Wetland – 2024 | Prairie Haven

[To see stories and photos from other years, see the links on the main Wetland page.]

In early January I planted seeds in Maze Meadow – the farthest east part of the wetland, Farmhouse Meadow – below the old farmhouse, and Crown-vetch Meadow – the farthest west part of the wetland just south of Willow Bend. These planted areas grew up this summer with lots of first year parsnip and Canada Thistle. I pulled some of the parsnip, and sprayed some of the thistle – there was so much that I didn’t get to it all – there will be more next year.

I pulled second year Wild Parsnip in all of the wetland except east of Maze Meadow. There’s less parsnip every year. The worst part is still No Bridge Meadow. Once it takes less time I’ll move on to the part that’s east of Maze Meadow.

Mike mowed part of Maze Meadow and Farmhouse Meadow – the places that had the worst Queen Anne’s Lace.

In late fall I planted more wetland seeds in both the Maze Meadow and Crown Vetch Meadow: Stiff Goldenrod, Joe Pye Weed, Lobelia, Flat-topped Aster, Sneezeweed, Cup Plant, Swamp Betony. Also – in No Bridge Meadow: Cup Plant in places with taller aggressive plants; Blue Lobelia in places with lower vegetation.

A lot of Fringed Gentian bloomed this year, and one day while I was wandering around admiring and photographing it I came across a new plant – one I’d never seen before: Grass of Parnassus (Parnassia glauca). It’s found in calcareous fens in southern Wisconsin and is not very common.

A graduate student from UW Stout did some monitoring of two of our beaver dams this summer. One was the old one in Willow Bend; the other is a newer one east of Maze Meadow. She’s interested in the differences that beavers make to water quality and wetland habitat.

1/9/2024

1/24/2024 Sawtooth Sunflower stalks

1/26/2024

2/21/2024

5/3/2024 The wet south end of Crown-vetch Meadow. This end is in the best shape, so I concentrated on keeping invasives out of this area.

5/16/2024 Crown-Vetch Meadow – the same spot, with Canada Anemone coming up.

5/16/2024 Marsh Marigolds in the triangle between the old and new driveways

5/20/24 Maze Meadow – pulling out stakes I’d used to mark sections for planting

5/20/2024 Maze Meadow looking into Farmhouse Meadow

5/22/2024 west end of Crown-vetch Meadow

5/27/2024 Beaver researchers heading to the Willow Bend dam.

6/4/2024 Maze Meadow

6/4/2024 Watercress in the eastern creek

6/4/2024 Sedges and Angelica in east No Bridge Meadow. Much less Wild Parsnip than there used to be here.

6/4/2024 Wild Iris (Iris versicolor) next to the creek

6/6/2024 Angelica between the creek and the power line path

6/9/2024 Farmhouse Meadow

6/15/2024 More Angelica and watercress in the creek

6/15/2024 Canada Anemone blooming in Crown-vetch Meadow

6/15/2024

6/22/2024 Reed Manna Grass (Glyceria grandis) along the eastern part of the creek

6/24/2024 Maze Meadow

7/5/2024

7/23/2024 Sedge meadow below Pine Point Prairie with sedges, Angelica and Joe Pye Weed

7/23/2024 A willow thicket near the creek. In the past there’s been Wild Parsnip under the willows, so I walk through and pull it. This year there was none.

7/23/2024 Joe Pye Weed, sedges and Boneset north of Willow Bend

8/6/2024 The eastern beaver dam that the researchers are monitoring

8/6/2024 Maze Meadow with Blue Vervain blooming

8/6/2024 Maze Meadow with Sheep Hill Bluff Prairie on the hillside

8/16/2024 Farmhouse meadow – a bit of the remnant wetland, with the newly planted area beyond it

8/16/2024 Maze Meadow – some of the Queen Anne’s Lace that Mike mowed and I tried to pull.

8/16/2024

8/22/2024

8/29/2024

9/5/2024

9/6/2024 Maze Meadow after mowing

9/13/2024

9/18/2024 Grass of Parnassus (Parnassia glauca)

9/18/2024 Grass of Parnassus leaves

9/18/2024 Fringed Gentian

11/4/2024 The vines in this photo are – I think – Marsh Pea (Lathyrus palustris). They stand out much more at this time of year than when they’re green and growing.

12/11/2024

12/15/2024 The remains of the old stone barn at the edge of Maze Meadow – with dried stems and seeds of Blue Vervain.

12/15/2024 Maze Meadow

12/15/2024

12/30/2024