Chicago Nature Now! Alert
August 2, 2019
“Weekly Wildflower Reports Featuring
Chicago’s Best Weekend Getaways & Nature Trips”
Plan the Best Outdoor Getaways Around Chicago!
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WILDFLOWER HIGHLIGHTS TO HELP YOU PLAN YOUR OUTDOOR WEEKEND GETAWAY IN CHICAGO NATURE:
Like last week, many of our showcase prairies and savannas are still exploding with the colors of summer: gold, purple, lavender, and white. The floral stars and our Plants of the Week are prairie blazing star and marsh blazing star (only plant nerds with magnifying glasses can tell them apart). These tall, erect plants are the most flamboyant species in the prairie, with a flaming, feathery flower head that glows like a purple torch. When blooming in great numbers, the experience is the highlight of the summer season. Spears Woods is usually the best place to find them in great densities, though it varies from year to year. That’s nature for you. And to prove that point, cylindrical blazing star is now blooming, It’s about two weeks early. This plant has the deepest root of any prairie plant. (See illustration below.) Experience it now at Bluff Spring Fen and Shoe Factory Road Prairie.
Last week’s Plants of the Week, wild bergamot and yellow coneflower, are still blooming strong. You can see them blooming almost everywhere at this time of year, even along the road. Experience huge displays of both flowers at Theodore Stone Preserve. Still showing off its molecular flower heads is rattlesnake master, which plays the lead role at many prairies, including Spears Woods, Belmont Prairie, Gensburg-Markham Prairie, and more. Meanwhile, the flat-topped cauliflower flower heads of wild quinine are looking spectacular at the same preserves as rattlesnake master. Butterfly weed is still flowering throughout the black oak savanna at Illinois Beach Nature Preserve. Big bluestem is starting to bloom, but their tiny flowers are easy to miss when more conspicuous flowers attract our attention. Look for this iconic prairie grass at most, if not every, prairie on our list. And finally, the dramatic aquatic American lotus is now flowering. The pale yellow blossoms resemble those of a water lily, but they’re much larger—up to eight inches wide atop stems that can reach six feet high. And that isn’t all. The circular leaf is gorgeous and enormous, up to two and a half feet in diameter! See the Picture Section below for images of American lotus (and where to find it) along with the many flowers featured in this report.
PRESERVES TO VISIT THIS WEEKEND FOR A WILDFLOWER WALK AROUND CHICAGO:
The order of the preserves below is based on the quality of the wildflower experience, starting out with the best or “Go!” The “Go, if You’re in the Neighborhood” section is for sites that are worth visiting if you can’t get out to our top preserves. And we have a special “Preserves for You to Scout” section for those preserves that we couldn’t get to this week, but that you can help us explore! The date within the parentheses tell you when we last scouted the preserve.
THIS WEEK’S BEST (“GO!”):
Spears Woods in Willow Spring (7/27): This preserve is a MUST SEE! I love the preserve’s beautiful rolling prairie. And now is the perfect time to see a kaleidoscopic array of prairie flowers. The purple torchlike flower heads of prairie blazing star and golden flames of early goldenrod are setting the grassland ablaze. The round white-hot heads of rattlesnake master add shimmering sparks to the flames, stealing the show by growing in startling densities at several spots throughout the prairie. Wild quinine provides additional sparkle with its pearly blooms that span the prairie, while mountain mint, black-eyed Susan, wild bergamot, rosinweed, ironweed, and Culver’s root add to the conflagration. At some places inside the prairie and where the prairie meets the trees, woodland sunflower blooms, which is igniting under the trees. Walking through the woods, bottlebrush grass glows in the sunlight, and sweet Joe-Pye weed towers with feathery blooms-to-be. The turkey-foot tassels of big bluestem are beginning to show their miniature flowers. And finally, a parasitic summer vine called field dodder can be found draped like orange Silly String over vegetation at the bottom of the bowl in the eastern prairie.
