Steppe Symposium - Rooted in Stone: The Interplay of Geology and Plant Diversity

From deep shale formations to protruding igneous extrusions, the geology and soils of the steppes are remarkably diverse. This intricate mineral mosaic serves as the catalyst for a flourishing flora, with far-reaching implications spanning from plant conservation to the world of home gardening.

Join us at the 2024 Global Steppe Symposium "Steppe Rocks: The Interplay of Geology and Plant Diversity" as we traverse this rocky terrain and immerse ourselves in the captivating connection between geology and the vibrant tapestry of plant life that graces the steppes.

Price: $100, $90 member, $50 student

*Please call the Resource Center at 720-865-3500 to inquire about student pricing*

Speaker Lineup:

The Geology of Colorado's Front Range: A Tapestry

Bob Raynolds

Presentation on the diversity of the geology of the front range, including eastern Colorado, red rocks, shale formations, limestone and sand beds.

Bob Raynolds is a geologist based in Denver. He has taught at Peshawar University in Pakistan, Dartmouth College, the Colorado School of Mines and the Denver Museum of Nature & Science. Bob previously worked for the US Geological Survey, Exxon, and Amoco.

Bob is currently a Research Associate at the Denver Museum of Nature & Science studying sediments in the Denver Basin that record the uplift of the Rocky Mountains. He is former president of the Friends of Dinosaur Ridge and of the Colorado Scientific Society.

Bob is adjunct in the Geophysics Department at the Colorado School of Mines and in the Geology Department at Stony Brook University where he is involved with teaching and planning at the Turkana Basin Institute, Kenya. His recent lectures focus on the geological record and its role in helping to understand the impact of environmental changes on Colorado's ecology and water resources.

The Sandsage Prairie Ecological System: Biodiversity Hotspot for the Great Plains

Jim Locklear

Sandsage prairie is a shrub-steppe ecological system of the Great Plains of North America in which sand sagebrush (Artemisia filifolia) is the dominant and diagnostic element. An estimated 5 million hectares of sandsage prairie occur in discontinuous tracts across eight states in association with dune fields. These dune fields occur as regionally restricted physiographic islands or anomalies within the larger Great Plains landscape and have a biota distinct from that of surrounding habitats, including many regional endemics, ecological specialists, and species of conservation concern. The dune habitat of sandsage prairie is highly dynamic and subject to a host of natural disturbance factors. Consequently, there is typically a high level of heterogeneity in the structure and composition of sandsage prairie vegetation. Sandsage prairie is often the only native vegetation of significant scale remaining on the landscape, providing islands of natural habitat critical to the support and persistence of biological diversity.

Jim Locklear has been Director of Conservation at Lauritzen Gardens in Omaha, Nebraska since 2010. Previously he was Director of the Nebraska Statewide Arboretum and the Dyck Arboretum of the Plains in Kansas. He holds a B.S. in Biology from the University of Central Missouri and M.S. in Plant and Soil Science from Southern Illinois University at Carbondale. Jim's research on sandsage prairie has been published in the Natural Areas Journal and the Journal of the Botanical Research Institute of Texas. His recently published book, In the Country of the Kaw (University Press of Kansas), profiles the natural history of the Kansas River basin of the central Great Plains.

Driven by Geology: Wild Steppe Solutions for Unique Garden Soils

Mike Bone and Kevin Williams

Join Mike Bone and Kevin Philip Williams of the Denver Botanic Gardens Horticulture Department as they explore the naturally occurring plant communities associated with a variety of common Front Range soils and discuss strategies to translate these ecosystems into beautiful, resilient home gardens, reflective of our unique Colorado landscapes.

Mike Bone, Curator of Steppe Collections, is involved in many aspects of the Plant Select program. Mike has worked at the Gardens since 2002 where the majority of his tenure is in propagation and production. Mike has a passion for cultivating plants from and appropriate for the steppes of North America and has traveled and studied the flora of North America and Central Asia. Mike's love of gardening and horticulture keeps him scouring the globe for great garden plants to bring people in contact with the living world far and near.

Kevin Philip Williams is manager of horticulture for Denver Botanic Gardens where he stewards The Steppe Garden, Conservation Garden, Lilac Collection, Dwarf Conifer Collection, Josephine Streetscape, and the Willow Glade in Celebration of Brandon Mandelbaum. Working with the Gardens' regional partners he has designed and continues to oversee gardens at Meow Wolf: Convergence Station, the Clyfford Still Museum, the Denver Art Museum and the celebrated pocket park, Summer Home Garden. Kevin holds an MS in Public Horticulture from the Longwood Graduate Program at The University of Delaware and a BA in the History and Philosophy of Science from Bard College. Kevin worked as a Gardener on The High Line in Manhattan and studied as a Horticulture Intern at Brooklyn Botanic Garden.

Plants of the Patagonian Steppe and Their Potential in Breeding for Steppe Climates

Maria Silvina Soto and Ariel Mazzoni

For more than 25 years, the National Institute of Agricultural Technology (INTA) has been studying the native plant genetic resources of Argentina with potential ornamental use. Through genetic breeding programs, new commercial verieties have been developed and introduced into the international floriculture market. Since 2015, INTA and Denver Botanic Gardens have been carrying out a research project that explores the Patagonia Argentinian native vegetation with the possibility of use as ornamental plants, and their adaptability to cultivation in Denver.

Dr. Maria Silvina Soto is an agricultural engineer with a doctorate in biological sciences. Since 1999, she has been part of the research team focused on topics linked to the sustainable use and management of native genetic resources in Argentina, working as a breeder for more than 10 years. Since 2007,she has participated in the Institute's agreements linked to the obtaining of ornamental varieties marketed in the national and international market. Since 2023, she holds the position of director of the National Institute of Agricultural Technology (INTA) at the Floriculture Institute.

Ariel Mazzoni is a National Resources Engineer with a Master in Floriculture. He is researcher of the National Institute of Agricultural Technology (INTA) at the Bariloche Agricultural Experimental Station and academic of the Nursery Techician degree at the Nation University of Rio Negro. Since 1997, he has studied the native plant genetic resources of Patagonia for ornamental use. Since 2013, he has coordinated national research and development lines of floriculture, aromatic and medicinal plants at INTA. Since 2015, he has coordinated the research agreement between INTA and Denver Botanic Gardens.

Nezahat Gökyigit Botanik Bahçesi: A Unique Botanic Garden in a Motorway Intersection in Istanbul

Dr. Adil Güner

Nezahat Gökyigit Botanik Bahçesi (NGBB) established in 1995 as a memorial park and became a botanic garden in 2003. It is situated in a busy motorway intersection in a densely populated area in Istanbul. The botanic garden became the headquarter of a new illustrated Flora. Türkiye has rich flora for around 10,000 species, of which a third of these endemic. Anatolian steppes contribute the richness of the flora. NGBB has a small representative of Central Anatolian steppes.

Adil Güner is the Director of the Nezahat Gökyigit Botanik Garden and editor-in-chief of the Illustrated Flora of Türkiye. A retired professor of botany from Abant Izzet Baysal University, Bolu, Türkiye.