Winter 2006 Minnesota Plant Press ~ Minnesota Native Plant Society Newsletter

7/31/2019 Winter 2006 Minnesota Plant Press ~ Minnesota Native Plant Society Newsletter

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Minnesota Plant PressThe Minnesota Native Plant Society Newsletter

Volume 25 Number 2 Winter 2006

Monthly meetingsMinnesota Valley National Wildlife Refuge

Visitor Center, 3815 American Blvd. East

Bloomington, MN 55425-1600

952-854-5900

6:30 p.m. Building east door opens6:30 p.m. Refreshments,

information, Room A

7 9 p.m Program, society business7:30 p.m. Building door is locked

9:00 p.m. Building closes

ProgramsThe MN NPS meets the first Thursday

in October, November, December,February, March, April, May, and June.Check the Web site for more programinformation.

MN NPS Web sitewww.mnnps.orge-mail: [email protected]

MN NPS ListserveSend a message that includes the word

subscribe or unsubscribe and yourname in the body of the message to:[email protected]

Feb. 2: Jaws: Carnivorous plantsnative to Minnesota, by Jason Husveth,Critical Connections Ecological Services.

Plant of the Month to be announced.March 2: A Match Made in Humus?

The connection between boletemushrooms and the roots of trees inMinnesota, by Bryn Dentinger, graduatestudent, University of Minnesota. Plantof the Month. Annual meeting, electionof three board members.

April 6: Site and Restoration Historyof the Twin City Army AmmunitionPlant, by Wade Hammer, wet landecologist with Svoboda Ecological

Resources.April 22: Symposium, St. Olaf College. In this issue

Treasurers report..................2Symposium, field trips..........3Mississippi Gorge Park.........4July patterned peatland trip...5Nursery law changes.............6Field guide review.................7Dutchmans Breeches (Plant

Lore)......................................7

By Karen SchikAs the Mississippi River flows toward the Gulf of Mexico, it makes

a sharp bend to the east some eight miles downstream from the Cityof Saint Paul. This unique area, named Pine Bend Bluffs by early

white settlers for the many white pines that grew in this area, remainsa natural jewel nestled along the river in a rapidly developing portionof Dakota County. In the Twin Cities Metropolitan Area, a place ofexplosive development and urban expansion that continually eats awayat the few remaining natural areas, it may seem surprising that largetracts of high quality natural areas still exist. A few such gems doremain, and there are several organizations that work together to obtainpermanent protection for them.

Pine Bend Scientific and Natural Area was officially dedicated inMay 2004. It was the result of many years of work and collaborativeeffort between Friends of the Mississippi River (FMR), the Trust forPublic Land (TPL), and the Department of Natural Resources (DNR)

The existing SNA was owned by several different private parties, sothe fact that it all came together as one piece of land was extremelyfortunate.

Tens of thousands of years ago, when the last of the glaciers werereceding, the meltwater formed the Glacial River Warren, whichcarved the current river valley. The vestiges of this mighty river, theMississippi, meandered uninterrupted through islands and channelson its way to the Gulf. In the 1930s, with the construction of a seriesof locks and dams, the nature of the river was changed and with itthe valley landscape was dramatically altered. However, the steepwooded Pine Bend Bluffs have remained largely in their natural state

Today these 200-foot bluffs,dissected by numerous ravines, arehome to many native plant andanimal communities. The steep,south-facing slopes, with theirgravelly soils, are hot and dry andcontain prairie remnants, dry oakforest, and oak woodland. Thecooler, moister north-facing slopescontain mesic oak forest and white

Scientific and Natural Area Spotlight

Pine Bend Bluffs

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Minnesota Native Plant Societys purpose

(Abbreviated from the bylaws)This organization is exclusively organized and operated for educational

and scientific purposes, including the following:

1. Conservation of all native plants.2. Continuing education of all members in the plant sciences.

3. Education of the public regarding environmental protection of plantlife.4. Encouragement of research and publications on plants native toMinnesota.5. Study of legislation on Minnesota flora, vegetation and ecosystems.6. Preservation of special plants, plant communities and scientific andnatural areas.7. Cooperation in programs concerned with the ecology of naturalresources and scenic features.8. Fellowship with all persons interested in native plants throughmeetings, lectures, workshops and field trips.

