News & Updates
• Goodbye Winter! The Spring, 2021 edition of the BRWS Newsletter is now available. Read a message from our president, plan for many upcoming chapter events, and learn about American beautyberry. 2/13/2021
• See the list of newly elected BRWS Officers and Board Members. 11/4/2020
• Check out our chapter's Fall 2020 Newsletter: online election for new officers, our summer plant sale success, and suggestions for wildflower walks on your own! 8/30/2020
• The Blue Ridge Wildflower Society Spring, 2020 Newsletter has just been published! Read about upcoming Field Trips and programs, Spicebush (Lindera benzoin) , and Radford's white basswood.
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Virginia Native Plant Society Blog Posts
- Phasing Out the Propagation and Sale of Invasive Plants February 19, 2021Virginia House Joint Resolution 527 calls for a study that will explore options for phasing out the propagation and sale of invasive plants in Virginia’s horticultural industry, which may include potential legislative action to be brought the following year to the 2022 General Assembly. Update 2/18/2021: House Joint Resolution (HJ 527) was approved by the…VNPS Communications
- Skunk Cabbage Secrets February 18, 2021By Nancy Sorrells On this winter weather Valentine’s Day I decided to journey back into the forest behind our property to the secret place I know where the globally rare Swamp Pink (Helonias bullata) grows. Today’s visit was not to see Swamp Pink, which is still sleeping and will not send up its amazing pink…VNPS Communications
- Wildflower of the Year 2021 American Wisteria (Wisteria frutescens) February 6, 2021Wisteria frutescens is a woody liana, potentially growing to heights of 15 m; young stems are smooth or covered with small hairs pressed tightly to the stem surface. Stems climb by twining around supports in a clockwise direction. Leaves are alternate and odd-pinnately compound, 10—30 cm long. Leaves may have from 5 to 15 leaflets…VNPS Communications
- A Parasitic Lifestyle: Beechdrops and Their Relatives December 17, 2020By Marion Lobstein Two primary characteristics of plants are a light-capturing pigment, chlorophyll, which gives most plants a green color, and the use of this pigment to capture light energy to carry out photosynthesis to produce energy-rich food from carbon dioxide and water. This kind of plant lifestyle is known as autotrophic or self-nourishing. Indian…VNPS Communications
- Red Chokeberry Shines in All Seasons November 9, 2020By Betsy Washington, Northern Neck Chapter Red Chokeberry (Aronia arbutifolia) is a versatile landscape shrub that shines in all four seasons of the year. In spring, showy clusters of up to 25 pristine white, or pink-blushed flowers light up the garden. Throughout summer the foliage is a lustrous dark green, then ignites in fall with shades…VNPS Communications
- Goldenrod Glows in the Fall October 1, 2020By Richard Stromberg Along with Asters, Goldenrods are the dominant flowers in September. Some of them continue flowering into October, and you will see their fluffy seed heads all winter. Goldenrods have small-flowered, yellow spikes and sprays. Twenty goldenrod species are frequent in the Piedmont Chapter area. Note that the large leaves at the base…VNPS Communications
- The Pipevine Swallowtail Butterfly and its Native Host Plants September 10, 2020By Mary Lee Epps, Jefferson Chapter I decided to write this article for our chapter Newsletter, The Declaration, because of an experience I had two years ago. On a family outing to the Dripping Rock area of the Blue Ridge Parkway, we explored a trail that leads from the west side of the Parkway. After…VNPS Communications
- All About the Stamens September 2, 2020By Betty Truax, Jefferson Chapter Years ago, when I lived in Northern Virginia, my mom gave me a Mock Orange plant that had no scent. It was a shared plant from her friend Anna Davis in Rochelle, Virginia. The plant was important to my mom because it reminded her of being young. With this particular…VNPS Communications
- Purple Passionflower Pops in Summer July 30, 2020By Betsy Washington, Northern Neck Chapter Driving along sandy roadsides and fields of the coastal plain in summer, it is always a delight to find our native Purple Passionflower (Passiflora incarnata), a deciduous vine with dark green, three-lobed leaves and exquisite, showy flowers and edible fruit. This vigorous vine is native to the southeastern United…VNPS Communications
- Early Explorations of Elephant Ears (Magnolia macrophylla): A Personal Note May 26, 2020By Marion Lobstein From the age of 9, I grew up as Marion Louise Coble in Stanley, NC from 1955 through 1968. As a child I explored the woods about my home on North Peterson Street. An intersecting street was East Poplar where I found a woody plant with very large leaves. I even pressed…VNPS Communications