The 36th annual Wildflower Workshop was held on Friday, June 7, 2013 at Northwestern Oklahoma State University Student Center Ballroom, in Alva, OK. A field trip to the Great Salt Plains National Wildlife Refuge followed on Saturday, June 8th. April Ridgway, President of Alva Garden Council and Alva Tulip Club, coordinated the statewide event which is sponsored jointly by the Oklahoma Garden Clubs and the Oklahoma Native Plant Society, and hosted by the Northwest District of the Oklahoma Garden Clubs, Inc. Elaine Lynch, Oklahoma Native Plant Society, assisted with coordinating program speakers and vendors. Approximately 50 people statewide attended the workshop and were welcomed by Roberta Burns, President of Oklahoma Garden Clubs, Inc., and Alex Mantz, Alva Chamber of Commerce. Exhibits of native plants, books, seeds, and gifts were on display by various vendors. Alva Petunia and Tulip Garden Clubs provided refreshments of cookies, coffee and tea. The local garden clubs decorated the tables with attractive bird houses and greenery from their yards. Speakers provided educational and interesting presentations throughout the day. Brooke Bonner, OSU botanist, discussed “Vegetation of the Great Salt Plains.” She identified plants that would grow on the salt flats, on the margins, and other tall and short grasses and vegetation in the area. Dr. Adam Ryburn, OSU biologist and plant taxonomist, explained “The Flora of Oklahoma - Past, Present, and Future.” The next speaker, Craig Williams, a professional landscaper from Lawton, OK, gave a passionate speech entitled “The Wow factor in Wildflowers.” Mr. Williams talked about beautification efforts to keep tourists in Oklahoma, and presented all attendees with individual sacks of wildflowers and seed packets to encourage growth of native plants. After lunch, Karen Hickman, OSU ecologist and Alva native, spoke on “Oklahoma Invasive Plant Council’s Dirty Dozen.” The invasive species were hydrilla (the only aquatic plant on the list), cheat grass, Johnson grass, field brome, smooth brome, yellow bluestem, nodding thistle, Russian thistle, eastern red cedar, chinese privet, Japanese honeysuckle, saltcedar, and Siberian elm. Dr. Sheila Strawn, editor of the Oklahoma Native Plant Record, presented a history of “The Evolution of the Oklahoma Native Plant Record.” All twelve previous editions are currently archived on the OSU library website as ejournals. Dr. Strawn encouraged members to submit research papers and photographs of native plants in their natural habitat to their website oknativeplants.org. After a brief break, Dr. Rod Murrow, owner of Murrow’s FrameArt, Alva, OK, presented a slideshow and discussion entitled “From Pixels to Pixies: An Introduction to Flower Photography.” Dr. Murrow gave some valuable tips on photographing wildflowers and some beautiful photos taken along roadsides in Woods and Alfalfa counties. After dinner, Dr. Steven Thompson, NWOSU biologist and plant ecologist, entertained the group with “Botany at 65 mph.” His slideshow referred to learning to recognize 36th Annual Wildflower Workshop wildflowers while driving down the highway. Due to heavy oilfield traffic on Northwest District roads, stopping to admire wildflowers can be extremely hazardous. Attendees assembled at the NWOSU parking lot on Saturday, June 8th to board a chartered bus to the Great Salt Plains. A boxed lunch was provided. Dr. Thompson led the group on an interesting and educational walking tour of the Great Salt Plains National Refuge. Dr. Thompson received rave reviews for his impressive knowledge of the many species encountered on the field trip. Figure 1. Barbara Faulkner, Northwest District Garden Club President; April Ridgway, Alva Garden Council and Alva Tulip Club President; and Wanda Cox, Alva Petunia Club President, welcome attendees to the 36th Annual Wildflower Workshop. 36th Annual Wildflower Workshop Figure 2. Dr. Steven Thompson, NWOSU, discusses the field trip to the Great Salt Plains.
Posted on: Tue, 15 Oct 2013 16:28:01 +0000
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