NEWSLETTER OF THE a TENNESSEE NATIVE PLANT SOCI ETY Volume 39 , Number 3 October 2015 White Fringeless Orchid Nears Federal Protection T he US Fish and Wildlife Service has announced a proposal to list Pla- tanthera integrilahia, white fringeless orchid (WFO), as threatened under the Endangered Species Act. This species is on the Tennessee Rare Plant List, but the federal listing would provide more protection. Numer- ous factors were considered in deciding to pursue the proposed listing. Aspects of the plants life history and significant threats to its survival are the primary reasons that this species needs additional help. White fringeless orchid was originally described by Constantine Samuel Rafinesque (Rafinesque 1836) but the name he used, Blephariglottis hicornis, has not been accepted, possibly due to his re- port of the species from Louisiana where it is not currently known to occur (Baum- back 2009). His concept of the species may also have been too general for accept- ance as it appears to include Platanthera conspicua. It was included in the broader concept of Habenaria blephariglottis var. conspicua based on a specimen from Ten- nessee collected by a Mrs. Bennett in 1888 (Ames 1910). Dr. Donovan Correll described it as a distinct variety, Habenaria blephariglottis var. integrilabia (Correll 1941). The currently ac- cepted name for the species is based on the description by Carlyle A. Luer (1975). It was subsequently placed in a different genus as Blephariglottis inte- grilabia (Schenk 1976) but this name was not accepted. Various common names have been applied to this plant including monkey face orchid and white fringeless orchid. The late Dr. Harry Yeatman told me that it was actually called monkey tail orchid and apparently someone mis- heard that and recorded "monkey face" instead. It is easy to see the monkey tail on this orchid but I challenge you to find a face anywhere on the plant. Continued on page 3 Platanthera integrilabia (white fringeless orchid Annual Meeting s Full Weekend E xcellent programs by Allan Trendy, West Tennessee stewardship ecologist, and Rob Bailey, project manager for the Tennessee Stream Mitigation Pro- gram, were highlights of the TNPS annual meeting in Sep- tember at Linden Valley Conference Center on the Buffalo River. Of course, members were fascinated as well by a wide array of plants on the Satur- day field trip to Nine-Acre Glade, a severe environment sheltering many unusual species (See Bart Jones’s re- port beginning on page 6). Trently monitors 1 7 state natural areas which harbor rare and endangered species. Interesting information about these areas can be found by searching online for “Natural Areas — West Re- gion — TN gov.” Continued on page 8 Find More at TNPS Website 2 TNPS Newsletter A Letter from the President October 2015 Vol. 39, No. 3 This newsletter is a publication of the Tennessee Native Plant Society and is published four times a year, generally in February, June, August, and November. The Tennessee Native Plant Society (TNPS) was founded in 1978. Its pur- poses are to assist in the exchange of in- formation and encourage fellowship among Tennessee’s botanists, both ama- teur and professional; to promote public education about Tennessee flora and wild plants in general; to provide, through publication of a newsletter or journal, a formal means of documenting information on Tennessee flora and of informing the public about wild plants; and to promote the protection and en- hancement of Tennessee’s wild plant communities. Dues for each calendar year are; Regular: $20 Student: Complimentary Institution: $50 Life: $250 Dues may be sent to: Tennessee Native Plant Society P.O. Box 159274 Nashville, TN 37215 Officers Susan Sweetser, President Todd Crabtree, Vice-President Margie Hunter, Secretary Lori Emens, Treasurer Directors Sunny Fleming Louise Gregory Michelle Haynes Dennis Horn Bart Jones Larry Pounds Joey Shaw Latham Davis, Editor Please send comments or material for the newsletter to TNPS Newsletter, P.O. Box 856, Sewanee, TN 37375 or lathamdavis@bellsouth.net TNPS Website; www.tnps.org/ I f you missed the Annual Meeting, you missed a great time. Wonderful field trip and a nice location. Next year's meeting is scheduled for September 1 6-1 8 and will be at Fall Creek Falls State Park. I wanted to let you know that TNPS is still looking for persons to coordinate Education/Outreach events in East and West Tennessee. Kim Sadler has agreed to coordinate Middle Tennessee. Thank you, Kim. I guess the key word is coordinate. You don't have to be the person who