Back to Our Roots: Being Wild About Wild Plants In celebration of RIWPS 30th Anniversary, Lisa Lofland Gould, founding member and first president of RIWPS will address the question, Why should anyone care about plants, and especially about that seemingly obscure and often subtle flora we Wild Folks so enjoy? She will consider the pivotal […]
Pollinators are declining at an unprecedented rate worldwide due to human-induced rapid environmental change. These declines pose a significant threat to our food supply and consequently, there has been major focus on the development and implementation of conservation strategies aimed to increase pollinator abundance in agricultural areas. The ecological needs of 98% of wild pollinator […]
Go Wild about Native Plants with RIWPS Members & Friends Social & Potluck Luncheon Join us for visual wild plant storytelling and socializing. This is an opportunity to mingle with your fellow native plant enthusiasts. Seed Starts East will be offering packets of seeds for butterfly milkweed, swamp milkweed, red cardinal flower, great blue lobelia, […]
ONLINE PLANT SALE FOR MEMBERS STARTING AUGUST 1, 2020 • SHOP ONLINE • DRIVE THROUGH PICK UP AT PLANE VIEW NURSERY, PORTSMOUTH, RI See all the details
photo (D.Vissoe) WHEN & WHERE: Saturday, November 12, from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m., at the University of Rhode Island Pharmacy building (Rm 170), Kingston, RI. WHY: RIWPS is 35 years old this year, and we want to celebrate our history – and discuss where we go from here, in this era of climate change and […]
RIWPS annual meeting will take place at the URI Pharmacy Building on Saturday, March 11, 2023 from 1:00 to 3:30 pm. (Directions below). The business meeting includes the annual report, elections for Board of Trustees. We will also be celebrating our volunteer award recipients. Lifetime Service Volunteer Awards - Mary Lou Upham & Nancy Weiss […]
On April 11, 2023 at 10:30 join us for a hike through George Parker Woodland Audubon Preserve. We’ll see an old field meadow, beech forests, and a boardwalk over a swamp before ending at a rocky stream in a wooded valley. Please pack sunscreen, bug spray, snacks, and water. We’ll be out between 90 minutes […]
Save the date! June 3, 2023 | 9 am - noon URI Botanical Garden, Kingston, RI (Member's pre sale from 8 to 9 am) More Details to follow! Learn more about our Native Plant Sales
On June 12, 2023 at 10 am we will have a family walk at the Nature Conservancy's Carter Preserve in Charlestown. Our walk along the Pawcatuck River in a unique pine barrens ecosystem should reveal plenty of interesting plants, and likely many lady slipper orchids in full bloom. As always, please bring plenty of water, […]
THIS PROGRAM IS STILL PLANNED FOR SATURDAY. WEAR APPROPRIATE CLOTHING IN CASE OF SHOWERS. This landscape is the first in a three part series, In the Landscape of ..... , open to members only, as a special thanks for their support and in many cases, countless volunteer hours. Members are invited to take an informal […]
Creating a mini meadow in your landscape? Whether you are beginning a project soon or have one in progress, find inspiration, ideas and practical information tailored to strengthen your project and learn more about the design process in this workshop on June 22, 2023 from 2 to 4 pm at URI East Farm. Under the […]
Solidago sempervirens, seaside goldenrod with common buckeye butterfly On August 26 from 9 AM to noon find our booth at the Pawtuxet Village Farmer’s Market 60 Rhodes Place from 9 - 11 am. More details
Seaside goldenrod with common buckeye butterfly In late summer the flora begins to change as asters and goldenrods bloom and seeds and fruits mature. Animals rely on many plants for food and shelter while many plants rely on animals for pollination and dispersal. At times the interactions get quite defensive. If you would like to […]
Hummingbirds buzzing wild bergamot (Monada fistulosa), Trustom Pond. Photo: Carmen Rugel September is a great time to look for migrating birds! Come on a nature walk with fellow bird and native plant enthusiasts on Friday September 15, 2023 from 10 am to noon at the Trustom Pond National Wildlife Refuge in South Kingston, RI. From […]
On Thursday October 5, 2023, from 10 am to noon, come explore some of the Taylor Point Nature Preserve. It has a variety of natural communities within its 20 acres, including maritime woodlands and shrub lands and 4000 feet of shoreline along the East Passage. A multi-year plant inventory has produced a list of 143 […]
NOTE. Page updated on November 12 with NEW LOCATION OF THIS PROGRAM Thomas Ryan Auditorium, Center for Biotechnology and Life Sciences (CBLS) Upstairs Lobby and Lecture Hall 120 Flagg Road on the URI Kingston Campus. What are the challenges, opportunities and issues related to sourcing and supplying native plants, especially as demand for these plants […]
The program below, on our Reseeding RI initiative, comes from the class offerings of the Native Plant Trust. The registration link takes you to their website. In 2022, Rhode Island Plant Society (RIWPS) began ReSeeding Rhode Island, an initiative to increase the availability of ecotypic seed and plants within the state. In this session, you […]
