If you are interested in pursuing
further native plant education for yourself or a group that you
represent, please complete our information form [link to
attachment provided]. Additional training opportunities can
also be found at the
King and
Snohomish County
program websites.
You are also invited to attend
WNPS presentations and field trips occurring regularly in
counties all over Washington State. For more information, check
out the website
www.wnps.org for
details, or become a member of the WNPS. If you are looking
specifically for outings or volunteer activities happening in
Pierce county, you can also visit
www.southsoundchapterwnps.org,
or go back to the home page of
www.ssstewardship.org
for activities happening in Pierce County.
To voice your interest in the
availability of more native plant training opportunities, or if
you are aware of available funding for additional training,
please contact Anna Thurston at:
anna.thurston@ssstewardship.org.
More about
future WNPS Native Plant Stewardship Training Programs
-- in Pierce County --
Pierce County’s 2006 WNPS Native
Plant Stewardship program offered 100 hours of in-class training
and field trips to selected individuals. Provided funding,
future programs will be similarly implemented. The 2006 program
included a wide range of topics useful for volunteers restoring
and protecting native plants and natural areas in the lowland
Puget Sound habitats of Pierce County, and elsewhere.
Participants learned to identify
plants growing in this region and to understand the natural
plant communities that existed before development. Emphasis was
given to practical stewardship of open space and the native
plant habitats remaining in our urban and rural areas.
Specific topics presented include
Western Washington ecosystems, plant identification, plant
biology and morphology, plant salvaging, landscaping with
natives, site restoration, invasive plant species, rare plants,
ethno-botany, and wildlife habitat. Classroom and field training
is provided by a wide and interesting array of presenters.
The WNPS Native plant Stewardship
program is currently implemented over eleven-weeks including
three Saturday field trips. Once a week, all-day lectures were
conducted at the Tacoma Nature Center (1919 South Tyler Street).
Saturday field trips were scheduled to provide a variety of
winter to spring habitat and plant ID opportunities.
In return for the training,
program participants agreed to provide a minimum of 100 hours of
outreach, service and education towards a project of their
choice. A portion of this time goes to the Native Plant Salvage
program another portion to the South Sound Chapter of WNPS, and
the rest to a qualifying program that the participant creates or
with which they collaborate.
For more information, contact
Anna Thurston, the Native Plant Stewardship program facilitator
in Pierce County at 253.566.3342, or by e-mail:
anna.thurston@ssstewardship.org.
