Chicago Nature Now! Alert
May 25, 2017
“Chicago nature info and news to help you discover the region’s
finest natural wonders and to plan your Chicago nature trip.”
Here’s what’s happening in Chicago nature, just in time for a Memorial Day Adventure!
THERE’S A LOT OF NATURE TO SEE THIS MEMORIAL DAY WEEKEND.
TWO NEW SCOUTS: I’m excited to announce that Karin Grunow and Charlie Yang have joined the scouting team. That makes four, plus myself. if you’d like to learn about nature and be the first to see Chicago’s breathtaking floral displays, consider volunteering to become a nature scout. And, if this free website is giving you or your family fun and memorable adventures into nature, please consider giving a donation to keep it running.
HIGHLIGHTS
Miller Woods is putting on the event of the week with its hyperventilatingly beautiful display of wild lupine and hoary puccoon. If you weren’t already convinced that Chicago offers national-park quality events, this one that will forever change your mind. See Photo Section, below, from my visit on Monday,May 22. At 3:10 am, I woke up and drove to Gary, Indiana to take this picture for you. Though I was exhausted, it was well worth it!
Chiwaukee Prairie in a dream with its breathtaking display of shooting star! It’s definitely worth the drive, especially because you’re not far from Illinois Beach Nature Preserve. Alongside the shooting star, you’ll find Look for the yellow blooms of wood betony, hoary puccoon, and golden Alexander. Experience the blues with birdfoot violet and blue-eyed grass. And watch for shooting stars of white and pink.
Illinois Beach Nature Preserve is putting on a nice show of wild lupine and hoary puccoon.
Wolf Road Prairie‘s savanna has a nice show of wild hyacinths.
PLAN YOUR CHICAGO NATURE TRIP
Miller Woods (Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore) in Gary, Indiana: The display of wild lupines and hoary puccoon is a must-see event. Imagine blue and yellow flowers flowing like a blanket along the sides and atop the wooded dunes. Follow the trail to the beach and you’ll hit the mother load after you cross the white gravel trail. And while you’re in Indiana, check out these preserves to fill out the rest of your day: Cowles Bog Trail and Tolleston Dunes.
Chiwaukee Prairie in Pleasant Prairie, Wisconsin: The display of shooting stars is a sight to behold. Alongside the shooting stars, look for birdsfoot violet, hoary puccoon, wood betony, and yellow star grass. You may even find some gorgeous wild lupine. While you’re visiting this preserve, it’s not far to Illinois Beach Nature Preserve in Zion.
Illinois Beach Nature Preserve in Zion: Hike the trail through this fairy-tale savanna to find displays of wild lupine, hoary puccoon, and downy phlox. Because this preserve is so rich, you can easily spend most of your day exploring. But, save some time to head north to see Chiwaukee Prairie‘s magnificent blooms of shooting stars.
Wolf Road Prairie in Westchester: Wild hyacinth is blooming in profusion in the savanna. Just park at the kiosk and take the sidewalk(s).
Oldfield Oaks (not officially featured) in Darien: Last week, I reported on this unofficial ChicagoNatureNOW! preserve, but it’s now putting on a show of geranium and wild hyacinth in the northwest portion of the preserve.
Bluff Spring Fen in Elgin: SCOUTING IN PROGRESS. Check back on Friday.
PHOTO SECTION
Wild Lupine in Our Black Oak Savannas (Sand Savannas)
Just a few days ago, I visited the sand savanna at Miller Woods and found this breathtaking display of wild lupine and hoary puccoon blanketing the wooded swales and dunes.
Biodiversity is about the many, not the few. Here, it’s springtime in the savanna, where blue lupines share precious space with hoary puccoon.*
Wild lupine of species Lupinus perennis.
An exploration into the inner world of wild lupine.
Shooting Stars at Chiwaukee Prairie
May at Chiwaukee Prairie offers a breathtaking display of shooting stars.*
Springtime wildflowers bloom in profusion at Chiwaukee Prairie in Pleasant Prairie, Wisconsin.* Here, we can see shooting star, wood betony, hoary puccoon, and yellow star grass.
Wild Hyacinth in Our Woodlands
Wild hyacinth at Wolf Road Prairie in Westchester, Illinois.*
Each May, wild hyacinths bloom in the oak savanna at Wolf Road Prairie in Westchester, Illinois.*
Wild hyacinths bloom in abundance at Oldfield Oaks in Darien, though it may be past its peak.
Common Blue-eyed Grass
Find this gorgeous flower in the prairies and savannas.
* Photo is representational and was not recorded this year. Bloom times vary from year to year.
SCOUTING NEEDS for my next report on Thursday, June 1:
- Wolf Road Prairie: Current status of wild hyacinth in oak savanna located at main kiosk on 31st Street. Need status of spiderwort in prairie, which was a huge event in 2016.
- Chiwaukee Prairie: Current status of shooting star
- Illinois Beach Nature Preserve: Current status of wild lupine & hoary puccoon. Check for pasture rose and signs of sand coreopsis in the sand prairie. This bloom is going to be big!
- Miller Woods: Current status of wild lupine & hoary puccoon. Check for other flowers coming in.
- Bluff Spring Fen: Current status
- Shoe Factory Road Prairie: Current status
- Fermilab Prairie: Current status
- Somme Prairie Grove: Current status and check for blue flag iris in wetland on east side near Waukegan Road.
- Lake in the Hills Fen: Current status
If you’d like to scout the preserves for us, please let us know.
If you find this website of Chicago nature information useful, please consider donating or purchasing my nationally-acclaimed book that celebrates all of the preserves featured on this website.
—Mike
