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TN Chapter Annual Meeting / 40th Anniversary Celebration
February 24 @ 10:00 am - 4:30 pm
The Tennessee Chapter is excited to welcome you in the beautiful Cheekwood Estate and Gardens for our 2024 Chapter Meeting & 40th Anniversary Celebration! This meeting includes opportunities to hear from TACF’s Chief Conservation Officer, Sara Fitzsimmons, view a screening of CLEAR DAY THUNDER: Rescuing the American Chestnut, listen to a talk on Chestnut Ghosts – searching for remnants of the primeval chestnut forests from Greg Weaver, hear from Chapter President Hill Craddock and his student Uma Plambeck, and more! The chapter will also overview chapter governance and leadership structure, setting the stage for the nomination of officers for the Tennessee chapter.
Attendance is free but please consider making a donation of $25 to the Tennessee Chapter of the American Chestnut Foundation (TN-TACF) to cover lunch (cash or checks). You can also sign up and pay for a new or renewing membership at the meeting.
Lunch is provided to the first 25 registrants. Registration is required. Please register here.
| AGENDA | |
| 10:00AM | Meet & Greet, Tour Facility |
| 11:00AM | Welcome – Opening Comments |
| 11:15AM | TACF Roadmap & 2024 Plans |
| 12:15PM | Lunch & Screening of Clear Day Thunder |
| 1:30PM | President’s Remarks, Discussion of Officer Positions |
| 2:00PM | Break |
| 2:15PM | Presentation – Genomic support for four North American species of Castanea |
| 2:45PM | Student Paper – Small Stem Assay/Leaf Disc Assay |
| 3:00PM | Chestnut Ghosts – Searching for the Remnants |
| 3:40PM | Grower Forum |
| 4:10PM | Wrap Up |
This meeting will serve as both an annual meeting of the Tennessee chapter of TACF and a 40th anniversary of the founding of TACF. The meeting will be held in the Bradford Room of the Frist Learning Center at the Cheekwood Estate & Gardens in Nashville, with access to the grounds being provided to all meeting attendees. Please enter at the 111 Cheek Rd. entrance for the Frist Learning Center.
At this meeting we will have Jay Cude (Chairman of TACF’s Board) and TACF’s Chief Conservation Officer, Sara Fitzsimmons, present plans and progress towards restoration at the national level, followed by a Q&A session.
A box lunch will be provided to the first 25 registrants. During lunch we will be showing the TACF produced film Clear Day Thunder, featuring Dolly Parton.
TACF Tennessee chapter president Hill Craddock will present his work at the University of Tennessee – Chattanooga on chestnut breeding and nursery / orchard growth of chestnuts. M. Taylor Perkins, a Research Associate at The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, will make a presentation on Genomic support for four North American species of Castanea. One of Hill’s students (Uma Plambeck) will present a poster paper on her work with small stem / leaf disc assay for blight resistance. Hannah Lepeer (TACF’s Southern Regional Outreach Coordinator) will present an overview of chapter governance & leadership structure, setting the stage for the nomination of officers for the Tennessee chapter.
Tennessee chapter member Greg Weaver will give a talk on Chestnut ghosts – searching for remnants of the primeval chestnut forests. This will be followed by an open grower forum, where those who are attempting to grow chestnuts can share their experiences.