MN NPS Boardof Directors

President: Jason Husveth,14758Ostlund Tr. N, Marine on St. CroixMN 55047; [email protected]

Vice-President: Scott [email protected]

Secretary: Karen [email protected]

Treasurer: Ron [email protected]

Ken Arndt, board [email protected]

Mary G. Brown,board [email protected]

Daniel Jones, board member

[email protected] Mah Kooyman, board

member, [email protected]

Sandy McCartney, boa rdmember, [email protected]

Program Coordinator: LindaHuhn, 612-374-1435

Listserv Coordinator: CharlesUmbanhowar, [email protected]

Field Trips:[email protected]

Memberships:[email protected]; 651-739-4323

Historian/Archives:[email protected]

Technical or membershipinquiries: [email protected]

Minnesota Plant Press editorGerry Drewry, phone, 651-463-8006; [email protected]

Society has newmailing address

The MN NPS has changed itsmailing address to a post office boxIt will be checked at least once aweek, speeding processing ofmembership applications andanswers to your questions. Theaddress is:Minnesota Native Plant SocietyP.O. Box 20401Bloomington, MN 55420

Treasurers report for 2005Assets Dec. 31, 2005

Checking $14,900.44Flora ID CDs 0.00Refuge project 38.92Think Native 441.07Total checking 15,380.43

CD #10061266 1,063.40CD #95851478454 1,000.00Cash on hand 55.00

Total assets $17,498.83

Cash flow Jan. 1 - Dec. 31Income

Insurance refund 4.00Book sales 146.55Flora ID CDs 2,292.00Donations 692.00

Interest on checking 14.51Membership dues 3,470.00Symposium 5,992.00Plant sale 871.50Other 70.00

Total income $13,552.56

ExpensesRenew CD $1,000.00Insurance 436.00

Printing 1,123.64Postage 920.10Sales tax 144.00Supplies 64.33Symposium 2,512.97Think Native 200.00Refuge project 565.52Flora ID CDs 1,725.00Boundary Waters Fndtn. 50.00Web site 512.65Honoraria 50.00

Total expenses $9,304.21Net income $4,248.35

Prairie Smoke to be

Conference hostPrairie Smoke will host the 2006

conference/banquet of The Prairie

Enthusiasts (TPE) March 11 at EagleBluff Environmental Learning Centerin the southeastern Minnesota bluffcountry near Lanesboro. Their targetaudience includes TPE members,landowners, and all persons interestedin practical management andpreservation of native prairies.

Overnight lodging will be availablein Eagle Bluff dorms Friday andSaturday nights. For more information,

or to be considered as a speaker orexhibitor,contact Andrea Mueller [email protected]

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pine-hardwood forest. Along theriver, are black ash seepage swampand floodplain forest. These naturalcommunities contain populations ofseven rare plant species, of which

four are listed as state-endangered.Pine Bend was an important

location for Native Americans andwas one of the earliest sites ofEuropean settlement in the region.Vestiges of the town of Pine Bendare still visible south of the SNA,near the Flint Hills Resourcesrefinery. Individual parcels at theSNA have more recent humanhistories. At the property owned bythe Burgers, for instance, you can stillsee remnants of a Boy Scout cabin,built there by hand in the 1930s fromlogs that were floated to the site in araft. Not far from there is the OldMilitary Road, which ran parallel tothe river. And from the McGillproperty, you can find arguably themost spectacular views of theMississippi River in the metropolitanarea. (View photos at: www.fmr.org/sna_addition.html)

One of the former property owners,the late Dwight Malcolm, not onlydonated his parcel to the state forpe rmanent pro tection, bu t al soprovided significant funding to FMRfor habitat restoration work at thatparcel. In partnership with the DNRand the National Park Foundation,which also donated funds to the site,FMR has undertaken extensiveexotic woody plant removal from theoak forest and has initiated a seven-

acre oak savanna restoration. Overthe last two years, nearly 200volunteers have helped haul andstack large amounts of brush, collectpra ir ie seed, and prepare thewoodland for a prescribed burn.

