Minnesota Plant PressThe Minnesota Native Plant Society Newsletter

Volume 26 Number 2 Winter 2007

Monthly meetingsThompson Park Center/Dakota Lodge

Thompson County Park

360 Butler Ave. E., West St. Paul, MN 55118

651-552-7559 (kitchen)

6:00 p.m. — Social period7 – 9 p.m — Program, society business

ProgramsThe MN NPS meets the first Thursday

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

In this issuePresident’s column................2Plant press donation.............4Millennium Seed Bank..........4Flora ID problem fix............5Growth pressures .................6Arden Hills restoration ........6Field trips.............................6Regal Meadow donation......7Plant Lore -Leadplant............7

Feb. 1: “Recent Highlights in theMinn. County Biological Survey,” byCarmen Converse, County BiologicalSurvey supervisor, DNR. Plant-of-the-Month: Bog adder’s mouth orchid(Malaxis paludosa), Erika Rowe, DNR.

Mar. 1: “Hot Topics Related to the Useof Native Plants for Landscaping andRestoration: Endangered Species, LocalGenetic Stock, and Restoring PlantCommunities,” by Hannah Texler, DNRregional plant ecologist. Panel discussionwith nursery owners/operators and Dept.of Agriculture representative. POM:Louisiana Broomrape (Orobancheludoviciana).

April 5: “Conservation Challenges inMinn. Forests: Climate Change, InvasiveSpecies and Deer,” by Dr. Lee Frelich,Dept. of Forestry Resources, Univ. ofMinn. Plant, Place of the Month: BlackSpruce and Seagull Lake, by Dr. Frelich.

May 3: ”Motorized Recreation: Social,Ecological Consequences,” by MattNorton, Minn. Center for EnvironmentalAdvocacy. POM: Carex garberi (a sedge),by Scott Milburn..

June 7: “Decorative Tree Harvestfrom Minnesota Spruce Bogs,” by MikePhillips, DNR Division of Forestry.Annual Plant Sale.

Symposium isMarch 31by Scott Milburn

Our annual symposium will beMarch 31 at the Bell Museum ofNatural History. Join us as welearn about the Minnesota portionof the Prairie Coteau whileexploring the past, present, andfuture of this unique landform.The roster for the symposium isjust about set, with talks on thePrairie Coteau that include itsgeology, human history, plantcommunities, insect pollinators,rare plant species andconservation issues. Thesymposium brochure will beavailable in early February, butplease continue to check ourwebsite for updates andprogramming notes.

Updated EndangeredSpecies List will affectavailability of plantsby Hannah Texler, Rich Baker, and Nancy Sather, Natural Heritageand Nongame Research Program, Minnesota DNR

MN NPS members are invited to submit comments on new list.Minnesota’s Endangered Species Statute (MS 84.0895) requires that

the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) maintain a list of thestate’s endangered, threatened, and special concern species (hereafterreferred to as the list). The list was created in 1984 and was last revisedin 1996. The DNR’s goal is to maintain a list that reflects our scientificknowledge of the status and conservation needs of Minnesota’s plantand animal species.

During the past few years, staff within the DNR’s Division ofEcological Services have developed a set of several hundred draft

changes to the list in light of newresearch and survey results.These draft changes are thesubject of administrative rule-making during 2007.

In order to give the public anopportunity to comment onthese draft changes early in therule-making process, the DNRwill accept comments betweenJan. 2 and March 5, 2007. We

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MN NPS Boardof Directors

President: Scott Milburn,president@mnnps.org

Vice President: Shirley MahKooyman, vp@mnnps.org

Secretary: Daniel Jones,secretary@mnnps.org

Treasurer: Ron amd CathyHuber, treasurer@mnnps.org

Ken Arndt, board member,karndt@mnnps.org

Jason Husveth, board member,jhusveth@mnnps.org

Sandy McCartney, boardmember, smccartney@mnnps.org

Sean Jergens, sjergens@mnnps.org

Beth Nixon, bnixon@mnnps.org

Program Coordinator: LindaHuhn, 612-374-1435

Listserv Coordinator: CharlesUmbanhowar, ceumb@stolaf.edu

Field Trips:fieldtrips@mnnps.org

Memberships:memberships@mnnps.org; 651-739-4323

Historian/Archives:president@mnnps.org

Technical or membershipinquiries: contact@mnnps.org

Minnesota Plant Press editor:Gerry Drewry, phone, 651-463-8006; plantpress@mnnps.org

The Continuum of Conservationby Scott A. Milburn, president

The Minnesota Native Plant Society begins 2007 marking an importantmilestone while heading into the year with great momentum. I first wouldlike to remind our membership that Feb. 3 marks the 25th anniversary ofthe Society’s first monthly meeting. While this is a great accomplishment,our mission is far from over.

In my past column, I brought up the issue of conservation, and I wouldlike to continue with this message. Since the publication of the lastnewsletter, the Conservation Committee and the Education and OutreachCommittee have both started to move forward under the direction andleadership of Beth Nixon and Sean Jergens. We are still looking for morevolunteers from our membership to join these committees and add theirideas and energy.

