MONTHLY

VOLUNTEER MEETING

ATTENDANCE

Attendance has been low at the last several monthly

volunteer meetings (held the second Thursday of

each month at 10AM) and we need your feedback.

Whether you’re a faithful monthly attendee or

haven’t been to a meeting since you filled out your

volunteer application, please tell us why. What

prevents or discourages you from attending

meetings? What could we do to make the meetings

better? Which topics would you like to see covered

at future meetings? Please share your thoughts with

volunteer coordinator Christine Hoekenga by email

at education1@tucsonbotanical.org, phone (ext.39),

or at our next meeting.

We have been working hard to plan interesting,

useful meetings that include updates on Gardens

happenings and upcoming volunteer opportunities as

well as speakers on a range of topics. But with so

few volunteers attending, we may need to cut back.

We have two great speakers lined up for our next

two meetings (see page 2)—please join us and help

us spread the word to other volunteers. And

remember: meeting attendance counts as volunteer

service hours. Please record your time!

——

2150 North Alvernon Way, Tucson, Arizona 85712 326-9686 www.tucsonbotanical.org

Volunteer and Docent Newsletter

February 2013

1

—UPCOMING MEETINGS— Monthly All-Volunteer Meetings

Second Thursday of Each Month, 10AM-Noon

HAPPY VALENTINE’S DAY! February 14, 10AM-Noon

Butterfly Sex Speaker:

Butterfly Magic Curator, Elizabeth Willott

March 14, 10AM-Noon Chasing the Monarch Migration

through Arizona Speaker:

Monarch Watch Conservation Specialist, Gail Morris

(see page 2 for more information about both sessions)

—DOCENT MEETINGS— Fourth Thursday of Each Month, 10-11:30AM

February 28, 10-11:30AM

Tour of Herb Garden with Zee Rossi

—YOUTH EDUCATION

VOLUNTEER MEETINGS— Third Tuesday of each month, 10AM-Noon

February 19, 10AM-Noon Desert Plants, Desert People Workshop

Speaker: Ethnobotanist Dave Morris

———— March 19, 10AM-Noon Place-Based Education

at the Tucson Botanical Gardens Speakers:

Experiential Educators Suzanne and Eric Dhruv ————

April 16, 10AM-Noon Child-Nature Relationship

Speakers: Experiential Educators Suzanne and Eric Dhruv

*SEE PAGE 2 FOR DETAILS

Some Monarch butterflies pass through Tucson

during their epic migration. Learn more at the Monthly Volunteer Meeting on March 14.

CHANGES

IN

THE

EDUCATION DEPARTMENT

We are very sad to be saying farewell to Abby

Moore next week. Abby is returning to her

home state of Minnesota but will be working

with us part time until February 15. As you

all know, Abby has done a phenomenal job in

her time at the Gardens—managing the pilot

program of the Urban Forestry Certificate,

strengthening our Youth Education Volunteer

Corps, creating a new parent-child preschool

program that will launch this spring and

countless other accomplishments. We will

miss her leadership, kindness and sense of

humor. I will now be attempting to fill Abby’s

enormous shoes as Director of Education and

Volunteer Coordinator. If we have not met

in person yet, please feel free to stop by my

office, call me (ext. 39) or email

education1@tucsonbotanical.org. Since I

started at the Gardens in September, I have

been incredibly impressed by you—our

dedicated volunteers—and I look forward to

working with all of you. We are also pleased to announce that we will

have a new team member joining us: Alyson

Greene will be starting this week as our new

education specialist focused on youth

programming. Alyson has a master’s degree

in environmental education and nonprofit

leadership from Western Washington

University and the North Cascades Institute

and a wonderful background that includes

classroom teaching, creating and leading

nature hikes and trips, working as a park

ranger naturalist, and much more. Alison has

also been volunteering with the Gardens’

youth education program, and we are thrilled

to have her on the team. Please join me in

welcoming her to the Gardens.

—Christine Hoekenga

All Volunteer Meeting Speakers (see page 1, right column, bottom)

Tuesday, February 14

Butterfly Sex, Elizabeth Willott In honor of Valentine’s Day, our own Elizabeth Willott,

curator of Butterfly Magic, will regale us with an

entertaining and informative presentation about butterfly

trysts. You may be familiar with the life cycle of a

butterfly, but how much do you know about the behaviors

that kick-start that process? We’ll explore the fascinating

mating habits of butterflies.

Tuesday, March 14

Chasing the Monarch Migration through Arizona,

Gail Morris The monarch is often considered the jewel of the butterfly

world, but little is known about its migration in the

western United States. It was once believed that Arizona

was too hot and dry for monarchs. But instead, could

Arizona be the western migration gateway? Join Gail

Morris, the Coordinator of the Southwest Monarch Study

and a Monarch Watch Conservation Specialist, to learn

what we’ve untangled about the migration and breeding

behavior of the monarch population in Arizona.

