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Helping people improve the ecological health of their land since 2004.

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Witch hazel, Hamamelis virginiana, is one of our favorite fall bloomers! Its name is derived from an old English word ‘wych’ meaning ‘pliable or to bend’. It is thought the name refers to the branches which are forked and flexible, and have been used by Native Americans and early settlers as ‘dowsing’ or ‘divining’ rods to locate underground water wells. This method is known as “water witching”. The last 2 weeks our crews have been getting great fire effects on many properties that we have the privilege to help manage and promote their ecological health. We thank our crew members for putting in long days, and working through the weekends while the weather is right for getting fire back on the landscape 🍁🔥🍁🔥 🚨This Wisconsin Wednesday we’re putting out a PSA about a specific type of “hitchhiker”…seeds! Just like many other animals, we can be seed carriers this time of year. Shown in this photo is Virginia Stickseed/Beggar's Lice (Hackelia virginiana) and the invasive Common Burdock (Arctium minus). Although Stickseed is native, it is considered aggressive and a nuance. For our first Wisconsin Wednesday, we are featuring a well known tree, especially in northern Wisconsin. The Eastern White Pine (Pinus Strobus) is the largest conifer of the Northeast and was once a prominent piece of the magnificent old growth forests indicative of the Lake States. They covered roughly 60% of the area, but the Eastern White Pine has been subject to the axe as well as disease (e.g. White Pine Blister Rust). This tree was sought after for its lumber uses such as crates, barrels, and especially as ship masts during colonial times. Native Americans would use the inner bark of the tree as well as the needles for decongestion, the seeds from the cones as food, and in times of famine, it was common to mash the bark into a fine powder and substitute this for flour. Happy November all!! This week’s Wildflower Wednesday features a beautiful late blooming Gentian you might be able to catch a glimpse of still! Gentianella quinquefolia, known as Stiff Gentian, Ague-weed, or Gall-of-the-Earth, is commonly found in a variety of habitats, such as roadsides, wet fields, high rocky ridge tops, bogs and wet woods in the eastern US. This Gentian was originally in the Genitiana genus, but was split off to Gentianella, meaning little Gentian, given to dwarf Gentians. True to it’s genus, Stiff Gentian usually grows to 2 feet at most, but typically about 16 inches. It’s leaves are stalkless, grow opposite and are lance-like. Stems are smooth with a reddish tint. The clusters of small tube-shaped flowers can be light purple to shades of blue and sometimes even have tints of yellow. It can bloom from August into October, which is perfect for Bumblebees before winter hibernation, like the New England Aster in our last post! There are two varieties separated approximately by the state of Ohio. One occurs more westerly, var. occidentalis, the other occurs more easterly, var. quinquefolia, which has a smaller calyx. Var. occidentalis is the variety likely to be seen in Wisconsin. A species that it could be mistaken for is Autumn Dwarf Gentian, Gentianella amarella, but what sets it apart is where it occurs and the presence of a bristle tip on it’s petals (circled in red), as well as absence of hairs at the base of the petal lobes. If you see this wildflower still in bloom, we urge you to take a moment to appreciate it as one of the last blooming native wildflowers! As October marches on you can observe the trees changing colors, weeds and plants dying back, and the prairie grasses turning a brilliant orange and red on the landscape. With these warm days and cool nights, you will certainly see queen bumble bees eating as much nectar on the remaining native wildflowers before they overwinter in the ground, and Monarch Butterflies gearing up for their long journey south to Mexico. This Wildflower Wednesday is a versatile orchid that tolerates a variety of ecosystems from sandy woodlands, to acidic bogs and bluff prairies. Nodding Ladies’-Tresses, or autumn ladies’ tresses orchid (Spiranthes cernua), produce fragrant spirals of white nodding flowers going up their light green stem. It’s one of the few orchids with fragrance! Each flower is about 1/3-inch long, with 3 white sepals and 3 white petals. These orchids are relatively small in height, only getting up to approximately 4-12 inches, (some sources say they can get up to 2 feet). They bloom starting at the end of summer through November and even up to the first frost, leaving it to be one of the last pollinator plants for Bumblebees. Keep your eyes peeled for this awesome orchid while we get into cooler weather! Please mark your calendars for a native plant sale at our DeForest shop location, Friday, September 22nd! We have a great stock of species unused from our planting season that need forever homes. 🌱

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