Wall Awarded Important Conservation Award
Michael Wall, seed program conservation program manager at Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden, has won the 2012 Star Award from the Center for Plant Conservation for his work with rare and imperiled California native plant species.
The award was presented on April 20 in conjunction with the Center for Plant Conservation’s national meeting, held this year at Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden (RSABG). The award recognizes individuals who demonstrate the concern, cooperation and personal investment needed to conserve imperiled native plants.
“Michael’s contributions to RSABG’s conservation programs are manifold and greatly appreciated. His commitment to preserving the priceless collections of seed from California’s rare, threatened and endangered species has been unwavering,” said Patrick Larkin, RSABG executive director. “Michael is driven to better understand these plants and has a vision for the collection. That steadfast loyalty has helped ensure the survival of a vital conservation resource.”
The award honored Wall’s commitment to the conservation of the flora of the United States, specifically his work in developing a native plant seed conservation program. His contributions to development of protocols, guidance and publications, culminating in the manual “Processing Seeds of California Native Plants for Conservation, Storage, and Restoration,” also provided leadership to the greater conservation community. His careful mentoring is credited with inspiring a new generation of botanists to carry on the essential work of plant conservation. Wall has been with RSABG since 1990; this June he will be retiring after a long career with the Garden.
“CPC’s honoring Michael Wall highlights his career-long dedication to California native plants, and especially for furthering the understanding of the seed,” Larkin said.
The Center for Plant Conservation is a non-profit organization whose mission is to conserve and restore the imperiled plants of the United States to secure them from extinction. It has established a network of 38 leading botanical institutions across the country. By developing standards and guidance, conducting hands-on work and raising awareness, the Center and its partners strive to accomplish the research and restoration work needed to return these plants to their natural habitats. The Center coordinates the National Collection of Endangered Plants, securing seed from more than 750 of America’s most vulnerable native plants, and is working on hundreds of restoration projects. The Center’s program is managed by their national office in St. Louis, Mo. For additional information about the Center for Plant Conservation, visit www.centerforplantconservation.org.
New Student Grants and Visiting Scientists
Hasenstab-Lehman Earns Research Grants
Doctoral candidate Kristen Hasenstab-Lehman recently received a highly competive graduate student research fellowship from the Torrey Botanical Society. The fellowship will support fieldwork for her doctoral dissertation on the genus Varronia and other members of the Boraginaceae (Borage Family). This grant brings the number of RSABG botany students who have received the Torrey Botanical Society prestigious fellowship to four.
Hasenstab-Lehman also recently received the Annetta Carter research grant from the California Botanical Society to support her research on plants in the Boraginaceae that occur in Baja California.
RSABG Hosts Researchers from Near and Far
Jason Koontz, Ph.D., associate professor of biology at Augustana College, Rock Spring, IL, has selected RSABG for his sabbatical. Koontz is especially interested in several rare species of the genus Delphinium (larkspur) that occur in California. During his stay at RSABG he plans to conduct fieldwork in support of his research, as well as work in the molecular lab. To learn more about Koontz and his research interests read more on his faculty webpage at Augustana College.
Carol Wilson, Ph.D., in collaboration with her colleague in the Caucasus region of Georgia, is hosting Zezva Asanidze from Tbilisi, Georgia. Zezva is a doctoral student at Ilia State University, who is studying the wild pear genus Pyrus, hybrids of which have produced many commercial pear varieties. Zezva comes to Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden to learn more about molecular techniques in the RSABG laboratories, which will further his research on these wild pears that occur in the Caucasus Mountains of Eastern Europe.
USFWS 2011 Recovery Champion
In March, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) announced that Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden was selected as one of the 2011 Recover Champions.
RSABG, one of two award recipients from the Pacific Southwest Region, was selected for the recovery work being done to conserve more than 100 federally listed plants.
“To have the hard work and dedication of RSABG staff and volunteers recognized by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in this way is exciting," said Patrick Larkin, RSABG executive director. "It is great to have the support of such an important federal partner as we continue to realize Susanna Bixby Bryant’s vision of protecting California’s native plants.”
The USFWS award acknowledges RSABG’s conservation of several plants including three plants on the federal register of endangered 
and threatened plants: Trichostema austromontanum subsp. compactum (Hidden Lake bluecurls), Eriogonum ovalifolium var. vineum (Cushenbury buckwheat) and Monardella linoides subsp. viminea (willowy monardella). RSABG has collected and maintained seeds of federally listed plants of Southern California and raised plants for planting in restoration sites, which has helped stabilize otherwise declining populations or has reclaimed habitat. The private, nonprofit organization’s extensive seed conservation program serves not only as a safety net for listed plants, but also for plants like Chorizanthe parryi var. fernandina (San Fernando Valley spineflower), a candidate species.
“Recovery Champions are helping listed species get to the point at which they are secure in the wild and no longer need Endangered Species Act protection,” said Dan Ashe, USFWS service director. “These groups and individuals have done amazing work in helping to bring dozens of species back from the brink of extinction, while improving habitat that benefits many other species and local communities.”
Representatives from the Carlsbad Fish and Wildlife Office, including Jim Bartel, USFWS field supervisor, and Scott Sobiech, USFWS deputy field supervisor, will visit the Garden to present the award to Patrick Larkin, RSABG executive director, and RSABG staff on Friday, April 20. RSABG’s nomination for the award was submitted by the Carlsbad office.
CPC Annual Meeting 2012
Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden is hosting the Center for Plant Conservation’s national meeting on April 18-21.
The Center for Plant Conservation (CPC) is a consortium of 36 botanic gardens or plant conservation organizations dedicated to saving plants from extinction in the U.S. Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden (RSABG) was a charter member of the CPC, which was founded in 1984.
The four-day conference brings together conservation professionals from across the U.S. for workshops, presentations, tours to help conserve rare or endangered flora.
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