2

—ITEMS WE NEED—

Small to Medium Sized Boxes for the Mineral

Sale – The Horticulture staff is collecting small

and medium cardboard boxes (shoeboxes, etc.)

to use for the upcoming Harrison Yocum

Mineral Sale at the Gardens (Feb. 15 and 16).

Please leave boxes with Christine in the

Education building.

Spare Coffee Mugs for Horticultural Therapy – So many of you have in past years kindly

donated the mugs we use for our spring flower

arrangements with the nursing home residents!

The seniors love to have such a variety of

choices—a rare occasion in group living

settings. We’re once again asking for any

donations for our March program. You can

leave them with Juliet or in the box outside her

office.

Aluminum and Tin Cans for Education – We

are collecting both aluminum soda cans and tin

food cans for a recycled metal flower class this

spring. Please bring clean cans of any size with

the labels removed to Christine.

THANK YOU!

3

BUTTERFLY MAGIC UPDATE Elizabeth Willott, Butterfly Curator

Trial Goodwill Study-to-Work Program

For the past 10 weeks or so we have had two students working with the butterflies on Saturday

and Sunday. These two have completed that initial program—which was a pilot for us here at the Gardens. As far as we are concerned it was a very

successful pilot experience and we have agreed to host two more students for the coming

approximately 10 weeks.

High School Volunteer and Internship Program

This is the first year we have established a program designed to recruit and educate high school

students on butterflies and our exhibit. We have had seven students involved so far. If you know of

a mature high school student who would benefit, please feel free to refer them to us. Many schools require or strongly recommend volunteer

experience for their senior students—this is one place where they can enjoyably volunteer and

learn.

Notes on the Greenhouse You may have noticed that over the last month,

Emily and I pruned a few of the trees and vines in the greenhouse. They grow rapidly under the

greenhouse conditions and pruning is needed to let enough light down to the understory flowers and

to help control insect pests that build up over the winter. When we trim during Butterfly Magic

season, we have to double-bag all the plant material we remove, freeze it for a minimum of three days

(72 hours) at minus 30 degrees, and then we are free to compost it or otherwise dispose of it.

These rules apply because the plant material could have butterfly eggs or caterpillars growing on it or

we may even have trapped a live butterfly within the plant matter. Emily carefully plans what we’re

going to do, and it has been a very enjoyable experience for me to help Emily on this. In addition to it being fun, I am also getting the chance to learn

more about plants. Rest assured that the plants will definitely grow back quickly—the key ones we have

trimmed this last month were trimmed in May (during quarantine after we closed Butterfly Magic)

and in Sept. (before we opened Butterfly Magic), so this is just a regular four to five month trim.

The orchids are outdoing themselves. Make sure you visit soon.

The season flies by so quickly. We are already past

the half-way mark. Our African butterflies are still going strong; over 400 Asian chrysalises arrived

Fri., Jan. 25. Our emphasis for February is Southeast Asia, although we’ll definitely also have some Blue Morphos and some other Central

American species. And, given the number of African chrysalises in the chrysalis exhibit, we

expect to continue to have African butterflies emerging for quite some time. Check out the Asian

chrysalises: All the Paper kite chrysalises look great—like golden jewelry—and take a peek at the

intricacies of the Rose swallowtail chrysalises.

This is the start of our busiest time, with more school groups coming in the mornings. Spring is

about to arrive, not only here but elsewhere in the country and, sadly, some of our seasonal

volunteers leave us. So, as per usual, if you know of anyone who might be interested in learning more

about and sharing our imported butterflies, please s u g g e s t t h e y c o n t a c t u s a t

butterflyexhibit@tucsonbotanical.org. We’d love to meet them and get them involved.

Butterfly-Plant ID Guide for the Greenhouse

These are on sale for $10 at the gift shop or grove shop. If you haven’t looked at one in the last year,

please do—I hope you will be pleasantly surprised. We’ve kept the price the same and added plenty

more information and pictures.

Butterfly Kits

We have Painted lady kits available. These are a great buy since they come with many extras not found in the commercial kits. You get four to six

caterpillars, food, container, a 21-page guidebook with activities and information, a dried butterfly,

laminated wings, wing fragments and much more. Available at either the gift shop or the grove shop.

Upcoming SEABA (Southeast Arizona Butterfly Association) Meeting

Feb. 19, 7-9 p.m., Gardens’ Education Classroom, open to anyone. Free. Refreshments provided.

Topic is Butterflies of the American West: a potpourri of images from California, Utah, Wyoming, and Arizona.

