Fall 2023/Winter & Spring 2024
Monday Nov 25, 2024 at 7:30 pm – Museum of Natural History and Zoom
Research on using Marsh Elder (Iva Fructans) to help protect our coastlines
The next Nova Scotia Wild Flora Society meeting is Monday Nov. 25, 7:30pm in the downstairs auditorium of the Museum of Natural History, 1747 Summer St, Halifax. It will also be broadcast via Zoom.
Allison MacNeil is a Masters student in Botany at Saint Mary’s University. Earlier this year the Nova Scotia Wild Flora Society provided financial support for her research into coastal resilience techniques using our native Marsh Elder (Iva frutescens) as a focal species.
Allison will be giving us a presentation showing the progress of her research. Marsh Elder is found in the upper areas of salt marshes and has the potential to play a significant role in protecting our coastlines. Despite its importance, little is known about this shrub, especially in Nova Scotia, where it is restricted to the Minas Basin and Yarmouth areas. Allison will discuss her work in determining Marsh Elder’s habitat preferences, assessing fitness differences between populations, and identifying effective planting techniques to support its use in coastal restoration.
The link to the Zoom presentation will be e-mailed to members. Please contact novascotiawildflora@gmail.com if you have any questions.
Monday Oct 28, 2024 at 7:30 pm
The Natural and Not-so-Natural History of Sandy Lake (Bedford, NS)
Each one of the 1000 or so lakes in HRM is physically unique but they share common threats to their ongoing integrity associated with climate change and urbanization. In this presentation, NSWFS member David Patriquin will take us on a a visual tour of Sandy Lake and its associated wetlands and watercourses and describe/discuss ongoing and potential future impacts of climate change and urbanization on the recreational and ecological qualities of Sandy Lake.
Since his retirement as a Prof, of Biology at Dalhousie University in 2008, David has spent as much of his time as he can exploring his ‘Bioregion’ which he defines arbitrarily as the area within 50 km of peninsular Halifax, or more formally as the Sackville River Primary Watershed. He began looking at “Sandy Lake & Environs” in 2017, visiting the area on foot and by paddling. He conducted limnological observations with the help of volunteers from the Sandy Lake Conservation Association; since 2022 in coordination with the Halifax LakeWatchers program. In conjunction with historical data going back to 1971, the 2017-2024 observations reveal a long term trend of increasing salt content (a proxy for urban influence), and of declining and now very low deep water (hypolimnion ) oxygen during the period of peak stratification in late summer – except in 2023 when it appears that the excessive precipitation essentially flushed and re-oxygenated the entire lake.
The future trajectory of the lake will depend very much on the vagaries of climate change, and on whether or not a major development in an area of significant headwaters and wetlands is given the go-ahead. Oct 29: Now posted as YouTube Video
This will be a zoom-only meeting. If you are an current NSWFS member, or guest, you will receive a Zoom link to the meeting by email.
Monday Sept 23, 2024 at 7:30 pm
The Nova Scotia Wild Flora Society invites you to our next members’ meeting, online on Monday Sept 23, 2024 at 7:30 pm.This is a zoom only meeting. If you are an current NSWFS member, or guest, you will receive a Zoom link to the meeting by email.
Join Rosmarie Lohnes, CEO of the award-winning Ecological Restoration company Helping Nature Heal Inc. for an insightful presentation on “Restoring Land Through Nature-Based Strategies”. With over 20 years of experience, Lohnes discusses innovative approaches to land restoration that promote the use of native species and natural methods to adapt to the changing climate. Don’t miss this opportunity to learn how we can work in harmony with nature to create resilient environments for future generations.
Member’s Meeting Outdoors Point Pleasant May 27, 6:30pm
The next and final meeting (until next fall) for the Nova Scotia Wild Flora Society will be outdoors, rain or shine, at Point Pleasant Park in Halifax on Monday May 27 at 6:30pm. Please meet us at the Prince of Wales Martello Tower, shown on the map.