Events planned for 2006 includebrush burning on Saturday, Jan. 28,garlic mustard pulling on June 3, andseed collection in the summer andfall. For more information or to sign

up, contact Katie Galloway atFriends of the Mississippi River(651-222-2193 ext. 14, [email protected]).

For additional information, visit:www.fmr.org/pbptnrs/www.fmr.org/pr03112003.htmlwww.dnr . s t a t e .mn.us / snas /

sna02030/index.html

Continued from page 1

Pine Bend SNA

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Two Winter FieldTrips are planned

Join MN NPS members SaturdayFeb. 11, from 9:30 a.m. to noon fora tour of the University ofMinnesotas herbarium. Dr. GeorgeWeiblin, curator of flowering plants-Bell Museum, will take us through

the herbarium and give us an up-close look at what it takes to maintaina herbarium at a major university. Ademonstration on plant specimenmounting will be included.

On Saturday, March 11, from 9a.m. to noon, MN NPS BoardMembers Ken Arndt and ScottMilburn will lead a field trip at BootLake Scientific and Natural Area innorthern Anoka County. From thetamarack swamp through the stately

white pines and into the woodlandsand on to Boot Lake, we will identifywoody and herbaceous plants foundat this great SNA.

Go to www.mnnps.org forinformation on signing up for eitherof these field trips, detaileddirections and parking lotsParticipation will be limited to 25people for each trip. Field trips forthis spring will be posted soon.

Group exploreswinter botany atNature Centerby Ken Arndt

On Saturday Nov. 12, MN NPSPresident and Botanist JasonHusveth and Board Member andUrban Forester Ken Arndt led 16amateur and professional plantenthusiasts on an enjoyable walkthrough the Maplewood NatureCenter property to learn about winterbotany. With a lack of snow coverand comfortable temperatures thatmorning, we encountered manydifferent plants along the trails.

We began inside the nature center,where we had a brief overview of theaspects of winter botany and how tobeg in identi fy ing pl an ts by

characteristics outside of the growingseason. We started our plant walk ata small landscaped area dominatedby nat ive tr ees, sh rubs andperennials. A paved trail took usaround a large open-water pond,where we passed through a woodedarea of green ash, silver maple, andblack willow. We moved on, to asmall prairie restoration area and intoan upland of white and northern pinoak. Here, a buckthorn removal

project has opened up the understory,welcoming back the true natives. Onthe north side of the pond, a largestand of pagoda dogwood wasgrowing along the trail, just abovethe wetland edge with hackberry andsilver maple.

Maplewood Nature Center is alsoa great get-away for a quick familyhike through scenic woodland andwetland plant communities.

Symposium onDriftless Area

is April 22The Land that Glaciers Forgot: the

Ecology of the Driftless Area is the

subject of this years symposium. Itwill be Saturday, April 22, from 8:30a.m. to 4 p.m. at St. Olaf CollegeScience Center, Northfield.

Presenters will discuss the geologyof the Driftless Area and its plantcommunities, rare plants, andconservation issues. Speakers andtheir topics are posted on the MNNPS Web site, www.mnnps.orgMembers will also receive a brochure

in the mail. Space will be limitedso register early.


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by Karen Schik, Friends of the

Mississippi River; and Carolyn Carr,Ecological Strategies. This is an

abstract of their presention at theNov. 3, 2005, meeting.

The Mississippi River Gorge is aneight-mile stretch of river betweenSt. Anthony Falls and the confluencewith the Minnesota River. Thissteep-sided ravine is the only gorgeon the entire length of the river andis a result of the only falls on theriver. The story of how the falls andthe gorge came to be began millions

of years ago, when ancient seascovered the region. Deposits of sandand calcite exoskeletons of tinyorganisms formed thick layers ofsandstone beneath limestone. Longafter the seas receded, the landscapewas dramatically altered byglaciation. The most recent glacialperiod, about 10,000 years ago,carved many of the present-daystream and river valleys and exposed

the bedrock layers along parts of thegorge. The geologic history caneasily be viewed at the exposed clifffaces in many places along the river.