Presenter: Ken Kertell. A selection of photos focusing on the southern Sierra Nevada Mountains

of California, the Teton and Wind River Ranges and Beartooth Mountains of Wyoming, and the

mountains of good old southeastern Arizona.

4

YOUTH EDUCATION WORKSHOPS

With generous support from the Stonewall

Foundation, we are excited to present a series of

workshops this spring focused on working with

youth in the gardens. The workshops are open to

all volunteers and docents who are currently

working with or are interested in learning more

about volunteering with our educational

programs. RSVP is required for these workshops

and space is limited, so please register soon by

contacting Alison Greene, education specialist, at

education2@tucsonbotanical.org or 326-9686,

ext. 31. Please see workshop descriptions below:

Desert Plants, Desert People Tuesday, February 19 at 10:00 a.m.

Dave Morris, an ethnobotanist from the Pueblo

Grande Museum in Tempe, will join us as we go

through our Desert Plants, Desert People

ethnobotany program, which we will be offering

to school groups again beginning this

spring. Dave will provide background

information and resources to help us deepen our

knowledge of some of the traditional uses of

plants in the Sonoran Desert.

Place-Based Education (PBE) at Tucson

Botanical Gardens Tuesday, March 19 at 10:00 a.m.

PBE develops a “sense of place” to connect

people with plants, animals, and other unique

community assets. Workshop participants,

through individual and group activities, will share

a knowledge and understanding of place, and

interesting facts and anecdotes about plants and

animals. Participants will gain tools and

techniques to connect with a youth audience

through a shared sense of place.

Child-Nature Relationship Tuesday, April 16 at 10:00 a.m.

Active and creative experiences in nature

develops healthy, happy, and smart children. In

this workshop, techniques for nature

interpretation and teaching will be introduced and

practiced. Participants will share their childhood

experiences in nature and create meaningful ways

to engage youth in natural history and

environmental studies.

(continued, next column)

Two of our high school interns, Cassandra and Kyle, who are volunteering their time

in Butterfly Magic—and learning while they’re at it.

Volunteers Alison Greene and Steve

Cowden staffing our Desert Plants, Desert People table at the UA Presents Children’s

Festival.

(continued)

The March and April workshops will be led by

Suzanne and Eric Dhruv, experiential educators

and founding directors of Ironwood Tree

Experience who have worked with youth for more

than 25 years. Specializing in placed-based

educational methods, interpretive techniques, and

ecology, Suzanne and Eric will facilitate two

training workshops for TBG volunteers. The

workshops are designed to expand the educational

sphere of adults and foster connection to youth.

5

NUESTRO JARDÍN ACTIVITY TABLE & FOUND OBJECTS If you haven’t already, discover the new activity table in Nuestro Jardín where hands-on activities teach

people of all ages about Tucson’s Mexican-American traditions. The activities are being developed by local

seniors with the help of high school students. Here, Gil Franco and students from Sahuaro High School show

off our next activity, a hanging decoration made from found and recycled objects, beginning at the table on

February 8. Before recycling was the trend it is today, local barrio gardeners were using an assortment of

‘retired’ household items to create unique and whimsical hanging decorations for their gardens.

Come and get creative—you’ll find materials to work with on the red table in Nuestro Jardín. And feel free to

bring in some of your own odd items like old keys, used hardware, and assorted ‘found objects’ to leave for others to work with. One person’s cast-off is another one’s treasure! Contact Juliet at ext. 26 with

questions—or you can leave any donated items with her.

-Juliet Niehaus

Gil Franco and students from Sahuaro High show their decorations

made from found objects. Make yours at the activity table in Nuestro

Jardin, or bring in some found objects to share.

Growdown! The Great Tucson Garden Design Challenge

March 21 to 24

You may have noticed (or helped clear!) the open 15’x20’ dirt plots to the east of the staff parking lot. From

Thursday, March 21 to Saturday, March 23, that bare landscape will be transformed as four local landscape

designers go trowel to trowel in a three-day competition to create “the best” Tucson pocket garden. The theme is

Small Gardens, Big Ideas, and the emphasis will be on creating a small, inviting usable garden that would

thrive under local desert conditions at a home with limited yard space. The designers selected to participate are:

Christine Jeffrey, LJ Design & Consulting

Scott Calhoun, Zona Gardens, LLC

Ezra Roati, REALM, an Urban Organics Company

Janis and Phil Van Wyck, Van Wyck Projects

Judging, a ticketed awards luncheon with guest speaker Mary Irish, and the Growdown! Garden Fair will take

place on Sunday, March 24. The designers’ gardens will remain on display through April or May 2013

(tentative, depending on the weather and upcoming construction projects).

