Chicago Nature Now! Alert
August 29, 2019
Labor Day Edition
“Weekly Wildflower Reports Featuring
Chicago’s Best Weekend Getaways & Nature Trips”
Get Out This Labor Day to Experience
The Best Outdoor Getaways Around Chicago!
Don’t miss one beautiful moment.
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The summer blooms have been so frequent and dramatic that I’m worried that you’re taking the beauty for granted and not actually getting out there. Let us know what you’ve been up to by using the comment section (below) or by posting your messages and pictures on our Friends of ChicagoNatureNOW! Facebook group.
WILDFLOWER HIGHLIGHTS TO HELP YOU PLAN YOUR LABOR DAY OUTDOOR WEEKEND GETAWAY IN CHICAGO NATURE:
This is an exciting time in Chicago nature with fabulous spectacles of rough blazing star, our Plant of the Week. You can find it blooming in large numbers at Illinois Beach Nature Preserve, Pembroke Savanna, Shoe Factory Road Prairie, Bluff Spring Fen, and to some extent Theodore Stone Preserve. However, most preserves are beginning their season of gold with the onset of goldenrods and sunflowers that can take your breath away. If I had to pick a preserve of the week, it would easily be Illinois Beach Nature Preserve. But you’ll be delighted with any of our choices! And check out our special section below where we tell you where to see hummingbirds, ferns, and a Chicago-area canyon!
PRESERVES TO VISIT THIS LABOR DAY WEEKEND FOR A WILDFLOWER WALK AROUND CHICAGO:
We’ve ranked the preserves on this week’s list 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-rated preserves. And our “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 tells you when we last scouted the preserve. After the date, you may see one of these three mathematical symbols: +, –, = (plus, minus, equal). They represent our prediction about how the flowers will look like on the coming weekend: “+” is Probably Better; “-” is Probably Less Dramatic; “=” is Probably the Same. Notice the word “probably.”
THIS WEEK’S BEST (“GO!”):
Illinois Beach Nature Preserve in Zion (8/28+): Wow! If you only have time for one preserve, this Labor Day weekend, this is the place to visit. Blooms are everywhere, and certainly worth making a trip to Zion. The black oak savanna offers omnipresent displays of western sunflower, rough blazing star, and white goldenrod (they look like asters), along with remaining blooms of flowering spurge and large flowered false foxglove. And like the savanna, the sand prairie is offering a beautiful show of rough blazing star, western sunflower, and white goldenrod. It is this preserve’s grandest display of the year. And that’s saying a lot!
Spears Woods in Willow Spring (last scouted on 8/21=): This is a great Labor Day preserve to visit because it’s big, and you’ll have more time to explore its rolling terrain and diverse habitats. And even though we didn’t get to this preserve, this week, there are going to be lots of flowers, like the many goldenrods and forests of sawtooth sunflower. Here’s what I wrote in last week’s report: “This preserve is beautiful right now, especially the prairie—a vast scene of white and gold with flashes of purple. Again this week, flowering spurge is sparkling white throughout much of the landscape along with fading white flower heads of rattlesnake master and wild quinine. Contributing the gold to the prairie are woodland sunflower, early goldenrod (and others), rosinweed, and a little bit of long-bracted tickseed sunflower in the northern prairie. Now that the blazing star has faded, smooth ironweed now provides the purple. The grasses of big bluestem and Indian grass are blooming, too! In the woodland, you’ll find fading blooms of the towering pinkish sweet Joe-Pye weed and more woodland sunflower. And in the wetland, specifically Hogwash Slough, you’ll find a small colony of American lotus. But you can only see it from from the trail where the vantage point is high. The tall, dense plants along the shore prevent viewing from the water’s edge.”
Shoe Factory Road Prairie in Hoffman Estates (8/27+): The great annual show of rough blazing star is on, and it’s only getting better as other species reach peak bloom. This small rare hill prairie is surrounded by a fence. The site 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. The stars of the hill prairie are rough blazing star, cylindrical blazing star, obedient plant, the various goldenrods (stiff, showy, etc.), and sunflowers like (woodland, western, and more). The subtle, yet gorgeous, round-headed bush clover is blooming or showing off its fuzzy green head. And then there’s white goldenrod, which looks nothing like goldenrod. It’s white and looks more like a short aster plant. From the overlook at the top of the hill, absorb the colors and textures of the grassland vista to the south, where the celebration continues. Venturing out into the vista you’ll find many sunflowers, tall coreopsis, goldenrods, big bluestem, Indian grass, and lots of rattlesnake master. NOTE: Consider visiting Bluff Spring Fen while you’re here. It’s not far away.
