Hey guys,

Wow. Last blog post. This isn’t real, right? Thanksgiving is in two weeks. I will have moved to NC 5 1/2 months ago. THAT’S ALMOST HALF A YEAR. Half a year I’ve been here, working with Seeds of Success at the North Carolina Botanical Garden. Half a year of traveling through Maryland, Virginia, and North Carolina, browsing through the flora and scouting out seed. Half a year of learning about new plants and new people. Half a year of long drives and long hours… but now, it seems so short.What a great half a year!

I’ve always considered myself as someone who is okay with moving away and okay with change. And I am… to an extent. Honestly, on a more personal note, a huge thing I learned from this opportunity is that change is good, yes, but a LOT of change at one time may be a bit overwhelming! In six months, I graduated college, moved out of state where I knew no one (living with roommates I did not know), started a 40 hours/week job (internship), have visited 60+ national wildlife refuges and state parks, have visited 3 states I had never been to, and learned about 100+ plants of which I had no previous knowledge (coastal). Luckily, I had a pretty great group of people to go through all of this with, as well as a good support group back home. It was a great experience – one I would recommend to anyone. It teaches you a lot, not only about technical things – like how to assess a population size or how to properly care for seeds after collection – but also what you are made of. You learn how you handle certain situations, like being farther away from home, or putting effort into making new friends. Sometimes it was hard! I would miss the mountains or my friends and family. I’ve been home more times living 7 hours away than I would go home an entire semester when I was in school (an hour and a half from home). This internship has taught me a lot about the field I would love to dive into as a career but also about how much I’m willing to change for that kind of opportunity.

Making a seed shipment! Confusing stuff! (even when you make an excel file – ha!)

Cenchrus tribuloides – sandbur! Ouch.

Chamaecyparis thyoides – Atlantic white cedar. Looks like we have a lot of money, right? 🙂 This stuff smells like CHRISTMAS!

This is Audubon Pine Island Sanctuary & Center in the outer banks. It MIGHT be haunted, but it’s lovely.

I’ve never studied mycology, but this fella was found in the dunes, and the inside was purple.

Bright colored Liquidambar styriciflua – sweetgum in Maryland!

Little baby plant embryo 🙂

A beautiful sunset while collecting Solidago sempervirens – seaside goldenrod.

All of the paper bags and trays were filled with plants/seeds from a week of collection!

Beautiful color from Ilex glabra – inkberry. My hands are still stained from cleaning this 🙂

All in all, this was truly a great experience. I learned so so much, and I met some really great people along the way. It doesn’t feel like it should be ending just yet. But, I will say that I’m ready to spend the holiday season with my friends and family back home:)

To anyone reading this who may be thinking about taking a CLM internship – do it. It’s an amazing opportunity to learn and grow as a person and a conservation worker. Don’t let anything I’ve said scare you. It’s GOOD to put yourself out there and discover what you are made of and what you hold dear to your heart. You will meet like minded people who want the same things as you! That’s special. Plus, the change is exciting! You won’t regret it.

Good luck to everyone with their future endeavors!

Melanie

Hey guys!

September was awesome. We can definitely feel the fall breeze in the air already, especially up north! We started with a four-day trip to Eastern Neck NWR, Blackwater NWR, Chincoteague NWR, and Brownsville Preserve within Virginia and Maryland. My favorite part of this trip was collecting Tripsacum dactyloides. Don’t ask why. I can’t explain it myself. Maybe it’s just the fact that the seeds could be used to make maracas? Anyway, this trip was absolutely filled with mosquitos. No matter how much bug repellant was used, no matter how many layers we worn, they were vicious and unforgiving. But we persevered! The worst place was Chincoteague NWR on the Delmarva Peninsula. We made four collections there of Borrichia frutescens, Fimbristylis castanea, Typha angustifolia, and Cyperus odoratus.

Beautiful sunset at Eastern Neck NWR.

Tripsacum dactyloides. Such a beautiful, fun grass!

Salicornia depressa turning a wonderful shade of red at Chincoteague NWR.

Wild horses at Chincoteague NWR!

