Flora
There are a wide variety of plants and trees in the preserve. To encourage the restoration of an oak savana, a controlled burn was done in the circular area within the red trail.
Wild flowers...
Spring beauty. Claytonia (spring beauty or fairy spud), is a genus of 26 species of flowering plants in the family Montiaceae, primarily native to North America.
The two native species of Claytonia are often found in Michigan: C. virginica and C. caroliniana.
The vegetative parts of both turn yellowish after a short flowering and fruiting season in the spring, and soon the plants are no longer seen above ground in forests which may have been carpeted with them a month previously. Both native species are extremely variable in leaf shape and size as well as in other characters. The petals are usually pale pink with deeper colored veins, but the ground color ranges from white to very deep pink. The flowers can be seen throughout the forest floor of the preserve in spring. Pic taken late April, 2017.
Trees...
Once the leaves come out to aid in identification, we'll be adding a number of new trees to the list...
Shag Bark Hickory. This lovely old shag bark hickory is south of
Common blue violets. Viola sororia (Common Blue Violet, Confederate Violet, Dooryard Violet, Meadow Violet) is found in many environments throughout the United States from the east coast to the Rocky Mountains. Violets are seen throughout the preserves' forest floor in the spring. Pic taken late April, 2017.
marker #8, off the trail to the west near the wetland (pic 4/10/17). Hickories are deciduous trees and are fairly common in the area. When autumn arrives, their leaves turn pale green to yellowish-brown before they fall.
Given an opportunity to thrive, most shag bark hickories will live about 200 years, but can live as long as 300 years. They can be as high as 120 feet tall. When time permits, I'll estimate how high this one is.
Shagbark hickories can tolerate a range of temperatures, but they grow best on moist soils in humid climates. Being next to a wetland, yet up slightly on a ridge is a fairly ideal place to grow.
They are not found in pure stands, but instead are usually scattered throughout a forest of oaks, pines, and maples.
Redbud. Known as the harbinger of spring, the eastern redbud’s delicate blossoms and buds are one of the season’s most dramatic displays. This one is located on the east side of the trail about 200 feet from the gate (pic late April, 2017).
Wild Geranium. Geranium maculatum (wild geranium, spotted geranium, or wood geranium) is a perennial plant native to woodland in eastern North America, from southern Manitoba and southwestern Quebec south to Alabama and Georgia and west to Oklahoma and South Dakota. They are abundant in the spring in the woods of the preserve. Pic taken 5/9/17 in the preserve.
Apple. There was once an orchard of mature apple trees on Spencer Road east of the preserve that has now been turned into a small subdivision. Seeds from those trees have found there way to various places in the preserve over time, especially toward the north and near the edges of the field on Spencer. As a result, a few apples trees, like the one below can be found in the border between sections of the field and elsewhere where there is sufficient sunlight.
Cherry. There are a number of cherry trees in the woods of the preserve.
Trillium. As one of the eight species of trillium native to Michigan, the Common Trillium, also called the White Trillium or Great White Trillium, Large-flowered White Trillium or White Wake-robin (Trillium grandiflorum) is by far our most popular and common trillium species. Its elegant and stately three-petal white blossom is the star attraction of the late April to early June deciduous hardwoods. It often forms large colonies in beech-maple to oak-hickory forests, where it grows in a colorful mixture of other springtime ephemerals.
Never dig up or pick trillium anywhere in Michigan, including at the preserve. Picking them can kill the plant by preventing it from producing the necessary food source it requires for next year’s growth. They are a protected wildflower. In Michigan, it’s illegal to pick and/or transplant T. grandiflorum from public land without a permit from the state. Pic taken 5/13/17 in the preserve.
In late April they began to sport their blossoms. There are a number of smaller cherry trees like this one along the western boundary of the Spencer field. With limited light, those in the woods have considerably fewer blossoms (pic 4/27/17).
Fungus...
Fungus growing on a small branch. Picture taken 4/5/17 in the northern part of the preserve. Perhaps it is Smoky Polypore.
