The Next 25 Years Table of Contents
Video: The Work Continues
It’s Entirely Up to Us
Growing into the Future of North Carolina’s Native Plants
Moving Forward with Impact: Future Musings for the NC Native Plant Society
Video: Jean: Make a better world and improve it for our children’s children’s children.
From Planning to Progress
Thanks to All Contributors
Exit to Native Plant News 75th Anniversary Edition
Listen to this music as you watch people connect with plants.
It's Entirely Up to Us
By Doug Tallamy for Native Plant News 75th Anniversary Edition
There is much talk about the Sixth Great Extinction event the Earth has experienced in its nearly 4.5 billion-year history. Elizabeth Kolbert wrote a book about it, and ecologists (including me) refer to it—often erroneously—on a regular basis. We have to be careful that we use the term accurately.
Robert Cowie estimates that between 7% and 13% of the earth’s species have gone extinct since the year 1500. To be officially classified as a mass extinction, more than 75% of species, or at least 6 million, must be lost. We are nowhere near that statistic today: not yet, anyway. Even if we think of threatened and endangered species as already being lost, we are not yet in a mass extinction.
My point is this: To call what is happening today a mass extinction, we would have to assume that all species that are declining will continue to decline until they disappear. And to take that negative view would be the same as throwing in the towel. It is true that we have entered a great defaunation: The populations of the once common species that run our ecosystems are getting smaller. But whether a declining species, or ecosystem, or biome, continues to decline is entirely up to us. It is not at all a given that such declines will continue unabated.
We have the power, the knowledge, and the resources required to stop and to reverse declines. We know the critically important roles native plants play in supporting the animals that run the ecosystems, which, in turn, support us. We just have to decide to use what we know, in order to make conservation and restoration an existential priority.
Nature is unimaginably resilient and is far better at reassembling her dismembered self than we give her credit for. To give up on other life forms would not only be unwarranted. That would be equivalent to giving up on humans. We are products of nature and are totally dependent upon it. Most of the earth’s species are not gone yet, and for our own selfish good we must get serious about guaranteeing their persistence. It is not too late!
Doug Tallamy cofounded the “Homegrown National Park” program with Michelle Alfandari. A professor of agriculture in the Department of Entomology and Wildlife Ecology at the University of Delaware, his goal is to understand the many ways insects interact with plants and how such interactions determine the diversity of animal communities. He has authored 115 research publications and has taught insect-related courses for 44 years. His books include Bringing Nature Home, The Living Landscape co-authored with Rick Darke, Nature’s Best Hope, a New York Times best seller, and The Nature of Oaks, winner of the American Horticultural Society’s 2022 book award.
Growing into the Future of North Carolina’s Native Plants
Patrick D. McMillan, PhD, for Native Plant News 75th Anniversary Edition
I am writing this surrounded by one of the most dramatic and beautiful landscapes in the world,the Highlands of Scotland. It seems so wild and wonderful, and it largely is, but it is also depauperate and vastly shaped by over a thousand years of extensive exploitation.
When you walk the Scottish moors, covered with heather, peatmoss, sundews, and asphodel, it is easy to forget that this landscape was initially a mosaic of open habitats in a vast Caledonian forest of pine, birch, alder, oak, and rowan. To see a native Red Squirrel here requires luck and a lot of travel to the few remaining small populations. What we marvel at here as beautiful, is beautiful, but it is also depauperate.
North Carolina boasts nearly four times as many plant species as Scotland and there are a lot of reasons for this diversity and number, far more than clearing forests and converting land. However, the future of what North Carolina will be is largely determined by how we choose to manage our land, our personal botanical spaces. This effort has primarily been the realm of the native plant societies in the United States – we’re the folks that promote what is native. But is that enough?
We have been touting native plants for three-quarters of a century and we have seen change, but we need far greater change to make a big difference. Here are thoughts that I expanded upon at the North Carolina Native Plant Society’s 75th anniversary celebration:
Let us redefine beauty as the connections rather than the divisions of life. We Americans have become a culture defined by divisions. These divisions harken back to the colonial-era landscapes that most still emulate around their own homes: highly shaped and well-behaved plants that are tightly controlled and widely separated from each other by an ocean of mulch or tightly trimmed Bermuda Grass. Many native plant gardens are no better—let’s get wild with our landscapes.
We should be staunch advocates for native plants in their native places. Maintaining the ecosystem processes that have shaped North Carolina is critical for saving our rare plants and their natural communities. We are discovering new species in North Carolina every year and some are nearly gone by the time they have a name. Native plant societies must become more involved.
