Tag: native plants

Troy & Liauna: Georgia Native Plant Society

by Dr. Shannon Finck

Liauna Kelly and Troy van der Beek put what they learned volunteering with Georgia Native Plant Society to work by creating recommendations for native planting around some of Georgia State University’s most visible campus buildings. Their thesis is that landscaping with native plants on GSU’s campuses signals the university’s commitment to sustainability and could influence other organizations and businesses in Atlanta to follow our example.

You can see their recommendations for Centennial Hall, where our class was held, on this site:

https://sites.google.com/view/hon3280gnpsspring25/home

Wrapping Things Up

by msabree6

Reflecting back on my time with WAWA, I recognize that I have had a chance to do quite a few different things. One of the projects I really enjoyed was working with Wawa on service Saturdays where volunteers like myself got to remove invasive species or pick up trash in the forest. During my first service cleanup, we removed over 60 tires from the forest off the highway in the West End. It was demanding work, yet it was very fulfilling. We also removed a couch, a mop, a broom, what looked like a refrigerator filter, a wheelbarrow, and yards and yards of thick wire.

This project in particular definitely felt meaningful. Even though there was plenty more trash we were not able to get, moving such harmful materials from the forest was like a “quick fix” of satisfying impact. I think we played a part in furthering the mission of WAWA, protecting urban forests by playing that small role on a daily basis — just picking up trash. There is definitely more that can be done and more I want to do. Nonetheless, if small service days like that are a part of the journey, I’ll be happy. 

 

On another service day I participated in, we removed English ivy from a large portion of the urban forest at WAWA’s outdoor activity center. This was fulfilling, however, in a slightly different way as I could not help but remember the different perspectives around invasive species discussed at the beginning of the semester in “Believers” by Lisa Wells. I recall the arguments made by Ron Good, an Indigenous man working in land restoration who claimed there is some benefit in embracing a new normal with invasive species. Thus, I found myself feeling a bit “blurry”, for lack of a better word. Residing in the grey area regarding positive impact because claiming that it was positively impactful depends more heavily on perspective than a trash cleanup does. Regardless, it was still enjoyable. Trusting the authorities there by simply following directions still allowed for a level of satisfaction in the work. That and, again, I simply enjoy being in nature.

Additionally, the project that my teammate and I are working on for this class definitely feels impactful. As I have mentioned in previous posts, so many people do not know about the Public Service Commission and its impact as well as local bills. Seeing that WAWA encouraged us to advocate for the PSC and HB 644, it is clear that we are aligned with their mission. With this project we have been able to advocate for what we want to see in our environment and how we want to protect Georgia. HB 644 would allow the environmental protection division in Georgia to reject applications for permits by companies or entities that have a history of violations. Advocating for people to be civically engaged and advocating for the environment is something WAWA and I find to be very important.

Our final project can continue to contribute if we continue to raise awareness after the technical completion of the program. Because our project revolves around advocacy work, it needs the people to do the advocacy. With that, I would consider our project relatively self-sustaining as our canvassing flyers will be used by the organization in Instagram posts and for tabling at future events! This way our project can continue to serve WAWA and broader communities of Georgia as a quick source of facts and action steps. 

Not only does this work feel impactful in general and in furthering the mission of the organization, it also feels meaningful in the realm of my interests and my life journey. As a public policy major, I really believe in the importance of everyday people taking their stake in America as we have this opportunity to affect the governance of our own country and our own localities. I believe we should take that opportunity and it has been fulfilling to work with an organization that shares this passion.

Week 3! Ongoing Projects and Project Planning

by Liauna

Hey all! We are now in the 3rd week of our service-learning work. How exciting!

Working with GNPS on the Stone Mountain Propagation Project (SMPP) has been an amazing experience thus far. In previous weeks, we have gone on-site to complete various tasks such as weeding non-native plants around the botanical garden, propagating new plants for the Spring season at the propagation site, and plants various new native plants both at the propagation site and the botanical garden. Unlike the previous weeks, we were unable to go on-site with GNPS this week for the SMPP due to inclement weather, but that did not keep our hands without work to do. I met with Kelley once the weather was better, and he handed off some labels for us to complete while we let the storm pass by. These labels will be used to mark the native plants around the propagation site so we can keep track of what is growing in each tray. Although I missed being on-site, I was happy to help in any way possible. I am looking forward to what work is to come! I have learned so much about native plants over the past couple of weeks and how they benefit our environment, especially locally. I have tried my best since learning to convince everyone around me to plant native as it has many benefits!

