Seeing Daylight and Cleaning Water at Columbia’s Hyatt Park

A man speaks to a group of people on a boardwalk at the head of an artificial stream.

Todd Martin, landscape architect for the City of Columbia, introduces Midlands chapter members to the revitalized Hyatt Park stream. Photo by Lynn Yenkey

The Midlands Chapter toured Columbia’s Hyatt Park last week with Todd Martin, landscape architect for the city. The recent park renovation “daylighted” a stream, removing 1150 feet of stormwater pipe to open up the water and mimic a natural creek. Martin showed the group the stream banks engineered with stone and a mix of native herbaceous and woody plants. The result echoes the nearby Smith Branch stream. In just a year, cattails and native willows have volunteered, too.

A group of people stand by a group of logs in a streambed. A man points downstream.

Todd Martin, landscape architect for the City of Columbia, points out bioengineering features of the stream, including logs that mimic a beaver dam at Hyatt Park. Photo by Lynn Yenkey

A series of pools and small dams, including large cedar logs to make an artificial beaver dam, slow and spread out storm water.

Now, instead of charging through a pipe unchanged, the water spreads in the shallow banks, slows down, and is allowed to absorb into soil and roots, along with pollutants and sediments. The change was visible: compared to the more turbid pools close to the storm water inlet, the water in the larger basin at the end of the stream is clearer and cleaner–improving the quality of water flowing into the Broad river and Columbia’s drinking water system.

Martin handed out photos of the former stream bed–a series of manhole covers–plans for the bioengineered banks and pools, and a list of native shrubs, trees, and seed mixes used. He kindly allowed us to share them here.

A group of people stands near a streambed at Hyatt Park in Columbia

Todd Martin shows Midlands chapter members the native planting bed below the splash pad above the stream at Hyatt Park in Columbia. Signs describe the project for visitors. Photo by Lynn Yenkey

The project team worked closely with the Hyatt Park Keenan Terrace Neighborhood Association on their goals for the park, and identified a gathering space as a strong priority. The renovation includes a naturalistic play area on the hillside between the stream and community building, adjacent to a new amphitheater for events. In warm weather, families can cool off at a splashpad at the amphitheater’s base, with water flowing from there into a wide garden bed and into the stream. In the open field downhill, large sections of the former water pipe form hillocks and a natural play space.

You can read more about innovative project, featured in Landscape Architect magazine in 2022.

A similar stormwater management project in Columbia parks finished in 2020 at Martin Luther King, Jr. Park in Columbia’s Five Points. Read more about it here. At Page Ellington Park in the Bull St. development, 2600 feet of stream was daylighted, and ponds created to make wetland habitat in a nature-based city park.

 

 

Midlands Spring 2023 Native Plant Sale

 

 

Come find the native plants that feed pollinators and birds, and bring some nature home! Shrubs, perennials, grasses, and vines are selected to thrive in the Midlands.

 Get the plant list here. Prices range $3-$20. Pay with cash or credit. BYO wagon is ok.

In addition to our sale plants, two local vendors will be here: Sal’s Old Timey Feed & Seed and Native Plants to the People. Chapter member Clay Parker has grown a variety of milkweed species (and more) just for the sale. There will be a great selection for a variety of soil and sun conditions!

It’ll be a festival atmosphere with food, art, and books for sale! Read more below.

When

Friday, April 14, 2023 6:00 pm until…
Members-Only Happy Hour and Early Sales
Bring your beverage of choice and come hang out, shop, and enjoy MNPS-provided snacks by the river.

Saturday April 15, 2023
8:30 am – 9:30 am: Final set-up and training morning volunteers
9:30 am – 10:00 am: Open to members
10:00 am – 5:00 pm: Open to general public

Where

Canoeing for Kids HQ
114 Riverchase Court, Lexington SC (MAP)

Food, Art, Books, Birds

Get a bite to eat from The Wurst Wagen. Find plant-based art from Candace Thibeault. Buy a native plant book from Columbia’s independent shop, All Good Books. Get a bluebird house and conservation info from Columbia Audubon Society.

Volunteers Needed

Set up on Friday, April 14 and during the sale!
Volunteers can purchase plants early. Contact [email protected] to sign up or with questions.

  • Set Up Crew unloads plants from delivery trucks, places them according to a map, and installs plant signs on Friday during the day.
  • Cashier and Tally work together at the checkout to count up plants and prices, run credit cards, make change, and provide receipts.
  • Information Table hands out brochures and discusses how to learn more about native plants
  • Plant Helpers use wagons to move plants and will be assigned a list of about 5 plants to read up on and be ready to answer customer questions.