The gorge came about as a resultof erosion and recession of St.Anthony Falls. About 8,000 yearsago, the falls was located indowntown St. Paul. Water flowedover the limestone shelf of the fallsand eroded the soft sandstone

beneath it. The undercut limestonewould eventually break off, causingthe migration of the falls upstreamand leaving behind the present-daygorge with 100-foot bluffs. Geologyforms the basis for plantcommunities and strongly influencesthe other factors that shape thecommunities: soils, topography,aspect, climate, hydrology anddisturbance regime.

While the native Minnesota plantcommunities have been largelyaltered since the time of European

settlement, first by logging and morerecently by invasive species, theentire corridor has been identified bythe DNR as having moderate or highbiodiversity significance. Mesic oakforest is the dominant communityalong the river, but a number of otherplant communities can be found,including floodplain forest, maplebasswood forest, black ash seepageswamp, and mesic prairie.

Mesic Oak Forest class consistsof mesic forests on gravelly moraineor outwash deposits, and on slopeswith thin soil over bedrock along theMississippi River bluffs. Theydeveloped on moist to somewhatdrought or fire-prone sites. Red oak,white oak, bur oak, and pin oakdominate mesic oak forests. Thesestands typically did not burn as muchas drier oak forests and were

probably always forest, rather thansavanna. The trees are tall andstraight, with narrow crowns. Fire-sensitive species are common,especially basswood, green ash,butternut and aspen, as well ashackberry, bitternut, walnut, elm andsugar maple. This community oftensucceeds to maple-basswood forest.

The shrub layer is sparser than indry forests because the canopy is

denser. The forb layer issubsequently more dense and diverseand has more grasses and sedges, aswell as tree seedlings. An abundanceof prickly ash and other spiny shrubsare indicators of past grazing.

Floodplain Forests are made upof a particularly hardy group ofspecies, adapted to disturbances ofopposite extremes, such as prolonged

flooding and drought, and severeerosion and sedimentation. Oneadaptation to injury that many

floodplain tree species have is to sendup new shoots, forming multipletrunks, a common floodplain forestfeature.

Structurally, floodplain forests arenot very diverse, with sparse orabsent shrub layer. The ground layeris also sparse and may be absent inan active floodplain until mid-summer. Then it is composed ofearly-successional, opportunistic

species, especially annuals. Stingingnettle is common, as well asclearweed, goldenglow, touch-me-not, honewort and bur marigold. Adistinctive feature of floodplain isthat there are many vine species.

Black Ash Seepage Swamp is arather uncommon plant communitythat is most often found on level riverterraces at the base of steep slopesIn the gorge, it exists below

Minnehaha Falls. The communityconsists of wet hardwood forests onmuck or peat soils in areas withcontinuously flowing coldgroundwater. The canopy is patchyto interrupted and is dominated byblack ash, sometimes with basswoodand American elm, and rarely withgreen ash and yellow birch. Skunkcabbage is a common ground layerspecies, and the shrub layer is

typically sparse or absent.

Maple Basswood Forest is foundin moist, fire-protected areas such asravines and north-facing slopes. Inthe gorge it can be found on the westside of the river, near 44th St.

Only about 2 percent of maplebasswood forest is left in the stateAlthough the loss has been primarilydue to farming, logging and

A gorgeous view: Plant communities of

the Mississippi Gorge Regional Park

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development, remaining areas arenow threatened by invasive species.

The community is characterized bya dense, continuous canopydominated by sugar maple andAmerican basswood, though red andwhite oak, green ash, slippery elm,and paper birch are also common.

The trees are tall, straight, andnarrow-crowned. Because thecanopy is so dense, the shrub layeris sparse, and the ground layer isdiverse and abundant. Woodlandwildflowers must take advantage ofthe bright light in spring before leaf-out to flower and set seed, so springephemerals are common.

Maple-basswood is a late-

successional community thatsucceeds mixed oak forest and otherforest types on mesic soils. It is a self-perpetuating community becauseseedlings of the dominant treespecies are very shade-tolerant. Theforest can develop into old-growthforest because catastrophicdisturbance is rare and dominantspecies are long-lived (250 years ormore).