As a society, we need to continually look for ways to not only engageourselves but also a whole new generation. Conservation will continue tobe a very important topic in Minnesota, and we have the opportunity to bemajor players. As the landscape continues to be developed, children willcontinue to be further and further removed from the natural world. Weneed to ensure that today’s children are given the opportunity to experiencethe natural world. In doing so, we will be showing an entire generation thewonders of Minnesota’s natural history.

The question is: how can we do this? One way is to support your localnature center either through volunteering efforts or by donation. A secondand perhaps more intriguing opportunity is through the development ofcurriculum for all grade levels. This information could be available onlinefor teachers throughout the state. This is an idea to think about this next

Minnesota Native Plant Society’s purpose(Abbreviated from the bylaws)

This organization is exclusively organized and operated for educationaland 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.

Deb Anderson, JasonHusveth receive stateconservation awards

Deb Anderson (Fillmore Soil andWater Conservation District) andJason Husveth (Anoka SWCD) eachreceived their district’s 2006Outstanding Conservationist’s Awardat the Minnesota Association of Soiland Water Conservation DistrictsConvention Dec. 2. Deb is a formerMN NPS board member; Jason is acurrent board member.

MN NPS websitewww.mnnps.orge-mail: contact@mnnps.orgMN NPS Listserve

Send a message with “subscribe”or “unsubscribe” and your name to:mn-natpl-request@stolaf.edu

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year, and I hope you can share yourthoughts. In closing, I hope everyoneis as excited as I am about our greatmonthly programs, our great rosterof speakers for the annualsymposium, and the great lineup offield trips.

coming out soon, it seems like a goodtime to address the issues again.

Here is a brief overview of theecological reasons for regulating theplanting, transplanting and sale ofrare plants:

1. Most listed species are rareprimarily because of habitat loss.Introductions and reintroductions donot address this root cause ofendangerment, and they may lead toa false assumption by the generalpublic that biodiversity loss can beaddressed simply by moving speciesaround.

2. Many listed plant species havebeen reduced to a small number offragile populations that could bedamaged by the introduction of genesfrom plants from a differentgeographic area. Ideally, we wouldunderstand the genetics of eachspecies and use that understanding todetermine whether or notintroductions could be helpful orharmful to native populations.However, there is almost noinformation available about thegenetic makeup and reproductivebehavior of most listed species, sothe law is applied uniformly in orderto avoid potential damage.

3. Since many rare plants have veryspecific habitat requirements, it is

likely that attempts to introduce orreintroduce rare plants will not besuccessful. There is littledocumentation about successfultechniques for the introduction ofmost rare species. So again, the lawis applied uniformly in order to makeit more easily understood.

4. Moving species around canobscure natural biogeographicpatterns. This can cloud ourunderstanding about what the plantsreally need in their naturalenvironments.

5. The use of plants or rootstocksbearing soil from another site maybring invasive weed seeds orinvertebrates into a site.

6. Collecting seeds from wildpopulations of rare species maysignificantly reduce the seedsavailable for reproduction innaturally occurring populations.

List to be discussedat March 1 meeting

The draft revisions and othercurrent topics related to usingnative plants for landscaping andrestoration will be furtherexplored at the Society’s March 1meeting. These topics includecurrent views about using localgenetic stock for native plantingsand the importance of restoringecologically appropriate nativeplant communities. Be sure toattend this meeting; there will bea panel discussion to presentvarious views and give audiencemembers the opportunity tocomment. It promises to be a livelyevening.

Endangered speciesContinued from page 1

are requesting scientific informationthat will help us determine whetheror not a species should be designatedas endangered, threatened, or ofspecial concern in Minnesota.

You may review and comment onthe DNR’s Draft Revisions toMinnesota’s List of Endangered,Threatened, and Special ConcernSpecies on the internet atw w w . d n r . s t a t e . m n . u s / e t s /rulesrevision.html

Links to the current list, and toMinnesota’s Endangered SpeciesStatute and associated rules are alsoavailable at that site.

If you prefer to receive a papercopy of these materials, pleaserequest a copy from:

Richard J. Baker, Division ofEcological Services, MinnesotaDepartment of Natural Resources,500 Lafayette Rd., Box 25, St. Paul,MN 55155; phone: 651-259-5073;e-mail: rich.baker@dnr.state.mn.us

How the law affects the sale andpurchase of native plants

Out of the 2,024 vascular plantspecies that occur in the state, 123(six percent) are currently legallylisted as endangered or threatened,and 133 are listed as of specialconcern. It is illegal to take, import,transport, or sell any portion of anendangered or threatened specieswithout a special permit from theMinnesota DNR. From a practicalstandpoint, this means that it is illegalto use endangered or threatenedplants as horticultural materials or inrestorations.

