Калифорнияның туа біткен өсімдіктерін сақтау қоғамы

Organization

The California Native Plant Society (CNPS) is a California environmental non profit organization (501(c)3) that seeks to increase understanding of California's native flora and to preserve it for future generations. The mission of CNPS is to conserve California native plants and their natural habitats, and increase understanding, appreciation, and horticultural use of native plants throughout the entire state and California Floristic Province.

California Native Plant Society was founded in 1965 by professional botanists and grassroots activists who, after saving an important native plant garden in Berkeley's Tilden Regional Park, were inspired to create an ongoing organization with the mission to save and promote the native plants of California.

For 50 years, professional CNPS staff and volunteers have worked alongside scientists, government officials, and regional planners to protect habitats and species, and to advocate for well informed environmental practices, regulations, and policies. The organization works at the local level through the various regional chapters, and at the state level through its five major programs, board of directors, Chapter Council, and state office. Chapter volunteers promote CNPS’s mission to conserve California’s native plants and their natural habitats, and to increase the horticultural uses of native plants at the local level. Membership is open to everyone, and chapter activities ranging from field trips, restoration activities, meetings, symposia, public garden maintenance, plant sales, and more are open to the public. At the state organizational level, CNPS has five core programs in Conservation, Rare Plant Science, Vegetation Science, Education, and Horticulture. Each program has dedicated CNPS staff supported by volunteer committees consisting of experienced botanical experts, conservation advocates, professionals, educators, and community activists. In 2010, the California Native Plant Society was successful in having the state legislature designate the third week in April each year as "California Native Plant Week". The legislature recognized that "California native plants, being perfectly suited to California's climate and soil, require far fewer fertilizers, soil amendments, or pesticides, and use 60 to 90 percent less water than conventional landscapes". The California Native Plant Society also organizes a triennial conservation conference every three years which hosts over 1000 attendees from across California and beyond, and an annual conservation symposium every September.

Besides books, bulletins, and posters, the society publishes the academic journal Artemisia (previously Fremontia), devoted to botany, horticulture, vegetation science, land management, CNPS projects, and related native plant topics, three times a year, and the CNPS Bulletin, a quarterly newsletter.