Tour of the Organic Fellenz Family Farm

Saturday, July 24, 2010 - 10 am at 1919 Lester Road in Phelps (or 9:30 am if you wish to carpool from the Ontario County Courthouse parking lot off Sly Street in Canandaigua).

Join the Canandaigua Botanical Society as we tour the Fellenz Family Farm. Andy Fellenz will show us the summertime workings of his organic farm and discuss managing tomatoes and cucurbits in high tunnels.

Andy Fellenz established the organic Fellenz Family Farm in 2002. He created and maintains three Community Supported Agriculture programs (Canandaigua, Geneva, and Pittsford) from his seven-acre organic farm. Andy has given presentations on issues such as agriculture in the Finger Lakes, organic farming, small-scale farming, and sustainable farming. Andy is also the president of the Ontario County Farm Bureau.

http://www.fellenzfamilyfarm.com/

http://www.localharvest.org/farms/M6712

Dandelion-leaved Sundrops open in real time!

BEFORE

AFTER

My neighbor gave me these "Moonflowers" several years ago. I was told that they were planted along forest paths for indian princesses to follow home to safety. They are Oenothera acaulis aurea in the Onagraceae (Evening primrose) family. I have them planted along the sidewalk in front of our house and on some evenings they draw crowds and applause.

Here's a YouTube link with the same video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SzoHwWCVAWs
They bloom in the evening between 8:30 and 9:30 pm from May through August. Blossoms will bloom once and be spent by noon the following day. Each plant will produce several blossoms each week throughout the four months.

Visit to the Rochester Academy of Science Herbarium

On Saturday, June 19, 2010 the following Canandaigua Botanical Society members met with Elizabeth Pixley, curator of the Rochester Academy of Science Herbarium, in the basement of the Rochester Museum and Science Center: Kathie & Tom Crocker, Peggy Kane, Donna Middlebrook, Bethan & Laura Ouimette.

A herbarium is a collection of preserved plant specimens. The specimens may be whole plants or plant parts usually in a dried form and mounted on a sheet. Mounting is done with glue, tape, and in one case wire. Small envelopes are also used for some specimens or seeds.

The office of the Rochester Academy of Science Herbarium

A specimen of American ElmTables set up in the hallway for working and viewing (cabinets of specimens are to the right)Specimans are organized by families (ending in aceae)Cabinets are labeled by family and genusElizabeth Pixley showing the specimens organized by species inside cabinetsSpecimen labels include family name, genus, species, location & date of collection, and collector name and sometimes stamps for viewer recordingBethan impressed by the blue coloring of the Mertensia virginica after 115 yearsTom Crocker assisting with the opening of a hallway storage cabinet Insect control once managed by moth balls can also be dealt with by freezing specimens Many of the specimens had artistic value. It's important to invert a leaf for future reference.

Lily specimen

Fern specimen with roots

RAS Herbarium has over 60,000 specimens from around the world dating back to 1850.

Fern specimens

Elizabeth Pixley will be our guest speaker at the April 8, 2011 Annual meeting and potluck dinner. If you have an interest in helping to repair or remount RAS Herbarium specimens please send an Email to us at canandaiguabotanical@gmail.com and we'll get you in touch with Elizabeth Pixley.

**We were surprised not to find any sunflower specimens. Bethan mentioned "moon flower" as a favorite which we did not locate either. Laura has since researched to locate the name of the moon flower that Bethan mentioned. It is commonly called Dandelion Sundrop. Its botanical name is Oenothera acaulis aurea of the Onagraceae family (evening primrose family).**

A VISIT TO THE HERBARIUM at the ROCHESTER ACADEMY OF SCIENCE

SATURDAY, JUNE 19, 2010 - 10am (or if carpooling, meet at the Ontario County Courthouse parking lot at 9:25 am.)

Where: Herbarium at the Rochester Academy of Science, in the basement of the Rochester Museum and Science Center, 657 East Avenue (at the corner of Goodman St.). Go to the RMSC front desk and ask for staff person to call ext. 368, the phone in the Herbarium.

Elizabeth Pixley, Herbarium Curator, has invited the Botanical Society to come and help with the Herbarium's valuable collection. The 60,000 preserved plant specimens are a significant record of the Rochester area ecology; most were collected between 1860-1950. We will learn about different plant species and help file specimens. In the past years, members of the Botanical Societywere required to bring plant specimens to each meeting; in this tradition, Botanical Society members can help the Herbarium preserve valuable specimans.

Elizabeth Pixley is Emeritus Professor of Biology at MCC. She has an M.S. in Botany from Cornell University. She is active in a number of professional organizations and has published extensively.