Meeting:

Thursday, April 12, 2007, at 7:30pm

Guest Presenter:

Dylan Hannon

Topic:

Plant Exploring on the Pacific slope of Ecuador

The Esmeraldas region of Ecuador was named by the Spanish explorers who found the local natives bedecked with emeralds. This lush area in the northwestern territory of Ecuador offers rain forests, tropical vegetation and mangrove forests which, together with rivers and dense foliage, make this province green in color and in conservation efforts.

Dylan Hannon, our April guest speaker, will offer his first-hand personal look at the highly diverse flora of the Esmeraldas tropical forests. The current Curator of Conservatory and Tropical Collections at the Huntington Botanical Gardens, Dylan will share his experiences from the research collecting trip he took with Dr. Thomas B Croat of the Missouri Botanical Garden in a remote area away from tourist travel.

Some of the highlights of their research included collecting plants in Dylan's signature family Araceae (aroids), gesneriads, lobeliads, palms, and a wide range of trees, vines and herbs. Along the way they also saw remarkable butterflies and other exotic wildlife. We'll hear all about it and see his photo highlights during his April presentation.

Dylan Hannon maintains a keen interest in plants from tropical and Mediterranean biomes. His interests include growing, propagating and distributing rare plants, writing, photography and botany.

He is the former plant propagator at Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden and his background work includes commercial nursery, botanical garden and botanical research experience. He combines the talents and experiences that always make for fascinating speakers.

As a special treat, the April Plant Raffle will be supplied by Dylan who will provide some plants from his personal collection and nursery, and the rest from the Huntington tropical collections.

Plant Raffle

Plants will be provided by Dylan Hannon (some from his personal collection/nursery, some from the Huntington tropical collections).

Location: Friendship Auditorium, 3201 Riverside Drive, Los Angeles, CA 90027. Click here for a map to Friendship Auditorium.

Book of the Month

This month’s selection – suggested by our April speaker, Dylan Hannon – is Tropical Plants of the World, by Jens G. Rohwer (Sterling, 2002).

This 258-page hardcover volume includes descriptions and photos of more than 250 tropical species from such areas as southeast Asia, Latin America and Africa.