Chicago Nature Now! Alert
August 24, 2017
“Plan your Chicago outdoor adventure with Chicago nature info and news
to help you discover the region’s finest natural wonders.”
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Here are some highlights to help you plan your Chicago weekend getaway:
Illinois Beach Nature Preserve tops this week’s list with spectacular floral displays. Then comes Somme Prairie Grove and Shoe Factory Road Prairie. If you’re in the neighborhood, visit Bluff Spring Fen, Lake in the Hills Fen, and Miller Woods. This is also a time to watch hummingbirds, see fanning ferns, and go on a canyon tour. Yes, we have a canyon!
NOTE: Prairies are wet in the morning, so wear raingear or you’ll become drenched in dew.
WHERE TO GO THIS WEEKEND FOR A CHICAGO OUTDOOR GETAWAY
Illinois Beach Nature Preserve in Zion is 10 out of 10, exploding with color. Under the canopy of the black oak savanna, purple rough blazing star combines with white flowering spurge and the yellows of western sunflower and large false foxglove.
Somme Prairie Grove in Northbrook: There’s a great variety of flowers in bloom throughout the preserve. Many of them are yellow, including tall coreopsis, the newest and most prolific flower on the scene. No matter where you stand, you can probably see it somewhere. Under the trees, there are thousands of yellow woodland sunflowers and taller brown-eyed Susans that combine with skyward pale-purple plumes of sweet Joe-Pye weed. In the sunny areas of the savanna, you’ll find yourself travelling through tunnels of big bluestem grass and Indian grass, which is probably the reason for the misnomer “tallgrass prairie.” It’s a misnomer because most species in a prairie are actually forbs (flowering plants). Still, when the first settlers travelling from the forest of the east came across the late-summer prairies, the towering grasses of Illinois would have been a unexpected obstacle. As you pass through, look carefully for the tiny flowers upon their tassels and plumes. Along the way, you’ll also find dense stands of molecular rattlesnake master, along with mountain mint, ironweed, obedient plant, and new blooms of goldenrod. Then there’s the skyward stalks of compass plant that can easily reach eight feet into the air, along with its tall cousin prairie dock with its enormous heart-shaped leaves. (See comparison below in the large Photo Section.) In addition to appreciating the kaleidoscopic colors, take note of the rich textures, including the symmetrical sprays of prairie dropseed. The trails are narrow and, currently, overgrown. So watch your step. If you visit in the morning, wear raingear or the plants will drench you with dew.
Shoe Factory Road Prairie in Hoffman States offers wonderful displays of rough blazing star, cylindrical blazing star and obedient plant atop the hill prairie, along with compass plant, rosinweed, round-headed bush clover, and the beginnings of goldenrod. Under cover of the oak savanna, you’ll find woodland sunflower and sweet Joe-Pye weed. In the prairie outside the fence, look into the distance to see expanses of purple from the tassels of big bluestem. Then, immerse yourself by taking the wide trails through a vast panorama of big bluestem and Indian grass. And, don’t forget, Bluff Spring Fen is just fifteen minutes away by car.
IF YOU’RE IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD, IT’S PROBABLY WORTH A TRIP TO:
Bluff Spring Fen in Elgin: This week, there aren’t many fresh blooms here, and many flowers are fading. Still, there’s a lot to see. Towering displays of purplish sweet Joe-Pye weed can be seen under the oak savanna that opens the preserve. As you continue, you’ll see tall yellow sunflowers. One is wingstem, which you can identify by the flange running down the stem. Another is cutleaf coneflower, with its the deeply lobed leaves. And then there’s cup plant, which likes the wetter spots. It has large opposing leaves that join at the stem and holds pooled water for birds and insects. Other yellow flowers include rosinweed, skyrocketing compass plant, and goldenrods like stiff goldenrod and grass-leaved golderod. Along with the purplish sweet Joe-Pye weed, experience the pinks and purples of cylindrical blazing star, rough blazing star, nodding wild onion, wild bergamot, and, in the wetter areas, swamp milkweed and spotted Joe-Pye weed. At this time of year, the grasses are prominent, including Canada wild rye, little bluestem, big bluestem, Indian grass, all acting as brushes loaded with morning dew. Notice the minute flowers atop the tassels of big bluestem and Indian grass. And then there’s the aptly named bottlebrush grass that can be found in the shade of the oak savanna.
Lake in the Hills Fen in Lake in the Hills: Make a trip to this vast preserve to experience the expansive, rolling views of the prairie, covered with tall grasses and golden tones of goldenrod, compass plant, and prairie dock. The pinkish blooms of native thistles will soon be joined, in about a week, by large purple displays of rough blazing star. This preserve is easily accessible with ample parking and wide lawn paths.