Somme Prairie Grove in Northbrook (7/28): At this moment, there are several species blooming under the sun, most prominently rattlesnake master, purple prairie clover, mountain mint, and Culver’s root, Among the many co-stars are black-eyed Susan, rosinweed, early goldenrod, wild quinine, purple milkweed, swamp milkweed, and compass plant. And don’t forget to appreciate the beautiful foliage of prairie dock and compass plant, and thin grassy hairdo of prairie dropseed. Walk through the woodland to find bottlebrush grass, the blue American bellflower, the white skybound blooms of pale Indian plantain, and new pink blooms of sweet Joe-Pye weed. Golden rays of woodland sunflower are about to explode under the trees.
IMPORTANT NOTE: There is construction on Dundee Road east of Waukegan Road, but you can still drive around the “Detour” barricade because it’s open to local traffic. The preserve entrance is located on the left side about 500 feet beyond the barricade. Due to the construction, Google Maps instructs you to park on Ferndale. Ignore it! Park in the main lot, or use the alternate parking location found on our web page for this preserve.
Belmont Prairie in Downers Grove (7/30): This intimate remnant prairie is rich in blooms. Walk slowly to absorb the special moments. The stars of this week’s show are the ever-present displays of rattlesnake master, wild bergamot, yellow coneflower, and a vibrant show of prairie blazing star. You’ll also find blooms of wild quinine, false sunflower, early goldenrod, compass plant, and rosinweed, Notice the wondrous foliage of prairie dock and compass plant that glow a bright green in the low sun. See Photo Section for a picture of the leaves.
Bluff Spring Fen in Elgin (7/30): In the open prairie, there are many flowers currently blooming in nice densities: wild bergamot, nodding wild onion, wild quinine, mountain mint, cylindrical blazing star, and the show-stopping marsh blazing star. Many other flowers add to the experience in the prairie, including hoary vervain, rosinweed, and compass plant in the prairie, with prairie loosestrife and lots of spotted Joe-Pye weed in the wetter areas. In the oak savanna by the entrance, look for bottlebrush grass, American bellflower, large false foxglove, the skyward blooms of pale Indian plantain and sweet Joe-Pye weed. And look for the tiny flowers dangling from turkey-footed tassels atop big bluestem. NOTE: Consider checking out nearby Shoe Factory Road Prairie.
Shoe Factory Road Prairie in Hoffman Estates (7/30): This small, rare hill prairie is surrounded by a fence. The preserve offers short trails that will quickly take you to the best flower shows. South of the fence is the prairie associated with Carl Hansen Woods, formerly known as Poplar Creek Prairie. This week, the star of the hill prairie is cylindrical blazing star. It is accompanied by a combination of rosinweed, yellow coneflower, mountain mint, and the cauliflower-headed wild quinine,, But it’s the prairie beyond the barrier that steals the show with dramatic scenes of the flaming prairie blazing star, the molecular models of rattlesnake master, and the golden sparks of early goldenrod. NOTE: Consider visiting Bluff Spring Fen while you’re here. It’s roughly in the neighborhood.
Illinois Beach Nature Preserve in Zion (7/25): This preserve offers a varied terrain and a mix of habitats that bring interest and an added dimension to your visit, even if there weren’t any blooms. But there are! The black oak savanna is in full of color as the orange blossoms of butterfly weed reach peak color. Black-eyed Susan adds splashes of gold. And flowering spurge, with its delicate sprays of tiny white flowers, is blooming in both savanna and sand prairie.
