It’s About Time

February is a very interesting month for the Willamette Valley. Although it’s midwinter in the northern hemisphere, we have spring activity gearing up, with expectations of first native wildflowers blooming.

The error bar is wide for average first bloom of spring beauty because weather is so unpredictable this time of year. The average opening of spring beauty is Feb. 16, the birthday (in 1909) of Lincoln Constance. He was one of the most notable botanists to have grown up in Eugene and graduate from the University of Oregon. His family ritual was to search for spring beauty flowers every year on his birthday.

Keeping track of annual records of nature events like this is an important part of environmental science. These are the data, the facts, which provide the scientific community with information to create projections. There would be no weather prediction possible without past records. Effective and accurate predictions are constantly improving with more powerful models that rely on modern computing technology.

It is so discouraging to hear how the current administration is attacking the scientific agencies that monitor the environmental parameters that influence human life. These agency scientists, from botanists to cosmological physicists, are responsible for providing the information necessary for making political decisions about critical environmental matters.

Now is a good time to give a shout out to the ground troops making the observations. They rely on federal support to maintain and coordinate their environmental monitoring programs.

Citizen scientists must step in to help. Watch what’s going on!

David Wagner is a botanist who works in Eugene. He teaches moss classes, leads nature walks and makes nature calendars. He can be contacted through his website: fernzenmosses.com.

A Note From the Publisher

Dear Readers,

The last two years have been some of the hardest in Eugene Weekly’s 43 years. There were moments when keeping the paper alive felt uncertain. And yet, here we are — still publishing, still investigating, still showing up every week.

That’s because of you!

Not just because of financial support (though that matters enormously), but because of the emails, notes, conversations, encouragement and ideas you shared along the way. You reminded us why this paper exists and who it’s for.

Listening to readers has always been at the heart of Eugene Weekly. This year, that meant launching our popular weekly Activist Alert column, after many of you told us there was no single, reliable place to find information about rallies, meetings and ways to get involved. You asked. We responded.

We’ve also continued to deepen the coverage that sets Eugene Weekly apart, including our in-depth reporting on local real estate development through Bricks & Mortar — digging into what’s being built, who’s behind it and how those decisions shape our community.

And, of course, we’ve continued to bring you the stories and features many of you depend on: investigations and local government reporting, arts and culture coverage, sudoku and crossword puzzles, Savage Love, and our extensive community events calendar. We feature award-winning stories by University of Oregon student reporters getting real world journalism experience. All free. In print and online.

None of this happens by accident. It happens because readers step up and say: this matters.

As we head into a new year, please consider supporting Eugene Weekly if you’re able. Every dollar helps keep us digging, questioning, celebrating — and yes, occasionally annoying exactly the right people. We consider that a public service.

Thank you for standing with us!