Our next trip was a short 2 day trip to Merchant’s Millpond, First Landing State Park, False Cape State Park, and North Landing River Preserve. Merchant’s Millpond was a bust – BUT – it’s a bald-cypress swamp, so that’s a given that it is absolutely gorgeous. We went looking for Lindera benzoin, and while there was a big enough population of it, there were no fruits. Luckily, we were with a really great ranger who was helping us around and even helped us look through the forest! What a guy. First Landing helped us make up for the lack of collections at Merchants. We collected Uniola paniculata, Panicum amarum, and Fimbristylis castanea.

Callicarpa americana at Merchant’s Millpond.

Monotropa uniflora at Merchant’s Millpond. My second siting ever 🙂

I have to say, I was so jealous going to False Cape. We collected more Uniola paniculata there, but the maritime forest makes me so happy. There were camping spots and a trail that leads out to the dunes that were filled with seaoats just flowing in the wind. And sorry, but my romantic side came out when I saw this adorable couple – with the whole beach to themselves – sitting out on the beach together, drawing the ocean. WHAT. Drawing the ocean. Adorable. I would recommend anyone to go to this place – you cannot drive in, however. Which kind of gives the place more charm 🙂

Dunes and Uniola paniculata at False Cape State Park.

The last trip we went on was the first week of October and was just Sammy and myself. We headed to Gunpowder Falls SP, Rocks SP, Elk Neck SP, Tuckahoe SP, Blackwater NWR, Chincoteague NWR, and Brownsville. When I think of this trip, I think of Jamaican food (the best macaroni and cheese I’ve ever had in my life, yes, from a Jamaican restaurant), snakes, apples, and rushed collections! It was a super productive and fun week for Sammy and I. We made 14 collections, which is more than I’ve ever made in a trip – even when we had the whole group together! We found a wonderful population of Ilex verticillata at Gunpowder Falls State Park – Hammerman Beach. We got bummed when we were first there because we were surrounded by seas of phragmites, but we coincidentally found something awesome (and I’m not talking about the mammalian skulls – yeah)! Our next stop, Rocks State Park, is SO PRETTY. I mean, we went there for a population of Leersia that was already done seeding, but hey, that’s okay! Because Elk Neck provided us LOTS of collections! And snakes! I loved collecting Parthenocissus quinquefolia. Pretty berries 🙂 We were also able to collect Schizachyrium scoparium, Tridens flavus, Pycnanthemum tenuifolium, and Panicum anceps. Next was Tuckahoe SP, which is always fun because KAYAKING – we collected Rosa palustris there. We were able to make a collection of Spartina patens at Blackwater NWR, which was great! And to end the trip, we made some cyperus collections at Chincoteague, along with Fuirena pumila, Tridens flavus, Schizachyrium scoparium, and Cenchrus tribuloides! Sammy and I were kind of afraid of cenchrus (for obvious – pointy – reasons), but the collection went really smoothly! If you remember to bring some gloves with you, it’s actually easy-breezy! We will have to collect more seeing that they are single seeded, and we still had one other stop before home. We ended up not getting done that day until 8:30, but I can’t say I was at all disappointed with my week!!

Fall is in the air at Rocks State Park in northern Maryland!

Rocks State Park, MD.

Sometimes you drive 6 hours to get to a population that is already done seeding, like this Leersia, and that’s OK!!

Rock State Park was too pretty 🙂

A kayak filled with spiders… probably my worst nightmare.

This turtle was watching me paddle by at Tuckahoe State Park.

Some spiranthes Sammy and I saw at Chincoteague NWR!

Trip planning with the group. The usual faces of my team, haha. Minus Sammy!

Phytolacca americana seeds that I cleaned – they are just as cool as the berries/plants themselves!

 

Hi all,

August was such a great month of collecting for us. Our month started with a 2-man, 2-day trip of Jake and I to Merchant’s Millpond SP, Alligator River NWR, Mattamuskeet NWR, Swanquarter NWR, and Pettigrew SP. It was my first trip as a pair instead of a whole group, and I think it went really smoothly! We actually made six collections in just two days! We collected Cladium mariscoides (NOT mariSIcoides – no), Bolboschoenus robustus (… of course), Schoenoplectus pungens (also of course), Borrichia frutescens (NOT frUCtescens – no), and Hibiscus moscheutos.

Cute little snake ready to take my life.