Somme Prairie Grove in Northbrook (8/24+): Somme Prairie Grove is known for the simultaneous blooms of many species. And that’s what you’ll find, right now. The woodland is harboring a great mix of woodland sunflower, brown-eyed Susan, the rich purples of Missouri ironweed and spotted Joe-Pye weed, and the skyward plumes of sweet Joe-Pye weed. Out from the trees and into the sun, you’ll find a mix of the following flowers with none taking a clear leading role: mountain mint and rattlesnake master, large flowered false foxglove, rosinweed, spotted Joe-Pye weed, ironweed, nodding wild onion, compass plant, blue vervain, obedient plant, cardinal flower (way out in the NE corner), and the tiny blooms of big bluestem. The most beautiful flower in bloom could be cream gentian, which is quite abundant throughout the preserve. But you need to look closely because they’re low to the ground and easily obscured by the growth of other plants.
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.
Bluff Spring Fen in Elgin (8/25+): There’s a lot to see across the preserve, from savanna and kames to prairie and seep. Along the savanna, you’ll find golden wingstem, cutleaf coneflower, and brown-eyed Susan alongside sweet Joe-Pye weed, bottlebrush grass, nodding wild onion, cow parsnip, jewelweed, spotted Joe-Pye weed, and a few specimens of pasture thistle. (Our native thistles can be identified by the the whitish color under their leaves.) As you emerge from the savanna, you’ll have a great view of the bowl that contains the prairie, the seep of fen, and distance kames. Stop here, and soak up the purple hues of the grasses and golden sparkles of flowers. The grasses are prominent this time of year, with big bluestem lining many trails along with the occasional flourish of Canada wild rye. Don’t miss the glorious “forest” of tall compass plant that occupies the southwest corner of the preserve. The seep in the bottom of the bowl is also a glorious place. You’ll find goldenrod, shrubby cinquefoil, and more spotted Joe-Pye weed. As you emerge north from the bowl you’ll climb up the “switchback kame.” It’s now offering the best flowering experience in the preserve. You’ll find flowering spurge, cylindrical blazing star, nodding wild onion, and a beautiful display of rough blazing star. As you descend westward, turn left towards the creek, and you’ll find goldenrods, great blue lobelia, cutleaf coneflower, spotted Joe-Pye weed, and more. If you don’t make the left turn and continue straight, you’ll find sublime blooms of blue bottle gentian along the trail. NOTE: Consider checking out nearby Shoe Factory Road Prairie.
Pembroke Savanna in Hopkins Park (8/28+): September is my favorite time to visit this dreamy sand savanna. There’s something special about the softer light and flavescent tones of the understory. On Wednesday, the preserve was preparing for its biggest show of the year: the dramatic display of rough blazing star. Their purple flowers are starting to provide color, while the goldenrods are exhibiting their golden hues. You’re also bound to find more yellows in the form of large flowered false foxglove and western sunflower. The plumes of the elegant round-headed bush clover provide added texture and whimsy as they bob in the wind. And flashes of white can be found in the last blooms of flowering spurge and the senescing blossoms of spotted bee balm.
Middlefork Savanna in Lake Forest (8/27+): Many dramatic plants are blooming in large numbers, providing colorful vistas of yellow and gold from the goldenrods, rosinweed and the towering composite blooms of cup plant, sawtooth sunflower, tall coreopsis, and prairie sunflower. Highlights of pearl can be seen in tall boneset and in the fading rattlesnake master and mountain mint. The dramatic purples of prairie blazing star are gone, but those of ironweed add visual excitement. And there’s much more to see: blue vervain, obedient plant, nodding wild onion, great blue lobelia, the glorious red cardinal flower, and the sublime cream gentian. In the wetter areas, you’ll find the deep-pink blooms of spotted Joe-Pye weed and the big blossoms of swamp rose mallow.
Wolf Road Prairie in Westchester (8/28+): The prairie is in the early stage of flavesence as it ramps up for its grand golden September display. The savanna is ending its blooming for the season. But the prairie is where the action is, as it starts its transformation to gold. At the moment, tall coreopsis contributes most of the golden hues, with small yellow rays float atop their thin dangly stems. Sawtooth sunflower is about to begin its spectacular run along with several goldenrods (stiff, tall, grass-leaved, etc). You’ll also find round-headed bush clover, the occasional smooth ironweed, cream gentian (on the north side of the prairie), along with big bluestem and Indian grass.
GO, IF YOU’RE IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD:
Belmont Prairie in Downers Grove (8/28+): This intimate remnant prairie is showing off a scattered display of rough blazing star along with the towering grasses that give the tallgrass prairie its misleading name. A tunnel of big bluestem takes over much of the southern path, obscuring everything from view. If you visit in the morning, make sure to wear rain gear or you’ll get drenched from head to toe. The whites of flowering spurge are showing near the entrance, but there’s also sparkles of ivory in a late-blooming patch wild quinine , the whitish pink blooms of nodding wild onion, and newly blooming cream gentian. To find this closed cream-colored flower that resembles blue bottle gentian (see pictures below), keep your eyes down and pay careful attention as you walk the trail. And the goldenrods are just starting.
