DECEMBER
1999
Editor - Emily Nietering
INDOOR
PROGRAM SCHEDULE
January
9, 2000, (Sunday, 2 pm) “Genetic
Engineering in Food Plants,” presented by Peter Bray. Here
is an opportunity to hear about a looming controversy which directly affects
us all. Are genetically altered
plants safe to eat? This is a
question that has seized the attention of the American public after learning
that genetically altered crops grown by American farmers have been rejected
for importation into such countries as Great Britain.
The
question takes on greater poignancy when consumers learn that unwittingly they
have been buying and eating genetically altered foods over the last several
years as products have become widely distributed throughout the supermarket.
Labeling is not required in the U.S. for genetically altered plants; so
the only way to avoid them is to buy organically grown and labeled products
exclusively (or, of course, grow your own).
Finally, conservation biologists have raised questions about long term
consequences and the impact ecologically on our native wild plants.
Held
in the lower level meeting room at FARMINGTON HILLS PUBLIC LIBRARY, 32737 W.
Twelve Mile Road (see map, page 4).
February
6, 2000, (Sunday, 1 pm)
Annual
Gourmet Dinner. Bring
a special dish to share and your own table service for an afternoon of food
and fun. Following the dinner, Kathleen
Thomson will give an historical program of the slides George took in
the late 1950's to promote the establishment of the Porcupine Mountains
Wilderness State Park. It
features the Lake of the Clouds in its fall splendor.
Held at FARMINGTON HILLS PUBLIC LIBRARY.
March
5, 2000, (Sunday,
2 pm) Foxes and
bluebirds on Zug Island? Sound impossible?
Lisa M. Appel, Assistant Project Coordinator at
the Wildlife Habitat Council will share information about its programs,
including Zug Island, with us. The
WHC is a non-profit organization dedicated to increasing the amount of quality
wildlife habitat primarily on corporate lands.
The WHC also administers the St. Clair River Waterways for Wildlife
projects including prairie replanting and reforestation on both sides of the
river. Held at FARMINGTON HILLS
PUBLIC LIBRARY.
April
2, 2000, (Sunday, 2 pm)
Join us for a presentation by Joe Sulak of
the organization “The Greening of Detroit.”
His focus will be on urban trees, recent replanting projects and some
lovely slides of the trees of long ago Detroit.
Held at FARMINGTON HILLS PUBLIC LIBRARY.
MEMBERSHIP RENEWAL
Our
2000 membership year begins on January 1, 2000.
Please use the enclosed form on the insert to renew your membership by December
31, 1999. Dues remain the
same at $18 for individual and $20 for family memberships.
MBC
LIFE MEMBER
HERB CONANT DIES
Herbert
E. Conant, age 94, passed away Sunday, October 10, 1999 at Saline Community
Hospital. He was born May 5, 1905
in Denton, son of the late Eugene W. And Ella Mae (Glass) Conant.
Mr. Conant was a descendant of a Michigan pioneer family.
His grandfather, Samuel Y. Denton established the town of Denton.
He later moved his family home from the Willow Run Airport area to
Plymouth and it is registered with the Register of Historical Houses.
Mr. Conant was a member of the Michigan Botanical Club, Salem
Farmer’s Club and Salem Area Historical Society.
He was the Market Master for the Ann Arbor Farmer’s Market from the
late 60's to 1973. Mr. Conant had
a great love for the outdoors and led many wildflower hikes.
Beyond his love of farming Mr. Conant also pursued a formal education
graduating in 1920 from Michigan Normal College (now EMU) with a teaching
certificate. Later he attended
MSU and received a B.S. in Botany, also doing graduate work in Botany.
He was a substitute teacher for Plymouth Schools.
He is survived by his wife Olive, four children and two grandchildren.
Private services were held at Denton Cemetery.
Memorial contributions to the Salem Area Historical Society for
restoration of Stone School, P.O. Box 75011, Salem , MI 48175 would be
appreciated.
Excerpted from
the Ann Arbor News, October 12, 1999.
Memorials
in Herb Conant’s name can also be made to the charity of your choice such as
the Michigan Botanical Foundation, c/o Patrick Fields, 2920 Trudy Lane,
Lansing, MI 48910-3758.
MBC
ANNUAL STATE
BOARD MEETING REPORT
MBC
President Patrick Fields announced that the Michigan Botanical Foundation has
funded a proposal to award $200.00 to each MBC Chapter to be used as
scholarship money to support students who attend the MBC Spring Foray.
Also, he reported that the Isobel Dickinson Memorial Fund has monies
available to award to a student who writes and publishes an article in the Michigan
Botanist.
Warren
Wagner led a discussion on ways to remedy the delay in publication of the Michigan
Botanist. Editorial funding
was discussed as well as other ideas to bring the publication up to date.
The MBC Board voted to form a committee to examine the MBC Constitution
and to review the articles which deal with the Michigan Botanist and
its Editorial Board. Also, a
committee was formed to investigate editorial funding and other means to
assist the publishing of the Michigan Botanist.