For more information, visit: http://www.tucsonbotanical.org/events/growdown/

6

NEW SPRING EVENTS & HAPPENINGS

In addition to our regular seasonal programming and annual events, we have some exciting

new programming this spring. You may hear questions about these programs from visitors,

and we also hope you will join us for any that interest you and help spread the word among

your friends, family and colleagues. If you need more information about any of these

programs, please contact Christine (education1@tucsonbotanical.org or ext. 39).

Urban Forestry Certificate Program

Feb. 26 to April 23

In partnership with the Garden District Neighborhood Association, the City of Tucson and

Trees for Tucson, Tucson Botanical Gardens is offering a 9-week program to engage and

educate our community about the development and maintenance of Tucson’s urban forest.

Class sessions will cover urban forestry basics, tree biology, tree care, pruning, tree

inventories, and community engagement. Hands-on sessions will allow participants to

literally get their hands dirty by working in our community to plant, maintain, and inventory

trees. Upon completion of the program, participants will be prepared to join an active

volunteer corps working to make Tucson’s neighborhoods greener and healthier. Classes

meet Tuesday evenings from 5:30-8:30 p.m. and some Saturdays.

Program Fee: $220, $195 members To register, please call Lynne at 326-9686 ext. 18.

Poetry in the Gardens

First Saturday of the Each Month this Spring

10-11:30AM

Art and literature have always reflected the natural world. In this new monthly series,

hosted by the Tucson Botanical Gardens and the University of Arizona Poetry Center, lovers

of nature and poetry are invited to visit a different garden space each month and explore

those connections. Poetry Center docents will provide participants with a packet of poems

focusing on the natural world and invite all to join a light and informal conversation of how

literature and nature “work” together. No prior knowledge of poetry is needed, but a pen and

notebook are recommended.

Free with Gardens admission.

Sat., Mar. 2: Butterfly Garden

Sat., Apr. 6: Iris Garden

Sat., May 4: Cactus and Succulent Garden

5

—UPCOMING CLASS SCHEDULE— Full Class offerings for March, April and May are also on our website.

For complete spring schedule, please visit:

http://www.tucsonbotanical.org/education/adult-classes-trips/. Register online or by calling 326-9686, ext. 19.

RAPTORS PART 3: FALCONS AND

VULTURES

Tuesday, February 12, 6-8PM Falcons are the jet fighters of the bird world.

Caracaras are relatives of falcons that are similar in

some ways to vultures. Why are falcons and

caracaras placed in the same family? How fast can

falcons fly? How come vultures don’t get sick

when they eat dead things? Join Jeff Babson of Sky

Island Tours as we answer these questions and

learn about the classification, identification, and

conservation of these fascinating birds.

$17, $12 members

BUTTERFLY SEX (Under 18 only

admitted with parent permission)

Thursday, February 14, 6-7:15PM Take your sweetheart on an unforgettable

Valentine’s date with this entertaining presentation

about butterfly trysts, followed by a romantic stroll

through our Butterfly Magic living exhibit. We’ll

explore the mating habits of butterflies and how all

that good stuff works. Feel free to contact us

beforehand if you have photos or videos you wish

to share. Price includes light refreshments and

entrance to Butterfly Magic after hours.

$22, $18 members; call to receive special

pricing for two: $40, $32 members

BUTTERFLY BASICS

Thursday, February 19, 4:30-6PM Join Elizabeth Willott, curator of Butterfly Magic, for

this basic introduction to butterfly biology. Along

with showing some great shots of butterflies from

the Gardens and Butterfly Magic, we’ll introduce you

to butterfly biology and the inner workings of the

tropical butterfly exhibit. Includes entrance to

Butterfly Magic after hours.

$12, 17 members

D E S I G N I N G A S U C C U L E N T

TABLETOP GARDEN FOR YOUR

PATIO

Saturday, February 23, 1-3PM Growing succulent plants in a container garden is

easy and immensely satisfying. In this second

installment of the “Getting Potted Series,” Marylee

Pangman, Tucson’s Potted Garden Expert, will show

you how to combine the amazing array of colors and

leaf textures into a beautiful arrangement. You’ll

explore succulents that work well in our shaded

desert climate and create your own dish garden to

take home and enjoy.

$60, $50 members (price includes materials)

YOGA IN THE GARDENS

Thursday, March 7, 14,21,28, 8-9AM Start 2013 off on the right foot with weekly

sessions of invigorating and centering yoga practice

in our beautiful garden setting. Taught by Laura

Greenlaw, a certified yoga instructor with nine

years of teaching experience, each one-hour class

will include centering hatha yoga poses taught using

good alignment and breath work. Students will

learn to create both flexibility and strength in their

bodies.

One month (4 Class Sessions): $40, $30

members