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423 There are several people who have been instrumental while working on this book. First and foremost, I am indebted to my husband, Chris, who has been supportive of this project every step of the way. I am also indebted to Alan Nations, arborist, naturalist, founder of NativeScapes, Inc., and former Naturalist and Restoration Specialist with the Louisville Olmsted Parks Conservancy. His passion, knowledge , and dedication to restoring the health of these great urban parks prompted the start-up of the 2005 Woodlands Restoration campaign. I am very grateful to you for recognizing the need, and value, of cataloging the plants: a mere snapshot in time! To David Fothergill, former Landscape Supervisor for Metro Parks and field buddy since day one. I could not have asked for a more enthusiastic, knowledgeable , and kind person to botanize with. To Susan Rademacher, Director of the Pittsburg Parks Conservancy and internationally known Olmsted scholar, it has been an honor to have worked with you as former Executive Director of the Louisville Olmsted Parks Conservancy. To the photographers, Susan Wilson and Chris Bidwell, both trauma nurses by profession and naturalists by passion, this book is a diary of our days in the field exploring, well captured by your exceptional photographs. Special thanks go to Major Waltman, Research Specialist for the Louisville Olmsted Parks Conservancy; Mimi Zinniel, President/CEO of the Louisville Olmsted Parks Conservancy, and to Dan Jones, Chairman and CEO, 21st Century Parks, for your support and valuable input. As with any floristic project, time becomes a limiting factor, and I could not have accurately written this book without relying on the vast knowledge of several key people who work with the Louisville Olmsted Parks Conservancy or Acknowledgments 424 Acknowledgments Metro Parks currently or have done so in the past. Thanks to Josh Wysor, John Swintosky, Liz Mortenson, Sarah Wolff, Katie Greene, Adrian Camacho, Carl Suk, Robert Woodford, Matt Spalding, and Andrew Oost. To these professional mentors: Ron Jones, Rob Paratley, Julian Campbell, Margaret Carreiro, Larry Alice, Ross Clark, Deborah White, Joyce Bender, Allen Bush, and Landon McKinney, I am sincerely thankful for your expertise and advice in editing my manuscript, looking at plants I questioned, or spending time in the field or herbarium with me. This scholarly input, your friendship, and encouragement has inspired and guided me through this venture. Any mistakes it still may have are my responsibility. And, lastly, to Mabel Slack, John Thieret, Harrison Garman, and other botanists , both past and present: here’s to you, a rare breed whose passion for exploring the field, collecting, and documenting plants in Kentucky has laid down the ground work so that others may build upon and better understand the “pristine” flora of long ago as well as the changing landscape of today. Preserving what is left of our rich botanical heritage, both in the field and herbaria, depends on this timeless knowledge. I am forever grateful! Special Thanks I would like to thank the field crews with the Louisville Olmsted Parks Conservancy and Metro Parks with whom I have worked with since 2005. The endless hours spent physically working in the relentless heat or bitter cold has not gone unnoticed. You are the backbone of these parks. Photographers’ Note As the photographers for this book, we would first and foremost like to thank Pat Haragan for her trust and patience with two amateurs. We have benefited from her vast knowledge of the flora that surrounds us in our wonderful park system in Louisville. As trauma nurses by trade and naturalists by choice, our great love of nature, especially our wildflowers, has truly been expanded by our days in the field photographing and identifying the flora around us. Thanks to all our families for their love and support during this project. We also want to thank our dear friend Dr. Tom Barnes from the University of Kentucky, who without his expertise and positive feedback these pictures would not have been possible. All photographs were taken with our Nikon D300 camera using either an AF micro Nikkor 200mm or an AFS Nikkor 24–120mm lens.—Chris Bidwell and Susan Wilson ...

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