Kelly and Sheryl: Georgia Native Plant Society

by Dr. Shannon Finck

Kelly Clarke and Sheryl Varghese volunteered with the Intown Atlanta Chapter of the Georgia Native Plant Society (GNPS) this semester. They worked on various projects, from plant sales to park cleanups, with their community partner, learning about the importance of preserving native ecosystems and local biodiversity.

During their time with this organization, they saw a need to help promote native planting and gardening beyond an audience of homeowners with private lawns and stewards of public parks, so they launched a three-pronged campaign to bring what they learned to a couple of additional communities: their campus community at GSU and renters and other folks with limited space to garden or strict regulations about how they can use the green spaces they have.

Working closely with Dr. Amy Lederberg, Leslie Inman, and Vicki Mann of the Intown Atlanta Chapter, Sheryl and Kelly planned an informational event on campus, where they gathered support to start a campus charter of GNPS (coming in Fall 2024):

 

They also created three infographic fliers to help people access information about the organization, native plants and the ecosystems they supports, and opportunities to make a positive ecological impact:

 

Service Blog Post #5

by kclarke22

Hi Everyone,

I hope your semester has been going well. This blog post will discuss the event preparation details my classmate Sheryl and I completed to host an awareness seminar about Native Plants with guest speakers from the Georgia Native Plant Society that we hosted at the Honors College. This was a great event we hosted and all the participants were able to learn more about local native plant species. 

During March, Sheryl and I have been in conversation with Dr. Amy Lederberg, Vicki Mann, Leslie Mann, The Honors College Staff, and Dr Shannon Finck, to host an awareness discussion after learning what SMPP, local partner with GNPS needed as a request for raising awareness. When we were looking at completing our class project proposal, we asked our coordinators what their biggest concern was regarding native plants, the volunteers, and the vision for the organization. After speaking with Nicki Belmonte, (Executive Director for GNPS) we learned that they needed more awareness. Their concerns stated they wanted more appealing centers consisting of messaging for marketing needs – why people who don’t own and manage property should care about native plants (and be a member/supporter/follower). They wanted to broaden their audience for education and awareness. They also wanted us to create infographics displaying these messages that could be posted either on Facebook, Instagram or potentially their website. This allowed us to think of the idea to host an awareness seminar on campus at Georgia State University so we can make students more aware and help broader our audience.

This consisted of communication with all parties and we coordinated a day, and time for our guest speakers to come and speak to students. Our guest speakers created a presentation, brought brooks and Dr. Finck sponsored food as well. We made sure a room was available in the Honors College, coordinated parking and made sure the technology was available for our speakers. The event allowed for great conservation and allowed students to become involved as well. Thus in return, we were able to get everyone’s contact information and send out the PowerPoint that our speakers designed and discussed. Additionally, we got the Honors College to post our event on the weekly Honors College Newsletter and we printed and posted flyers around campus and the Honors College. This was a fun learning experience because I learned more about how to take care of native plants, and it helped with our event planning skills. Sheryl and I enjoyed hosting the event!! 

 

 

Service Blog Post #4

by kclarke22

Hi Everyone, 

I hope everyone is doing well. During my volunteer experience, my classmate Sheryl and I were working during different service shifts associated with the mission statement from the Georgia Native Plant Society. For my most recent update, I volunteered on Friday morning with the Atlanta Trees from 9 am-3 pm. This volunteer project focused on sorting, organizing, and moving Native Plants for their plant sale held at the Carter Center for the following day. Additionally, while I was volunteering there was a group of 8-9 employees from Delta Airlines who were also volunteering and a few other college students with us. Our group had roughly 20 volunteers plus 5-6 Atlanta Trees workers.  