sits at the booth. You can find volunteers from people you know in your Region. We have volunteers in all three regions who already help. You don't have to solicit events. We do get requests through our contact site on the website. The Board will make sure you have promotional materials. At some events TNPS is repre- sented only by our brochures. If you want to think of new ways to share in the education of the public about native plants and find new ways to support efforts to protect wild plant commu- nities, TNPS will be very happy. Kim and I will be meeting in the next few months to discuss our plans for this new adventure. If you can coordinate, please contact me. If you have ideas on how to proceed or ideas for new projects, let me know those also. Remembering Margret Rhinehart S eptember 23 marked the anniversary of the passing of Dr. Margret Rhinehart, a long-time TNPS member and frequent trip leader in the 1980s and 1 990s, usually on Sundays. She was known for her botanical explorations in Tennessee, which often led to significant new discoveries, such as the population of Trillium pusillum on Fdinch Mountain. She also contributed numerous voucher specimens to the University of Tennessee Fderbarium, greatly expanding the county occur- rence records for various species. Being a practicing physician in Spencer, Tennessee, from 1951 to 2001, her site discoveries were often marked with surgical gauze! Dr. Rhinehart was also instrumental in the production of the TNPS wild- flower book. During its inception, she suggested that her husband Shelby Rhinehart, who was a member of the Tennessee Fdouse of Representatives for 36 years, might help obtain state funding for the book. TNPS officers con- tacted Shelby and Senator Doug Fdenry to request support, and they were successful in securing partial funding. In recent years Dr. Rhinehart hosted an annual winter gathering at her home in Spencer, wherein various native plant photographers presented some of their findings from the previous season. Those sessions were well attended by her devoted friends and often ran well into the night. She was a unique and giving individual, and is deeply missed by those who had the privilege of knowing her. — Chuck Wilson 3 White Fringeless Orchid — continued There is a monkey face orchid (Dracula simia) in South America and the face is very apparent. The earliest existing specimen of WFO was collected by J. B. Buckley in 1840 in Georgia (Shea 1992). Any herbarium specimens that may have been collected by Rafinesque, apparently, were lost. The known range extends from northeast Mississippi into southern Alabama, then north through Georgia and Tennessee into southeastern Kentucky. Outliers exist in western South Garolina and a his- toric population that was known from western North Carolina (Kartesz 2013). The first collection in Tennessee was made by Edmund Kirby-Smith in 1880 near Sewanee (Correll 1941). There are other early specimens from the Cumber- land Plateau. Sites in the mountains of east Tennessee were not discovered until the early 1980s. New locations continue to be discovered and the latest discover- ies were made on the southern portion of the Cumberland Plateau in 201 1 and 2012. The majority of the known populations in Tennessee are in this area and the frequency of new discoveries is greater in this area as well (Biotics 2014). To make an important decision like listing a species under the Endangered Species Act requires accurate and detailed information. Much of the information used in this decision came from Natural Heritage Programs in the southeast. Botanists periodically monitored this species because it was for many years a can- didate for federal listing. The data collected during these studies showed a general decline in numbers of plants. Observations of significant threats at each site were recorded as well. A majority of the populations of WFO are in Tennessee so the Tennessee Natural Heritage Program made a large contribution to this effort. Science based decisions are crucial to the process of listing a species under the Endangered Species Act. Resources are limited at the state and federal levels and only by setting priorities based on science can we assure that those resources are utilized effectively. The official proposal to list WFO was published in Federal Register Volume 80, Number 178 (September 1 5, 2015). Accessed online at http://www.gpo.gov/ fdsys/pkg/FR-20 1 5-09-1 5 /html/20 1 5-22973.htm. Detailed information on the species biology and documented threats can be found in the listing proposal. Public