Miller Woods & Tolleston Dunes in Indiana: Both preserves offer long trails through wooded dunes, ferns, and flowers. Tolleston Dunes is covered with spotted bee balm.
OTHER HIGHLIGHTS:
Hummingbirds, Hummingbirds, Hummingbirds!
The hummingbirds are still around and should be for the next couple of weeks. 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
Cowles Bog Trail, Miller Woods, Tolleston Dunes, 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, Illinois to sign up for their next canyon tour. Hurry! They fill up fast.
See a Summer Sunset
Saganashkee Slough in Palos Hills, Illinois is sensational for sunsets, as our celestial star—a bright, burning brass ball—slowly sinks in the sky to start a sultry summer eve.
PHOTO SECTION
Sweet Joe-Pye Weed
In the open woodland at Spears Woods and many other preserves, discover summer tall, feathery blooms of sweet Joe-Pye weed.*
Compass Plant & Prairie Dock
These are the large leaves of the prairie’s most iconic and unmistakable plants. The heart-shaped leaf is that of prairie dock, and the long-lobed leaf is from a cousin called compass plant.*
This bloom of compass plant reaches for the sky.*
You can find prairie dock at many preserves, including Middlefork Savanna in Lake Forest. It’s an imaginative creation dreamt up by Mother Nature. Stretching at least twelve feet beneath the prairie is the taproot—the life, the energy source, and the heart of this plant. The root is also the artery, transporting cold water from deep below to nourish and cool the affection of heart-shaped leaves, which are prone to shriveling under the summer sun. Where the root meets the air, a blood-red stalk takes over the job. Swerving towards the sky, the thick stem carries life to multiple golden flowers that may float as high as ten feet above the prairie. Here, the first flower has bloomed, while many ball-like buds are about to follow suit.*
Landscape of compass plants at Springbrook Prairie in Naperville, Illinois.*
In August, at Lake in the Hills Fen, you can find knee-high carpets of grass-leaved goldenrod and a soaring stands of prairie dock.*
Big Bluestem Grass and the Tallgrass Prairie
Here at Bluff Spring Fen in Elgin, big bluestem grass gives true meaning to the term “tallgrass prairie.” Find big bluestem at 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 several weeks.*
Look closely for miniature flowers that delicately hang from the tassel of big bluestem grass. Currently, flowers can also be found upon the feathery plumes of Indian grass .*
Illinois Beach Nature Preserve
In late summer, early flowering spurge and purple rough blazing star blanket the black oak savanna at Illinois Beach Nature Preserve in Zion, Illinois.*
At the end of this late-summer day, large false foxglove blooms across the black oak savanna at Illinois Beach State Park. The flower can also be found at Pembroke Savanna.*
Somme Prairie Grove
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.*
Obedient plant at Somme Prairie Grove in Northbrook, Illinois.*
Shoe Factory Road Prairie
In late August at Shoe Factory Road Prairie, golden blooms of compass plant rise above a purple patches of rough blazing star.*
Atop this hill prairie called Shoe Factory Road Prairie, obedient plant and Indian grass take in the view.*
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 Joe-Pye weed and tall 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 golden sun sets over Saganashkee Slough in Palos Hills, Illinois.*
* Photo is representational and was not recorded this year. Bloom times vary from year to year.
SCOUTING NEEDS for my next report on Thursday, September 1 (in rough order of urgency):
- Pembroke Savanna: The display of rough blazing star is on the way and should be spectacular. Also look round-headed bush clover, western sunflower, and large false foxglove.
- Illinois Beach Nature Preserve: Status flowering spurge, etc.
- Miller Woods & Tolleston Dunes: Rough blazing star, etc.
- Somme Prairie Grove: Status of the many flowers.
- Bluff Spring Fen: Status of blazing star and other blooms.
- Shoe Factory Road Prairie: Status of flowers including woodland sunflower.
- Lake in the Hills Fen: Status of rough blazing star, prairie dock, goldenrods, etc.
- Theodore Stone Preserve: General status.
- Fermilab Prairie: General status.
- Powderhorn Prairie: General atatus.
- Belmont Prairie: Rough blazing star, etc.
- Middlefork Savanna: General status.
- Spears Woods: General status.
If you’d like to help your neighbors discover national-park quality natural events around our homes, then become an official scout. Or, you can help by just sending us pictures and a text description from your visit. Another way is to post your pictures to Instagram using these essential hashtags: #ChicagoNatureNow and #NameOfPreserve.
Do you find this website useful? Do you benefit from our many hours of weekly scouting? Then please help keep it going by donating or purchasing my nationally-acclaimed book.
—Mike
