[MAIPC] Hello! I'm your MAIPC WV State Representative - AGAINST Garden catalogues with invasive plants for sale!

[Foster, Donna M -FS]

Good Afternoon MAIPC List Serve,

My name is Donna Marie Foster, formally Donna Marie Murphy. I am your WV Representative and have been around for many, many years in the invasive plant world.  Many of you know me by either my old name or my new name.

My first introduction to invasive plants was via Japanese knotweed in a pile of fill as a child. Oh dear! How my Dad and I worked to dig it out! Unfortunately - even today 40 years later - it still lives on. Now that I am a certified pesticide applicator - perhaps I'll go home to NE PA and finally kill it. Interestingly, it really never grew out of a 20 feet area.

My interest in plants has been lifelong. I went to Vo-Technical school for horticulture and then to Temple University, Ambler Campus, where I received my first degree in Horticulture. I then met LA John Collins who became a mentor and friend and I stayed at Temple University. I was one of the first of four graduating students from Temple University's NEW Landscape Architecture program. From there, it was on to the University of Pennsylvania where I studied under Ian McHarg (ecological design) and had the wonderful opportunity of meeting Jim Thorne, who taught Landscape Ecology at Penn at that time. I became his TA for his Restoration Ecology class. One of the projects we did was PennyPack Park and well - the rest I will say again - is history. For the next 10 years or so, I had the fortune of working for the Morris Arboretum of the University of Pennsylvania on a pilot project. I worked for Bob Gutowski (who was also on the MAIPC). The work I was doing was community forestry, but we focused much of our efforts on mine-land restoration and invasive plant control was a component of it, especially along the railroads and rivers. Other work I've done includes development of a scope of work for a 40 mile Rail-Trail, working for three landscape architectural firms, two engineering firms, as a consultant for two Conservancies writing baseline assessments and conservation easements and my own design firm Restore Designs. For many years, I taught "Impacts of Invasive Plants on Natural Systems" as a class at Keystone College where my Forest Service Office was located at one time.

I still work for the USDA Forest Service and have for almost 20 years. I oversee the Invasive Plant program in WV, PA, DE, MD, NJ, DC and Ohio. I use my Landscape Architecture skills often - working in urban and community forestry, especially as green infrastructure and stormwater becomes more and more integrated into the work we do. I work a great deal in the Great Lakes Region and have many other things that I do as part of my job. Over the years I have assisted hundreds of people with writing grants and getting funding for their projects. Although, at times I would much rather be involved in the actual restoration work, as I get older,  I realize, the work I do is so important. It gives me great satisfaction to help others. Mostly because I always give my best to make projects the best they can be - and most importantly because it provides a means for us to protect the places we love and that need nurturing the most. I've gotten to know so many great and committed people - like each of you. If you don't know me, please reach out and say hello. If you do know me - well that's great. Hello to you.

I've been thinking about what I wanted to talk about on our list serve this week and decided to use this week to begin a list of all the plant catalogues that come to my house in the Spring FILLED with invasive plants FOR SALE to unknowing gardeners. Go home, collect those garden catalogues and send me the name and address, so we collectively can send a STRONG WORDED LETTER to each of them, letting THEM know we are WATCHING and adding them to our campaign against THOSE who sell invasive plants!  I'll keep the master list.

Thanks for reading. Hope to see SOME REAL ACTIVITY THIS WEEK SO we can FILL this spreadsheet up. Thanks Everyone!

Donna


[Forest Service Shield]

Donna Marie Foster
Landscape Architect

Forest Service
Northeastern Area State and Private Forestry

p: 304-285-1547
c: 304-276-8989
donnamfoster at fs.fed.us<mailto:donnamfoster at fs.fed.us>

180 Canfield Street
Morgantown, WV 26505
www.fs.fed.us<http://www.fs.fed.us/>
[USDA Logo]<http://usda.gov/>[Forest Service Twitter]<https://twitter.com/forestservice>[USDA Facebook]<https://www.facebook.com/pages/US-Forest-Service/1431984283714112>

Caring for the land and serving people








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