Yellow lady slipper orchid. Yellow Lady-slipper (Cypripedium parviflorum) is found throughout Michigan and is highly variable. Parviflorum means small flowered. The species as now classified separates it from the European (C. calceolus) plants. The typical variety (var. parviflorum) occurs in the southeastern United States.
Orange Daylily. Many North Americans think the tough orange daylily they see in old gardens and along roadsides is a native wildflower, but it really isn't. Most hail from Asia. But that old orange Asian species, called Hemerocallis fulva, is still popular. They are located primarily on the western edge of the burn area and may be removed.
Thaspium trifoliatum (?) Smooth Meadow Parsnip, Woodland Meadow Parsnip, Yellow Meadow Parsnip. Thaspium - Meadow Parsnip - is a small genus with only 3 or 4 species, all found only in eastern and central North America. Meadow Parsnips are very similar to plants in the Zizia genus. The yellow variety of Thaspium trifoliatum is very difficult to distinguish from Zizia aurea, Golden Alexanders.
To be determined...
to be determined...
Plants...
Jack-in-the-pulpit. Arisaema triphyllum (jack-in-the-pulpit, bog onion,
brown dragon, Indian turnip, American wake robin, or wild turnip) is a perennial plant typically growing 12–26 in in height with three-parted leaves and flowers contained in a spadix that is covered by a hood.
It is native to eastern North America, occurring in moist woodlands and thickets from Nova Scotia west to Minnesota, and south to southern Florida and Texas.
The plant contains calcium oxalate crystals as raphides in all parts, and because of this consumption of the raw plant material results in a powerful burning sensation. It can cause irritation of the mouth and digestive system, and on rare occasions the swelling of the mouth and throat may be severe enough to affect breathing. Pic taken 5/8/17 in the preserve.
May Apples. American Mandrake, or May Apple, is found on the forest floor throughout the preserve and is widespread across most of the eastern United States and southeastern Canada. Pic taken 5/3/2017. May Apple is being tested as a possible treatment for cancer as it contains podophyllin, which has an antimiotic effect (it interferes with cell division and can thus prevent the growth of cells).
Invasive Species...
The following is a list of suspected invasive species and their locations in the preserve so that efforts can be organized to examine them and potentially remove them. Faye Stoner, from Washtenaw County Parks and Rec, has tentatively identified two types of invasives in the preserve:
- Glechoma hederacea is an aromatic, perennial, evergreen creeper of the mint family Lamiaceae. It is commonly known as ground-ivy, gill-over-the-ground, creeping charlie, alehoof, tunhoof, catsfoot, field balm, and run-away-robin. Most of the time, the entire plant (not the flowers) has a strong smell of mint and medicine. It stays low to the ground.
- Ajuga reptans (commonly known as bugle, blue bugle, bugleherb, bugleweed, carpetweed, carpet bugleweed, and common bugle), is an herbaceous flowering plant native to Europe. It stands up taller than Glechoma.
One or both of these invasives have been seen in the following locations.
- 50 feet south of marker #2 on the west side of the trail. Most can be found in about a 15 X 15 foot area, though some extend beyond that.
- On the east side of the trail perhaps 100 yards north of marker #3 as you walk to marker #4. Invasives are on a mound of dirt about 3 feet high, and 10 X 10 feet immediately next to the trail. To a lesser extent, more can be found a bit north of there.
- From the northern edge of the large sandy area that was once the pavilion (located west of marker #2), the invasives can be found about 150 feet north, below the ridge.
- Walking south on the trail from marker #2 toward the gate, the trail curves to the west. At the point of this curve (about 200-250 feet south of marker #2) is a small clearing immediately on the east side of the trail. The invasives can be found in this clearing and potentially surrounding areas.
- Just south of the deep pit at the north end of the burn area is what looks like an old vehicle road going east-west. In the middle of that "road" perhaps 30 feet east of western leg of the red loop is a small patch.
Each location has direct overhead sun, but near the woods with considerable shade throughout the day. It may be helpful to walk the red trail more thoroughly to look for more locations of overhead sun with ample shade that provide optimal habitat for these invasives.