comments on the proposed listing will be received until November 16. — Todd Crabtree References Ames, O. 1910. Orchidaceae: illustrations and studies of the family Orchidaceae, is- suing from the Ames Botanical Laboratory, North Easton, Massachusetts. Merry- mount Press, fasc. 1-7. pp 164-171 Correll, D. S. 1941. Two New American Orchids “11 A New Variety of Habenaria blephariglottis from the Cumberland Plateau”, Botanical Museum leaflets. Harvard University, Vol. 9, p. 153 Baumback, N and Emil Luckel 2009. Die Gattungen Platanthera L.C. RICH, und Blephariglottis RAF. in den USA und Kanada, Die Orchidee Vol. 60 (1/2) pp. 119-127 Biotics 5.2, Tennessee Rare Species Database 2014. (Accessed: March 18, 2014) Luer, C. A. 1975. The Native Orchids of the United States and Canada excluding Florida pp. 75-93: pp. 145-148 The New York Botanical Garden. New York, New York, USA Kartesz, J.T. The Biota of North America Program (BONAP). 2013. North Ameri- can Plant Atlas, (http://bonap.net/napa). Chapel Hill, N.C. [maps generated from Kartesz, J.T. 2013. Floristic Synthesis of North America, Version 1.0. Biota of North America Program (BONAP). (in press)]. Shea, M. M. 1992 Status Survey Report on Platanthera integrilahia. Kentucky Na- ture Preserves Commission. Gifts Honor Beloved Plant Enthusiast he family of Sibyl Whelchel Nestor, who passed away this summer at age 83, listed the Tennessee Native Plant Society for memorial donations in lieu of flow- ers. Friends have contributed a total of $1,025 to TNPS. Sibyl Whelchel grew up in Co- lumbia, Tennessee, where her father was president of First Farmers and Merchants Bank. She married Charles William (Bill) Nestor, Jr., an employee at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, and they lived in or near Oak Ridge from 1955^2015. Mrs. Nestor "created an extensive wildflower garden" that several donors referenced in notes. Thomas Moore, director at ORNL, wrote, "Sibyl Nestor was a wildflower enthusiast known for her beautiful gardens and had a great ap- preciation for the diverse beauty of many native plants around the Kingston/Oak Ridge, Tennessee, area where she lived for many years." Margaret Dungan said, "I en- joyed her wildflower garden and our —her— love of native plants." TNPS is honored to be the recipi- ent of these donations in Mrs. Nestor's memory and extends our heartfelt condolences to her hus- band, children, grandchildren, great grandchildren, and many friends. — Margie Hunter Melanthera nivea {Snowy Squarestem) Photo by Bart Jones 4 TNPS FIELD TRIPS AEDC and May Prairie June 6, 2015 Surprise Appearance of Filmy Fern I t’s always when you give up on something and let go of your expectations that you’re presented with something grand. A couple of weeks ago in mid- August, our field day was no exception. Todd Crabtree and I were on a mission to find Clematis morefieldii in a cove on the southern Cum- berland Plateau. The day had presented itself with some challenges including high humidity, heat, difficult terrain, a yellow jacket nest, and running out of water. We also didn’t have any luck finding the Clematis morefieldii and had given up when we decided to head back. As we proceeded to a limestone bluff and stepped up to examine the way out, we were presented with a beautiful display. It took a moment to realize what we were seeing, but it was a very long and lush population of Vanden- hoschia hoschianum (syn. Triehomanes bosehianum, Appalachian filmy fern.) This fern is in the Hymenophyllaeeae or filmy ferns; so called because the members of this family are one cell-layer thick, giving it a transparent appearance. The fragility of their fronds means that they don’t tolerate much sunlight, so they hide in sandstone crevices. They’re a state threat- ened species in Tennessee, and we have only a handful of known populations, with this newest one possibly being the largest. It was an exceptional reward for a difficult day! — Sunny Fleming A bout 3 5 participants turned out on this hot June day in Coffee County. Folks came from as far away as Memphis, Athens, Georgia, and possibly beyond. Our morning started with a visit to the power lines at the Arnold Air Force Base between Tullahoma and Man- chester. We found grass-pink (Calopogon), spreading pogonia (Cleistes), rosebud pogonia (Pogonia), and ragged fringed orchid (Platanthera lacera), all four orchids in flower. At this location we found hyssop-leaved skullcap (Scutellaria integrifolia), whorled loosestrife (Lysimachia quadrifolia), and death camas (Zigadenus leimanthoides) in flower, and slender blue flag (Iris