Sugar maple plays a key role in soilformation. It is sometimes referredto as a nutrient pump, because it pullsnutrients from deep in the soil tomake massive numbers of leaves. Inmost tree species, nutrients from theleaves are returned to the tree trunkin the fall, prior to leaf fall. In sugarmaple, the nutrients are not returnedto the trunk but fall with the leaves,thus returning high levels of calcium,phosphorus and magnesium to thesoil and creating a very rich dufflayer.

One of the most serious threats tothis and other hardwood forestcommunities in Minnesota is theinvasion of earthworms. Sinceearthworms did not surviveglaciation, plant communities thatevolved after glaciation did so in theabsence of earthworms. Earthworms

were brought here by Europeansettlers and have since spread fromgardening and fishing.

Referred to as ecosystemengineers, earthworms seriouslyalter the soil structure in nativeforests. By consuming the duff or leaflitter, they convert the loose, rich, and

spongy native soils to a hard, mineralsoil with no duff, thereby removingthe substrate from beneath the nativewoodland plants. Earthworminfestations result in bare forestfloors with a very depauperatespecies assemblage.

It is not yet clear if forestcommunities can recover from thealtered condition. The problem iscompounded because exotic plant

species such as garlic mustard andbuckthorn readily invade thedisturbed soils. And native woodlandplant s that do surv ive arepreferentially eaten by an overlyabundant deer population.

Mesic Prairie comprises a verysmall portion of the gorge, but anintensive restoration project at theprairie bowl at 36th St. and WestRiver Road has been on-going for

many years. Successive burning,woody removal, seeding andplanting efforts are helping to restorethe native composition and structureto this small remnant.

While degraded in many areas byhistoric land uses and exotic invasive

species, the river gorge has been the

target of intensive restoration

activities for many years and an

amazing collaboration of localresidents working with many other

groups. The Minneapolis Park

Board, Friends of the Mississippi

River, Great River Greening, the

Department of Natural Resources

and the National Park Service are

some of the entities that have been

working with neighborhood groups

to restore and maintain the natural

features of this local treasure.

Patterned peatlandfield trip plannedfor July weekend

Jason Husveth will lead a northernMinnesota field trip Saturday, July15, and Sunday, July 16, to a

patterned peatland he surveyed lastsummer. The trip will be open to alMN NPS members.

The location is 12 miles southeastof Ely along Minnesota Hwy. 1, inthe Superior National Forest and onstate forest land. Participants wilcamp in a national forest camp-ground Friday night.

This site is within a large complexof patterned peatland, rich fens, poor

fens, black spruce swamps, andtamarack swamps. In addition to rarespecies, participants will seecarnivorous plants, numerousorchids, sedges, rushes, grasses, andnative wetland wildflowers. The tripwill require hiking across thepeatlands along a winter accessroad.

The hike will be approximately oneto two miles each way on a saturated

cushion of peat moss over aconsolidated peat deposit and will besomewhat difficult to difficult. Thepayoffs will make all of the effortsworthwhile, Jason said. I hikedinto this complex three times lastsummer, and it was one of the mostfascinating sites I have ever surveyedin Minnesota.

Jason will announce the trip at theFebruary meeting and will post

details, including costs, on thesocietys Web site.

Minnesota grass key ison herbarium Web siteAnita Cholewa has placed an easy-to-use grass key online atwww.umn.edu/herbarium/Grasses/

grass%20text/contents%20Lpage.htm.

She is curator of temperate plants, JF. Bell Museum of Natural HistoryUniversity of Minnesota, St. Paul.

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by Dianne Plunkett LathamThis is part of an article Dianne, aformer MN NPS board member,wrote for the Federated Garden

Clubs of Minnesota Newsletter.On June 30, the Minnesota

Legislature passed a bill to keepportions of our state governmentrunning. The bill not only managedto keep the Departments of NaturalResources and Agricultureoperational, but it also had quite afew other things in it, includingchanges to 18H.06, Exempt NurserySales. The new Nursery Law

amendments went into force on July1, 2005.

The new amendments removed thewords Nursery Hobbyist andorganization, leaving only theword individuals. Thus, anyindividual, as a private citizen, and/or as a member of a garden club, cansell up to $2,000 of Minnesota-grown nursery stock to customerswho will plant it in Minnesota, but

the number of days of allowable saleswas reduced from 14 days to 10 days.

