middle Fork Willamette Watershed Council, Coast Fork Willamette Watershed Council, McKenzie Watershed Council, Long Tom Watershed Council, Fern Hill Nursery
Laura Kemp
Happy Spring!
Chris
Chris Roth
Coordinator, Lost Valley Nature Center
Lost Valley Educational Center
81868 Lost Valley Lane
Dexter, OR 97431
www.lostvalley.org/nature
nature AT(replace with @) lostvalley.org
541-937-2567 ext. 116
Why This Conference?
For many years, plant lovers have held widely varying opinions about the appropriate roles of native and nonnative plants in our ecosystems and cultivated landscapes. Native plant enthusiasts list some nonnative plants as dangerous invaders, while Permaculturalists may advocate the cultivation and spread of those same species. Some native botanists endorse the selective application of herbicides to eradicate aggressive weedy species, while Permaculturally-inclined gardeners seem more apt to embrace “weeds” and reject chemical means of control. Meanwhile, whatever our attitudes towards natives and exotics, all of our diets and many facets of our economy depend heavily on nonnative plants. Before the arrival of Europeans, however, native plants provided sustenance to indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest for thousands of years.
This weekend gathering will bring together plant enthusiasts of all stripes to learn from one another and explore common ground. We will examine current and potential ecological and economic roles of native plants, effects of exotics on ecosystems and how best to respond to those impacts, indigenous land management techniques, and more. We will use the 87-acre living laboratory of Lost Valley Educational Center, whose Nature Center features native flora restoration projects and extensive interpretive trails through largely native habitat, and whose Permaculture gardens and projects include both native and nonnative plants. We will assess how (and whether) the different outlooks and activities represented both at this gathering and on this land can form practical syntheses which will guide us into more sustainable ways of inhabiting our region. Please join us!