prismatica) in fruit. After lunch in Manchester we drove to May Prairie State Natural Area for some afternoon botany. The prairie was not burned this past winter, so the flowers were not as colorful overall as last year, but most of the plants we ex- pected to see in bloom were there. These included eryngo (Eryngium integrifolium), swamp candles (Lysimachia ter- restris), horned bladder pod (Utricularia cornuta), marsh pea (Lathyrus palustris), rosinweed (Silphium mohrii), mock bishop’s weed (Ptilimnium costatum), sweet golden- rod (Solidago odora), and many more. Dwarf sundew (Drosera brevifolia) was located, but not in flower. After the May Prairie hike, four of us drove back to AEDC to look for pale purple coneflower (Echinacea pall- ida) along the old rail line. We found one plant in flower and one in bud. Fiowever the next weekend lo to 15 plants were flowering. AEDC is currently the only known site for this plant in Tennessee. — Dennis Horn Roan Mountain, Ed Schell Memorial Hike June 27, 2015 W ’’ ith Susan and Allen Sweetser — and Facie — shepherding us, we gathered first at the Ap- palachian Trail crossing at Carver’s Gap amid gathering clouds. While there, we examined a thicket of green alder (Alnus viridis), which is a rare plant. We took a minute for our group photo, and we were on our way to Roan Mountain Gardens; as we drove up the mountain we stopped for our first glimpses of Gray’s lily (Lilium grayi) on the roadside. Then we strolled through the gardens, which is paved but not otherwise managed. The Catawba rhododendron was almost finished blooming, but we found a few bright pink patches remain- ing. We wandered through the Gardens until rain began to threaten. Then we convoyed down to the head of the Cloudland Trial, where we waited out the rain with lunch TNPS FIELD TRIPS 5 and for some of us, a short nap, in the car. When the rain cleared, a group of us wandered out to the point, where we were rewarded with a spectacular view. We peeked over the fence to see spreading avens (Geum radiatum), a federally listed plant, and took a few minutes to share memories of Ed Schell, several of which in- cluded descriptions of botanical “death marches” past. On the way back we saw several exam- ples of three-toothed cinquefoil (Potentilla tridentata), another rare plant. After head- ing back to the cars we went in search of Roan Mountain bluets (Hedy otis purpurea van montana), which we found growing on the roadside next to a very un usual club moss — staghorn clubmoss (Lycopodium clava- tum). Back at the parking lot, we were chatting and saying goodbye after a pleasant day when we noticed a plant we didn’t recognize. It was up to 1.5 meters tall, with umbels of flowers which were extremely attractive to bees. Epilogue: After study of the matter by several people we came to the conclusion that our mystery plant was the wild parsnip (Pastinaca saliva), which frequently escapes from cultivation. — Beilina Aull Ed Schell: An Early Memory T he year was 1978. The Tennessee Native Plant Soci- ety had just been organized. I found Sherry that year and also met Ed Schell. Ed was leading hikes on Roan Mountain for TNPS the 4 th of July weekend. Ed moved to Johnson City in 1975, having retired early from civil service work as a physicist in Ohio and then DC. He had just coauthored a book using his photos, Polomac: The Nalion’s River. Another book, Tennessee, was about to be published. The hikes were Friday and Saturday. I rode over from Tullahoma with Denny Fulcher. Dr. Paul Somers, our state botanist at the time, was staying the weekend with Ed. It was my first time to visit Roan Mountain and my first TNPS field trip. Ed took us to Roan High Bluff and to the rhododendron gardens. We hiked the AT from Carver’s Gap to Grassy Ridge. The trail through the grassy balds on the Roan is probably the most scenic in Tennessee with unobstructed views in all directions. At the far end of Grassy Ridge, Ed showed us the Roan Mountain bluet (Houslonia purpurea var monlana). Upon returning we dropped off the trail at Engine Gap and scrambled down a ravine looking for the rare wolfsbane (Aconilum reclinalum). Finally we reached the highway below. After two days of great botanizing with Ed and Paul we said our goodbyes. Denny and I headed down the mountain in his Fiat. As we approached the community of Burbank the engine quit and we coasted into a service station. The timing chain had broken and we were stuck. About 20 minutes later Ed and Paul came by and rescued us. Denny and I wound up staying that night at Ed’s place. Ed showed us some of his