On Wednesday, February 21, 2024 from 2:00 to 3:30 pm, join Dana Millar, owner of Dana Designs, at Beechwood Center, 44 Beach Street, North Kingston. Organically grown turf is not only stronger, but also more resistant to environmental stressors. Dana's approach is to work harmonious with nature, using a bottom-up approach to lawn care through […]
The program below is from the URI Master Gardener Program. It is free and open to the public. Join Dave Vissoe, University of Rhode Island Master Gardener 2017 Hall of Fame and RI Wild Plant Society Vice President, as he takes you on a visual journey of ReSeeding RI from its inception and vision to […]
Brave the Wild River: The Untold Story of Two Women Who Mapped the Botany of the Grand Canyon by Melissa Sevigny (W.W. Norton Press) Join fellow RIWPS members on March 3 from 2 to 4 pm to discuss Brave the Wild River, the beautifully written adventure story of two women botanists running the untamed Colorado […]
RIWPS annual meeting will take place from 1:00 to 3:00 pm at the Fellowship Hall of the Kingston Congregational Church, 2610 Kingstown Road Kingston, RI on Saturday, March 23, 2024. Enjoy refreshments and fellowship followed from 1:00 to 1:30 followed by the business meeting and presentations. The business meeting includes the annual report, elections for […]
Tour Brown University Herbarium on April 1 from 10 to 11:30 am. The Brown Herbarium is located on the second floor of the Biomedical Center, 171 Meeting St, Providence. photo credit, Brown University Herbarium Brown University Herbarium offers a priceless snapshot of botanical life, in Rhode Island and across the nation and the world, […]
yellow birch, photo PCahallan THIS WALK IS CANCELLED DUE TO WEATHER CONDITIONS. Our first walk of the season, from 10 am to noon on 4 April 2024, will be led by retired Deputy State Forester Paul Dolan. We will explore the Snake Den Farm parcel of Snake Den State Park in Johnson, RI. Managed by […]
Ostrich Fern, photo GGardner Gardening With Native Ferns On Wednesday, April 17, 2024 from 2:00 to 3:30 pm, join Karen Asher, native plant specialist and former president of Rhode Island Wild Plant Society, at Beechwood Center, 44 Beach Street, North Kingston to learn about our native ferns. Ferns are ubiquitous here in Rhode Island, let's […]
Wednesday April 17, 2024 from 6 to 7:30 pm. Audubon Society of Rhode Island Nature Center, 1401 Hope Street, Bristol, RI 02809 While we look for practical opportunities for promoting ecological restoration through the successful removal of invasives and replacement with natives, what should we do with all these non-native weeds and invasives? The answer for […]
Rhode Island Audubon's spring symposium Transforming The Landscape focuses on how to become part of a sustainable community and support our native species by creating beautiful pollinator habitat at home. The keynote speaker Dr. Doug Tallamy, Professor and Chair of the Department of Entomology and Wildlife Ecology at the University of Delaware is well known for his […]
Trillium cernuum, nodding trilium. DMcGrady On May 2, 2024 from 10 am to noon, join us at the Ben Utter Trail, Arcadia Management Area in Exeter, RI. On this walk with biologist Denise Poyer, we will discover early spring flowers deep in the Arcadia Management Area. We will first walk south on Sand Trail to […]
On May 6, 2024, from 6:30 to 7:30 pm, explore the Tiverton Land Trust to catch some spring ephemerals. Garry Plunkett, long appreciated for sharing his extensive knowledge of native plants, will be joining host Annie Bayer on this evening walk to see the short lived blooms that provide an early source of food for […]
On May 11, 2024, starting at 9 am, find us at the Casey Farm, Farmers Market, 2325 Boston Neck Road, Saunderstown. For details about this sale and our other plant sales see our Native Plant Sales Page.
Anne Raver, will lead three walks along the trails of the Haile Farm Preserve in Warren, with an eye to how a landscape changes with the seasons. Join us on May 14, 2024 from 10 am to noon for the first of these walks. The subsequent walks will be scheduled in August and October. Because […]
Nature nurtures us! Find RIWPS information table at Wellness for EveryBODY, a free event organized by the Westerly Land Trust and the Westerly Hospital, on May 18, 2024 from 10:30 am to 2:30 pm, at the Avondale Farm Preserve in Westerly. Lots of activities and lots to learn. For additional information or any updates to […]
Find our largest selection of plants at this sale on June 1, 2024 at the URI Botanical Gardens, Kingston All details about this and our other sales can be found […]
Join botanist Elizabeth Dickson for a workshop on how to key wildflowers using Newcomb's and GoBotany. Bring a copy of Newcomb's Wildflower Guide, a hand lens, and your cell phone, […]
Eutrochium fistulosum (hollow Joe-Pye weed) with monarch, photo DMcGrady On Wednesday June 26, 2024 from 2 to 3 pm join Barbara Donnelly at the Beechwood Center for Life Enrichment, 44 […]