Judy
Kelly, webmaster for the MBC internet home page, reported on the new features
of the web page which is found at http://www.michbotclub.org
The
next MBC State Board meeting will be held Saturday, January 22, 2000 in the
Plant Biology Building at MSU, East Lansing, MI.
TWO
WILDFLOWER TRIPS OFFERED
BY DINOSAUR
HILL
Join
us for our annual Wildflower Pilgrimage to the Smokies.
We will be staying just outside Great Smoky Mountain National Park.
Experts will be leading guided walking tours in and around the park.
This is something everyone must experience at least once!
Plan to join us for five nights, April 25-30.
We
will be returing to the Bruce Peninsula, Ontario, for three nights, June 9, 10
and 11. The Bruce has a
“concentration of diversity, beautiful varied shorelines, massive cliffs,
fields of flowers, rare orchids, and friendly people to share it all.
It was a relaxing weekend, with easy hiking and the beauty of nature at
its finest! I highly recommend
this trip to all nature lovers” -Sandy, 1999 trip participant.
A CHRISTMAS
STORY ABOUT
A CUSTOM AND
A MIRACLE
It
has almost become a custom in the closing days of a Congressional session for
some members to seek passage of unpopular anti-environmental proposals by
attaching riders to a huge appropriation bill.
The strategy is designed to slip the proposal through the legislative
process without its being noticed; or, if it does come to light, expecting
that those objecting to it will finally back down to avoid being blamed for
blocking the passage of an appropriation bill.
1999
was a ‘good’ year for anti-environmental riders.
Some two dozen were stuck onto a $15 billion appropriations bill for
the Interior Department. Examples
of some of these riders included such things as: excusing fines imposed on
power plants who fail to install pollution controls contrary to the Clean
Water Act; allowing more logging in national forests without regard to
wildlife; allowing mining companies to dump tons of mining waste on federal
lands; postponing grizzly bear recovery programs, etc.
But,
then, a miracle happened! The
bill was cleaned up thanks to an energized conservation lobby, a band of
moderate Republicans, some key Democrats and the President who exercised
unusual consistency. Earlier,
President Clinton had characterized the riders as “ a stealth attack on the
environment” and said he would send the bill “straight back to the
recycling bin” unless they were removed.
So
Merry Christmas everyone and a Happy New Year! Kathleen
Thomson
NEW
WILDFLOWER BOOK AVAILABLE
Wildflowers
of the Western Great Lakes Region
by James R. Wells, Frederick W. Case, Jr. and T. Lawrence Mellichamp,
published by Cranbrook Institute of Science, expects a publication date in
late December 1999. This full
color, 304 page, coffee-table sized book features 270 species of wildflowers
grouped in typical habitats. The
book may be ordered in anticipation of publication by calling the Cranbrook
Publication Dept. at 1-248-645-3214. It
also may be ordered by writing to Publications, Cranbrook Institute of
Science, 1221 N. Woodward, Box 801, Bloomfield Hills, MI 48303. The price of
the book is $39.00 (Cranbrook members may deduct 10%) with $2.34 sales tax and
$5.00 shipping and handling, for a total of $46.34.
Checks or credit cards are accepted.
It will also be available in the Cranbrook Institute of Science gift
shop.
ADDITIONAL
NEWS
Roger
Sutherland, popular field trip leader and president of the Huron Valley
Chapter, is now home recovering from abdominal aneurysm surgery on Nov. 3.
His wife, Mary, reports he is gaining strength but full recovery is
expected to take 3 months. We
send them our best wishes.
Stephen
Locke, SE Chapter member, and 1998 Foray Student Scholarship awardee, recently
received the first annual fellowship given to a University of
Michigan-Dearborn student from a recent bequest.
The fellowship provides $1000 a year towards tuition and fees for a
student interested in environmental studies.
Congratulations Steve!
UPCOMING
SPRING FORAY
2000 PLANNING COMMITTEE
MEETING
Plans
continue to be made for Spring Foray 2000 to be held in Rogers City, MI, May
26-29. Dr. Ed Voss has agreed to
lead field trips for us to Grass Bay and Thompson’s Harbor State Park.
The next meeting of the Foray planning committee will b held on Friday
night, January 7 at 7:30 pm at the home of Van Klein, 30181 Greenland,
Livonia. Anyone willing to assist
our chapter as we prepare for the Foray is welcome to attend.
Please
cut out this form and mail to the address below
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
MICHIGAN
BOTANICAL CLUB - SEC
MEMBERSHIP FORM
Membership year runs from January 1, 2000 to
December 31, 2000
On
the lines below, please make any corrections needed from the mailing label.
NAME:
_________________________________________________
PHONE:
(
) _______________
ADDRESS:
____________________________________________________
CITY,
STATE, ZIP (+4 please): ____________________________________
$18-Individual
Adult (U.S.
funds)
$__________
$20-Family
Membership (U.S. funds)
(2 or more adults at the same address)
$_________
Dues
include subscription to the journal Michigan Botanist, the state
newsletter Arisaema, and the Southeastern Chapter Newsletter.
Please
make your check payable to:
MICHIGAN BOTANICAL
CLUB - SEC
If
you do not want your phone number listed on the membership roster, please
check here _____
