New England Wild Flower Society ecologist and author of "State of the Plants: Challenges and Opportunities for Conserving New England’s Native Flora" (2015) Elizabeth Farnsworth, talks about the riparian community surrounding the Mill River in Northampton, Massachusetts.
(Photo Credit: Carrie Healy for NEPR)

A Closer Look at Why New England Native Plants Are Threatened

by: Carrie Healy March 27, 2015 Northampton, Mass.

Some dire news this week about plants that’re native to New England. Many — 1 in 5 – are endangered. That’s according to a report from the New England Wild Flower Society. Its author is ecologist Elizabeth Farnsworth. On a sunny day overlooking Paradise Pond, at Smith College in Northampton, Farnsworth talks with New England Public Radio’s Carrie Healy. Farnsworth used the Mill River, that both flows into and from the pond, to explain how plants, animals and people are interconnected.

Listen to the audio player above to hear Carrie Healy’s conversation with Elizabeth Farnsworth.

To read the “State of the Plants” report, click: New England Wild Flower Society.