2023 Upstate Spring Sale Volunteer Job Descriptions

Volunteer activities will take place at these locations:

  • Upstate Native Nursery (UNN) at 180 Lakewood Dr., Mauldin, SC 29667
  • SCNPS storage unit: Midgard Self Storage, 935 Butler Rd, Greenville, SC, 29607
  • Conestee Park, 840 Mauldin Road, Greenville (near baseball stadium; a 3-minute drive south of I-85 exit to Mauldin Rd)

Pre-Sale Team:

  • Pre-Sale Inventory: Take plant inventory at UNN. Day: Saturday, April 1, 10-1
  • Pre-Sale Orders: Pull pre-sale orders for members and volunteers at UNN. Days: Monday/Tuesday/Wednesday
  • Prep for General Sale: Label and prepare plants at UNN. Day: Thursday
  • Load and Transport: Load and unload plants and equipment in and out of trucks from the UNN Greenhouse and Storage Unit to Conestee Park. Need “strong” backs. Bring your truck, trailer, or SUV if you can. Day: Friday

Set-Up Team:

  • Friday Help with plant sale site layout at Conestee Park. Help unload and arrange plants. Water Plants. Check for price tags. Set up checkout and holding area, and place traffic barriers. Saturday set up tents, tables, and chairs, and put out signs.

Day-Of Team:

  • Vehicle Traffic Directors: Stationed in the upper parking lot to make sure cars don’t get in the way of customers lining up to enter the sale and that customers line up safely. Also stationed at the lower parking lot to make sure cars drive through in the right direction. Day: Saturday
  • Front Entrance Team: Work at Entrance Table and Line Management. Greet customers at entry, hand out plant lists and membership forms. Use a clicker to count customers entering the gate. Manage customer lines during sale and direct customers to holding, checkout, and exits. Answer questions and explain the holding and checkout process. Direct customers to plant experts and guest vendors. Training will be provided. Day: Saturday
  • Sales Team: The “orange vest” team provides education and advocacy to customers (and other volunteers) and helps customers locate and select plants. Day: Saturday
  • Holding / Loading Area Team: Place plants in numbered spaces and give customer matching token. Help pull price stakes in preparation for checkout. Load plants into customer vehicles. Some heavy lifting and lots of walking are involved. Day: Saturday
  • Invoicing Team: Work at Checkout table as an invoicer: Pull, sort, and count price stakes; fill out invoices; calculate subtotals. **Must be familiar with calculators, and comfortable with numbers and invoicing. Training provided. Day: Saturday
  • Cashier Team: Work at Checkout table as a cashier: Add subtotals for a grand total on customer tickets.  Receive payment from customers (cash, check, credit/debit cards). **Must be comfortable with calculators and using card readers and making change — retail experience helpful. Training will be provided. Day: Saturday
  • Hospitality Team/Volunteer Welcome Tables: Provide information and refreshments for volunteers. Set up water cooler for everyone and keep table neat and stocked. Day: Saturday
  • Snack Maker: Provide cookies and snacks for volunteers. Day: Saturday
  • Information and Book Table: Talk to customers. Provide information on SCNPS, as well as Upstate Chapter and Membership. Sell books and provide handouts. Get customers to sign up for future plant sale emails. Day: Saturday

Post-Sale Team:

  • Help take post-sale inventory. Help break down the sale and reload remaining plants and equipment for unloading at the Greenhouse and storage unit. Take down barriers and clean up the area. Day: Saturday
To dive right in and tell us how you can help, click HERE.
To get more general information about the sale, click HERE.
All volunteers must sign a Release and Waiver of Liability form prior to their shift(s).

Gardening for Life Celebration: Call for Volunteers

“You are Nature’s Best Hope!” — a talk by Doug Tallamy at GFLP

On March 4 from 1-5pm our friends at the Gardening For Life Project are sponsoring a “Gardening for Life Celebration,” featuring the renowned Doug Tallamy (entomologist, esteemed ecologist, and author of the NY Times bestselling book Nature’s Best Hope) as keynote speaker, to be held live and in-person at Polk County High School in Columbus, NC. In addition to the speech, the celebration will feature exhibitions, book signings, and more. Tickets for the keynote are free, but registration is required.

SCNPS will be exhibiting; volunteers are needed! Contact Judy Seeley to learn more.

 

Photo credit: Rob Cardilo

 

Plant of the Month: Hepatica, or Liverleaf

Hepatica americana (Photo Credit: Dan Whitten)

by Dan Whitten

I always like to introduce a plant by giving its name, location, and description, and then tell other stories like how it got its name or how it is useful.

