Tuesday Talks Robert Gastaldo, PhD for understory plants and diversification

Please join us for a fascinating talk by Professor Emeritus, Robert Gastaldo at noon in the Hexagon.

What is a tree? Our perception of forests and the ecosystems they support are based on our surroundings where coniferous gymnosperms and angiosperms dominate today's landscapes. But, over the evolutionary history of the plant kingdom, these major groups don't rise to prominence until the early (<215 Ma) and late Mesozoic (~113 Ma), respectively. Prior to then, forests were dominated by spore-bearing and other seed-bearing plant groups which were experiments in Earth history. The talk will explore concepts of modern and deep time tree architectures, and look at the unique set of circumstances under which a very strange and unusual tree was preserved in the early coal-forming geologic period of New Brunswick, Canada.

In-person Tuesday Talks are free for members and $10 for non-members (cash and check). Thanks to our sponsors Reny’s a Maine Adventure and Riverhouse Hotel.

Merryspring is your community nature center offering walking trails, cultivated gardens, wildlife, and ecology and horticulture educational programs all year round. The park is located at the end of Conway Road, just off of Route 1 in Camden behind Hannaford Shopping Plaza. For more information on this program, please contact aW5mbyB8IG1lcnJ5c3ByaW5nICEgb3Jn or call 207-236-2239.

You may also like the following events from Merryspring Nature Center:

• This Saturday, 13th September, 12:00 pm, 2nd Annual Tomato Tasting in Camden
• Next Saturday, 20th September, 09:00 am, Foraging Edible and Medicinal Mushrooms: An identification workshop with Greg Marley in Camden
• This month, 30th September, 12:00 pm, Tuesday Talks in the Hexagon - Fall into Color with Hannah Ward Howland, MCSL in Camden

Also check out other Trips & Adventurous Activities in Camden.