Lantana Project

When plants grow in places they do not belong and threaten the native biodiversity, they are termed invasive species. In the southeast United States, the invasive species we are most familiar with is kudzu. Kudzu is native to Asia and was brought to the USA to help control erosion. Now, however, kudzu threatens the biodiversity of the southeast by competing with native species for light and nutrients.

At the Henning Museum of Natural History we are studying the Lantana camara hybrid complex.. Lantana is a flowering plant native to Mexico, Florida, Trinidad, Jamaica, and Brazil. Thanks to importation of the plant for ornamental purposes, Lantana has become an invasive species, threatening native flora in over 60 countries, including South Africa, Kenya, and Australia.

Research includes identifying and analyzing the DNA of the different varieties. This work helps us understand the spread of weeds and how they adapt to the ecosystem into which they are introduced.

Laurel-Snow Pocket Wilderness Project

Laurel-Snow Pocket Wilderness is a 2,176-acre state natural area. In 1973, Bowater Incorporated, a South-Carolina based paper company, set aside this land in Dayton, TN for public and recreational use. It was acquired by the State in 2006 from Bowater Incorporated and is being incorporated into the Cumberland Trail System. When completed this trail system will stretch over 300 miles across the Cumberland Plateau.

The Henning Natural History Museum is currently obtaining permits to conduct a survey of the plants in Laurel-Snow Pocket Wilderness. Plants collected will increase our herbarium's collection of native Tennessee plants.

As the survey is being conducted, the museum hopes to host community events, such as nature walks and other field trips around Rhea County.