The common names of two similar plants in SC are Sharp-lobed Hepatica (Hepatica acutiloba) and Round-lobed Hepatica (Hepatica americana). The name “Hepatica” can be interchanged with the name “Liverleaf” (not to be confused with “Liverwort,” which is a spore producing vascular plant). Liverleaf is a seed-producing, herbaceous plant of the forest floor.

The scientific names have been changed a couple of times in Weakley’s Flora of the Southeastern United States. On May 21, 2015, the genus for both species changed from Hepatica to Anemone. Then on October 20, 2020, it changed back to the genus Hepatica. Thankfully, it remained the same in the latest edition of April 24, 2022. Interestingly, though, the 2022 version of A Guide to the Wildflowers of South Carolina by McMillan, Porcher, Rayner, and White categorized it as the genus Anemone. (This book was featured in the September 2022 statewide SCNPS program and is a fantastic reference for flower enthusiasts.)

Of the two species of Hepatica occurring in South Carolina, the Sharp-lobed is the less common and occurs over calcareous or mafic rock, typically found in the mountainous part of the state. The Round-lobed is more common, with a wider geographic distribution. The differences between the two are in the tips of the lobes of the basal leaves, which are either sharp or rounded (hence the common names). In the bracts which are directly below the petaloid sepals, they are sharp tipped in the H. acutiloba and round tipped in the H. americana.  

Impress your (granted, thoroughly nerdy) friends by asking a trick question: How many petals does Hepatica have? Answer: none! They have instead 5-12 (typically around 7) petaloid sepals which are born on hairy pedicels and subtended by 3 bracts that mimic the sepals.

The petaloid sepals can be white, blue, lavender or purple. The basal leaves persist throughout the winter, and generally the new leaves come out well after the flowers in the spring. The flowers of the upstate reach peak bloom in March, but they can also be found at Stevens Creek Heritage Preserve as early as February and up near the Blue Ridge Parkway as late as April. At Station Cove Falls, I’ve seen a few plants flowering on the first day of the year, and once I saw a flower on Christmas Eve. So I challenge you to find a native and herbaceous wildflower that blooms any earlier in the year than Hepatica.

According to the Doctrine of Signatures, a plant was used to treat the part of the body that it resembled, and because the lobes of the brownish leaf of Hepatica in winter resembled the liver (aka the hepatic organ) in color and shape, it was used to treat everything from cowardice to freckles, including jaundice and other ailments believed to be of the liver.

George Hyams was collecting Hepatica in May of 1877 when he discovered the then long-lost plant that we now know as Oconee Bells, or Shortia galacifolia.

Midlands Fall 2022 Native Plant Sale

Friday, October 14, 2022
1:00 – 3:00 p.m. open to volunteers and members of SCNPS and Historic Columbia Foundation
3:00 – 6:00 p.m. open to general public

Saturday, October 15, 2022
10:00 am – 3:00 pm open to general public

LOCATION

Historic Robert Mills House, 1616 Blanding St., Columbia
(Enter parking lot on Henderson St. between Blanding and Taylor, or park on nearby streets)

Click to see plants for sale.

Historic Columbia Foundation is using more and more natives in their landscaping, so you can see some of the sale plants in established beds.

Questions about the sale? Contact [email protected].
More details coming soon about speakers and demonstrations.

Click to join or renew your SCNPS membership.
Click to join the Historic Columbia Foundation.

Volunteers needed for set up the afternoon of October 13 and the morning of October 14, and during the sale. Volunteers will be able to purchase plants early.
Contact [email protected] to sign up.

Please plan to pay by credit card. Wagons are ok.

Midlands Chapter Works with Dominion on New List of Suggested Native Plants for Under Powerlines

Midlands Chapter member Trish Jerman discovered that Dominion Energy’s list of suggested trees for under powerlines contained mostly nonnative and even invasive species, so she contacted them and offered our assistance to revise it with native plants. Happily, they were open to the idea.

Trish gathered a small working group to research native trees and shrubs with high wildlife value that also meet Dominion’s height restrictions.

The new list is now available online. You can learn more about Dominion’s policies on their Trees, Trimming, and Powerlines page. (The list is under “South Carolina FAQs”).

Trish and the group are now working with Santee Cooper and reaching out to electric cooperatives on their suggested plant lists.

Midlands Spring Native Plant Sale March 25-26, 2022

The Midlands Chapter will host its spring plant sale March 25 & 26, 2022, at the Historic Robert Mills House in Columbia.