Under 18H.02, Subd. 20, nurserystock is defined as trees, shrubs,vines, perennials, biennials, grafts,cuttings and buds that may be soldfor propagation, whether cultivatedor wild, and all viable parts of theseplants. As before, members whohave the above-defined plants, whichare grown out-of-state, cannot sell

them at a Minnesota clubs plant saleunder the occasional sales statute.

As before, the nursery certificationrequirements do not apply to annuals,bulbs, tubers, vegetable plants orornamental indoor plants, amongothers. These categories of plantsmay be grown by members inMinnesota or out-of-state and sold ata Minnesota club plant sale withoutneed of any certification.

Broadly speaking, there are twogroups eligible to sell nursery stockwithout obtaining a nursery stockgrower certificate (exempt nursery

sales). These two groups are not-for-profit sales and occasional sales. Not-for-profit sales applies to anorganization or an individual whooffers for sale certifiednursery stock(from any certified nursery, from anystate) if sales are conducted on 10 orless days in a calendar year, and ifthe proceeds are used for educational,scientific, charitable or religiouspurposes. There is no dollar limit onthe amount of nursery stock that can

be sold under the not-for-profitstatute. However, allthe stock mustbe certified in the state of origin priorto sale.

The second category under exemptnursery sales is occasional sales. Therationale for the occasional salesstatute on low volume sales ($2,000per year limit) of Minnesota-grownnursery stock to customers who willplant the nursery stock in Minnesota,is that such nursery stock presents a

low risk of plant pest spread fromseller to customer. The occasionalsales category is the part of the statutethat is generally the most applicableto garden club plant sales.

The old statute allowed anindividual, company or organizationsuch as a garden club to sell up to$2,000 per year of uncertifiednursery stock, for example, stockgrown in members back yards, inaddition to certified stock purchased

from Minnesota vendors. All stockhad to be Minnesota-grown andplanted in Minnesota. Sales couldbe conducted up to a maximum of14 days per calendar year.

What does a garden club have todo to prove that no member is sellingover $2,000 worth of plants under thenew statute? To determine this, onSept. 22, I met with representativesof the Minesota. Department of

Agriculture (MDA), including GeirFriisoe, manager of the PlantProtection Section, Mark Schreibersupervisor of the Nursery Inspection& Export Certification Unit, and GaiRyan, MDA attorney. Alsoparticipating were Mary MaguireLerman, City of Minneapolishorticulturalist, and Myk Hamlin ofthe Minnesota Hosta Society. Theconsensus was that if a garden clubhosted or advertised a plant sale withplants provided by its members, andthe total sales of nursery stock(defined under 18H.02 subd. 20)were under $2,000, the club need nottrack sales to individuals. If totalsales of nursery stock were over$2,000, however, the garden clubmust record each individua

members sales so that the gardenclub can demonstrate that no membersold more than $2,000 worth ofnursery stock at their sale.

Representatives of the MinnesotaDepartment of Agriculture said thatthe occasional sales classification isan option available to low-volumeinfrequent plant vendors. The choiceis up to each individual; plan salesdates carefully and stop selling when$2,000 is reached, or get a nurserystock growers certificate. Once theplants are certified, you can sell yourplants on as many days as you wishand without a limit on the amount ofmoney you make. Each individual isresponsible for keeping personarecords of their nursery stock salesto document that their total sales ofnursery stock do not exceed $2,000in a given year, and that sales do notoccur on more than 10 days during

the year.Technical changes were also made

to Minn. Statutes 18H.18Conservation of CertainWildflowers. The changes weremade to eliminate redundant plantnames, establish consistency withinthe statute and clarify plant speciescovered by the statute. No specieswere removed or added as a result ofthis most recent revision. Questions

Nursery Law amendmentsaffect rules for plant sales

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about the wildflower statute ornursery laws can be directed to MarkSchreiber or Steven Shimek at theMDA at 651-296-8507.

