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3/31/2020

April is Ohio Native Plant Month! The white Trillium, and other Ohio State Symbols, that Are Also Native Plants!

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Starting in kindergarten, Ohio students begin learning about the importance of national and state symbols. Here in Ohio, we have many state symbols of significance.  From the Ohio state wildflower the White Trillium to the state native fruit the Pawpaw, here are some fun facts about Ohio state symbols that are also valuable native plants!

The Ohio State Wildflower: White Trillium (trillium grandiflorum) adopted in 1986. The white trillium is known by several different names! They include wake robin, snow trillium, wood lily, and giant or large white trillium. They live in the upland forests. They are known as an ephemeral plant meaning that it has a short lifecycle closely tied to the forest ecosystem it prefers. The White Trillium can be found in all 88 counties in Ohio.
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The State of Ohio Native Fruit: The Pawpaw Tree. Adopted in 2009. Also known as the Appalachian banana, poor man’s banana, Indian banana and Quaker delight.  The pawpaw is North America’s largest native fruit tree. The pawpaw is found throughout Ohio. It likes to live in moist soil. In the dappled shade of the forest it will grow shrub-like. In full sun it can grow tree-like up to 30 feet tall. Prehistoric and historic native Americans used pawpaws extensively. It resembles a short fat banana. It is first green, then yellow, then brown. It has an avocado-like texture. It perishes quickly after harvesting with is why it’s difficult to market. It tastes like a cross between a banana and a mango. The pawpaw does not self-pollinate and needs to be planted with several plants in order to produce fruit.




The Ohio State Tree: The Buckeye Tree (Aesculus glabra) was adopted in 1953. The buckeye tree is mostly an understory tree meaning it can grow in partially shaded areas. It likes to grow along streams and rivers. Its lightweight wood was used to make artificial limbs! Carrying a buckeye nut in your pocket is good luck! The tree has its name from the shape of its nut which resembles the eye of a buck.

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The Ohio State Flower: Red Carnation adopted in 1904. The red carnation (dianthus caryophyllus) was adopted by the state Legislature in 1904 in honor of President William McKinley. President McKinley was assassinated in 1901. He liked to wear a red carnation on the lapel of his jacket. **While this flower is technically native to Eurasia and not Ohio, it has been established here for over a century and provides nectar to important pollinators like butterflies!

And speaking of pollinators, let us include the native Convergent Ladybird Beetle here, which is also the Ohio State Insect! The Ladybug (ladybird beetle, Coccinellidae) was adopted in 1975. Ladybugs are found in all 88 Ohio counties. Ladybugs are ferocious predators especially good at eating aphids. Aphids are a small sapsucking insect that can cause damage to Ohio backyards and farmlands. There are many different species of ladybird beetle. While the legislature didn’t specify which type is the state insect, it is generally agreed upon that it is the Convergent Ladybird Beetle (Hippodamia convergens). In 1975 the Ohio General Assembly stated  that the ladybug “Is symbolic of the people of Ohio—she is proud and friendly, bringing delight to millions of children when she alights on their hand or arm to display her multi-colored wings, and she is extremely industrious and hardy, able to live under the most adverse conditions and yet retain her beauty and charm, while at the same time being of inestimable value to nature.” Ladybugs are a state symbol of 6 states!
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3/5/2020

Leopold Education Project

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As we celebrate the legacy of Aldo Leopold, the father of wildlife ecology in the United States, I wanted to share an amazing resource for teachers: The Leopold Education Project.  The LEP is an interdisciplinary environmental education curriculum. Targeted mainly to middle school and high school students, it can also be adapted for use with families, adults, and elementary age children.

Its goal is to create an ecologically literate citizenry by heightening student awareness of the natural world; fine-tuning the skills necessary to read the landscape; and instilling a love, admiration, and respect for the land so that each individual may develop a personal land ethic.

The objectives of the Leopold Education Project are:
  • To share Aldo Leopold’s land ethic, his legacy, and his writings with educators, students, and families.
  • To instill in learners, through direct experience, an appreciation and respect of the natural world so they may develop a positive relationship with the land.
  • To advance learners’ scientific understanding of the land community’s natural processes so that they may make informed decisions about conservation and land use issues.
  • To advance learners’ critical thinking skills through hands-on/minds-on activities.

The Leopold Education Project curriculum facilitates interdisciplinary exploration of both the arts and sciences.  The curriculum is designed to help students understand human connections to the natural world through hands-on, inquiry-based, outdoor experiences, building skills in observation, plant and animal identification, land stewardship, natural history, writing and reflection, and environmental values.

The LEP curriculum is distributed by a volunteer network of State Coordinators, who organize workshops to train formal and non-formal educators throughout the country. LEP State Coordinators also have access to discounted rates on the LEP curriculum, so workshops are an excellent (and economical) opportunity to add Leopold’s land ethic to your teaching toolbox.

To learn more and to find a state coordinator or purchase this LEP curriculum
, visit The Aldo Leopold Foundation.



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  • Home
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    • NRCS
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  • Events
    • Vermicompost Workshop
    • Ohio River Listening Session
    • Agriculture Conservation Breakfast
    • Cover Crop Symposium
    • Tree Sale
  • Services
    • Agriculture >
      • Land Preservation
      • Cover Crops
    • GIS/Mapping
    • Property Owner Assistance >
      • Drainage, Erosion & Pond Assistance
      • Soil Testing
      • Water Testing
      • Stormwater Basin Inspections
      • Backyard Conservation >
        • Ohio Native Plants
        • Rain Gardens
        • Rain Barrels
        • Composting
      • Illicit Discharge Detection Program
  • PERMITS
    • Earth Disturbing in Warren County >
      • Earth Disturbing Permit Application
    • Floodplain Management >
      • Floodplain Determination Request Form
      • Flood Applications, Forms & Documents
  • Education
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