July 2023

A Rare Floriferous Find! By Nate Simons I consider it a privilege to steward some of the most enchanting wild places in northeast Indiana. While directing Blue Heron Ministries, I maintain my skills of managing natural areas by working part-time for the Indiana Division of Nature Preserves. Directing keeps me indoors most of the time, while working for the Division allows me the opportunity to work outside. Many of the State nature preserves I get to help keep are located in the Northern Lakes Region of Steuben and LaGrange Counties. And many of those places contain the rare and threatened landscape known as fen wetlands.Fens are groundwater-charged wetlands with mucky and marly soils, are sloped, usually have springs and rivulets, have an outflow to a lake or stream, and have plant life that is unique to the continually saturated (but not flooded), neutral-to-alkaline soils. One particular fen within Pigeon River Fish and Wildlife Area was the source of some botanical excitement last week. In it, I rediscovered a rare orchid.

Close up view of the spiral flower arrangement of hooded ladies’ tresses. July 25.

Growing at the edge of a marl flat was a small colony of hooded ladies’ tresses (Spiranthes romanzoffiana*) . I texted Lee Casebere (former Division assistant director and fen and orchid enthusiast), Rich Dunbar (Division regional ecologist), and Scott Namestnick (State botanist) with a picture of my find and question about the certainty of the exact species. They confirmed that the spiral-flowered orchid (Spiranthes means “spiral-flowered) that blooms in July in the fens is indeed the State Endangered species. Though globally, the hooded ladies’ tresses is secure as far as its likelihood of population collapse or extinction, it is known from only a handful of sites in Indiana. In fact, according to Mike Homoya in Orchids of Indiana, hooded ladies’ tresses is the rarest Spiranthes orchid in Indiana.I later returned at Scott’s request to complete an element occurrence survey form for the plant as the species had not been seen at the site for a number of years. Lee had remembered seeing the orchid at the fen decades ago. Growing with the eight flowers were fine-textured sedges, bulrushes, fen-associated wildflowers (though of diminutive stature due to the harsh growing conditions within the marl flat), dwarf birch, poison sumac, and tamarack.

Hooded ladies’ tresses growing within the graminoid plant community at the edge of a marly spot in the fen. July 25.

Of particular interest and excitement for me was the fact that the fen has been actively managed for a few decades…intensively so for the past dozen years. Non-native cattails, narrow-leaved and hybrid, had invaded portions of the fen and had formed monocultures of tall, dense vegetation to the exclusion of the native plant species. Blue Heron Ministries’ crewmembers assisted in the removal of the cattail patches with broadcast herbicide applications and with prescribed fires in 2012 and 2013. The density of the cattails was significantly reduced. Annually since then, I have returned to the fen to hand-apply herbicide to the remaining cattails. What once took days to control the cattails now takes a couple of hours. And the rarest of the Spiranthes orchids, hooded ladies’ tresses, showed up in the exact spot that the invasive cattails once occupied! What a testament to the resiliency of fen ecosystems and to the faithful, long-term care of them!

Context. An enchanted world with sun poking through a foreboding sky highlighting the marl flat within the fen that includes poison sumac and tamarack trees and the hooded ladies’ tresses. July 25.

I am continually amazed at the wonders of creation…the works of our Father’s hands… and am thrilled to be a part of the restoration of that creation as a demonstration in advance of the renewal of all things when Jesus returns to make all things right and good and in right relationship again.*The second name is in reference to Nikolai Petrovich Rumyantsev, Russian Count who financed a scientific discovery expedition to the Americas in the early 1800’s (I am thinking Romanzof must be an English variation of the Russian sir name).

View from the Crew by Josh Hall

Nate Simons, donning his DNR hat, introduced Madeline and Lee to the wonders of marl flats at IDNR’s Lime Lake Nature Preserve.

Butterfly milkweed in full bloom, at Lime Lake Nature Preserve.

The carnivorous flat-leaved bladderwort, at Michigan DNR’s Gourdneck State Game Area near Portage, Michigan

Cedar waxwing nestlings in a tamarack tree at Gourdneck State Game Area

Michigan lily at Gourdneck State Game Area

Wild senna at LaGrange County Park’s Pine Knob Park

Monarch butterfly nectaring on a swamp milkweed at Pine Knob County Park

Marsh blazing star at Gourdneck State Game Area

Showy tick trefoil at Pine Knob County Park

A prairie creek meanders through Duff Lake Fen at Pine Knob County Park

Lee, Madeline, and Josh cooling off their feet at Pine Knob County Park

A honey bee on tall iron weed at Pine Knob County Park

Culver’s root at Pine Knob County Park

On a rainy afternoon, John shows Lee, Madeline, and Fred how to separate chaff from seed with a fan. They are cleaning wild blue lupine seeds.

And as we steward creation, we have to be careful not to step on the mallard ducklings nestled in the grass. These little ducklings were trying to hide, after momma duck fled from the crew, at Mike Metz Fen in Pine Knob Park.

Upcoming Events

Summer Wildflower Walk Sunday August 13th, from 2-4PMAugust is the best time of year to see color in the wetlands of northeast Indiana! Join Blue Heron Ministries as we take a stroll through the stunning beauty of Mike Metz Fen at Pine Knob Park.Bring your cameras, sunscreen, and potentially bug spray as we walk the new boardwalks around Duff Lake. There is a potential of going off trail briefly to look more closely at some species, so waterproof footwear may come in handy.We will meet in the Pine Knob Park parking lot at 2pm (2835 E IN 120 Howe, IN 46746)For questions about the event, contact John Brittenham at johnbrittenham@gmail.com.

Native Prairie Plant Seed Harvest Saturday, September 16 from 12-4pm The kickoff to our fall native prairie seed harvests! Come help us further our mission by collecting seeds from our native plants, to be used in our future projects. You’ll have the opportunity to learn about the plants and the protected spaces they inhabit.We’ll meet at the Presbyterian Chapel of the Lakes (2955 W. Orland Rd) at noon and caravan to the site(s). We have all the tools and supplies.

Butterfly milkweed pods ready for harvest photo credit: Beth Williams

Native Prairie Plant Seed Harvest Saturday, October 7th, 14th, 21st, 28th from 12-4pm Come learn about the native prairie plants of our area and help further our mission by helping to collect their seeds to be used on our future projects. We’ll meet at the Presbyterian Chapel of the Lakes (2955 W. Orland Rd) at noon and caravan to the site(s). We have all the tools and supplies needed.