It's NOT too late! The FNPS conference is this week.

FNPS 2013 Conference logo

If your schedule has been too unpredictable to pre-register for the FNPS conference, but now you find that you're free this weekend, come to Jacksonville and register onsite. The conference will take place from Thursday May 16th to Sunday May 19th. The field trips are on Thursday and Sunday with the speakers, exhibitors, vendors, and plant sale all on Friday and Saturday.


Some ins and outs of onsite registration

Oodles of restaurants are close to the UNF campus

The food has already been ordered, so there will be no lunches on either the field trips or for the meeting days. The socials have been sold out.  So bring your lunch for the field trips, and on meeting days, plan to bring your lunch or to purchase your lunch or dinner from nearby restaurants.

The St. Johns Town Center is easy to access from campus and offers a wide variety of food. From a China bistro, to Panera, Abblebee, California Pizza, Cheescake Factory and more. Just exit the campus from the main gate and cross under Rt. 295 to Town Center Dr. Also, the Sheraton, the conference hotel, has a full restaurant that serves breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

Conference Highlights

Some field trips have sold out, but there are plenty of spaces for many of the others.  Be sure to leave enough time to register before the gathering time, which will be at the pavilion and the back parking lot. There are some fantastic places to explore in NE Florida. What better opportunity than with a local expert?

We have lined up more than 20 excellent speakers for the conference who will be covering some fascinating topics. Be sure to check them out on the Speakers Profile Page.

A few of the items that we have gathered for the silent auction.
We have organized a wonderful silent auction with high end items including art, photographs, gift baskets, books, and more. In addition, REI has donated a kayak which will be a raffle item and an FNPS member has created a wonderful quilt that will also be raffled off.

We have a wide variety of vendors and inside exhibitors, that will offer information and/or merchandise from books and stationery to garden art and bee houses.  Just outside the back door or off the east deck (pavilion) there will be eight native plant vendors. At lunch time several authors will be signing their books.  You do not need to register for the conference to purchase from the vendors or to get a book signed.

To have an authentic Florida landscape you need natives!

Home Landscape Design Workshop
Saturday May18th
12:50pm - 2:45pm

If you are not registered, please register before 12:30pm

This workshop is offered as a separate, stand-alone session from the rest of the conference for only $25.



If you have the desire to make improvements to your home landscape but are unsure where to begin, you will not want to miss this hands-on educational workshop. Led by two of our favorite Ixia members, Jake Ingram and Laurie Sheldon, both of whom received degrees in Landscape Architecture, you will walk away with an understanding of the design process and methods you can use to make thoughtful landscape decisions.
Then after the workshop, you'll be able to purchase the plants you just learned about. How cool is that??

So even if you haven't registered yet, come on to Jacksonville for a good time, an education, and to meet folks who are accomplishing fantastic projects to preserve, conserve, and protect Florida's native plants and their habitats.

Posted by Ginny Stibolt.


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