Frostburg State hosting world conference on exotic plants

Public invited to visit vendors at June 1-5 event

For the Cumberland Times-News

FROSTBURG — From June 1 to 5, researchers and fans of Venus flytraps, pitcher plants, sundews and other mysterious carnivorous plants will converge from all over the world at Frostburg State University for the Sixth Conference of the International Carnivorous Plant Society.

The event will feature vendors selling a wide variety of the exotic plants, scientists presenting their research and field trips to view natural and cultivated plants. This marks the first time the conference will be held in the United States since it was in San Francisco in 2000. The last one was in Lyon, France.

For those who would just like to shop for an unusual houseplant or a book about caring for one, there is no charge to visit the vendors in the Compton Science Center’s second-floor atrium. They will be there on June 2 from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. and 4:50 to 6:30 p.m., and again on June 3 from noon to 1 p.m. and again from 4:50 to 6:30 p.m.

In addition, single-day passes to the conference are available for those who are curious but don’t want to commit to the whole series.

FSU biology professor Hongqi Li, whose study of living carnivorous plants was sparked by his interest in similar plants found in 125 million-year-old fossils, will be co-chairing the conference.

The International Carnivorous Plant Society is made up of horticulturists, conservationists, scientists and educators interested in sharing knowledge and news of carnivorous plants. Founded more than 28 years ago as a club of those who cultivated carnivorous plans, the group has evolved a more scientific focus, including a professional journal and a network of horticulturists, and it has taken a larger role in calling for conservation.

For more information, visit the Web site at www.frostburg.edu/6thICPS or contact Li at hli@frostburg.edu or 301-687-4168.

FSU is committed to making all of its programs, services and activities accessible to persons with disabilities. To request accommodations through the ADA Compliance Office, call (301) 687-4102, TDD (301) 687-7955.