Becky Barak

Hi! I'm Becky. I'm an #actuallivingscientist studying restoration of the tallgrass prairie. I 💗 🌼🌻🌾 and 🐈

Was a pleasure to work with Jack Zinnen and Jeff Matthews on this paper on the commercial availability of native plants. Lots of trees in the commercial trade, not fewer graminoids and ferns than you'd expect. esajournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.10…

@pattywetli @chicagobotanic @ChicagoParks @lglyndal @chase_prairie Thank you so much for this article, Patty!

The Chi Botanic Garden & Chi Park District are at the forefront of research into the best lawn alternatives. Oooh, the mowers could go silent! @chicagobotanic @ChicagoParks #RethinkingLawns @BeckSamBar @lglyndal @chase_prairie news.wttw.com/2024/11/11/tur… news.wttw.com/2024/11/11/tur…

I’m so proud to share that the Rethinking Lawns project of @chicagobotanic @ChicagoParks & and @UMFlint just received the PACSP grant from the @NSF & @PGAFamilyFdn to support our research into lawn enhancement & replacement with native plants.

This survey is still open. It is about native seed sourcing for restoration, focused on California and 8 midwest states. Please share with relevant colleagues, or take the survey if it applies to you! THANKS!

@gonzo3249 @mollytolsky @maimonides_nutz I deleted it off my phone. I’m here from a browser.

@MartineBotany I haven’t been on Twitter in a minute but yes! Such an interesting system! But very glad I later found plants/restoration.

@BeckSamBar Whoah, you did? That’s cool

I wrote my undergrad thesis about basal metabolic rates in these sparrows. While that research solidified that I shouldn’t be a bird physiologist, white throated sparrows are still very very cool.

Purpose: To gather information from restoration practitioners on their organization’s seed sourcing and procurement practices and identify factors that constrain their seed sourcing options. A better understanding of current seed sourcing choices and limitations (2/6)

Please see Jessa’s thread for a new survey on native seed sourcing for restoration. The survey should take less than 10 minutes! We’re looking for participants from 8 Midwest states (IL, IN, IA, MI, MO, MN, OH, WI) and California! Please share!

This is my belief too. I am always trying my best to do right by my students!!

Due tomorrow!

REU program at Chicago Botanic Garden, From genes to ecosystems. Please share with plant-curious undergrads you know! Applications due Friday! pbcinternships.org #NSFREU

DR. CHASE PRAIRIE y’all!!! 🎉🎉🎉 Couldn’t be prouder of @chase_prairie. Photo’s blurry cause we’re vibrating on a higher frequency.

Meet grad student scholar, Brian Lovejoy! A 3rd-year Ph.D. student in the Plant Biology and Conservation program at @NorthwesternU, he is studying urban ecology to understand if there can be a balance between modern urban development & ecological integrity. Full story #linkinbio

@GeorgiaDunnBCN So sorry to hear that. Your comics bring a lot of joy to our family

@EladNehorai Oh my, this is so so terrible.

Has a piece of art (music, a movie, a painting, or a play) ever moved you so much you did something drastic? Last year I watched Everything Everywhere All At Once with my boyfriend, & when it was over I cried & said "I can't do this anymore." It was the last time we ever spoke.

A wise person once said that you will experience climate change through a series of increasingly wild videos, until you are the one taking the video.

Experts say "Don't panic." Have they seen the videos out of Pittsburgh? To help nip this infestation, look for juveniles/nymphs and eggs (we've got photos 👇), and time to get serious about eradicating Tree of Heaven. news.wttw.com/2023/09/27/spo…

recommendation for my chicago friends is to smash them when they're nymphs because if you let them get fully grown they're big enough that stuff like, comes out of them when you step on them and it can really ruin your whole day