PPP (Point Pleasant Park, 77 ha) is owned by the British Government, but the park is administered by the Department of Canadian Heritage while the Halifax Regional Municipality holds the lease. The municipality pays 1 shilling annually for the lease.
PPP was largely a closed canopy mature evergreen forest until Hurricane Juan hit shores of PPP in Sep 2003, leaving only a few groves untouched. An extensive public consultation was held in 2005 in which the many respondents expressed a desire for “Nature dominated landscape, Natural beauty, a place to connect with local history, a non-commercial park…” The Point Pleasant Park Comprehensive Plan was released in 2008 with a goal “To create a naturalized forest ecosystem”; it was widely applauded. In 2019, a tree-thinning program was begun, the objectives being to cut out invasive tree species such as Norway Maple, and to “thin out the weaker trees”. The final stage of thinning will begin this fall.
After discussing the member business at 6:30, we will look at vegetation in thinned and unthinned areas – there will be lots of spring flowering plants!
Some of us may arrive before 6:30 to scout around the park before the meeting.
Bluets – Hedyotis caerulea
Member’s Zoom Meeting March 25 7:00pm – Rebecca Parker Gets Us Up to Date with The Young Naturalists Club
Pollinator Count and Bee Friendly Activities
Rebecca (Becky) Parker is Executive Director at Nature Nova Scotia and helps run the Nova Scotia Young Naturalist’s Club. She will talk to us about their activities including the multi day expedition to SW NS in 2021 with the YNC’s older youth chapter, where they worked on various plant surveys. They found and recorded field notes on species like redroot, goldencrest, and thread-leaved sundew.
After returning home they then compiled their observations and drawings into the Kids Guide to Weird Plants book, which the YNC now distributes.
They repeated the trip in 2023 and chose educational signage as their science communication topic, drafting signs that could be placed in and around national or provincial parks in the area. They’re hoping to make that a reality this or next year, but really the best part of both trips has been just letting the kids explore and draw and ask questions.
As part of the meeting, we also hope to talk with Becky about how the Nova Scotia Wild Flora Society can better work with the Young Naturalists.
If you are a member of NSWFS, you should be getting an email with the Zoom link. If you do not receive it, please contact novascotiawildflora@gmail.com
Monday Feb 26, 7:30pm – Member’s Meeting at Museum and via Zoom: Mike Lancaster shows us the new Island Lake Wilderness Area
The next members meeting will be on Monday Feb. 26 at 7:30 pm, both in person at the Museum of Natural History 1747 Summer St. and by Zoom. If you are a member, you will be recieving a link to the Zoom presentation in your email closer to the date.
Mike Lancaster, Executive Director of the St. Margaret’s Bay Stewardship Association, will take us on a virtual tour of the newly designated Island Lake Wilderness Area, a 3,927-hectare Protected Area in the St. Margaret’s Bay Area and part of the broader Ingram River Wilderness Area proposal. Mike will also discuss the 8-year campaign that this designation required and the need for continued support for the 11,000 hectares of the proposed Ingram River Wilderness Area that remains unprotected.
Monday Jan 22, 2024; Members’ Photo Night via Zoom
Our next member’s meeting will be on January 22 in the new year. As has been our tradition for many years, you are invited to share up to 20 of your favourite wild flora photos. Do you have a photo of a Mystery Plant to include? You only need to have Zoom capability and current membership.
If you would like to participate , please read the attached document Slide Presentation Specs 2024 and contact novascotiawildflora@gmail.com
Netted Chain Fern – Photo Bob Kennedy
All members will received an email invitation to the Zoom meeting later in January.
Time to renew for 2023! Membership is still $15 individual, $20 family membership. You can pay by e-transfer or cheque to novascotiawildflora@gmail.com
Monday Mar 25, 2024, 7:30 pm, Becky Parker tells us about recent activities of the Young Naturalist Club and their new book “Kids Guide to Weird Plants”
