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Title: Grass Identification: An In-Depth Review
Scheduling Details: July 19–25, 2026
Description: This seminar provides a rigorous workout for field botanists and naturalists who would like to learn to distinguish features of grass tribes to aid in their field identification of genera and species. The information presented in this seminar will include key distinguishing features for each of 10 tribes and upwards of 60 or so common and/or representative genera within those tribes. Dried plant material and dissecting microscope exhibits will be used to teach key identification features for each taxon. The first day will be spent in lecture and lab teaching necessary background material and identification concepts. Each morning on days 2 through 4 will begin with a lecture on the taxa to be covered that day followed by examination of specimens. After lunch we will carpool to a field site or two in order to develop field recognition skills. This will be followed by keying collected specimens back in the lab. The final day will be spent summarizing the course material, answering questions, and in the field, assisting participants in the practical application of grass identification.
Rick Van de Poll (ric...@gmail.com) is the principal of Ecosystem Management Consultants (EMC) of Sandwich, NH. Since 1988, EMC has conducted ecological inventories and land management plans on over 400,000 acres of land for the public and private sector in New England. He is a certified wetland scientist, contributing author to the NH Method, and past Chairman of the NH Joint Board of Natural Scientists. Since 1978, he has taught various botany courses at the graduate and undergraduate level, including several workshops with Dennis Magee. Since 1991, he has been on the NH Plant Task Force and has surveyed hundreds of rare plants across northern New England.
Dennis Magee (hmag...@gmail.com) is the author or principal author of Freshwater Wetlands: A Guide to Common Indicator Plants of the Northeast, Flora of the Northeast (First and Second Editions), Grasses of the Northeast, and Grasses: Understanding Their Structure and Identification. A Self-Guiding Instruction Manual. He has taught survey courses on Graminoids for the past 30 years throughout the Northeast.
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