Our second trip was a longer 4-day affair. We went to some amazing places, but I think my favorite was Presquile NWR. Which is funny, because we spent hours attempting to get through to a wetland area to no avail. We fought swamp-butt, poison hemlock, briars and spiders… and we lost. BUT – the place is absolutely beautiful and has a ton of amazing plants. We actually found a goldenrod we had been searching for – Solidago juncea, so that was worth it! I also saw my first passionflower – Passiflora incarnata – in the wild at Presquile! It was beautiful and beginning to fruit! Our collections here include Teucrium canadense, Schoenoplectus pungens, Schoenoplectus americanus, Pontederia cordata, and Schoenoplectus tabernaemontani.

Pontederia cordata +1

False Cape State Park

Jake on our boat ride to Presquile NWR.

Passiflora incarnate as Presquile.

Pink hands from dying my hair Pokeweed purple (all the rage with the kids) and milkweed seeds!!

Jake and Caroline at Rappahannock River Valley NWR in Virginia.

Back Bay NWR – Jake and Caroline

Next up, a short trip to Jockey’s Ridge SP, Pea Island NWR, Currituck Banks Reserve, and Mackay Island NWR. Here we collected Bolboschoenus robustus, and Schoenoplectus pungens… plus I found out that I am a skilled photographer and that eggs get nervous.

Model – Sammy W (plus egg)

Currituck Banks Reserve – majestic maritime forest.

Our last big trip to end August started with a Tripsacum dactyloides collection – wooooo! I actually love collecting Tripsacum… something about the way it just breaks off into your hand when you touch it (weird?). Anyway, we collected it at Lake Anna State Park which is beautiful. Just look…

SEE!?

We also hit up Gunpowder Falls State Park, where we went on a few mile hike to a pond area that wasn’t actually a pond area anymore. BUT the hike was nice and the view on the way wasn’t so bad either.

Ahh, nothing like the silhouette of Equisetum.

Our full collection for this trip included: Tripsacum dactyloides, Bolboschoenus robustus, Fimbristylis castanea, Teucrium canadense, Hibiscus moscheutos, Panicum virgatum, and Borrichia frutescens.

Eastern Neck NWR starring Sammy W and Rhexia

“I got paid for thiiiis” (sung like Beyonce’s ‘I woke up like this’). Eastern Shore of VA NWR / Spartina heaven.

Last but DEFINITELY not least is Conoclinium coelestinum – blue mistflower, my favorite.

I can’t help but think about how fortunate I am for this opportunity every single day, and I can’t wait to see what this internship still has awaiting! Thanks for reading!

Melanie

Hi all!

Month #2 is officially over (what!?). We’ve only four months left of this internship (hopefully all of them will be less hot). Instead of recapping the entire month, I would like to write about a few points.

We made a collecting trip in the beginning of the month. In this trip we went to Civil War Land Trust, Seneca Creek State Park, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Gunpowder Falls State Park, Elk Neck State Park, Sassafras Natural Resources Management Area, Eastern Neck National Wildlife Refuge, Caledon State Park, York River State Park, Voorhees Nature Preserve, and the Vandell Preserve at Cumberland Marsh.  From these places, we made collections of Schoenoplectus tabernaemontani, Sambucus nigra ssp. canadensis, Viburnum dentatum, Carex vulpinoidea, Danthonia spicata, Schoenoplectus americanus, Eleocharis fallax, Deschampsia flexuosa, Carex lurida, Bolboschoenus robustus, Juncus effusus. Woooo!

We were ecstatic about finding the D. spicata and D. flexuosa especially, as these were two species that were not collected last year! I cleaned the seeds last week of Danthonia and it took FOREVER. But they’re so cute to look at, so it was okay. By the way, Viburnum is absolutely terrible to clean. It looks like chili and smells like, well, let’s just say – gross. However, elderberry smells divine, like a fine wine in the making. OH! Something else that is cute to look at? Conoclinium coelestinum, blue mistflower. The most magical, perfect name for the most magical, perfect plant! I remember learning this plant at the UNC Herbarium, but this was the first time I saw it in person – and I fell in love. Amanda spotted this tiny lady on our way out of Caledon SP. Jake says we will be seeing it ALL over the place… I can’t wait!

blue mistflower! 🙂

Another perfect thing about this trip – although not very plant related – is this adorable place. This, ladies and gentleman, is a little coffee shop in Chestertown, Maryland. It’s called Evergrain Bread Company, and they have anything from Nutella lattes to any pastry you could want. I got this perfect honey vanilla latte one morning for breakfast before we set out to Eastern Neck NWR.

The coffee shop in Chestertown!

