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Revised 04/08/10 |
FEBRUARY 2002 WINTER/SPRING PROGRAMS February 3 Sunday, 1:00 pm Our annual Gourmet Dinner. Bring a special dish to share and your own table service. Invite a friend to hear our own Margaret Converse present a program about bogs. Many of us are familiar with Margaret’s beautiful photographs and will not want to miss this afternoon of good food and fellowship. Join us at Trinity Episcopal Church, 26880 La Muera St., Farmington Hills. The church is located at the end of La Muera St. which runs north from 11 Mile Rd. between Middlebelt and Orchard Lake Roads. See the map in the December issue for details. The SEC Board of Directors will hold a brief meeting at this program.March 3 Our March speaker will be Chuck Pearson who will be speaking to us about “Backyard Butterflies. Chuck has been a butterfly gardener for many years and will have some recommendations for us on appropriate plants to use to attract butterflies to our metro Detroit yards. This meeting will be held at the Northville District Library, Meeting Room B. The Northville Library is located at 212 West Cady Street in downtown Northville. April 6, Saturday. David McDonald a resident of Washington, Macomb County, will present a program entitled “Our World Naturally. His program will include a broad variety of habitats from the Smokey Mountains to the coast of Maine, and scenes varying from garden flowers to bird walks and wildflowers. It will be a beautiful two projector show. This meeting will be at the Troy Public Library at our usual time, but on Saturday instead of Sunday. MBC Annual Spring Foray, Lake Hope State Park, McArthur, Ohio. Watch for details in the spring issue of our state newsletter, Arisaema. MEMBERSHIP RENEWAL Our 2002 membership year began on January 1. Please check you mailing label to see the expiration date of your membership. If you have not renewed for 2002, please send your dues ($20 for both individual and family membership) to our treasurer at the following address. The SEC Board voted to include a new “Benefactor” membership category ($30) for those wishing to include a donation in addition to their membership. Those of you who have e-mail may wish to include your e-mail address. It will not be published or distributed, and will be solely used for the purpose of sending electronic copies of the newsletter and meeting reminders.
Mr. Richard Fowler BRUCE BECKONS
Five hours from the metro Detroit
area lies one of nature’s perfect wildflower gardens.
The Bruce Peninsula, Ontario, northeast of Port Huron, is a
paradise for naturalists, birders, geologists and photographers.
Here one can experience the beauty of the Niagara Escarpment, a
geological and scenic treasure.
These limestone cliffs are 233 million years old and predate
any animal life on earth’s land surface. The SEC is saddened to report the death of one of our members, Ruth Plaxton, on December 30, 2001. She and her late husband, Elmer, were very active in the Club. She is survived by six children and six grandchildren. Contributions can be made to the Lutheran Church of the Redeemer in Birmingham, the American Cancer Society or the Michigan Botanical Foundation.
SHIRT
Dorothy Sibley, White Pine
Chapter President, is again taking orders for shirts with the MBC name and
large Jack-in-the-Pulpit logo. The shirts available are a short sleeved t-shirt ($15), a long-sleeved t-shirt
($20) and a sweatshirt ($25), and come in many color and size choices.
Please contact Dorothy by phone at 616-652-2036 or e-mail her at dbsibley@mail.riverview.net for ordering information. HURON VALLEY CHAPTER PROGRAM SCHEDULE SEC members may be interested in programs offered by the Huron Valley Chapter. These meetings are held at 7:45 pm at Matthaei Botanical Gardens in Ann Arbor: February 18b Dr. Alan Prather, MSU, Botany and Plant Pathology. “Pollination in the Mint Family.” March 18 Dr. Larry Nooden, U of M, Biology Department" The Nature of Alaska.” April 15 Matt Heumann, Naturalist, Washtenaw County Parks and Recreation. “Softening Urban Sprawl with Native Plants and Habitats.” METROPARKS CONTINUE TO THIN DEER
Metroparks rangers began shooting
deer again this week-aiming to kill hundreds this winter to stem destruction
of park vegetation that is also needed by birds and small mammals. Rangers began the task Tuesday night, killing 41 deer at
Stony Creek Metropark, said Dave Moilanen, Huron-Clinton Metroparks spokesman.
They planned to return Wednesday night, working toward a goal of
between 200 and 220 deer killed at the park located near Rochester
Controlled hunts at Stony Creek and Hudson Mills Metropark near Ann
Arbor late last year fell short of goals, so rangers must finish the job,
Moilanen said
Sharpshooters also will target deer later this month at Kensington
Metropark near Milford, and a combination of hunters and sharpshooters will
kill deer at Indian Springs park near Clarkston.
It is the third year of controlled hunting and
sharpshooting to control the deer herds. About 600 deer were killed during the first two years. CARNIVOROUS PLANTS Longer ago than most of us can imagine, certain plants faced cruel starvation in a home of nitrogen-poor soil. Fortunately, the will to survive is strong throughout nature, and even plants fight desperately for life. They did this by evolving tantalizing new ways to coax meals within reach. From far and wide, insects were drawn to their dazzling colors, scrumptious nectars and alluring fragrances. Tasty morsels to be sure, but how would the insects be captured? Different plants developed different methods - sticky goos, clenching jaws, or puddles of lethal liquid. However the unlucky creature was imprisoned, it was quickly consumed in a bath of digestive enzymes and bacteria. By learning to attract, trap and digest prey, the first carnivorous plants were born. Thriving all over the world, more than 500 species of carnivorous plants live in sultry tropics, on snow-covered mountains and even underwater. In northern latitudes, they haunt damp and misty peat bogs, growing on thick carpets of sphagnum moss that float on still and stagnant waters. Most species dine on various insects and spiders - on special occasions, perhaps a succulent frog or mouse. Tropical pitcher plants relish a meaty snail or scorpion. One particularly clever species attracts birds with a sugary, white nectar. As a bird sips leisurely, its nitrogen-rich droppings fall into the pitcher’s reservoir below. Carnivorous plants live in Southeast Asia, in exotic countries like Malaysia, Sumatra, and Borneo, where a pitcher can grow large enough to hold a quart of fluid or a small child’s arm. North America also hosts a rich assortment - Michigan alone has at least 20 different species. And a small area in the Carolinas is the only spot on earth where the Venus flytrap grows naturally. Tragically, habitat for the carnivorous plant is vanishing. Wetlands are drained to create parking lots and subdivisions, or they’re polluted by waste. Irreplaceable old growth forests are cut and harvested for lumber. And acre by acre, the world’s rainforests are bulldozed, burned and completely cleared away. Today several species of carnivorous plants are dangerously close to extinction and the list keeps growing. We’ll have to work hard to save the endangered species and natural environments of our world. As we do, let’s not forget the habitat of this strange example of nature’s inventiveness - the carnivorous plant. The above article was taken from materials published by the Frederik Meijer Gardens in Grand Rapids, Michigan in conjunction with the recent opening of the Kenneth E. Nelson Carnivorous Plant House. For more information about the Meijer Gardens visit www.meijergardens.org or call 616-957-1580.
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