General Interest
The Habitat Game
Games are a great way to get people to learn, and the Piedmont Chapter has invented a cool (tested!) activity to teach the concept that our choices in landscaping make a difference, and why. This article first appeared in the Chapter’s Winter newsletter, The Leaflet. We’re happy to have the opportunity to spread the idea…
Read MoreNon-Native Milkweed: Helpful or Harmful?
The most recent article about the monarch butterfly in the New York Times has once again raised the question of whether we should be planting non-native milkweed. The milkweed being discussed was the tropical variety most widely available in the usual stores, Asclepias curassavica, known commonly as Scarlet or Tropical milkweed. Ongoing research points…
Read MoreSeeds of a New Chapter?
Virginia’s Eastern Shore: it’s that part of the state that is separated from the rest of the Commonwealth, attached by land to Maryland and connected to the rest of Virginia only by the 17.6-mile Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel, an engineering marvel. All too often the ES is omitted from simple maps of the state, and residents…
Read MoreA Boy Named Sue: When and Where to Use a Plant’s Scientific Name
Why is using a plant’s scientific name important? Especially when common (vernacular) plant names can give you so much more information about the thought process and cultural beliefs of the people that named the plants. The use of vernacular in plant naming is a time-honored tradition that should never be thrown out because of what…
Read MoreNative Plants for Pollinators: An App
It’s National Pollinator Week, and now we can all Bee smart, because there’s an app for that! Yes, really. The next time you are shopping for plants, you will be able have help in figuring out the plants you can use in your very own garden to help pollinators the most. Available on both Android…
Read MoreVNPS: What Do We DO?
“A plant society? What is that? What kinds of things do you do?,” asked a somewhat incredulous young man visiting a VNPS table recently. One of the things we do, of course, is to have educational display tables at all kinds of events, where people can ask questions like this one! To the inquirer, I…
Read MoreNatives Are Glamorous Plants!
“Natives are the most glamorous things in the world,” says Randee Wilson, “It really gnaws on me to hear people refer to natives as weedy.” Randee shared his opinion recently with a group of people who are working on a native plant marketing partnership. There may be some non-natives that are beautiful, too,” Randee said, …
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