2011 Rare Plant Treasure Hunt Team Awards

We're pleased to recognize outstanding volunteers, chapters and organizations with awards. Again this year we had many dedicated volunteers, here are the ones that got our top honors:

The recipient of our 2011 Grand Prize Rare Plant Treasure Hunt Award for most occurrences updated is Don Davis, Treasure Hunter Extraordinaire! Don caught the botany bug this spring and went into the field almost every weekend from the end of April through October. He found 42 new and historic rare plant occurrences in the desert and mountains of Southern California. Don documented many Opuntia basilaris var. brachyclada (Shortjoint beavertail cacti), Orobanche valida ssp. valida (Rock Creek broomrape) and Calystegia peirsonii (Peirson's morning glory). Don is studying botany and hopes to make a career of it in the future. Thank you Don for all your long hours- planning, traveling, searching, photographing, identifying and documenting!

The photo below was taken by Don of Peirson's morning glory

The Red Jeepsters, the husband and wife botanical team of Kathy and Rich LaShure, have earned our 2nd place award as Intrepid Treasure Hunters. They decided this summer and fall to combine their weekly hikes in the Southern Sierras with treasure hunting and they found 32 rare plant populations! Kathy is president of the Creosote Ring CNPS sub-chapter, volunteers at the Maturango Museum in Ridgecrest and makes artisan soaps out of her home. She's a busy lady, thank you both taking the time to find and document rare plants!

Photo of Mountain phacelia (Phacelia orogenes) taken by Kathy.

Our 3^rd place award for number of occurrences updated goes to Natalia Blackburn and her team members, Carrie Sowa, and Lisa Couper and all their spouses. They documented 20 rare plant populations on their own in Northern California, with a special focus on Brandegee’s Clarkia, and attended several staff-led treasure hunts. Thank you all!

Photo by Lisa Couper of road with the rare Brandegee's Clarkia (Clarikia biloba ssp. brandegeeae).

A Fond Farewell

Me in the Mecca Hill early this spring

My time with the Treasure Hunt will come to an end this month! I am setting off on new adventures and won't be continuing with the project next year. The last two years as the Coordinator of the Rare Plant Treasure Hunt desert project has been amazing. I've been able to see many rare plants that few people get to see and go to remote and lovely places that not enough people visit. When I started this job I had absolutely no idea, no idea, how beautiful and diverse the Mojave and Colorado deserts of California could be. From the sand dunes, to the rocky mountain ridges from the West desert to the East desert there are so many different habitats and microhabitats where native plants(and animals) have made their homes. And I really believe these areas and their inhabitants need to be protected and preserved. They are depending on us for their lives and we need them too. They enrich our lives in many ways; some ways I'm sure we don't even know of yet.

Besides seeing amazing things, I've gotten to spend time with and work with great people from all over California and Nevada. I've learned so much from them and have enjoyed getting to know them. And don't think just because I won't be working for CNPS anymore that I won't still be going out into the field. I already have some trips planned for next year with my treasure hunt friends (I just won't have to be in charge)!

A big THANK YOU to all that have made this project a wonderful endeavor!

Here are a couple photos of some of my favorites sites:

Above: The Kramer Hills in the West Mojave, better than a garden!
Above: The Eastern Mojave Desert not far from the Mojave National Preserve

A Fond Farewell

My time with the Treasure Hunt will come to an end this month! I am setting off on new adventures and won't be continuing with the project next year. The last two years as the Coordinator of the Rare Plant Treasure Hunt desert project has been amazing. I've been able to see many rare plants that few people get to see and go to remote and lovely places that not enough people visit. When I started this job I had absolutely no idea, no idea, how beautiful and diverse the Mojave and Colorado deserts of California could be. From the sand dunes, to the rocky mountain ridges from the West desert to the East desert there are so many different habitats and microhabitats where native plants(and animals) have made their homes. And I really believe these areas and their inhabitants need to be protected and preserved. They are depending on us for their lives and we need them too. They enrich our lives in many ways; some ways I'm sure we don't even know of yet.

Besides seeing amazing things, I've gotten to spend time with and work with great people from all over California and Nevada. I've learned so much from them and have enjoyed getting to know them. And don't think just because I won't be working for CNPS anymore that I won't still be going out into the field. I already have some trips planned for next year with my treasure hunt friends (I just won't have to be in charge)!

A big THANK YOU to all that have made this project a wonderful endeavor!


Here are a few of my favorite photos!

Happy Halloween!

Proboscidea althaeifolia, rank 4.3, Devil's Claw or Unicorn Plant. This plant was gorgeous and showy making you wonder why they would call it Devil's Claw, but the seed pods have long "claws."

Just got back from a Treasure Hunt in Rice Valley in the Northern Colorado desert, really almost the Mojave desert. Fall is a great time to visit the desert. The weather was lovely in the high 70's/low 80's with a slight breeze and flowers were blooming after a rain that had come through a few weeks earlier. Fitting for the Halloween season we found 3 spooky rare plants: Devil's Claw, Snake-bush and Foxtail cactus. Actually they weren't too spooky, but rather lovely. This area still continues to have a display despite the droughts it has experienced and the destruction of large swaths of land by off-road vehicle use.

Getting up close and personal with the rare plants.

Coryphantha alversonii, rank 4.3, Foxtail cactus. Still hanging on although the area has been ravaged by Off- roaders and target shooters.

There's Still Time!

Looking for rare plants in Rice Valley

You still have 5 days left to submit any photos, essays or survey forms in to the Rare Plant Treasure Hunt to be considered for an award!

Photos should be of either a rare plant, a rare plant habitat or of people searching for a rare plant. Essays can be about an experience with the Treasure Hunt or just your feeling about rare plants and their conservation, etc. Be creative!

Send questions and submissions to aswanson(at)cnps.org.

Wonderful Workshop

The workshop in the Mojave was amazing. The weather was great and things were in bloom. We had a great group of professionals and enthusiasts and together we saw 37 rare plants in two days! That's a record for me. (Above, fields of Rabbitbrush, Chrysothamnus nauseosus).
The very rare Euphorbia exstipulata var. exstipulata, Clark Mountain Spurge, rank 2.1. This was one of our most exciting finds.
Jim Andre and Tasha La Doux of the Granite Mtns Desert Research Center were our instructors and chose excellent locations to show us and taught us a good deal about identifying summer and fall blooming desert plants.
One of my favorite rare plants of the trip, Ageratina herbacea, fragrant snakeroot, rank 2.3. The flowers smelled a lot like oatmeal cookies with raisins! Yum.