Saving Native Florida Rare Plants
Article published in the Lake Forest Living magazine and shot/written by Daniella Hume with Mastropieces Photography
In the May 2022 issue of Lake Forest Living magazine, Daniella Hume writes:
Development is on the rise in Central Florida, causing concern for some of Florida’s rarest plants. Known as “Florida’s Natural Choice,” Seminole County has seen an influx of residential and industrial development in the last few years. While that may be beneficial for our local economy, there has been a negative impact on the plant community.
Fortunately, there are non-profit groups in the state who are stepping in to help save these plants and raise awareness about the growing issue. The Florida Native Plant Society is a nonprofit organization focused on native plants across the Sunshine State. Our local chapter, the Cuplet Fern, plans to increase native plant representation in Seminole County and western Volusia County. There are a total of 34 chapters throughout Florida. For the first time ever, the Cuplet Fern coordinated and executed a large-scale rescue and replanting mission in March. They rescued over 1000 rare, native plants from a local area that will soon see development.
Mark Kateli, President of the Cuplet Fern Chapter, says the group has been a part of the statewide organization for 12 years. “Our mission mirrors The Florida Native Plant Society - the conservation, preservation, and restoration of Florida’s native plants and native plant communities,” Kateli said. A lot of decisions about the fate of these plants are made by people who don’t know much about them. The term “plant-blindness,” is used to describe the human tendency to ignore plant species.
Chelsea LeNoble, Cuplet Fern Chapter volunteer and incoming director-at-large, says as someone who has been learning about this recently, it has really opened her eyes to the massive impact we can have on our own communities. “It can be overwhelming to realize so much of what people consider as normal practice to be problematic or hazardous for where we live,” LeNoble said. “In my neighborhood, we have very poor decisions being made before we ever move into our homes, for example, planting live oak trees within a few feet of palm trees, other oaks, sidewalks, and utility boxes.”
A way to avoid these problems is to educate people. The more people know, the more they can help make a difference in our native environment. Cali Adams, the current Cuplet Fern Chapter director-at-large, says their group likes to create a variety of options to educate the community about native plants and environmental awareness. "We put a lot into our social media presence and that really broadens our reach beyond our membership,” Adams said. “We also host garden workdays in our demonstration gardens, where volunteers get hands-on learning experience with some of our most knowledgeable members. Our group also provides gardening advice during our many plant sale events throughout the year.”
Adams also told us the state and county governments should be doing more for the environment. But instead, the job has been left up to non-profit organizations and private citizens to take it upon themselves. “It’s up to us to fight destructive land clearing practices, rescue and relocate rare or endangered plants when development can’t be stopped, clear invasive plants from public trails, and more,” said Adams. “We need more citizens to add native plants to their landscaping, and to join our organization so they can get involved in volunteering, and advocating for conservation in our area.”