Fig Buttercup (Ficaria verna) is an herbaceous invasive plant native to Europe, N. Africa & West Asia that is aggressively colonizing floodplain and streamside natural ecosystems in many areas of Eastern North America including the Carolinas. The aggressive nature of this plant disrupts natural ecosystems by displacing existing native spring wildflowers and native plant communities. In the home landscape, Fig Buttercup is a problematic spring weed that can take over home lawns and plant beds, from where it easily spreads into drainage ways leading to nearby streams and floodplains.

In this presentation Johnny will describe the efforts of the North Carolina Invasive Plant Council sponsored Ficaria task force and their strategy to conduct extensive on-the-ground inventory, construction of a comprehensive location and infestation density dataset in the Triangle region, landowner outreach methods, GIS data and mapping applications, and site treatment coordination.

Join Amy Highland, the Director of Collections at Mt. Cuba Center, as she shares her journey with Trillium conservation in the Eastern United States. As the national collection holder for Trillium, Mt. Cuba Center houses over 80 forms of trillium.

Pollinating insects, primarily bees, provide billions of dollars worth of pollination services to agricultural systems across the US each year. However, populations of these important insects are jeopardized by habitat loss, land development, pathogens, pesticides, and climate change. Learn about examples of conservation efforts in North Carolina and how the pollinator community responds.