A non-profit organization to promote the study and conservation of Alaska native plants.
The Alaska Native Plant Society (AKNPS) is a non-profit organization dedicated to studying and conserving Alaska native plants. General membership meetings are open to the public and are held on the first Monday of every month from October through May. Various guest speakers give presentations on topics related to native plants and AKNPS members give informative slide shows, plant family, and mini- botany talks. The October meeting starts earlier as it is a potluck where members bring 5-6 slides of their summer adventures to share. See our recent news for more information.
There are numerous volunteer opportunities including leading public hikes, invasive plants control, plantings and cooperative work with other local groups. Local events are listed on the Upcoming Events page.
General Information
The Alaska Native Plant Society was formed in 1982 by a small group of enthusiastic amateur and professional botanists for the purpose of educating Alaskans about their native flora and the growing need for its protection. We accomplish this through:
- Monthly meetings, held on the first Monday of each month, October through May (with occasional exceptions due to holidays), at 7 PM at the Campbell Creek Science Center in Anchorage. All interested persons are welcome.
- Field Trips, ranging from half day local outings to multi-day excursions throughout Alaska. Some prior trips have been to Kodiak, Seldovia, Chitina / Kennicott, and Denali National Park.
- Displays at local malls during “Celebrating Wildflowers” periods.
- Publication of Borealis, our bi-monthly newsletter for members, October through May.
- Compilation of Alaskan flora references in a bibliography.
- Public Land Sources for Native Plant Materials in the Southcentral Alaska Region for Personal Landscaping Use click here to download pdf.
- This website which is an ongoing project for which volunteers are welcome.
Recent News
Flora of Chugach State Park Progress Report
The 2020 Progress Report is ready! To view and download it click here: Flora_of_CSP_2020_ProgressReport_May2021.pdf
The Flora of CSP project is a volunteer-led project organized by the Alaska Native Plant Society (AKNPS) in cooperation with CSP staff. Its objective is to inventory the flora and fungi of the Park, including vascular plants, bryophytes, lichens, and fungi. We initiated the project in the spring of 2020 with the creation of the “Flora of Chugach State Park” iNaturalist project (www.inaturalist.org /projects/flora-of- chugach-state-park).
If you would like to contribute observations to this project . . . it’s possible you already have! The iNaturalist project is a “collection” project, which means that all observations that are recorded within the boundary of CSP and uploaded to iNaturalist are automatically included in the project. The Flora of CSP project will continue in 2021, and we need your help to make observations and provide identifications! To learn more please go to the iNaturalist link above. Please direct all questions to treasurer@aknps.org.
The next AKNPS field trip will be Wildflowers and Birds of Arctic Valley and Mt. Gordon Lyon, on Saturday, June 5 with Dennis Ronsse, Steve Scordino & Beth Norris. Expect 5-6 hrs, 5 miles with 1,760 feet of ascent over Mt. Gordon Lyon in a...
Interested in family wildflower hikes? Jeanne Osnas leads family hikes in the Anchorage area to engage children in learning wildflower names, and she's opening up these hikes to Alaska Native Plant Society participants. Upcoming hikes are on the back side of Flattop on Wednesday, June...
Don't miss out! There are a few spaces left on our Sunday, May 23 field trip, “Art to Explore Native Plants” at Turnagain Arm.
Join Barbara Johnson, Monica O’Keefe, and Annie Ronsse to explore the joy of journaling, sketching, and painting plants...
Come visit the Alaska Native Plant Society booth next Saturday at the Spring Garden Show! We will have native plant seed (available by donation), information about upcoming field trips and volunteer opportunities, and a variety of educational materials and merchandise.