Title: Winter Identification of Trees and Woody Plants of the Northern Forest
Instructor: Erika Mitchell
Dates: December 5, 9, 12, 16, and 19, 2023
Times: 7–9PM ET
Tuition Cost: $225
Description: Winter is a wonderful time to get to know the trees and woody plants of the Northern Forest. Without the distractions of summer leaves, we can focus on the more enduring characteristics of the woody members of forest habitats. In this seminar, we will take a wholistic approach to winter plant identification, integrating information of many types, including habitat, growth form, bark, needles and leaf remnants, fruit, twig arrangement, and buds. We will discuss aspects of dendrology, forest ecology, and plant anatomy as they relate to winter identification of woody plants. The seminar will consist of weekly interactive lectures and discussions with field challenge assignments to collect photographic observations of woody plants in nearby forests or parks. We will share these photographic observations through a citizen science course project on iNaturalist. Participants who are not able to access forests in winter may focus their efforts on assisting with identification and curation of the online course project collection.
About the Instructor: Erika Mitchell is a researcher, educator, photographer, and naturalist from Calais, Vermont. She has been a lifelong student of the natural world, completing botany courses at Norwich University and seminars at Eagle Hill Institute and the New England Wildflower Society. She is a frequent contributor to iNaturalist with a special interest in botanical observations. Through connections made with iNaturalist, she has collaborated on a variety of research projects, from genome mapping of ferns to the geographic distribution of native plants. Erika’s nature photographs have appeared in numerous print and online publications.