Wolf Road Prairie in Westchester (7/30): Right now, the prairie is putting on celebration of biodiversity, with a large variety of flowering plants on display. The most prominent are rattlesnake master, Culver’s root, and wild quinine. Mixed in are blooms of yellow coneflower, wild bergamot, flowering spurge, and the flamboyant prairie blazing star, which can easily steal the show. You’ll also find flowers of compass plant and rosinweed alongside the grand leaves of prairie dock. Growing under the trees of the savanna are the whimsical bottlebrush grass, tall sweet Joe-Pye weed, and the soon-to-be-prolific woodland sunflower And don’t let the many flowers distract you from experience the little flowers that hang from the tassels of big bluestem. NOTE: Theodore Stone Preserve and Spears Woods are located close by.
Gensburg-Markham Prairie in Markham (7/27): This week, new blooms of marsh blazing star and early goldenrod add color and drama to the prairie. After entering the gate with the “dummy lock” (see preserve page for details), take the trail that goes to the left. You’re immediately greeted by yellow coneflower , nodding wild onion. wild bergamot, and marsh phlox. After a few seconds, you’ll find a delicate display of prairie dock foliage mixed with prairie dropseed and yellow coneflower. Soon following, you’ll discover spectacular stands of rattlesnake master and wild quinine that combine with black-eyed Susan. As you hike around, you’ll see blooms of partridge pea, rosinweed and its cousin compass plant, along with a tall forest of the white-flowered pale Indian plantain about fifty yards from the trail. The texture of the grasses look great. And the tassels of big bluestem are beginning to bloom. If you like to smell stuff. then this is the a good week for you. Stick your nose into the fragrant flowers of yellow coneflower and wild bergamot,
Theodore Stone Preserve in Hodgkins (7/30): The star of the week is yellow coneflower, which grows in vast golden expanses throughout the west half of the preserve, home to the black-soil prairie. The fluffy lavender heads of wild bergamot is also putting on a show, and early goldenrod and mountain mint are now prominent. Rattlesnake master offers one fantastic spread, but the plant is scattered about. Along your stroll, you’ll also see flowering partridge pea, wild quinine, rosinweed, ironweed, prairie blazing star, and the grass of big bluestem. NOTE: The preserve is located quite close to Spears Woods and Wolf Road Prairie, which are both on our “Go” list.
GO, IF YOU’RE IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD:
Pembroke Savanna in Hopkins Park (7/28): Now showing in some prominence at this superb sand savanna are the blooms of partridge pea, spotted bee balm, daisy fleabane, and whorled milkweed. Stand still for a moment, and you may be able to detect the light fragrance of whorled milkweed in the air. It might help to first calibrate your nose by bending down to smell it. And while you’re down there, take in the minty aroma of spotted bee balm (also known as, spotted or dotted horsemint). The delicate white blooms of flowering spurge are starting out. When combined with partridge pea, which has yet to reach peak bloom, this preserve could be a “Go,” for next weekend.
Middlefork Savanna in Lake Forest (unscouted): In last week’s report, we reported many plants in bloom to create colorful vistas, including a prairie full of rattlesnake master, wild bergamot, cup plant, yellow coneflower, along with the towering sawtooth sunflower and pale Indian plantain. In the wet spots, we recommended looking for the gorgeous pink blooms of swamp milkweed and the spectacular purple spikes of pickerel weed.
PRESERVES FOR YOU TO SCOUT:
This is a category for those who’d like do a little exploring for us. The preserves listed below were not scouted, this week, but may be worth the trip. Please send us your findings and images by email or, better still, join our Friends of ChicagoNatureNOW! Facebook page. While visiting a preserve, take mostly scenic pictures, tell us which flowers are blooming, and then give us your bottom-line opinion of your experience. Tell us if it’s a “GO,” a “Go, if you’re in the neighborhood,” or a “NO.” If you’d like to scout more regularly, then learn about becoming an official Nature Scout.
Powderhorn Marsh & Prairie in Chicago: This high-quality preserve is located inside the city of Chicago.
Miller Woods at Indiana Dunes National Park: We’re looking for a scout to regularly visit this big, beautiful preserve. Let us know if you’re interested.