wonderful wildflower and na- ture slides that evening. At one point he said, “These slides I’m showing now are unedited, something a pho- tographer should never do.” Paul dropped us off in Cookeville the next day on his way back to Nashville and Denny’s wife picked us up. After that beginning, a trip to Roan Mountain in late June to botanize with Ed was an annual event for Sherry and me for the next 10 or 12 years. Ed had selected John- son City for his retirement because of its proximity to Roan Mountain. It was a wise choice. — Dennis Horn TNPS FIELD TRIPS 6 Devil’s Backbone, Lewis County August 8, 2015 A fantastic group of over 20 folks met at the parking area at the trailhead into Devil’s Backbone State Natural Area. Leader Allan Trendy immediately led us just a few feet from the parking area to our first plant of the day, shortstalk false bindweed (Calystegia silvatica), a seldom encountered morning glory relative. Devil’s Backbone was set aside because of the dry oak woods community, and several species of oaks were seen. Along the dry ridges we also came across a few herbaceous species of wildflowers: little ladies’ tresses or pearl twist (Spiranthes tuherosa), elephant foot (Elephantopus carolini- anus), and hawkweed (Hieracium sp.). As we made our way down the trail we descended to a seepy area and small stream. Along the banks was our sec- ond orchid of the day, rattlesnake plantain (Goodyera pubescens). This area also held two of our most spectacular ferns, royal fern ( Osmunda regalis) and cinnamon fern (Osmundastrum cinnamomeum). A quick look at the alder (Alnus serrulata) seep gave us our third orchid. The small green woodland orchid (Platanthera clavellata) produced plants that had already flowered and were setting capsules. During our lunch at the creek, we were treated with two red-spotted newts in the eft stage. These salamanders undergo a life cycle with distinct morphological stages dur- ing their development. The eft stage is characterized by the entire animal being a brilliant red-orange with even brighter orange spots outlined in black. This is often the form encountered as it is at this stage where individuals travel to new locations to reproduce. As we made our way back to the trail, we spotted our last species for the day, a beautiful spikenard (Aralia race- mosa) with both flowers and developing fruit on its lateral inflorescence. Back at the cars, everyone agreed it was a nice day, albeit a bit warm, but good nonetheless. — Bart Jones !h Oi pq o ■M O Elephantopus carolinianus (elephant's foot) This circle of TNPS members discusses a plant of Nine- Acre Glade, during the recent annual meeting — typical of society field trips throughout the year. Nine- Acre Glade (TNPS Annual Meeting) Sept. 12, 2015 O ne of the great things about having our annual meeting at Linden Valley is the proximity to two great botanical areas: the Silurian glades and bar- rens of Decatur County and the Parnassia seeps of Lewis County. We’ve visited both habitats during our two previ- ous meetings at Linden Valley, with a trip to Dry Branch State Natural Area in Lewis County during the last one. So it was natural to go back to a barrens site in Decatur County this time. Nine- Acre Glade is the largest of all the glades/barrens that make up a large complex of these open areas in De- catur and Perry Counties. These sites differ from the cedar glades of Middle Tennessee in that the exposed limestone is of Silurian/Devonian age, not Ordovician, and lacks en- demic plant species. This age limestone matches exposures in the upper Midwest and the Ozark region and the plant community typical of these barrens reflect elements with a Midwestern affinity, with many plants disjunct from their major populations found in those areas and rare in Ten- nessee. As we left Linden Valley, we couldn’t have ordered up a more perfect day for a field trip. The clouds and rain from Friday were gone, being replaced by sunshine and mild temperatures in the 70s. Once we arrived at our parking area, a quick shuttle to the entrance to Nine- Acre Glade left our group examining the plants along the road. These included frostweed (Verbesina virginica), partridge pea (Ghamaecrista fasciculata), tall goldenrod (Solidago altissi- mum), and snowy squarestem (Melanthera nivea), a plant more commonly found along the Gulf Coast and Florida but found in Tennessee in a few counties along the western TNPS FIELD TRIPS 7 run of the Tennessee River and Shelby County As we entered into the barrens, the plants dramatically shifted from the more common species seen roadside