Upcoming CNPS SCV Events and Activities - April 11, 2023

[CNPS-SCV News]

Dear friends,
Check out our chapter's upcoming events:

[1] Wildflower Show
Saturday, April 22, 10:00 AM - 4:00 PM
https://www.cnps-scv.org/wildflower-show

Location: West Valley College, 14000 Fruitvale Avenue in Saratoga

Please join the Santa Clara Valley Chapter of the California Native Plant Society at West Valley College on Saturday, April 22th from 10:00 AM to 4 PM for our 47th Wildflower Show. This educational event is free and open to the public and fun for the entire family. Let us bring the flowers to you. It will also include talks, live music, workshops, shopping (including fan favorite Coyote Brush Studios) and more.

This year, our theme is Climate Change - What can I do?. There will be plenty of opportunities to discover things you can do to help. One of our focuses will be the preservation of biodiversity in the face of climate change.

We have a great lineup of talks scheduled during the show:

• 0:30 AM - 11:15 AM: SOD Blitz Kickoff; Matteo Garbelotto Ph.D., Director U.C. Berkeley Forest Pathology and Mycology Laboratory; Douglas Schmidt, Ph.D.
• 11:30 AM - 12:15 PM: Discover, Identify, Connect: Technology Tools for Community Science; Michael Hawk, host of Nature's Archive podcast and Jumpstart Nature; Dr. Merav Vonshak founder of BioBlitz Club
• 12:30 PM - 1:15 PM: Rainwater Harvest and Grey Water: Rain barrels, Swales, Grey Water and More; Alan Hackler, Bay Maples Wild California Gardens
• 1:30 PM – 2:15 PM: "Big, Little World" of Citizen Science; Mary Ellen Hannibal, author of Citizen Scientist: Searching for Heroes and Hope in an Age of Extinction.
• 2:30 PM – 3:15 PM: Butterflies and Moths, What Can I do? Building Habitat in your Garden; Susan Karsoff, Outreach Chair, Yerba Buena Chapter of CNPS

The show will feature hundreds of species of wildflowers and native plants from Santa Clara, San Mateo and surrounding counties. In addition to local plants, we will have a section featuring flowers from native plant gardens in our Chapter. Experts will be on site to describe different samples and answer questions. For the full list of activities see: https://www.cnps-scv.org/events/wildflower-shows

The Wildflower Show is sponsored by the California Native Plant Society, Santa Clara Valley Chapter and West Valley College. The West Valley College campus is located at 14000 Fruitvale Avenue in Saratoga. The show will be located in the Biology wing of the Science and Math buildings, which parallels Allendale Avenue. Free parking in lots 2 and 3 during the event.

For more information: Go to: www.cnps-scv.org, email: info @ cnps-scv.org, or call: 650-260-3450

[2] Volunteers needed for the Wildflower Show
Friday and Saturday, April 21 and 22
https://www.cnps-scv.org/volunteer-wfs

Our chapter's 47th Wildflower Show is on Saturday, April 22 from 10 AM - 4 PM at West Valley College. The Show is a major annual event and we need lots of volunteers to help make it successful. Volunteers are needed on Friday and Saturday, April 21 and 22. The link to the volunteer sign-up page is included above. No special skills or experience is needed, unless noted, to volunteer. You just need to be enthusiastic about native plants.

Show set-up begins Friday afternoon at 1:30, and dinner will be provided to volunteers. On Saturday, we offer breakfast and lunch. You can sign up as a volunteer via the link above or send an e-mail to Toni Gregorio-Bunch at tidytip.lp @ gmail.com or Barbara Hunt barbarahunt @ yahoo.com. Please include the position, day and time slot for which you are interested. If you have not worked at the show before and have questions, contact Toni or Barbara. If you have worked the show in past years, sign up again and bring a friend!

[3] Greeters needed for the talk at Saratoga Library
Tuesday, April 25, 6:30 PM - 8:30 PM
Location: Saratoga Library Community Room, 13650 Saratoga Ave., Saratoga

Arvind Kumar will be speaking at the Saratoga library on "Gardening for Habitat". We need two greeters for this event. The responsibilities of the greeters are - staff the welcome table, answer basic questions about CNPS if attendees have any and ask them to sign up on the sign-up sheet. Tables, chairs, sign-up sheets and CNPS literature will be provided. Interested? Contact Priya at: priya4cnps @ gmail.com.

[4] Wildflower Mimicry by Barnali Ghosh
Wednesday, April 26, 1:00 PM - 2:00 PM
Location: Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District offices, Board Room
5050 El Camino Real, Los Altos

Co-sponsored by Midpen and the CNPS Santa Clara Valley chapter
In 2021, Berkeley-based designer Barnali Ghosh started a new pandemic project: taking photographs of herself dressed as California native flowers, centering the brown body and using South Asian fabrics and dance forms. The images took the native plant world by storm. Ghosh will share the backstory of these viral images, and how the project helped her find belonging in the native plant community and beyond.