Fermilab Prairie in Batavia (8/26+): The preserve looks the best it’s been this year. It can be described as “golden.” Goldenrod is starting, and many sunflower-like flowers dot the preserve, including tall coreopsis, brown-eyed Susan, and woodland sunflower. This prairie is a reconstruction, not a restoration. It was originally a prairie that was turned into farmland and turned back into prairie (sort of). In 1971, Dr. Robert Betz embarked on a bold experiment to reconstruct the prairie from nothing, employing the same agricultural practices that caused its demise. While the soil will take eons to replenish and, though not as rich as other remnants or restored prairies, Fermilab Prairie provides the region with a large expanse of grassland for people to explore. I say “grassland” because, in proportion to the flowering plants (forbs), you’ll find much more big bluestem and Indian grass than most prairies. You can find a similar situation with the prairie at Carl Hansen Woods—the expanse south of the Shoe Factory Road Prairie. It was once thought that planting grasses first would help heal the land. But it was later learned that they prevented the forbs from taking hold. Nowadays, forbs and less-aggressive grasses (like side oats grama) are planted first. Then, after they’re well-established, the grasses are introduced. You can see an example of this success in the southwest corner of Bluff Spring Fen, where you’ll find towering compass plant and other flowers. My friend and a true man-of-the-prairie, Roger Hotham, was instrumental in restoring this area of the preserve.
Theodore Stone Preserve in Hodgkins (last scouted 8/5): We did not scout here this week. According to my database, the purple blooms of rough blazing star should be starting to bloom in the eastern dolomite prairie. You should also find white goldenrod in the same gravelly area. If you’re in the area, take a walk to experience the tall grasses that give the tall grass prairie its name. NOTE: The preserve is located quite close to Spears Woods and Wolf Road Prairie, which are both on our “Go” list.
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.
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!
Powderhorn Marsh & Prairie in Chicago: This high-quality preserve is located inside the city of Chicago. If you live in the Calumet region, here’s your chance to help bring nature to your neighbors.
OTHER HIGHLIGHTS:
Hummingbirds, Hummingbirds, Hummingbirds!
The hummingbirds are here! You can find them buzzing about at many nature centers including: Sagawau Canyon, Pilcher Park (at the nature center and south of the greenhouse), and Little Red Schoolhouse.
Ferns & Canyon Tours
Miller Woods, Tolleston Dunes, Cowles Bog Trail, and Hoosier Prairie (all in northwestern Indiana) are leaping with gymnastic ferns that are beginning to change into their autumn colors. If you’d like to experience a beautiful fern-lined canyon, call Sagawau Canyon in Lemont to sign up for their next canyon tour. Hurry! They fill up fast.
See a Summer Sunset
Saganashkee Slough in Palos Hills: Sensational for sunsets, as our celestial star—a bright, burning brass ball—slowly sinks in the sky to start a sultry summer eve.
COMING SOON: SAWTOOTH SUNFLOWER
PLANT OF THE WEEK: ROUGH BLAZING STAR
You’ll soon see this display at Pembroke Savanna in Hopkins Park, Illinois, when early September explodes with rough blazing star. The monarch you see is feeding before it takes its long trek to central Mexico. You can also find this dramatic end-of-summer plant flowering in large numbers at Illinois Beach Nature Preserve, Shoe Factory Road Prairie, Bluff Spring Fen, and to some extent at Theodore Stone Preserve.*
PHOTO SECTION
Obedient Plant
Obedient plant has pink flowers that run up the stem of the plant. The name comes from the plant’s pivoting snapdragon flower that obediently stays put when you swivel it on its mysterious botanical hinge. Here, atop the hill at Shoe Factory Road Prairie, obedient plant and Indian grass take in the view.*
Bottle Gentian
Blue bottle gentians survive under the shadow of the dense late-summer prairie, where plants, like this sawtooth sunflower, can tower twelve feet into the air.*
Bottle gentian (or closed gentian) is fully dependent on bumblebees for its survival. The petals of this unusual flower are effectively closed to other insects, but the strong bumblebee is able to muscle its way in through the tip. Late in the season, when fewer plants are blooming, bottle gentian relies on the slim pickings for pollination, hoping bumblebees won’t mind the extra effort.*
Cylindrical Blazing Star
In August, cylindrical blazing star blooms in the sand savanna at Indiana Dunes National Park. You can also find it at Illinois Beach Nature Preserve and Bluff Spring Fen. The roots of this plant are the deepest of any prairie plant, which is saying a lot. See illustration below of root depth.*
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.*
Canada Wild Rye
This plume of Canada wild rye is drenched in dew at Bluff Spring Fen, which is very common for the foggy, dewy mornings of August.
