Post by meadowview on May 23, 2008 16:00:22 GMT
Hi Folks:
We are continuing to work on propagation of more native plant material for introduction to the Joseph Pines Preserve and you can be part of this project. Our research station has full facilities including two bedrooms, bathroom, kitchen, wireless broadband and more. The grounds at the research station include extensive propagation beds and a heated greenhouse with utilities.
We're already filling up with summer intern help but consider doing an eco-vacation at any time during the year to help the cause. After passing an interview, you can stay at Meadowview or camp in our camper at Joseph Pines Preserve and help with ongoing conservation and restoration efforts. We've had
a number of high quality volunteers who have taken vacation time to come stay with us and assist in these projects. We recently were privileged to have Craig Rudman join us for three weeks of volunteering at both Joseph Pines and Meadowview. Craig is from the Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew and came over specifically to help with Sarracenia conservation. Because of Craig we added nearly 500 yellow pitcher plant to the Joseph Pines Preserve on top of the 1000+ already there. Craig selflessly took vacation time to do this work and we were both pleased and honored to have him with us. He did a fine job and was a great fellow.
Also, please consider joining our IRS 501(c)(3) non-profit and helping to protect, preserve, and restore pitcher plant wetlands and associated ecosystems. We own a 100 acre preserve in southern Virginia (Joseph Pines) where we are reassembling and restoring a longleaf pine/pitcher plant ecosystem. We have received a grant from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
to do this and are well on our way to not only capturing the entire remaining longleaf pine germplasm in Virginia but also reintroducing 18 indigenous rare plant taxa on our preserve. Many of these rare plant populations are being lost in southern Virginia and we are preventing local extinctions and extirpations of these rare plant taxa. The preserve houses six different yellow pitcher plant populations from Virginia. Four of those
populations have now been extirpated and the remaining two are now on the road to extirpation. So.. we are preventing extinction in Virginia and accomplishing integrated ecosystem restoration on our preserve.
We still have a balance on our real estate note of about $20,000. If you join our organization consider donating to help us pay off the note on our preserve. I think you will be hard pressed to find a better use of your conservation dollar when you consider that Joseph Pines Preserve not only is preserving extirpated, native yellow pitcher plant and other rare Virginia
species but is by far the largest protected pitcher plant site in Virginia. There are two other state preserves in Virginia that contain pitcher plants (only S. purpurea is found on these sites) to the count of 4 and 23 plants respectively. In contrast Joseph Pines has over 1000 native yellow pitcher plant and three populations of purple pitcher plant (over 50 plants). We're
at the northern limit for the southern longleaf pine/pitcher plant ecosystem and our efforts are important because we are protecting irreplaceable plant material that would be lost without our work. Who knows what qualities are left in these populations at the northern limit of their range (aside from the moral imperative to prevent extinction in this region)? In addition,
S. purpurea passes through a fairly narrow transition area in Virginia and our conservation work with this species protection is equally important.
If you would like to get a tour of our Joseph Pines Preserve, visit the research station, or have any questions, please contact me.
Sincerely,
Phil Sheridan
Director
Meadowview Biological
Research Station
804-633-4336