Chiwaukee Prairie in Pleasant Prairie, Wisconsin: This prairie-by-the-lake offers cooler temperatures during the hot summer months. Let us know what you find!
COMING SOON: FLOWERING SPURGE, PARTRIDGE PEA, & THE CONTINUATION OF THE BLAZING STARS
PLANTS OF THE WEEK: PRAIRIE & MARSH BLAZING STAR
In late July and early August, the spectacular purple blooms of marsh and prairie blazing star turns prairie ablaze. They are the first of the blazing stars to flower in the summer, followed by cylindrical, savanna, and then rough blazing star. Both marsh and prairie blazing star can easily reach five feet tall The only way to differentiate them is to decipher this coded message from the Illinois Wildflowers website:, “Prairie Blazingstar has floral bracts (phyllaries) that are strongly recurved, while the floral bracts of Marsh Blazingstar are appressed together and relatively smooth.” Huh? Even my magic decoder ring can’t decipher the message.
The flowers on these plants bloom from the top downward, which is helpful for photographers (and our scouts) to know if the flowers are coming or going.
You can experience one or both of these magnificent plants at Belmont Prairie, Spears Woods, Gensburg-Markham Prairie, Bluff Spring Fen, Wolf Road Prairie, Somme Prairie grove, Middlefork Savanna, and many other prairies on our list of showcase preserves.
PHOTO SECTION
Wild Bergamot & Yellow Coneflower
“Lavender in color and mint in fragrance” describes wild bergamot. “Whimsical with an aroma of anise” describes yellow coneflower. Wild bergamot gets its name from a scent that resembles oranges that grow in Bergamot, Italy. Both plants are native to the prairie, and both are healers. Known as pioneer species, they are among the first plants to colonize disturbed or degraded areas. Their presence improves soil quality while allowing other plants to move in, leading to greater biodiversity. You can find these plants at many preserves across our region, but also in roadside ditches where they share space with invaders like teasel, reed canary grass, and giant reed (phragmites). Therefore, it shouldn’t be assumed that wild bergamot and yellow coneflower are indicative of a high quality habitat. If you find them dominating large portions of a preserve, then the site lacks biodiversity and is in need of restoration.*
Cylindrical Blazing Star
In August, cylindrical blazing star blooms in the sand savanna at Indiana Dunes National Park.*
Rattlesnake Master
Rattlesnake master is a wonderful Chicago prairie flower that looks resembles Tinker Toys or molecular structures, or something you might find in Arizona or Texas. The plant gets its name because some Native Americans brewed a tea from the root as an antidote for rattlesnake venom. To prevent bites, some chewed on the root, then spat on their hands before handling a rattlesnake. Of course, I’m interested to know if this really works. What’s more, the research may not even require a flight to the desert. That’s because, believe it or not, the rare and endangered eastern massasauga rattlesnake lives right here in the Chicago area. So, if you perform the experiment, please get back to me with the results, either you or next of kin. To experience rattlesnake master, visit Belmont Prairie, Somme Prairie Grove, Shoe Factory Road Prairie, Wolf Road Prairie, Fermilab Prairie, Gensburg Markham Prairie, Kickapoo Woods and Prairie, Spears Woods, Theodore Stone Preserve, and other local prairies over the next few weeks.*
Big Bluestem Grass
The towering height of big bluestem grass gives true meaning to the term “tallgrass prairie.”*
Miniature flowers delicately hang from the tassel of big bluestem grass.*
Purple Prairie Clover and It’s Remarkably Fresh Scent
The flowers of purple prairie clover emanate my favorite (nice) smell in Chicago nature, giving off the fresh scent of carrots and lemon. Get out now because they’re almost gone for the year. Here, a bee flies over to purple prairie clover at Bluff Spring Fen Nature Preserve in Elgin, Illinois. You can also find this plant at Shoe Factory Road Prairie, Somme Prairie Grove, Wolf Road Prairie, Gensburg-Markham Prairie., Illinois Beach Nature Preserve, and others.*
Mountain Mint
Inhale the invigorating white flowers of mountain mint that grow here at Spears Woods and at many other preserves on our list.*
Compass Plant
The golden flowers of compass plant is now blooming atop a stalk that reaches for the sky.*
The Wonderful Large Leaves of Compass Plant & Prairie Dock
These are the large leaves of the prairie’s most iconic plants. The heart-shaped leaf is that of prairie dock, and the long-lobed leaf is from a cousin called compass plant.*
American Lotus at Tomahawk Slough
American Lotus at Tomahawk Slough in Willow Springs, Illinois.