American Lotus at Tomahawk Slough
You may still be able to find 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.
Swamp Rose Mallow
The large blooms of swamp rose mallow is a plant that can be found in August around some of Chicago’s wetlands.*
Spears Woods
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
As the sun rises over the dune, rough blazing star, flowering spurge, and western sunflower grow densely in the protection of a swale at Illinois Beach Nature Preserve in Zion, Illinois.*
Early late-summer light strikes the tops of indian grass, western sunflower, and rough blazing star at the sand prairie along the Lake Michigan shoreline at Illinois Beach State Park in Zion, Illinois.*
Rough blazing star and western sunflower find protection from the elements inside the swale of the sand prairie at Illinois Beach Nature Preserve in Zion, Illinois.*
At the end of this late-summer day, large-flowered false foxglove blooms across the black oak savanna at Illinois Beach State Park. You can also experience this plant at Bluff Spring Fen, Indiana Dunes National Park, and Pembroke Savanna.*
Somme Prairie Grove
At Somme Prairie Grove, woodland sunflowers surround this majestic bur oak in the savanna.*
In 1985, this area was cast in total darkness, a dirt floor under an endless gray barrier of scraggly buckthorn. Now, after lots of love from volunteers, it is the edge of a woodland, well lit and teeming with tall flowers that reach for the sun. Here, we can see an August celebration of woodland sunflower, sweet coneflower, sweet Joe-Pye weed, and ironweed.*
Obedient plant can be found at many local preserves, like here at Somme Prairie Grove in Northbrook, Shoe Factory Road Prairie, Wolf Road Prairie, and more. Use your finger to pivot the flower on the stem, and it will obediently remain in place. Hence the name. Grow it in your garden, though, and it has a habit of spreading and not staying put.*
Shoe Factory Road Prairie
On this foggy August morning at Shoe Factory Road Prairie in Hoffman Estates, the sun burned through the fog to illuminate the purple blooms of rough blazing star and the bright green foliage of compass plant.*
Rough blazing star colors the foggy hill prairie at Shoe Factory Road Prairie in Hoffman Estates, Illinois.*
Bluff Spring Fen
Soft sunlight, diffused by morning mist, filters across the preserve. Gathered at the base of the kame, fire-resistant bur oaks hover above a colorful caboodle of spotted Joe-Pye weed and goldenrod.*
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.*
Bottlebrush grass and wild bergamot glow in the morning light in the oak savanna at Bluff Spring Fen in Elgin, Illinois.*
Cylindrical blazing star covers the northeast kame at Bluff Spring Fen in Elgin, Illinois.*
Pembroke Savanna
The celebration of rough blazing star and field goldenrod is probably Pembroke’s most prolific performance of the year, but it’s by no means the only one. We’re still about a ten days away from the peak display shown here. But there’s still a lot of color, right now. You can also find this dramatic end-of-summer plant flowering in large numbers at Illinois Beach Nature Preserve, Shoe Factory Road Prairie, Bluff Spring Fen, and to some extent at Theodore Stone Preserve.*
Field goldenrod and rough blazing star bring an air of autumn to the sand savanna at Pembroke Savanna in Hopkins Park, Illinois.*
In a shining spot under the open canopy of the black oaks, western sunflowers smile in the late-summer sun at Pembroke Savanna.*
Theodore Stone Preserve
The dolomite prairie on the eastern side of Theodore Stone Preserve reminds me of a planned garden or springtime in the desert, where each plant is given its own space to grow. But instead of a separation of lifeless mulch or sand, here, rough blazing star and little bluestem are connected by a downy, green veil of mysterious grass.*
In the dolomite prairie at Theodore Stone Preserve in Hodgkins, Illinois, feathery plumes of dew-drenched Indian grass steal the show from rough blazing star and goldenrod.*
Ferns & Canyon Tours
Royal ferns in the light fog of the savanna at Hoosier Prairie in Schererville, Indiana.*
In the Cowles Bog area, you’ll find many species of fern. Here, a forest of royal ferns thrives in a wetland that has formed at the base of a high dune.*
Lush ferns line the walls of Sagawau Canyon in Lemont, Illinois. But you can only see it if you sign up for their upcoming canyon tours. Register soon. They fill up quickly.*
Sultry Summer Sunsets Over Saganashkee Slough (That’s a mouthful!)
On this sweltering, sultry afternoon, a soft flavescent sun sets over Saganashkee Slough in Palos Hills, 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