Native plant enthusiasts need to spread their joy and passion for native plants without creating hostility or division. So what if your neighbor loves hosta—that’s not going to ruin the world—but nestling their hosta among a dense planting of native plants will change the world for the better. This is the greatest need —building bridges rather than burning them.
Thanks for all you do and I look forward to seeing you all at the 75th anniversary celebration!
Patrick McMillan is the first author of A Guide to the Wildflowers of SC (2022), host, producer, and writer of the Emmy award winning PBS series “Expeditions with Patrick McMillan,” and was the Hilliard Professor of Environmental Sustainability at Clemson University, where he instructed students for 20 years. He is currently the president of the Friends of Plant Conservation.
Moving Forward with Impact: Future Musings for the NC Native Plant Society
By Paula Gross for Native Plant News 75th Anniversary Edition
Here we are with our roots deep into 75 years of soil and our chapters branching from the mountains to the sea. Our founders were listening to the heartbeats of pyxiemoss and spring ephemerals, and they began something powerful when they amplified what they heard and called out to others. The center of a web began weaving.
Here we are still weaving and growing in numbers—more diverse, in more places. We are in urban woodlands a step ahead of bulldozers, we are in parks and festivals engaging children and curious adults. We are in university classrooms, government meetings, in partnerships, in rare habitats, and in countless backyards. We are on trails, on our knees pulling, and online.
Our core values of education, protection, cultivation, and advocacy are our compass points guiding us into the future. As the seed and fertilizer that help grow the other goals, education is at the heart of the society’s future. And education—both receiving and giving—is in each and every one of us. Everything from a PhD delving deep into a question, to a new homeowner planting Asclepias and skipping the pesticides, to a first-grader crushing a leaf of wild ginger in the woods. The Society supports all of it. And you ARE the Society.
What does our future look like? My hope is that, like a natural community, it is a dynamic balance, strengthened by diversity. It is persistence AND adaptation. It is in more sharing, partnering, communicating, and always listening to the plants. It is recognizing this swell of interest in native plants, despite the opposing forces, and removing barriers to any and all of us.
The next 25 years will be full of change. Change can be wrenching, but change is the nature of Nature. What will it look like? It will look like both what we dream and what we cannot imagine.
What do you dream of? Listen to your green heart. Go on that hike, create that activity to share with children, start that blog, join that plant rescue, grow that species, be that total plant geek, and share it with your chapter community and neighbors. Is it worth it? Do our efforts matter?You need look no further than the plant communities that speak to you – it ALL matters.
Remember, you belong here, in this native plant society, in the web-of-life outside your door, and on this Earth. So, let’s grow. As individuals and as a society, we’ve got beautiful, important work to do. And we will do it. Together.
Paula Gross, M.S., has spent her career connecting plants and people through education. She is former associate director of the University of North Carolina at Charlotte Botanical Gardens and co-author of The Southeast Native Plants Primer and Bizarre Botanicals, a writer, teacher, and consultant on a wide range of botanical and horticultural topics.
Jean: I want people to know about plants and trees, to care for them, to help them grow, to improve our ecosystem, and to preserve our world for our children’s children’s children.
From Planning to Progress
By Bettina Darveaux and Jean Woods for Native Plant News 75th Anniversary Edition
In August 2025, leaders of the North Carolina Native Plant Society gathered for a strategic planning retreat to chart the Society’s future. The result was the 2025-2030 Strategic Plan, adopted by the board of directors in November 2025. While the retreat itself was productive, the real story is what has happened since. The Strategic Plan has become a guide for turning ideas into action.
One of the first priorities has been strengthening our chapters, which are the heart of the Society’s work throughout North Carolina. A new chapter liaison, Brett Hopkins, now brings chapter leaders together to share ideas and improve communication with the board. New Chapter Empowerment Grants provide financial support for local initiatives, helping chapters expand their educational and conservation efforts.
The Strategic Plan is also guiding improvements across every aspect of the Society. Educational resources are being strengthened through plans to update the NCNPS website, beginning with a more accessible homepage and eventually reworking the entire site. We are also exploring ways to revive Society-wide spring and fall outings.
Scientific research remains a core commitment. Plans are underway to restart the Society’s Journal, which has not been published since 2009. The Journal will showcase research on North Carolina’s native plants, including work supported by scholarships through the Shinn Fund.
Conservation efforts are expanding as well. Cassandra Hallman now leads the Conservation Committee to raise awareness of habitat protection and invasive species. Our Native Plant Habitat Certification Program, coordinated by Pat Holder, continues to encourage the grouping of native plants as habitats, with 253 habitats certified since the program began in 2004 under the guidance of Tom Harville.
The Society is also strengthening its advocacy efforts through Karen Rindge’s Advocacy Committee and improving public outreach with more effective social media and messaging. Ensuring our communications are clear, aligned across all channels, and matching our brand values and goals perfectly.