Barnali Ghosh is an immigrant artist, landscape architect, and co-founder of the award-winning Berkeley South Asian Radical History Walking Tour. Her work attempts to bridge homes and homelands, and create spaces for belonging. Find her on instagram at @berkeleywali and www.barnalighosh.art
RSVP if possible to ykishimoto @ openspace.org for planning purposes.

Here are some events from other chapters and organizations:

[5] Bay Area Older Adults Russian Ridge Wildflower Trek - by Midpen
Wednesday, April 12, 9:00 AM - 3:00 PM
Location: Russian Ridge Preserve
https://www.openspace.org/events/bay-area-older-adults-russian-ridge-wildflower-trek

Join Midpen partner, Bay Area Older Adults, for a free hike at Russian Ridge.
This easy-to-moderate 4.3-mile spring walk will be led by a wildflower expert and will take participants on a one-way journey on the best trails to find as many wildflowers as they can! Russian Ridge is known for its spectacular display of colors. Attendees will end the day with a social picnic lunch with a view. Transportation from Saratoga CA and picnic lunch are included.
To register, please visit bayareaolderadults.org/bao-hikes.

[6] Signs of Spring - by Midpen
Wednesday, April 12, 9:00 AM - 12:00 PM
https://www.openspace.org/events/guided-activities/signs-spring-2
Location: Pulgas Ridge Preserve

Enjoy a spring hike including viewing of wildflowers, a variety of oak trees, and blooming bushes. Join Docent Naturalists Liz Foreman and Lina Mesa to explore the plants and trees in this popular preserve as you hike along the Blue Oak, Cordilleras, Dick Bishop, and Dusky-footed Woodrat trails. Enjoy a scenic view as you hike along the top of the ridge. This moderately-paced hike includes hilly and uneven terrain. (Note: Parking is limited, carpooling is recommended.)

[7] Beauty and the Beast: California Wildflowers and Climate Change – A 25-Year Journey
Thursday, April 13, 6:00 PM - 8:00 PM
https://www.cnps.org/event/beauty-and-the-beast-california-wildflowers-and-climate-change-a-25-year-journey

Internationally acclaimed conservation photographers Rob Badger and Nita Winter take you behind the scenes of their 27-year journey photographing wildflowers and superblooms throughout California and the West.

This journey led to the creation of their traveling educational exhibit and 12-time award-winning coffee table book, "Beauty and the Beast: California Wildflowers and Climate Change", co-published with the California Native Plant Society. The photographers and 16 passionate authors weave art and science together seamlessly, to tell the wildflowers' story, celebrate California's amazing plant diversity, and inspire hope and action.

[8] Good Deeds Day - Good Cleanup! - by Keep Coyote Creek Beautiful and Santa Clara Valley Audubon Society
Sunday, April 16, 9:00 AM - 12:00 PM
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/good-deeds-day-good-cleanup-registration-576282425247
Location: Viet Heritage Garden 1499 Roberts Avenue San Jose, CA 95122

Spend a few hours to help Keep Coyote Creek Beautiful and Santa Clara Valley Audubon Society work together for a healthy creek while we beautify the Coyote Creek trail and the creek through a community cleanup. Come celebrate the Earth by improving the environment and enjoying nature!

[9] Family Wildflower Sketching at Rancho - by Open Space Authority
Sunday, April 16, 10:30 AM - 12:30 PM
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/family-wildflower-sketching-at-rancho-tickets-590580440997
Location: Rancho Canada del Oro Open Space Preserve 4289 Casa Loma Road Morgan Hill, CA 95037

Join us for a celebration of Springtime and California’s native wildflowers! This art-in-nature event will allow families and children to have fun in the outdoors while learning about native flowers. Enjoy casual sketching of the wildflowers of the Llagas Creek Meadow Loop -poppies, popcorn flower, lupines, buttercups, and more! Families may arrive and participate the whole session or just drop in and take their own walks around the meadow. All art supplies will be provided.

Questions about any of the events? Do not reply to this email - instead, please direct your questions to: info @ cnps-scv.org.

For more information about chapter activities, be sure to check the latest Blazing Star and our chapter website - cnps-scv.org. We also recommend joining our Meetup group to receive a notification when we schedule new activities, including field trips.  Not a member of CNPS yet? Join here.

California Native Plant Society, Santa Clara Valley Chapter
Find us on the web at cnps-scv.org, and follow us on Facebook, Meetup, Instagram, and Twitter.