Saturday Workshops and Field Trips
Silver City is at 6,000 feet, yet temperatures can stay warm in September. Stay hydrated; higher altitude and temperature increase the risk of dehydration. Bring water for all excursions. Please bring a reusable water bottle: the conference center has a filling station. No single-use disposable water bottles will be provided. Hats are recommended. For hikes, participants should wear sturdy closed-toe hiking shoes or boots, consider bringing hiking poles and a raincoat, and snacks. No pets. Most field trips require car pooling; many locations have limited parking or require 4WD. Please take others, and passengers, please contribute gas money.
Workshops
Continuation of W 1 Crevice Garden and W 2 Dyeing with Native Plants Workshops.
W 4 Printing Botanicals in the Dirty Pot. Leader: Elli Sorenson. Learn how to create beautiful botanical prints from plants gathered in your backyard ecosystems. Participants will learn about the Dirty Pot Method, Blanket Method, and Botanical Dye Pot to print on 400 Watercolor Cotton paper. Elli will also introduce participants to direct printing techniques. Participants should bring fresh and flexible or “pressed” plant cuttings to add to the experiment. Other materials will be provided. Some materials can stain, so wear appropriate clothing. Limit: 12
W 5 Rooted in Place: Poetry as a Path to Resilience. Leader: Larry Ollivier. Larry will lead participants in observing and describing local plants and/or animals with the goal of using those observations and descriptions in poems that express overcoming hardship or finding hope in difficult times. Limit: 15.
W 6 Plant Ornament Felting. Leader: Kelly Spencer. Learn basic needle felting techniques. Wool roving and needles will be provided. Each participant will make at least one plant-themed felted ornament. Materials fee: $15 Limit: 8
W 7 Expressionism Versus Documentation: Macrophotography in the Silva Creek Botanical Garden. Leaders: Elroy Limmer and David Phillips. This workshop is an introduction to macrophotography, specifically photographing the plants and insects of the Silva Creek Botanical Garden. The workshop will focus on composition, technique, and other elements important to macrophotography. Participants should possess a basic understanding of the exposure triangle (aperture, shutter speed, ISO) and bring cameras capable of taking close-up photos: DSLR, mirrorless, or cell phone. Optional equipment may include dedicated macro lenses and sturdy tripods. Limit: 10
W 8 Mounting Herbarium Specimens. Leaders: Angela Flanders and Jane Spinti. Learn how to mount a plant specimen for inclusion in a scientific herbarium. In addition to instruction, each participant will be able to mount specimens independently. Supplies will be provided. Specimens will be housed in the Teaching Collection at the Dale A. Zimmerman Herbarium upon completion. No food or drink is allowed inside the herbarium. Limit 12
W 9 Disseminating Seeds throughout Southwest New Mexico. Leader: Chris Jepson. An introduction to the history and organization of the Southwest New Mexico Seed Library. Plus, participants will learn how to clean and package seeds, identify the appropriate times for harvesting seeds, and how to start and maintain a seed library. The workshop will be held at the Silver City Commons. Some walking, sitting, standing, and stomping are required. Limit: 15
Saturday Field Trips
F 15 Dah guh teh, Ha honda Nde benah. Chiricahua Apache Lifeways: A View of a Sacred Land. Leader: Joe Saenz. Join us for a 3-hour horseback ride through this often misunderstood Land. We will follow the National Forest Dragonfly loop trails with open discussions on our plant relatives and a reliance on a balanced Earth, Ni godzani, the original Western Civilization. 9 a.m. – noon. Cost: $100.00 Limit: 4. This experience is also offered on Friday.
F 16 Native Medicinal Plants of the Silva Creek Botanical Garden. Easy, less than ½ mile, flat. Leader: Naava Koenigsberg. This tour of the medicinal plant section of the Silva Creek Botanical Garden (SCBG) will introduce traditional and modern uses of medicinal plants, the best ways to prepare the plants, and tips for growing them in a garden. Limit: 12
F 17 Youth Mural Program: A Walking Tour of Silver City Murals. Easy, less than 1 mile, some hills on paved surfaces. Leader: Diana Ingalls. Silver City is home to a wonderful collection of public murals. During this walking tour of downtown murals, learn the stories behind each mural: who created them, their significance, and the impact they have had on our youth and the community. Limit: 12
F 18 Mosses and Liverworts at Little Cherry Creek. Easy, very little walking, level terrain. Leaders: Russ Kleinman and Karen Blisard. This easy walk at Little Cherry Creek in the Pinos Altos Range of the Gila National Forest is in a heavily wooded, seasonal riparian area with a wealth of both vascular plants and bryophytes. Limit: 10
F 19 The Fabulous Flora of City of Rocks State Park. Easy/moderate, 1 mile or less, little elevation gain. Leaders: Bill Norris, Maria Conklin, Alex Wales, and Audrey Weisberg. The hike will introduce participants to the flora of City of Rocks State Park, one of the best examples of the Chihuahuan Desert in southwestern New Mexico. Although this hike will focus on the park flora, co-leaders will also point out interesting geologic features and habitat use by desert fauna. Limit: 25
F 20 Birding and Botanizing the Gila. Easy/moderate, about 2 miles, mostly level. Leader: Devyn Scott. This easy hike along Little Cherry Creek near Pinos Altos will focus on both birds and plant life. Notable birds include Painted Redstarts, Bridled Titmice, Steller’s Jays, and possibly Olive Warblers and Band-tailed Pigeons. Bring binoculars. Limit: 12
F 21 The Plants at Lake Roberts in the Gila National Forest. Moderate, about 1 mile, 50’ elevation gain, some muddy sections. Leader: Kelly Kindscher. The field trip will start in the riparian zone, walk along the lake, then hike to a ponderosa pine meadow and up to a Gila conglomerate rock viewpoint. We will hopefully see showy wildflowers along the way. Limit: 15
F 22 Hugging the Fort Bayard Big Tree. Moderate, about 4 miles, little elevation gain. Leader: Cara Staab. Hike to a special gem, the Big Tree, an alligator juniper measuring 18 feet in circumference, 6 feet in diameter, and 60 feet tall, believed to be over 800 years old. It takes four people to reach all the way around it! The tree is considered one of the largest alligator junipers in the US. Limit: 12
F 23 Butterflies of the Gila. Moderate, 2 miles with little elevation gain, with some rock scrambling. Leader: Ronald Parry. This hike into Saddle Rock Canyon will focus on the butterflies of the Gila, which may include Sulfurs in abundance, some Swallowtails, Hairstreaks and Blues, the American Snout Butterfly, the Painted Lady, and the Arizona Sister. Depending on rainfall, it is possible to see 20 or more species. The road is sandy; 4WD vehicles or carpooling with someone who has a 4WD are recommended. Short-focus binoculars are encouraged. Limit: 15
F 24 Boy Scout Road to Meadow Creek. Moderate, 4 to 5 miles, 670’ descent/ascent, a few stream crossings, hiking poles recommended. Leaders: Jim and Jackie Blurton. This hike takes participants from tall ponderosa pines to sunlight-drenched riparian meadows, featuring displays of flowering native plants and grasses. The hike begins in a pine flat and descends 400 ft. in one mile along an old, rocky, steep roadbed to Meadow Creek. Hiking poles are recommended. Limit: 12