Social Events

Wednesday Welcome - Tour of UF Bat House
& Field and Fork Gardens

Join us on Wednesday, April 2, 2025 with this fun double header evening
trip to the Field and Fork Farms and famous University of Florida (UF) Bat Houses. 

Meet at the Hilton at 6:45pm. The outing will be 1.5 hours long.

Cost: $20.00 

We’ll begin the tour with Director Anna Prizzia at the UF Field and Fork Farm adjacent to the two Bat Houses. The Farm has received grants to renew the wildflower meadow next to the Bat Houses and install an educational wildflower garden. The Farm grows a diverse selection of more than 40 seasonal vegetables, fruits, herbs and flowers. All food produced is donated to a local pantry, shared with volunteers, used for educational events, or becomes part of course work in harvest, post-harvest, processing, etc. for sustainable food production. At sunset, as we wait for the 400,000+ bats to emerge, Lee Bloomcamp will discuss the fascinating history of the UF Bat houses and their occupants. Lee started the Bat House project in 1989 when she was director of pest control for the University of Florida campus. When fire destroyed UF’s Johnson Hall in 1987, a colony of bats occupying the attic of the historic building began roosting in the concrete bleachers of James G. Pressly Track Stadium and Scott Linder Tennis Stadium. The odor and stains from urine and guano and the bats’ close proximity to spectators were a nuisance. Lee worked to secure funding to build a custom- designed structure for the bats to live undisturbed and at a safe distance from human activity.

Anna Prizzia is the Director of Field and Fork and a County Commissioner in Alachua County with over 20 years of experience working in the areas of conservation, sustainability and local food systems. Lee Bloomcamp is a retired entomologist who spent her career in pest and plant disease management with the University of Florida and agriculture/biotech industry.

Thursday - Evening Reception and Mixer

We welcome you to join our evening social on Thursday, April 3, 2025 from 6:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. at Swamp Head Brewery.

Cost: $35.00 and includes food and one brew or soft drink.

Mix and mingle among your fellow native plant people and share perspectives with some of the best advocates in Florida conservation, science, sustainability, and natural heritage. But if you are shy mingling in a group, we are making it a game with FNPS BINGO. We will provide you with a grid of questions to query your companions with. Find someone to answer your squares until you get to BINGO and win a prize. As you mingle, you will enjoy your choice of a drink from Swamp Head Brewery and an entree from the special events food truck: Cheffreys

Swamp Head is a world-class brewery located in Gainesville FL. They live, love, and are Florida. Swamp Head takes sustainability seriously and partners with “We are Neutral” an environmental nonprofit who helps understand, track, reduce, and offset businesses’ carbon  footprints. What doesn’t end up in your glass, is reclaimed or repurposed from each batch: reclaiming hot water, recycling yeast, or returning spent grain to agricultural producers.

Cheffrey’s has a five-star rating on Facebook. Chef Jeff is the owner, starting at age 18 with Dragonfly Sushi and Sake Company in Gainesville, he worked every station over 20 years until he became Head Chef. He has now started his own business, opening his own food truck and catering business. Choices include high-end sandwiches, BAO Buns, salad, dumplings, and vegan selections. See menu here.

Friday - Evening Social and Banquet Dinner at the UF Hilton

The Florida Native Plant Society invites you to our banquet dinner on Friday, April 4, 2025 from 6:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. in Ballroom A of the UF Hilton.

Cost: $65.00 for a sit down dinner with a special guest speaker. 

Please join us for an evening of camaraderie and education on-site at the conference venue. Dinner includes a choice of:

-- grilled chicken breast with herbed & peppered veloute, haricot vert, & oven roasted potatoes

-- blackened mahi with pineapple salsa, fire roasted asparagus, & black bean & corn succotash

-- roasted cauliflower ‘steak’ with curried compote & wilted greens (vegan/gf)

Meal includes field greens salad, warm dinner rolls with butter, dessert option of chocolate mousse cake with chantilly cream or citrus mousse tarts with orange segments & lime zest, and  freshly brewed regular or decaffeinated coffee, iced tea, & iced water

We are pleased to have as our guest speaker Matthew E. Smith, who will discuss the world of fungi. Dr Smith is a Professor at the University of Florida Department of Plant Pathology and the curator of the Fungarium at the Florida Museum of Natural History. He is an author of >175 scientific publications on fungi and much of his research has focused on the ecology and evolution of ectomycorrhizal fungi and on the biology of truffles. He has described several new genera of fungi and >50 new species, including several new truffles and truffle-like fungi.

Saturday - Evening Social at the Matheson History Museum

Don’t miss the final evening social of the Florida Native Plant Society 2025 Conference on Saturday, April 5, 2025 from 6:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m., at the Matheson History Museum.

Cost:  $25.00 and includes soft drinks, appetizers, and desserts.

Enjoy the occasion to catch up with new and old friends alike, while taking in the exhibits of the Matheson History Museum, which highlights the local history of Alachua County and the surrounding area. We’ll also have the opportunity to learn about new developments within the Florida Native Plant Society and what projects are happening regionally with our chapters. 

Museum exhibits include a 1,400 year old Timucuan Canoe; a recreation of the 1867 Matheson & Company Store; and the history of Alachua County from its first settlers, the Timucuan tribe, to the turn of the 20th century. Visitors will learn about everything from William Bartram’s visit in 1784, to the Spanish occupation of Florida, and the history of the University of Florida.

The museum and front yard of the Historic Matheson House are ADA accessible.

Parking is available in the museum’s parking lot on the east side of the building. For weekend and evening events parking is also available at the Alachua County Public Schools District Office and next door at the Law Office of Attorneys Folds & Walker.