October 14 @ 9:00 am – 12:00 pm
Melrose
This field trip will open for Florida Wildflower Foundation members on September 16 and to the general public on September 23. Become a Florida Wildflower Foundation member today for early access!
Discover the long-term benefits of fire on the scenic rolling sandhills and lakes of the Ordway-Swisher Biological Station in Melrose, Florida! This 9,600+ acre property is managed by the University of Florida for research, education and conservation of its unique ecosystems and is not otherwise open to the public. This trip is a rare opportunity to see it firsthand!
This special tour will take us through sandhill units burned earlier this season, and will be bursting with fall color. Conservation Steward Grace Howell will lead a guided, open-air tram tour, stopping along the way to admire a wide diversity of blooming grasses, legumes, asters and more, all beneath a stunning canopy of Longleaf pine. Highlights include Garberia (Garberia heterophylla), Azure blue sage (Salvia azurea), Crownbeard (Verbesina heterophylla), fields of Summer farewell (Dalea pinnata), Lopsided indiangrass (Sorghastrum secundum), blooming Wiregrass (Aristida stricta) and other Aristida species, and much more!
Note: Neither the tram nor the trails are ADA compliant.
Registration is free for Florida Wildflower Foundation members and $10 for non-members. Email Rose Kinane to find out if your membership is current or needs to be renewed. To join as a member, visit www.FlaWildflowers.org/membership. Pre-registration is required.