2025 NPM Course
Pueblo Mountain Park
May 21, 28 & June 4 from 9:00-1:00pm
9112 Pueblo Mountain Park Rd, Beulah, CO 81023
Refund Policy
Refunds up to 7 days before event.
Eventbrite’s fee is nonrefundable.
About this event
This year Pueblo County will host its first Native Plant Master course at Pueblo Mountain Park on May 21, May 28, and June 4, 2025. The class will be led by Pueblo County CSU-Extension Horticulture Specialist, Amanda Weidner. The field sessions will run from 9:00am-1pm and will meet in the park. More details will be provided to registered participants.
Take a Native Plant Master course at this city park tucked into the foothills with great views and diverse plant communities. Explore the Gambel oak forest and wildflower-bordered trails during three outdoor field sessions where you will learn common and scientific names, ecological relationships and human uses of 40 – 50 plants. You will also develop skills in using family features and a botanical key to identify plants. Course includes special emphasis on natives useful for landscaping and invasive plants that threaten native ecosystems.
Please be aware that this course will include brisk walking, moderate hiking, and very likely conditions that may be hot and sunny or cold and wet. While we don’t hike hard the entire time by any means, we’ll be covering some ground quickly in order to reach all of our plants each day. You can expect going up or down some sliding gravel, steeper rock inclines, large roots (tripping hazards) on the trail, and general hiking conditions. Please judge for yourself if this will be a comfortable and doable fit for you before registering and come prepared with appropriate shoes for hiking and layers to handle the weather.
TRAINERS:
Amanda Weidner received her Native Plant Master certification in 2024 and will be teaching her first full Native Plant Master course this year at Pueblo Mountain Park. She has held roles as an environmental educator in the past and loves connecting kids and adults with nature as well as learning and teaching about the exciting relationships between native plants, birds, insects and more.
PREREQUISITE:
Starting this March, participants who register for Native Plant Master certification courses will get access to 2 new introductory CSU Online NPM classes (a $138 value) for free.
Pre-requisite online courses will be:
1. Basic Field Botany
2. Plant Families and How to use a Dichotomous Key
NATIVE PLANT MASTER PROGRAM:
Participants who pass three NPM courses will receive a Native Plant Master Certificate. This 12-hour class fulfills 1/3 of the 36-hour coursework requirement towards certification as a Native Plant Master. Courses should be taken in different months and/or vegetation zones.
REQUIRED TEXT & MATERIALS:
Text: Flora of Colorado by Jennifer Ackerfield. It is preferred to get the (2022) 2nd edition, as this is the version that the class will be taught from. There is a new (2024) 2nd printing of the 2nd edition that will be acceptable also.
Materials: A hand lens or loupe (approximately 10x.) Both lens and textbook are available through the Colorado Native Plant Society bookstore (https://conps.org/conps-store), local and online retail outlets, and the publisher (800-621-2736).
WHEN & WHERE TO MEET:
We will meet at 8:30 AM outside the lodge as class begins at 9:00 AM sharp. We will have forms and first-day items to cover that will fill the time from 8:30-9:00 so be sure to be on time. To reach the lodge, after turning into the park, take a right at the fork in the road and you’ll see it on your right. Park in the parking lot and look for Amanda nearby (but not inside the lodge itself). Pit toilets are available at the beginning and end of the training time but not on the trails.
WHAT TO BRING:
- Text book, pencil, hand lens, daypack, water, snack/sack lunch, measuring device that shows decimeter measurements, rain gear, sun, and wind protection, bug repellent, and personal items you will need on the trail where there are no restrooms, etc. (Field hike can be on uneven terrain with hills. Bringing hiking poles is encouraged if they would make you more comfortable on the trail.) (Sessions will be held in almost any weather. Only in the event of extreme weather (for example, snow or hazardous lightning or continuous rain/muddy conditions) will class be cancelled).
Recommended: Clipboard, hat, fanny pack/hip pack/backpack to carry some of your gear. Juggling the heavy book, manual, pencil, and phone is tough enough and you’ll want somewhere to tuck your hand lens, supplemental materials, and any extra clothing layers.
INCLEMENT WEATHER/ILLNESS:
In the rare circumstance that a session must be canceled, you will be notified by phone and/or email message as soon as possible by the trainer and/or NPM Coordinator. Please confirm the email address and phone number that you use to register is current and will easily reach you.
PLEASE NOTE:
Although many courses fill up quickly, NPM courses with low enrollment may be cancelled.