During this project, I arrived at the Carter Center around 7:45 am and I signed in with the coordinator for my shift. Then, we began unloading several native plants from a large truck to the parking lot. This consisted of us sorting the plants into several categories in the parking lot. We unloaded 3 trucks of different native plant species. There were printed label signs for each species, and we lined our plants up one by one into each category. We had over 30 categories of plants sorted. These pants consisted of flower pots, native trees, and seeds. After moving all of the plants, we had to organize their plants into different categories for purchases. This included adding a specific color of duck tape to each group of native plants. This would determine the price each group would be sold for. This consisted of us cutting and pasting a piece of duck tape onto each flower pant. Afterward, we organized signs and displays for each plant to be added in front of each plant species. We cleaned up each flower pot that may had leaves or trash inside each pot to make each area look neat and organized. 

After completing this project, it was nice to see how this empty parking lot looked very organized and became a learning classroom. As we were moving the signs, I was able to learn more about each plant we were displaying to sell. Each description stated 2 fun facts about each plant, the prime time to grow (April to November) or (June-August), and how long it would take to fully blossom. I enjoyed speaking with the other volunteers as well and I learned that the Delta Employees have a proud connection with Atlanta Trees and that they normally volunteer with them often. The other 2 students I met went to Emory University and they were also volunteering for one of their academic class as well. They Emory students completed the second shift with me as well and I ate the lunch I brought with them inside the Carter Center during our break. The Delta Employees left after the first shift and there were new volunteers with us during the second shift. Overall, this was a great volunteering experience and I’m glad I was able to expand my knowledge of beginning to grow native plants and making them more available for people to buy and grow. 

Service Blog #7

by svarghese5

I have had several things going on with the Georgia Native Plant Society. As there are different “mini-organizations” within GNPS or other partners, I kind of get the opportunity to volunteer with many of them. First of all, I returned to the Stone Mountain Propagation Project to separate the growing native species into smaller pots. In a way, it is quite stress-relieving. These species, commonly known as river oats, were placed into small cells to grow first. As they had grown since August and were becoming too big for their cells, we took them out and separated the roots to put into other containers, doubling the amount of river oats. This took some hack job as we used scissors and even a saw at one point to separate the roots. This taught me that I seriously underestimated the strength of plants. Kelley, who is the manager of SMPP allowed volunteers to take home some flowers as well. I planted them in my frontyard and hope to see some wonderful plants soon!

I next volunteered at the Trees Atlanta native plant sale. All the funds from this event go to funding classes hosted by Trees Atlanta. I helped find plants as cars pulled up with the list of what they had ordered online. One of the buyers bought 250 plants. It took two days to get all his plants into his minivan; he lived 70 miles away and he was willing to drive almost 300 miles for all these plants. The last two pictures were some of the plethora of plants being sold. The last one in the crate was a foam flower that was a special order for someone.

Lastly, I volunteered at the Herbert Taylor Park last Saturday. I got to shovel out invasive species next to a walking trail. Most of the patch was already cleared out by a 90-year old man who lived next to the park. Seeing his work was amazing as I saw yellow flowers from a native species sticking out throughout that cleared-out patch; our goal was to continue to clear the patch to allow trail walkers to see the stream that ran through the park. When we first started digging, I saw many small invasive plants and a couple of growing trees. However, two hours into shoveling, I came across tall trees with large roots that we had to remove. I was able to use a tree wrench to dig the tree roots from the soil. I got to carry many trees as we threw them to the side for birds to use as nesting material.

Finally, speakers from GNPS came over to the Honors College to discuss with students about native planting. It was a great educative event. Even I learned more things than I was expecting to. Did you know that leaving the lights on outside negatively affects plant growth?

Volunteering with GNPS has been a great opportunity. I have learned a lot about native species that I will keep in mind for a long time. I hope that I can continue to teach other members of my community, friends and family the importance of planting native.

P.S. These are some photos I sneaked in (with permission). The first one is from SMPP; this is one of the species that I separated into other pots. The second and third are from the Trees Atlanta plant sale. 

Picture of small plants that were potted into small pots.
 
Two rows of vines with a red flower that were set up to be sold.
Foam flowers that were sticking out of a crate to be sold.

