The Native Plant Society of New Mexico is a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting the conservation of the native flora of New Mexico. We support research and educational activities in New Mexico schools and universities. The Society encourages the use of suitable native plants in landscaping as a water conservation measure, for the improvement of wildlife habitat and because native plants are integral to the environment of the Southwest. The Society encourages the preservation of rare and endangered plant species and the communities in which these species occur. Members benefit from regional chapter meetings, field trips, an annual meeting and four issues of the Newsletter each year.
Most chapters also hold plant sales and annual seed exchanges.
Additional benefits to members include discounts on a wide variety of books and New Mexico Wildflower posters. In the Southwest, the biological effects of fire have had a profound impact on forest, brush and prairie ecosystems. Without periodic low intensity fires, these ecosystems undergo rapid change in species composition that, in turn, can lead to catastrophic wildfire which could threaten the unique biological diversity of the American Southwest. Paul has spent 25 years with the Forest Service as a fire ecologist and biologist for wildlife, fish, and plants. He uses his background in botany and aquatic ecology to enrich the many programs he has presented on wildlife and fire-ecology.