The Beginning

Species #1 - Taraxacum officinale - Common Dandelion

With this bright and cheery dandelion, the One Thousand Flowers project has begun.  I never would've thought the first species of the year would be documented on January 10!

The One Thousand Flowers project is essentially a Big Wildflower Year that I am undertaking for 2013.  It is much like the Big Butterfly Year I completed in 2011, just with wildflowers.  In the Big Butterfly Year I had but one rule, for a species to count I had to get an identifiable picture of the butterfly.  For the One Thousand Flowers project I have added a few additional rules.  Once again, I must get an identifiable photo of the plant's flower or fruit.  The other rule is that the plant must be native or naturalized to the Appalachian region and found in a 'wild' condition, meaning it was not intentionally planted.  All plants that fit the above criteria are fair game, including monocots, dicots, ferns, and gymnosperms.  The only catch is that I must observe the plant in flower or fruit.  So, for example, ferns will count but only if I get a good photo of the sporangia (spore producing structures) on the back of the leaves.  My goal, as you can probably guess, is to document 1000 plant species during the year.

Why am I doing this?  Because I am a glutton for punishment of course!  Because I cannot be happy if I am not in a constant state of over-whelm!  No, actually, I am semi-obsessed with nature (I think of it as Creation), and learning about all of the incredible species of plants and animals with whom we share our backyards.  As a boy, I would capture grasshoppers and butterflies.  With age I have graduated from a coffee can to a camera.

A lot of people know me as the Butterfly Guy, but actually my formal training started with plants.  I hold a Masters Degree from Ohio University where I majored in Plant Systematics, which is a fancy way of saying wildflower identification.  Sure, there is more to systematics than just that, but who wants to get into phylogenetic relationships, cladistics, and the like!  My thesis was a plant inventory of the former Ohio Mental Hospital grounds in Athens, Ohio.  And not once have I encountered any of the wacky ghosts that supposedly still inhabit the site.  :(

I am also doing this to draw attention to a region of the country that is special to me, Appalachia.  My family has lived in Appalachia since the 1860's.  Appalachia has a very rich natural and human history, and I would like to tell that story.  Of course, some parts of the story are sort of sad.  Appalachia also has a lot of poverty and environmental degredation, and I'd like to tell that story too.  A part of telling these stories is the blog you are currently reading, which I will update regularly as I travel and add to the species count.  Another part of the story will be found in the book I write and calendar I produce at the end of the year, fifty percent of the profits from these going to ministries in Appalachia that battle poverty and environmental injustice.

I hope you will be a regular follower of this blog.  If you would like to financially assist with travel costs of this project, please visit: http://www.gofundme.com/1swe8s.  There are some pretty nifty thank you gifts that go with your donation.  If you cannot donate financially, and I realize times are tough, then I ask that you support me with your prayers, encouragement, and enthusiasm.