News Blog

November 15, Wednesday, 4:30 - 5:30 PM. Join the Mangrove Chapter of the Florida Native Plant Society and leaders, Dave and Linda Manley, for a sunset stroll at the Venice Urban Forest, 308 E. Venice Ave, Venice. This narrow strip of restored native habitat runs beside the Legacy Trail and features a butterfly garden and natural shelter for wildlife. Plan to park at the historic depot and meet under the bridge. We will walk to the entrance as a group. This event is open to the public.

Saturday, November 11, 9-11 AM Join the Mangrove Chapter of the Florida Native Plant Society for a guided walk led by  professor emeritus Dr. Bill Dunson at Manasota Scrub Preserve, 2695 Bridge Street, Englewood. The 1.5 mile loop winds through mesic pine flatwoods and along two wetlands.  Bill will share facts about how depletion of ground water changes plant bioindicators of wetlands.  Meet in the parking lot just a few yards from Manasota Beach Rd. Members and non-members are invited to attend but Bill asks that no one who is ill participates. Please, no smoking and no dogs. For additional information contact Bill Dunson at wdunson@comcast.net

Renee LePere has wriiten a wonderful article about Mangrove Chapter member Barbara Lockhart and her tireless work conserving area land for native plants and animals. Read it in the Florida Weekly. 

The guided walk with Charlie Woodruff scheduled for Stump Pass Beach Sunday November 19 has been CANCELLED.. Cancellation is due to the Englewood Waterfest taking place this weekend. We apologize for the oversight and inconvenience. 

Plant Native Day 2024 will be Saturday, March 9th. Join us from 9:00am to Noon for native plant nerd fun, and of course plenty of member grown and nursery native plants for sale. Watch our blog for more information,

The Environmental Conservancy of North Port and Surrounding Areas (ECNP) will host “Music in the Park” from 11 a.m. to 4 p .m. Nov. 5 at Harbour Heights Park (27420 Voyageur Drive, Punta Gorda). Mangrove Chapter will have an information table at this event and will give a talk on the benefits of using native plants in your yard.

Activities provided will be suitable for the whole family. Come and enjoy an old-fashioned day at a beautiful shady park that overlooks the Peace River. There will be games for everyone, tunes played by local musicians, a painted rock hunt and face painting for the kids, and other nonprofit organizations will be present. Food truck fare will be available for additional cost.

Monies received will be used to purchase land into perpetuity in Harbour Heights for Florida scrub jays, gopher tortoises and other listed species. Without the acquisition of this land, they have no protection there. Entry fee is $10 for adults, with children under 10 free. For more info, go to ECNorthPort.com or call 941-876-3720.

Saturday, October 14: 9am - 11am. Our first guided walk of the 23-24 season is Saturday, October 14, 9-11 AM, at Old Miakka Preserve, 251 Myakka Rd, at the end of Fruitville Road in Sarasota. Our leader will be Jeff Weber, Environmental Specialist at Sarasota County Parks. Following the walk, we are invited to bring a sack lunch to eat at the Florida Native Plant Nursery at 730 Myakka Road, just a short distance from the preserve, followed by shopping. Mangrove FNPS members receive a 10% discount.


Mangrove Chapter walk at Old Miakka Preserve, 2022

Tuesday, October 10 1:00pm - 2:30pm.

Our first chapter meeting of the 23-24 season is Tuesday, October 10 at 1:00 in the Visitors’ Center at Lemon Bay Park in Englewood. Our speaker for this meeting will be Kristin Hoffschmidt, Florida Master Naturalist and Immediate Past President of Venice Area Audubon Society, who will speak on Native Plants for Birds. This season we are introducing a new social aspect: a BYOP 30 minutes before the meeting. The Bring-Your-Own-Picnic has been popular in the past, and we want to give everyone an extra opportunity to get to know other members before the meeting begins. Bring a light lunch to nibble on while you meet and socialize with us before each meeting. See you then.

Wednesday, October 18, 4:30-5:30. Join Dave and Linda Manley at the Venice Rookery, 4002 S. Tamiami Trail via Annex Rd, Venice, behind the county building. This beautiful nesting area for waterbirds continues to grow in diversity as more native plants are added each year. The recently planted native tree thicket and understory offer great native plant viewing. Meet at the pondside pavilion.

Sunset Stroll at Venice Rookery, Spring 2023

Report from Dave Manley on the Coastal & Heartland National Estuary Partnership (CHNEP) 2023 Watershed Summit. Here is a link to presentations by all of the panelists. Panel Recordings and PowerPoint Presentations

Jerry Markussen and I attended the summit June 21 & 22 2023. I attended the morning sessions and Jerry attended all day. The summit speakers shared a wide variety of topics, but a few stood out for me:

Matthew Bunting discussed the conditions under which tarpon emigrate from their nursery ponds (such as those at Lemon Creek Wildflower Preserve) to the tidal waters of the coast. Dr. Chris Anastasiou shared his “hangover effect” detailing how Hurricane Irma set in motion a succession of events that caused a drastic loss of seagrass on the east wall of Charlotte Harbor. Teresa VanderWaag shared information about a project to restore Alligator Creek in Venice. The Alligator Creek Basin is approximately 11 square miles in size and has been severely channelized in the past. This stream will be restored in a fish-friendly manner. The design phase is wrapping up and financing is in place for (re)construction to begin in 2024.

Read the full report here

2023 Florida Native Plant Society Annual Meeting (YouTube video)

Join us for educational meetings and plant walks in October 2023. Watch this blog for updates.