PLANT SELECTION LIST

We are once again partnering with the Historic Columbia Foundation, which will offer tours of the grounds. You’ll get to see some of the same natives offered at the sale growing at Robert Mills House gardens. Tours begin at 4:00 pm on Friday and 11:00 am on Saturday.
In addition, SC Native Plant Society members will stage educational demonstrations during the sale.

New this sale: Sal’s Old Timey Feed and Seed will join us to offer great natives for sale.

Interested in volunteering and getting an early look at the plant selection? Please contact [email protected].

Questions about the sale? Contact [email protected].

Please plan to pay by credit card. Bring a cart or wagon if you think you might be tempted to get more than two hands can hold.

Location: Robert Mills House, 1616 Blanding St., Columbia
(Enter parking lot on Henderson St. between Blanding and Taylor, or park on nearby streets)

Friday, March 25, 2022:
1:00 – 3:00 p.m. open to volunteers and members of SCNPS and Historic Columbia Foundation
3:00 – 6:00 p.m.  open to general public

Saturday, March 26, 2022:
9:00 am – 4:00 pm open to general public

Click to join or renew your SCNPS membership.

Click to join the Historic Columbia Foundation.

Midlands Fall Native Plant Sale, Oct 29 & 30

The Midlands Chapter is excited to host its first native plant sale, and honored to partner with Historic Columbia Foundation during their fall sale.
Historic Columbia is actively working to replant many of its gardens with native species. They are generously sharing space at the Robert Mills House with SCNPS for this sale, so shoppers can select from both groups’ plant offerings.

See a list of plants available for sale.

Location: Robert Mills House, 1616 Blanding St., Columbia (Enter parking lot on Henderson Street between Blanding and Taylor or park on nearby streets)

Friday, October 29:
9:00-9:30   volunteers only
9:30 – 10:00   members and volunteers
10:00 am – 4:00 pm   general public

Saturday, October 30: 10:00 am – 4:00 pm

Note: Thursday, October 28 is reserved for Historic Columbia Foundation members only. To join, visit https://www.historiccolumbia.org/support/membership

Please plan to pay by credit card and mask up when you can’t stay 6 feet apart. Bring a cart or wagon if you think you might be tempted to get more than two hands can hold.
For questions or if you’re interested in volunteering (and getting an early opportunity to shop) please contact [email protected].

Save The Date: Upstate Fall Native Plant Sale

Upstate Fall Native Plant Sale 2021
September 18 @ 8:00 am – October 16 @ 5:00 pm

We know from all of the inquiries you’ve sent that interest is running very high for a Fall Native Plant Sale. So (drum roll!), without further ado, we’re announcing the SCNPS Fall Plant sale! These are the important dates to remember:

· September 17th: Volunteer Appreciation Day. Volunteers working the sale get to shop first!

· September 18, 20-23rd: SCNPS members only. Orders open online on the 17th (to be pulled on or after the 18th) and members will be notified when orders can be picked up.

· September 24th-October 16th: Open to all. Orders open online on the 23rd (to bepulled on or after the 24th) and customers will be notified when orders can be picked up.

As you can see, the first day, when all the plants are at their best with the deepest inventory, is set aside for the plant sale volunteers only. This is a new incentive to tempt members to come out and volunteer to work two or more shifts at the sale. Shifts are 4 hours long and training is provided. All you need is a smart phone and a desire to save the Earth one plant at a time.

 

The benefits of fall planting are many:

· Roots, roots, roots! When it comes to a plant’s health, it’s all about the roots. Fall planting gives a plant, tree or shrub plenty of time to develop their root system before the first frost.

· Free watering! One of the best benefits of fall planting is the cool, rainy days for your newly planted beauties.

· Less stress for both you and your new plants. Fall’s cool air provides a nice buffer from the summer heat and it’s easier to plant in cooler air.

· Warm soil. The soil will be warmer in the fall than in the spring. The tops may be getting ready to snooze but the roots will get set up to go through the winter and will come up in the spring ready to go.

So, please mark your calendars and join us for another wonderful Native Plant Society sale at the Upstate Native Nursery. Appointments will be available for on site visits. This will still be a virtual sale with contactless pickup as in the last two sales. You must be a member by September 11th, 2021 in order to qualify for the members only period. Questions? Contact Kathy Harrington at [email protected] or send us an email from the SCNPS website (go to the dropdown menu The Plants) or send to [email protected].

We hope to see orders from all of you. The volunteers have worked very hard all summer to keep the plants in tiptop shape for the Fall sale. Many hours of propagation, germination, potting, pruning, weeding, mowing, maintaining and brainstorming have gone on to make this the best sale ever!

Click here to see all of the plant sale details.