I have been appointed by GeirFriisoe to represent garden clubs atfuture deliberations on proposedamendments to the nursery laws. If

you have any comments on thenursery laws do not hesitate tocontact me at 952-941-3542.

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Plant Loreby Thor KommedahlWhat is Dutchmans breeches?

Dutchmans breeches is Dicentracucullaria in the fumitory (bleedingheart) family.

What do its names mean?

Dicentra comes from dis meaningtwice and kentron meaning spurreferring to the double-spurredflowers. The specific epithetcucullaria means hooded. And, ofcourse, the flowers resemblepantaloons or breeches.

What does the plant look like?It is a perennial with roots

consisting of a cluster of many smalwhite tubers. White flowers hang

from an arched stem (raceme), andeach bloom has two inflated spursresembling legs of tiny pantaloonsLeaves are highly dissected, almostfern-like. It flowers in April andMay, then goes dormant.

Where does it grow?It is found as a native plant in rich

woods, in full or semi-shade, in mostof the state except the northwest. Theseed is difficult to harvest; as soonas it ripens, it falls quickly fromplants.

Is it poisonous or medicinal?It may cause a skin rash. It contains

the alkaloid protopine, which acts asa depressant to the central nervoussystem. Cattle grazing on this planttremble and stagger, and sometimesthe plant is called staggerweed. Roottea has been used as a diuretic and topromote sweating.

Has it other uses?Not economically. The Menominee

Indians regarded it as a love charmA suitor would throw the plant at apo tenti al ma te , who then fe ltcompelled to follow the suitor. If aroot was nibbled by a man, it wasbelieved that his breath would attraca woman, even against her will. Adifferent species, Dicentraspectabilis, is bleeding heart, and itis cultivated in gardens.

Book review

Field guide forLaurentian MixedForest Province

by Scott MilburnRecently, the MinnesotaDepartment of Natural Resources

revised its system of classifyingnative plant communities inMinnesota. The native plantcommunities defined in this effort arebased not on plant spec ie scomposition alone, but also

considerations of hydrology,landforms, soils, and natural

disturbance.This information is being

published in a series of three fieldguides. The first,Field Guide to theNa tive Plant Communi ti es of

Minnesota: the Laurentian Mixed

Forest Province, was published in

2003. The second field guide, for theEastern Broadleaf Forest Province,has just been printed. The thirdguide, for Prairie Parkland-Aspen

Parklands is to be available soon.

The guides are small in size, to

enable the user to easily carry themon a short hike or a long camping trip.These guides are also field-hardy,printed on water-resistant paper,enabling the user to have one lessworry when perhaps crossing an

extensive peatland or waiting out asummer storm. Price-wise, the

guides are very affordable and canbe purchased at Minnesota s

Bookstore.

The Laurentian Mixed ForestProvince guide provides easy-to-usekeys for identifying native plantcommunities, along with well-

written information on the variousecological systems described for theLaurentian Mixed Forest Province.

It includes detailed fact sheets foreach described native plantcommunity. I have found the factsheets to be very valuable, with an

abundance of very interestinginformation that users willappreciate. These fact sheets are alsoavailable online on the MN DNR

Web site.

The guide itself provides anenormous amount of information,some of which is technical. Thatshould not, however, intimidate

anyone interested in learning moreabout the plant communities ofMinnesota. The guides are not justfor professionals, but are for anyonewho is interested in understanding

how our landscape is shaped byecological processes. For a link to

the MN DNR Native PlantCommunity page, visit our Web site(www.mnnps.org) and look underlinks.

Information about the second book,Field Guide to the Native Plant

Communities of Minnesota: the

Eastern Broadleaf Forest Province,

will be available on the MinnesotasBookstores Web site,www.minnesotasbookstore.com.The price is $10.95, plus sales tax and

$3 for shipping.

Mail orders can be sent toMinnesotas Bookstore, 660 OliveSt., St. Paul, MN 55155. The retailstore is open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.Monday through Friday. Call 651-

282-5077 or 1-800-657-3706.


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Winter 2006

Minnesota Native Plant Society

P.O. Box 20401

Bloomington, MN 55420

Documents

Winter 2006 Minnesota Plant Press ~ Minnesota Native Plant Society Newsletter