to those restricted to the barrens. A few very showy species immediately grabbed our attention. Among them were prairie dock (Silphium terebinthinaceum), tall blazing star (Liatris aspera), the state-listed blue flax (Salvia azurea var. grandiflora) southern prairie aster (Euryhia hemisph erica) ^ Gattinger’s false purple foxglove (Agalinis gattingeri)^ and obedient plant (Physostegia virgini- ana). Scattered among those plants were slen- derstalk beeblossom (Gaura filipes), gray goldenrod (Solidago nemoralis), and glade heliotrope (He- liotropium tenellum). Nine- Acre Glade en- circles the summit of a conical hill and as we made our way to the northern face of the hill, the soil layer deep- ened and additional species were encountered. Spiranthes tuberosa The most interesting was (little ladies' tresses) the state-listed rare plant Ontario blazing star (Liatris cylindracea), a smaller species of blazing star. It is distinguished by the cylindrical form the floral bracts take. There were several plants of a second Silphium in bloom in this area, whorled rosinweed (Sil- phium asteriscus var. latifolium). Also new to this spot were glade wild petunia (Rue Ilia humilis) and fluxweed (Isanthus hrachiatus). As we made our way around the hill, some of the woody plants were pointed out. Of course in the glade proper, most of the trees were stunted, twisted eastern red cedars (Juniperus virginiana), but there were also a few ex- amples of Carolina buckthorn (Rhamnus caroliniana), Vir- ginia pine (Pinus virginiana), redbud (Cercis canadensis)^ and fragrant sumac (Rhus aromatica). Along the periphery of the glade, a ring of various oaks ( Quercus spp.) and hickories (Cary a spp.) had escaped the clearcut done a few years ago. On the south facing side of the hill, outcropping layers of limestone formed a stair step that allowed us to descend to the bottom. This side of the glade has a harsher environ- ment with the thinner soil and more intense sunlight and the vegetation was much sparser. It was here near the bot- tom that we saw a few asters that were not quite in bloom. They were wavyleaf aster (Symphyotrichum undulatum), and two rarer species; smooth blue aster (S. leave var. leave) removed from the next closest population by nearly 100 miles and barrens silky aster (S. pratense), a state-listed endangered species. As we exited the barren, a few more species were found including stiff goldenrod (Solidago rigida), tall coreopsis (Coreopsis tripteris), orange coneflower (Rudheckia fulgida v 2 Lr. fulgida), rattlesnake master (Eryngium yuccifolium), and the uncommon Elliott’s fanpetals (Sida elliottii). Back at the parking area, we enjoyed a quick lunch, then strolled down the gravel road that leads to a private en- campment. The plants here were those usually found in dry, rocky woods and roadsides. Late fall aster (Symphy- otrichum patens)^ field thistle (Cirsium discolor), tickseed sunflower (Bidens aristosa), fragrant goldenrod (Solidago odor a), and blue mist flower (Conoclinium coelestinum) g were scattered all along the roadside showing the familiar M fall color combination of yellow and blue. Occasional U white thoroughworts were interspersed among the yellow ^ and blue. It turned out to be four different species: late- ^ flowering thorough wort (Eupatorium serotinum), roundleaved thoroughwort (E. rotundifolium var. ovatum), J hyssopleaf thoroughwort (E. hyssopifolium), and tall thor- oughwort (E. altissimum). As the habitat became drier, other species showed up like smooth yellow false foxglove (Aureolaria flava), little ladies’ tresses (Spiranthes tuherosa), and small partridge pea (Chamaecrista nictitans). Good friends, good weather, and great native plants. Sounds like another successful field trip at the annual meeting. — Bart Jones Annual Meeting — Continued Bailey has managed 28 stream restoration projects at the request of government and private landowners. More information can be found with an online search for Tennessee Stream Mitigation Program, The site pro- vides explanations and many photographs of the TSMP projects. The TNPS Board of Directors has voted to join and partner with the Plant Conservation Alliance. PCA is a public-private partnership of organizations that share the same goal: to protect native plants by ensuring that native plant populations and their communities are maintained, enhanced, and restored. Members will be exploring ways to assist with projects. Information about PCA can be found at www.plantconservational- liance.org. Silphium terebinthinaceum (prairie dock) (Photo by Todd Crabtree)