My perfect honey vanilla latte

While doing some herbarium research last week, I came across a species on our list – Spiraea tomentosa, steeplebush – and again, I don’t know what it is about steeplebush and blue mistflower, but MAN! I can’t get over them! If you aren’t familiar with this species, look it up! I don’t have any pictures of it unfortunately! Love love love. I can’t wait to see this out in the field!

Rubus phoenicolasius, wineberry – although invasive – is also so delicious.

wineberries!

Here are some pictures from our trip:

Jewelweed in bloom

Right in front of where we collected a Carex species at Caledon SP

Caterpillars from Heaven

Some personal side notes:

I love summer, but I’ve been noticing myself thinking about fall and cooler temperatures while we are out collecting. It will be so nice!

Sitting in the grass on the side of the road while collecting Eleocharis in the rain and doing some mindful counting is probably one of the most refreshing and relaxing feelings ever.

Collecting Eleocharis in the rain. Sammy is fabulous as always.

Eleocharis seeds! So cute.

I’m really good at not scratching bug bites now.

Thanks for reading,

Melanie

Hi all,

I have a tiny bit of bad news. My laptop deleted the whole album of pictures from my phone that I’ve taken since I moved here for my internship (“catastrophic failure”)! Unfortunately, that means not many pictures in this post – but we went on a collection trip last week, so I have some pictures from that one!

The past weeks have flown by. I’ve been here over a month already! It’s so crazy to me! But we’ve been putting in the hours for sure. Although our first collecting trip was more scouting than collecting, we managed to make collections of Vaccinium fuscatum in a few different locations, Bolboschoenus robustus from Buxton Woods Coastal Reserve, and a collection of roadside Gaillardia pulchella.

It never fails – every time I am making a collection, left with my thoughts and my counting, I think, “I’m getting paid to pick blueberries” or “Never in my life did I think that I would be doing this one day” or “I’ve never thought about this being a job” – (I hate using the word job for this internship… because it is such an amazing experience and a huge learning opportunity. I feel simply calling it a “job” comes with the negative connotations of a drudging 8-5, 40-hour work week, which although is true, it’s different).  And it blows my mind every single time. I love it! I recently visited my family over the weekend, and everyone asks me, “How’s the flower pickin’?” Honestly, it’s FANTASTIC! Everyone should want this position!

We went to a few other places during our first week, including Nags Head Woods Ecological Preserve, Kitty Hawk Woods Reserve, Pea Island, and Pine Island. We went to some really beautiful places, and it is a shame that I don’t have any photographs to show it!

Our second collecting trip was north to Virginia and Maryland. We started in the Delmarva Peninsula – I don’t know if any of you have been here, but taking the bridge/tunnel to get there is insane! It looks like you’re going to drive right off of the bridge into the water, but the road dips down under the water into a tunnel (TWICE)! Our group had so many engineering questions that we had to google later on. Did you know that there are such things as engineers that dive? Obviously, there are… but it didn’t even occur to me until we started asking these questions! We visited about 12 places on our collecting trip last week, including:

First Landing State Park, Chincoteague and Assateague National Wildlife Refuges, Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge, Robinson Neck Preserve, Horn Point Laboratory – University of MD, Tuckahoe State Park, Calvert Cliffs State Park, Point Lookout State Park, Smallwood State Park, Mason Neck State Park, and Belle Isle State Park. We made collections of Juncus roemerianus (thanks for the splinters) and Glyceria striata. We had to take canoes and kayaks out for some of our collections, of which I promptly thought, “I’m getting paid to kayak right now.” It was first thing in the morning, we were at our first sight for the day – it was beautiful, and I was kayaking out to a population of Juncus roemerianus. If you think that isn’t awesome, you’re wrong.

Big news for me, I finally saw Monotropa uniflora in the wild! I remember learning it in class, and I would always admire it in field guides, but now I’ve finally seen it with my own eyes! I got so excited. It’s the little things.

From our kayak out to some Juncus roemerianus.

Some more personal side notes:

I had a dream about Bolboschoenus and Spartina the other night. I’m still undecided on if that’s a good or a bad thing.

What I dream about

I’m finding myself doing a lot more roadside botanizing than I used to do.

I’m talking about plants a lot more, from which I’ve found the general public is not very interested. WHATEVER.

My farmer’s tan is off the chain.

Thanks for reading!

Melanie