What is it?
“Flower Watch Month” is a part of AMC’s Mountain Watch plant monitoring program. Hikers are a great resource for reporting from remote areas and allow observations more frequently than could be done otherwise. “Flower Watch Month” focuses the monitoring effort on the timing of flowering and other plant stages in mid-elevation forests or alpine ecosystems. Volunteers are needed for flower and plant monitoring from late May through August, but the need intensifies in June. June is the month that sees all the action with blooming wildflowers and blooming alpine flowers. Flower walks and talks will be featured at AMC White Mountain destinations, focusing on the ecology and natural history of plants in the region. Learn more about some of the AMC planned flower events during the month of June.
Where can flower watching be done?
Alpine Flower Watch - All of the eastern U.S. alpine areas, including Katahdin in Maine, the Presidential and Franconia range in New Hampshire, the Green Mountains in Vermont and the Adirondacks in New York, where the six targeted alpine species are found. For a more comprehensive list of alpine peaks click here.
Forest Flower Watch - Observation of our six targeted forest flower species can be done in most mountain ranges in the eastern U.S. from 2,000 feet and higher in elevation.
How do you get involved?
Both alpine or forest flower species field guide and data sheets are available at North Country AMC destinations through front desk displays, dinner and program talks and by request from AMCmtnwatch@outdoors.org (include "alpine flowers" and/or "forest flowers" in subject line). You can also download these materials off the web (see above links) and find out about additional volunteer opportunities that exist through the Mountain Watch Adopt-A-Peak plant and/or visibility monitoring program where you choose one peak to monitor throughout the season by signing up at the email address above (include "Adopt-A-Peak" in subject line). Once you have the materials in hand you can plan a hike or take them along on an already planned AMC chapter hike. Completed data sheets are returned to an AMC destination for entry into the long-term database, for analysis with local climate records. In the summer of 2007 AMC will launch a web-based data entry form where hikers can enter their observations online.