Behind the scenes, we are building a stronger organization by improving chapter and volunteer support, recruiting future leaders, preserving our history, increasing member retention, and evaluating the financial resources needed to eventually add paid staff.
Every initiative connects directly to the seven guiding principles of the Strategic Plan:
- Guiding principle 1: Share knowledge of native plants
- Guiding principle 2: Support scientific research pertaining to North Carolina’s plants and their habitats
- Guiding principle 3: Champion the conservation and stewardship of native plants and habitats
- Guiding principle 4: Encourage the availability and use of ethically propagated native plants in the landscape
- Guiding principle 5: Be an active voice on native plant issues
- Guiding principle 6: Increase NCNPS visibility and brand awareness
- Guiding principle 7: Foster Organizational Sustainability
Together they represent a renewed commitment to education, research, conservation, advocacy, and organizational excellence.
As these efforts continue, the 2025-2030 Strategic Plan is becoming more than a roadmap—it is the framework to guide decisions for a stronger, more effective Society.
Bettina Darveaux is a retired Plant Biologist (MS in Environment and Forest Biology from SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry) with a lifelong curiosity and passion for native plants and conservation. She currently serves on the NCNPS Board, the Executive Committee, and helps manage the Plant Gallery database.
Jean Woods is a graduate of the Certificate in Native Plant Studies program at UNCC and was involved in its establishment. She is a past and a current president of the NCNPS, and served on the board of the Catawba Lands Conservancy and the Friends of Plant Conservation.
Thanks to All Contributors
Our deepest appreciation to all who have helped with this newsletter and the 75th anniversary weekend celebration. We couldn’t have done this without you. There’s nothing greater!
Adam Webb
Adrienne O’Brien
Amy Bennett
Amy Mackintosh
Andrea Thunem
Anna Crawford
Anna Meadows
Anne Houck
Annkatrin Rose
Ann-Marie Gerney
Aracely Rojas Garcia
Barbara Tuset
Bernyce Pritchard
Beth Davis
Beth Harris
Bettina Darveaux
Bill Switzer
Bob Oelberg
Brenda Thomas
Brett Hopkins
Bryan Sharp
Cami Gregg
Carol Fox
Carol Peoples
Carol Sexton
Carolina Corona
Carolyn Ikenberry
Carrie Blair
Carrie Council
Carrie DeJaco
Catherine Bollinger
Catherine Nesbit
Cathy Reas-Foster
Charley Winterbauer
Chelsea O’Mara
Cindy Conlon
Claire Kiester
Craig Maxwell
Cynthia Blancarte
Cynthia Hooker
Dale Tilson
Dan Greenberg
Dan Poindexter
Daniel Jakobovits
Danielle Kittredge
Dave Ringenburg
Dawn-Michelle Oliver
Dean DiLillo
Deb Rosenella
Deborah Staves
Debra Murray
Dell Hagwood
Destini Petitt
Devon Hull
Don Chernoff
Donna Deal
Donna Kirik
Doug Tallamy
Duane Truscott
Elizabeth Egan
Ellen Shrader
Emily Eahart
Eugenie Nable
Hope Corbin
Hugh Martin
Jackie Trickel
Jamie Carlson
Janelle Babbs-Nesbit
Jean Woods
Jeff Prather
Jennifer Perrey
Jessica Blackburn
Jim Gregory
Jim Riley
Joan Schneier
Joe Burns
Judy West
Julia Bales
Julia Cleaver
Julie d’Ablaing
Julie Moore
Kara Foley
Karen Rindge
Katalin Kluge
Kay Day
Kelly Gage
Ken Bridle
Ken Moore
Lauren Davis
Lee Bumgarner
Leslie Fiddler
Lindsay Crute
Lisa Galizia
Lisa Lofland Gould
Liz Wahls
Louise Romanow
Lyle Adley-Warrick
Lynne Hebble
Madalynn Binkerd
Malinda Stallings
Margaret Partridge
Margot Ringenburg
Mari deMoya
Maura Nippert
Maya Barton
Monika Coleman
Namaste Arey
Nancy Anderson
Nancy Chase
Nathan Lewis
Oliver Enseling
Pat Holder
Patricia Burton
Patrick McMillan
Paula Gross
Pedro Perez
Peter Polga-Hecimovich
Peter Repetti
Richard Mullinax
Rob Trickel
Robert Leugers
Ruth Sappie
Sam Lorenzini
Sarah Bickley
Shirley Walker
Steve Gerney
Sue Stephenson
Susie Colman
Theresa Morr
Tristan Stene
Zack Spurgeon