Tomahawk Slough in Willow Springs, Illinois is teeming with the grand American lotus. You an reach the wetland by first parking at the far end of Pulaski Woods parking lot and then walking a short distance along the trails.
Spears Woods
In late July at Spears Woods, wildflowers float above the prairie like musical notes in a symphony of color and texture.*
Prairie blazing star and wild quinine light up the prairie at Spears Woods in Willow Springs, Illinois.*
In the open woodland at Spears Woods in Willow Springs, Illinois, summer brings tall blooms of sweet Joe-Pye weed. As of this post, they are just starting bloom.*
Illinois Beach Nature Preserve
Butterfly milkweed (or butterfly weed) is now blooming in the black oak savanna at Illinois Beach Nature Preserve in Zion, Illinois. And you can find it at many other preserves in the region, including Belmont Prairie, Powderhorn Prairie, and Somme Prairie Grove.*
The Dead River, at Illinois Beach Nature Preserve in Zion, is the only remaining river in Illinois that flows into Lake Michigan. The name comes either from deep pools of quicksand hidden along the banks that devour unsuspecting hikers or from water that remains still and barely flows. On this sapphire morning, the latter was true.*
Somme Prairie Grove
Here, at Somme Prairie Grove in Northbrook, Illinois, we see the large, deeply lobed leaf of compass plant among a sea of purple prairie clover.*
Purple prairie clover and mountain mint steal the show in this area of Somme Prairie Grove in Northbrook, Illinois.*
Bluff Spring Fen
Marsh blazing star blooms at the main seep of the fen at Bluff Spring Fen in Elgin, Illinois.*
Cylindrical blazing star covers the northeast kame at Bluff Spring Fen in Elgin, Illinois.*
Soon after entering Bluff Spring Fen, you’ll find yourself in an intimate oak savanna, where majestic bur oaks with outstretched limbs protect you in their nurturing embrace.*
Wolf Road Prairie
This image is fairly representative of what you’d see at Wolf Road Prairie, but every plant shown is currently blooming except for the tall purple spikes of prairie blazing star.*
In July at Wolf Road Prairie, wildflowers combine to resemble a fireworks display.*
Wolf Road Prairie puts on a lesson in biodiversity. Pictured are prairie blazing star, wild quinine, rattlesnake master, flowering spurge, Culver’s root, rosinweed, and yellow coneflower.*
Gensburg-Markham Prairie
The summer sun goes down on wild quinine and marsh phlox as nonstop tollway traffic rolls past its eastern border. Each hour of each day, people drive by, unaware of the natural treasures they’d discover by taking the West 159th Street exit.*
Gensburg-Markham Prairie is famous for its late July fanfare, when the fields ignite with white sparks of flowering spurge and purple torches of marsh blazing star.*
Theodore Stone Preserve
Yellow coneflower blooms in the mesic prairie on the western half of Theodore Stone Preserve in Hodgkins, Illinois.*
Prairie Root System
The root system of some common prairie plants. Note that cylindrical blazing star has the deepest root that reaches over fifteen feet! Click the image for a bigger view.
If you find this website of Chicago nature information useful, please consider donating or purchasing my nationally-acclaimed book that poetically celebrates all of the preserves featured on this website.
—Mike
