The New England Botanical Club will host an away meeting in western Massachusetts on June 1 and 2. Field trips are being planned for both Friday and Saturday to botanical hot spots around the Northampton area. On Friday afternoon-evening, there will be a reception and open house at the Smith College Botanic Garden in Northampton from 4-6PM, followed by a lecture by Dr. Gretel Clarke, Department of Biological Sciences, Smith College, on Invasiveness of intra-versus inter-continental exotic plants in New England: Implications for Assisted Migration.  On Saturday, there will be two workshops:

Bryophyte Identification with Sue Williams – This workshop, based at Smith College’s MacLeish Field Station in Whately, MA, will provide an introduction to the basics of bryophyte ecology and identification. The workshop will begin with a short hike through an old hemlock and sugar maple forest area with a diverse assemblage of bryophytes. Samples will be collected for later observation and identification at the Bechtel Environmental Classroom building at the MacLeish Field Station; dissecting microscopes will be available. This workshop will run until mid-afternoon, please bring a bagged lunch.

Herbarium Skills with Roberta Lombardi – This workshop, based at the University of Massachusetts – Amherst Herbarium, will focus on the techniques involved in collecting, pressing, mounting, and preserving plant specimens for herbarium collections. The workshop will start with a short field foray, after which participants will return to the UMass Herbarium to work with plant specimens, walk through the steps involved in mounting and labeling specimens, and get an overview of how large herbarium collections are organized and managed. This will be a valuable workshop for those interesting in formally documenting their local flora or preparing voucher specimens of plant species documented in their research.

Saturday’s Field Trips include:

Montague Sandplain and Will’s Hill – The trip will begin with a walk through the pitch pine-scrub oak communities of the Montague Sandplain, with huckleberry, chokeberry, sand cherry and others in flower, and passing through a well-managed population of native blue lupine. Next, we will traverse a powerline corridor over Will’s Hill, with species of “rich & rocky” sites like yellow star-grass, red columbine, and perfoliate-leaved bellflower, plus a healthy population of American bittersweet. As time & interest permit, we may also visit a few rich seepy sites on the forested portion of the Hill, with abundant spicebush, nodding trillium and others. Also be prepared for incidental reptiles and birds! Plan on 2.5-3 miles walking on level to gentle slopes. Please bring a bagged lunch and water.

Historical Land Use Patterns and Forest Vegetation at the MacLeish Field Station (pictured below) – This field trip will explore the upland forests of Smith College’s MacLeish Field Station in Whately and Conway, MA with a particular focus on how 19th century agricultural land use patterns continue to affect plant species distributions and vegetation patterns in 21st century forests. We will explore old farm sites, see evidence of 19th century plow lines, and visit a remnant area of primary forest with increased plant diversity. Please bring a bagged lunch and water.

Botanical Foray with members of the Franklin County Flora team – This field trip will be with key contributors to the Franklin County Flora project, and will explore sites of botanical interest in Franklin County. Please bring a bagged lunch and water.

For full registration details visit http://www.rhodora.org/meetings/upcomingmeetings.html