Chapter Involvement Having every chapter participate is important to the success of the event. Every chapter, big or small, can do little things to contribute to the event’s success. If your chapter is in one of the cities or counties that is issuing a proclamation, make sure you have at least 5 members (or more) attend the session. Follow up by sending the mayor/commissioners a native plant and a thank you card signed by your chapter/members.

Purpose of Florida Native Plant Month Increase public awareness of the native plants and the Florida Native Plant Society statewide. Engage and educate people of all ages about the importance of native plants and native plant communities. Share our passion for native plants with others

Events Give added value to the events you already have planned by publicizing them as Florida Native Plant Month activities Make an extra effort to invite people outside your membership to your meetings, field trips and other events. If your county or city passed a resolution to declare Florida Native Plant Month, use that in bring in more people.

Ideas OUTREACHMEETINGSFIELDTRIPS Do you know a school or other place that wants native plants? Ask members to each bring a plant to the October meeting to donate or collect money to buy plants to donate. Take photos and submit to local media Invite members of your county commissioners to your October meetings. If applicable, thank them for sponsoring the proclamation of FMNP. Present them a native plant. Take Photos and submit to local media. Promote your fieldtrip family friendly and plan a special activity for children. Create a game to encourage families to engage, such as a bingo cards with common native plant species that will be seen. Give a prize to the family that gets the most bingos.

Ideas OUTREACHMEETINGSYARD TOURS/SOCIALS “Random acts of giving native plants” Ask members to give a native plant to a non- member, perhaps a neighbor or a co-worker who gardens. Include information about Native Plant Month, FNPS, your chapter and care of the plant. This can also be extended to schools, government officials, non-native garden stores, landscapers, and other institutions. Encourage your members to bring a non-member friend to the October meeting. All members who do not bring a friend will need to bring a plant for your auction or raffle, or pay a donation of some sort. Thank you to Patty Phares of the Dade Chapter for suggesting many of these ideas. Have a casual yard tour /social/potluck at a members home. To attend each member has to bring a non- member friend, or donate $10.00 to your chapter or other native plant cause. As part of the social have a native plant “show and tell.” Each member brings a native plant related item and tells a story about it. It can be educational or heartfelt. Have a potluck, or a bring your own beer/wine social.

Ideas OUTREACHMEETINGSPLANT SALES Promote Florida Native Plant Month to other like- minded organizations, such as Sierra Club, Audubon, and the Master Naturalists. Encourage them to promote Florida Native Plant Month to their members and invite them to your meetings and fieldtrips. Provide them a flyer about your chapter’s events that they can include in their newsletter or post at their meetings. Prepare a PowerPoint presentation to play prior to the start of your meeting that talks about Florida Native Plant Month. And the events your chapter has planned for the month. If you have a number of non- members, invite them personally to the events. Give your members some ideas about how they could spread the word about natives Instead of sitting at the booth the entire plant sale, have “roaming members.” They can tell people about Florida Native plant Month and invite them to visit the booth with the promise of a discount or free plant with $X.00 purchase.

Promoting Florida Native Plant Month Logos Templates Press Releases Posters

The FNPS logo should be prominent when promoting the Florida Native Plant Month FLORIDA NATIVE PLANT SOCIETY

Templates for PR, Newsletters

Using the Logos and Templates List your October Events to promote to chapter or public Use it as a page in your newsletter that talks about Florida Native Plant Month Create Press Releases before and after your events You can use the fixed/premade templates or you can create your own using the individual logos and type provided. You may also want to add your chapter’s logo. Just make sure you use the FNPS logo on all publicity and correspondence. Some ways you may want to use the logos/templates are:

Examples of template usage

Press Release

Poster/Flyer

Chapter(s)YES?County/City/StateDateTimeLocationRead By 1CocoplumYESCity of Stuart9/28/20155:30 PM 121 SW Flagler Ave, Stuart City Attorney 2Lakela's MintYESSt. Lucie County10/6/20156:00 PM 2300 Virginia Avenue Fort Pierce, Nature CoastPasco County 4Paynes PrarieCity of HawthorneMayor Surrency 5PinellasYES City of St. Petersburg 10/8/20153:00 PMMayor Kriseman 6PinellasYESPinellas County9/24/20152:00 PM315 Court Street, 5th Floor, Clearwater Sernoa, Mangrove YESSarasota County10/14/20159:00 AM Adm Bldg, 1600 Ringling Blvd, Sarasota. 8South Ridge??YESHighlands County9/15/20159:00 AM 600 S. Commerce Ave Sebring, SparkleberrySuwannee County 10TarflowerYESOrange County10/24/2015Backyard Biodiversity Day, Mead Botanical Garden Commissioner Edwards PROCLAMATIONS as of 8/14/2015

We will also be announcing a Florida Native Plant of the Year. This year it will be the Liatris spp. We decided to designate a species because each region does not have to promote the same species, which may not even occur in their area. The name of the plant should not go public until ______________________. It will be announced by______________ More information to come. FLORIDA NATIVE PLANT OF THE YEAR

Next Steps Shirley will be creating a Public web page dedicated to the Florida Native Plant Month where will provide a list of all the chapter’s public events for the month of October. Shirley will also post the templates, logos and other graphics to an internal web page where you can download them for your October Native Plant Month publicity. I will also put them in a Dropbox or send by . By September 1 st we need chapters to provide as much detail as possible for October Events on the FNPS Calendar so the committee can post them to our Florida Native Plant Month public web page. (Jan Allyn and I will contact, you for more information, if needed.) When Andy confirms a proclamation, we need chapters in the jurisdiction to put together a delegation of at least 5 people to attend the proclamation. Jonnie Spitler will be overlooking this process and may contact your for names and confirmation of attendance.

Questions & Suggestions