Posted July 12, 2010 by Anna Sher, Director of Research & Conservation
Denver Botanic Gardens and University of Denver (DU) are currently collaborating to conduct research that documents climate change effects on native flora in Colorado. We have been using preserved specimens from the Gardens Kathryn Kalmbach Herbarium and other regional herbaria to determine if flowering time has changed over the last 100 years. A preserved plant with reliable label data is proof positive that it existed in a specific place at a specific time in the state it is shown. Such specimens show that some Colorado species were blooming on average as much as three weeks later 100 years ago than today– a reflection of warming temperatures that are causing earlier springs.
Amelia Bowman, ‘09 University of Denver (DU) graduate, first discovered this trend investigating a set of six early blooming species that were collected in Colorado
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Posted June 30, 2010 by Horticulture Intern
To a Colorado non-native, the the gypsum dust blowing through Eagle County could easily obscure the beautiful wildflowers growing amongst the mountainous anthills and dry lakebeds. Penstemon harringtonii is a rare, showy purple and blue flower limited to the sagebrush steppe in Colorado and limited in number as well. A changing habitat and the ever-so-ambitious human dweller threaten this endemic species.
This year, the horticulture interns joined up with the Gardens research team on their 14-year field study to ensure the future of this plant.
The first study site with gridding in the works
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Posted June 17, 2010 by Anna Sher, Director of Research & Conservation
Biologists, ranchers, and other interested folk who participated in the first JE Canyon Ranch Bioblitz
Q: What do you get when you set loose over three dozen passionate biologists who study animals, plants, and fungi in a nearly pristine ranch in Southeast Colorado for a 24 hour period?
A: A BIOBLITZ!
Last week was the first ever comprehensive biological survey of JE Canyon Ranch, an area east of Trinidad, Colorado. The primary organizers were Dina Clark, Curator with Denver Botanic Gardens, and Renée Rondeau of the Colorado Natural Heritage Program. Jerry Wenger, the owner of the ranch, hosted the event, opening his amazing property to the 50+ individuals who participated, representing (in no particular order): Denver Botanic Gardens, Colorado Natural Heritage Program (CNHP), the Division of Wildlife (DOW), Rocky Mountain Bird Observatory (RMBO), Colorado State University (CSU), Nature Serve, University of Colorado (CU), Colorado College (CC), University of Denver (DU), and the Colorado Cattlemen’s Agricultural Land Trust (CCALT).
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Posted June 15, 2010 by Anna Sher, Director of Research & Conservation
Volunteers plant at the Bluff Lake Nature Center.
Denver Botanic Gardens has been involved in restoration of damaged ecosystems around the state of Colorado through its Research and Conservation programs for at least a decade, but none have been quite as satisfying as the one at Bluff Lake Nature Center.
“Over the past four years Bluff Lake Nature Center staff and volunteers have removed hundreds of Russian Olives and numerous tamarisk from around the site and along Sand Creek. We estimate that within the next two years Bluff Lake will be completely free of these invasive tree species,” says Bluff Lake Site Manager (and former Denver Botanic Gardens horticulturalist) Chris Story.
THE HISTORY:
The partnership between the two organizations began in 2003 when the Research Department at Denver Botanic Gardens was looking to put volunteers on
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Posted June 4, 2010 by Michelle DePrenger-Levin, Research Associate
They may be tiny mustard plants but they have a huge impact in a region believed to contain one of the nation’s largest reservoirs of natural gas. Physaria congesta (Lesquerella congesta) and P. obcordata, both federally listed as Threatened under the National Endangered Species Act, are found right in the heart of all the activity associated with drilling for this oil and gas. See what Denver Botanic Gardens is doing in the field.
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Posted May 18, 2010 by Anna Sher, Director of Research & Conservation
Denver Botanic Gardens researchers monitor a rare penstemon in Kremmling.
Happy Plant Conservation Day! Today the world (or at least, the plant conservation-interested public) celebrates and recognizes conservation of our national, natural heritage. Denver Botanic Gardens’ Research and Conservation department is committed to documenting and protecting our region’s flora through our two herbaria and extensive research programs in rare plants, invasive species, and habitat restoration. Our field season is just beginning, including:
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Posted April 20, 2010 by Michelle DePrenger-Levin, Research Associate
What are you doing this weekend? If you’re like us (Research and Conservation at the Gardens), you’re getting ready to head out and find some rare and beautiful plants to study this summer. A good way to prepare for that might be our Introduction to GPS mapping class this Saturday from 1-4 p.m. In this class you will learn how we use GPS to locate rare plants in remote and sometimes not-so-remote areas. The lecture portion will teach you about GPS mapping and the “in the field” portion will take you out into the gardens to practice with your unit or give you a chance to practice with ours. Register now and be ready for your next excursion into the Colorado wilderness!
Sclerocactus glaucus
Posted April 15, 2010 by Nick Daniel, Gardener Tropical Collection
Have you ever wondered what types of insect pests we have in the Boettcher Memorial Tropical Conservatory, and how we deal with them? Well, for all of you entomologists out there today is your lucky day.
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