Service Blog Post #5

by khira1

This week for our time at Blue Heron Nature Preserve, we were putting up our weathering stations that we made for the woodlands and Riparian/Wetlands. To make the signs, I painted them with both the GSU and Blue Heron logo as well as the descriptions of all the measurements we were required to track in these upcoming weeks. I learned a lot about weather implementations and what Denise wanted us to track which were things like hygrometers which measure humidity and anemometers which measure wind speeds. It was very interesting researching all the elements of weather and correspondence of areas of more moist environments like wetlands, having a higher or lower chance of wind speeds than dryer areas like woodlands. Then my partner Kaden, put the signs together and we took them to the preserve and put them up one at a time. It was such an amazing experience seeing our creation actually be a part of the Blue Heron Nature Preserve because it is us showing a difference that we care about the environment how important weathering tracking is to the environment and the different ways the community can regulate it. In these upcoming weeks, we will be periodically going to the preserve to track the wind speeds, rainfall, humidity, and other forms of weather tracking for our final project.

While we were there this past week, Denise was planting some more native plants in the preserve and let us help in planting them. The plant in question was a Fringed Champion (Seline Polypetala), which is a rare species of flowering plant that is native to Georgia and is becoming more and more endangered. Denise explained to us that these were on the High Priority list of plants in the Georiga Department of Wildlife and Natural Resources which means they are at a high risk of becoming extinct in their natural habitats. The main reason that Fringed Champion is on the high-priority list is because of degradation and loss of suitable habitats. With the increasing gentrification and urban areas, a lot of native plant species in Georgia have been killed or are on the cusp of being extinct, which opened our eyes to the fact that we need to help spaces like preserves and natural from being ruined.

This is a photo of one of our weathering stations!

 
This is a photo of the Fringed Champion we planted!
 

Introduction: Sheryl Varghese

by svarghese5

Hello! My name is Sheryl and I am a second-year chemistry major.  I am in this course because I have not volunteered in many events since I started college, and this course would allow me to start volunteering again, especially in a field that I have not participated in before. This course has been more educative on the environment than I first thought it would be. I got to read some books that gave interesting insights on climate change.  I learned about superfunds by reading Kathryn Glass’s Savage. Also discussing with my classmates their perspectives on what the authors are saying is fun. These conversations can be carried on in our future conversations with people outside of this class, even if our professions might differ. 

I am especially looking forward to volunteering with GNPS. It is exciting to look at the variety of opportunities that the organization has to offer for volunteers. While I have only had one meeting to introduce myself, I learned a lot from that meeting about GNPS. Their goal is to bring back the native plant life of Georgia, by removing invasive species, planting native plants, and also educating people on the different categories of plant life that exist. While we have not begun volunteering yet, the survey responses from GNPS already provided ideas on what my classmate and I can do for our project. One of these is updating the organization’s website with information on native plant life. I find this to be a worthwhile project to undertake as it is always fun to help teach people something new but this will also help me learn about native plant life. Sidenote, but I also have a backyard that I have been wanting to add plants to to make it lively. I hope that volunteering with this organization will help me learn about plant choices I should make when looking for seeds. For example, something that I learned in my first meeting with GNPS was that many stores do not sell native plants. Sometimes people working at those places do not know what native plants Georgia has. I hope to be able to educate myself about what to look for when looking for plants for my backyard.

Looking forward to the rest of this semester!

Introduction: Kelly Clarke

by kclarke22

Hi everyone! I am Kelly Clarke, a junior majoring in Finance at Georgia State University. I am enrolled in GSU Spring 2024 Honors 3280: Service-Learning Seminar in Urban Ecology and Environmental Conservation. This course has served as an eye-opening service seminar to highlight the importance of being a good citizen in the economy and discusses topics of being an active member to help preserve environmental issues. So far, we have identified different texts from McKibben, Purdy, Kathryn Savage, and Krimmer who explained their views on the topic of nature. Each environmentalist emphasized their relationship to society. 

I am excited to volunteer with the Georgia Native Plant Society and the Intown Atlanta Chapter. Our organization focuses on the preservation of native plants and their habitats. They help support economic prosperity and the quality of life for different plant species across Georgia. Through each of our volunteering experiences, we will focus on identifying unhealthy plant species and providing nutrients to help support longer plant life. This will include walking around natural habitats and looking at how the environment hurts or helps each species. I am looking forward to working with the other volunteers and my classmate Sheryl! Good luck everyone with your community partners!!