Patrick, Gretchen, Elsie, Ann:
Patrick, Gretchen, Elsie, Ann
Pictures by John S. Quarterman for Okra Paradise Farms, Nashville, Tennessee, 2 July 2012.
Elsie, Patrick, Ann:
Continue readingTag Archives: Cedar glade
The now unendangered Tennessee Coneflower
Aunt Elsie gets mentioned again for her pioneering career in plant ecology.
According to the Nature Conservancy (undated), Tennessee Coneflower — No Longer Endangered
After years of hard work and the support of many dedicated individuals, an iconic flower is once again thriving in Tennessee. On August 4, 2011, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced the removal of the Tennessee coneflower from the Endangered Species List, marking an extraordinary recovery from the brink of extinction. The story of the coneflower exemplifies the power of conservation.Her nephew Patrick found this.In 1968, Vanderbilt biology professor Elsie Quarterman and graduate student Barbara Turner accidentally discovered the fuschia-colored coneflowers at Mount View Cedar Glade. The plant had been thought extinct until the rediscovery. In time, three other coneflower sites were discovered in Davidson and Wilson counties. In 1979, the Tennessee coneflower became one of the first plants to be recorded on the Endangered Species List.
Quarterman subsequently became a trustee of the Tennesee Chapter of The Nature Conservancy and urged the protection of the cedar glade habitats where the Tennessee coneflower and other rare plants have adapted to live in harsh, stony conditions.
-jsq
Elsie Quarterman’s Tennessee Coneflower taken off endangered species list
WSMV in Nashville reports that
the Tennessee purple coneflower, which grows only in cedar glades,
and only in three counties in the world,
is being taken off the endangered species list:
Less than one percent of endangered species ever get taken off the list.
The
Tennessean reports:
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service plans to officially remove the wildflower by Sept. 2, from its list of plants that are near extinction.“The Tennessee coneflower’s recovery is an example of what can be achieved through the combined efforts of dedicated partners,” said Cindy Dohner, the Service’s Southeast Regional Director, in an emailed announcement.
Echinacea tennesseensis was thought extinct until Dr. Elsie Quarterman rediscovered it in 1969 in the cedar glades which are her academic specialty. She was 59 then.
Now she is 100, and still being honored
by her students
and by her state.
Aunt Elsie
was born in Valdosta and played basketball for Hahira High School,
before she started her very long career in botany and plant ecology.
As aye, Elsie!
-jsq
PS: This post owed to Patrick Quarterman.
At 100, Elsie Quarterman attends her Cedar Glade Wildflower Festival
Dr. Elsie Quarterman pioneered the ecology of cedar glades.
Yesterday she attended the annual festival named in her honor, the
Elsie Quarterman Cedar Glade Wildflower Festival
at Cedars of Lebanon State Park, Lebanon, Tennessee.
Aunt Elsie is 100 years and five months old, and isn’t getting around as fast as she once did,
so she met with her students and grand-students at a local
restaurant. Only a few of them are pictured here:
Kim Cleary Sadler,
Assistant Professor of Biology at Middle Tennessee State University
and co-Director of the
Center for Cedar Glade Studies.
(Student of
Thomas “Tom” Ellsworth Hemmerly, who was teaching and couldn’t come.)
Dr. Elsie Quarterman, Professor Emerita of Plant Ecology, Vanderbilt University
Carol C. Baskin, Professor of Biology, University of Kentucky
There were classes, botany walks, owl hoots, and musicians.
Here’s the schedule.
It was sunny this year,
unlike last year’s great flood.
Next year, you should come!
Get out of town, take a walk in the glades.
Elsie got a guided tour, with
Tennessee State Naturalist Emeritus Mack Pritchard
and his successor Randy Hedgepath.
Here they are with Elsie’s nephew Patrick Quarterman,
while Gretchen Quarterman photographs a glade.
Here
State Naturalist Randy Hedgepath
consults with Dr. Quarterman about identification of a cedar glade plant.
Elsie got out of the car to look at this one with Randy and Ann Quarterman: Continue reading
Elsie Quarterman Cedar Glade Festival
Dr. Elsie Quarterman, Vanderbilt Professor of Plant Ecology Emerita,
with students and some grand-students:
This is Elsie’s 100th year: Continue reading
Elsie Quarterman Glade Festival
Some of you may remember my aunt, Elsie Quarterman, born in Valdosta,
played basketball for Hahira High School:
At 99 years old she won’t be outwalking everybody like she used to, but she will be there. Road trip to Lebanon, Tennessee? Y’all come!Cedars of Lebanon State Park will host its annual Elsie Quarterman Cedar Glade Wildflower Festival April 30 – May 1. Held in partnership with The Center for Cedar Glade Studies of Middle Tennessee State University, this event will offer visitors an opportunity to learn more about the area through seminars, guided nature walks, exhibits, guest speakers and naturalist displays. All events are free and open to the public.
“We are honored to be hosting this 33rd annual event and excited about the roster of experts on hand during this two-day festival,” said Park Ranger and Naturalist Wayne Ingram. “We have numerous activities and educational opportunities planned for all ages and encourage everyone to join us – rain or shine.”
Dr. Elsie Quarterman was professor Emeritus of Vanderbilt University and pioneered cedar glade research in the early 1950s. Coupled with her extensive research at this site, Dr. Quarterman has been an advocate for natural area protection throughout her distinguished career. Her efforts helped Tennessee in 1971 become one of the first states to pass legislation to protect natural areas in the U.S.
Echinacea tennesseensis, the Tennessee coneflower, thought to be extinct until Elsie rediscovered it: Continue reading