This is a controversial law, andsome natural resource managers andplant vendors disagree with its basicpremise. In fact, many plant vendorssell Minnesota endangered andthreatened species illegally, in manycases because they don’t know aboutthe law. This issue was addressed indetail at the 2000 MNPS annualsymposium, but with the new list

Society urgesprotection forColdwater Spring site

At its Oct. 5, 2006, meeting, theMN NPS Board of Directors votedto urge protection of the ColdwaterSpring site in Minneapolis. Theysigned a letter, “Comments on theHistoric Coldwater Spring Site,”which was sent to ActingSuperintendent Steve Johnson,Mississippi National River andRecreation Area.

The letter begins:“On behalf of The Minnesota

Native Plant Society, the Board ofDirectors requests the above 27-acreproperty be designated a publicoutdoor museum under permanentprotection of the National ParkService following the removal ofbuildings on the site. We also requestthis protection be accompanied byfederal guarantees that this propertywill never be sold for private use,private development, or non-historicpublic use.”

The letter then lists reasons why thesite should be protected.

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by Bonnie St. James. Reprinted withpermission from the Sept. 14, 2006,Hastings Star-Gazette.

High School teacher Joe Beattie’sbiology classes are always hands-onand intensive. This year is going tobe no exception. But this year,students have new tools — plantpresses built by an ecologist who wasin Hastings last week to teach thestudents how to use them.

Field biology students foundthemselves dressed in waders lastThursday and in water up to theirknees. They were learning aboutcollecting wetland plants from JasonHusveth, principal ecologist forCritical Connections EcologicalServices, Inc. and past president ofthe Native Plant Society.

Beattie asked the Native PlantSociety last year for help in gettingplant presses so his students couldcollect, press and dry plants. Husvethdid more than was asked. He took theproject on himself and built sevenpresses, which he donated toBeattie’s class and then came to showthe students how to use them.

At 7 a.m. last Thursday morning,the students gathered with Beattieand Husveth in the parking lot at theHastings Lock and Dam and walkedto the berm between Lake Rebeccaand the Mississippi River west of thelock and dam. They all put on wadersand followed Husveth into a littlepiece of wetlands.

Husveth explained how rare plantscould occur in very smallcommunities or “pockets” like thisone. He pointed out the nativearrowroot and smartweed, and theinvasive cattails and purpleloosestrife. He showed them the toolshe used — plastic bags and a serratedknife — that wouldn’t cut anythingprobably but plants. Then hecollected an arrowroot plant to showthem how it is best done.

“Collect as much of the plant asyou can,” he said. “Look at thesmartweed. If you collected just thetop, you wouldn’t be able to see howtall the plant is.”

He placed the plants in separatebags, and then had the students dosome collecting. The students wouldalso collect prairie plants at a pieceof prairie on 3M grounds on Friday,and forest plants at Vermillion FallsPark on Monday.

After the plants were collected, thestudents climbed out of the water andout of the waders and watchedHusveth prepare a plant for pressing.The arrowroot plants were long, sohe folded them in thirds.

The presses Husveth built consistof an open frame made of lath, apiece of cardboard the same size (allcut to a standard size used bycollectors), blotter paper to absorbthe water, a layer of newspaper, theplant, more newspaper, a sheet ofblotter paper, a layer of newspaperand the top frame.

Then the press is pulled togethertightly to form a bundle, and a strapmade of webbing is secured tightlyaround it, to release water.

Collectors neededfor Millennium SeedBank Project

Betsy Allen, coordinator for theMillennium Seed Bank Project at theChicago Botanic Garden, wants tohire botanists to collect seeds ofnative plants.

They are collecting seeds from1,500 different native species in theMidwest for long-term conservationas part of the internationalMillennium Seed Bank Project(http://www.rbgkew.org.uk/msbp/index.html). These seeds are dried toa low moisture content, stored in anairtight container, and then frozen.The Royal Botanic Garden, Kew,thinks that the average lifespan ofthese stored seeds is 200 years. Theseeds are used mostly for “what if”scenarios, but a portion can be usedby qualified groups for restoration orresearch. For each species, theycollect between 5,000 and 20,000seeds from one population and taketwo herbarium specimens.

Allen hopes to collect seeds inMinnesota this year. “If we want tofulfill our requirement to Kew,” shesaid, “we have to collect seed from300 species in one year. Yikes! Wehave money to pay contract botaniststo help me out with making thesecollections. Do you know anyamateur botanists or poor, starvinggraduate students that earning moneyby seed collecting might beappealing?”

A species list is posted online ath t t p : / / c b g s e e d b a n k . o r g /targetspecies.html. For additionalinformation, contact: Betsy Allen,Millennium Seed Bank Projectcoordinator, 847-835-6957;ba l l en@ch icagobo tan i c .o rg ;Chicago Botanic Garden, 1000 LakeCook Road, Glencoe, IL 60022.

Husveth makes plant pressesfor Hastings biology class

Use new mailing addressThe Society’s mailing address is

P.O. Box 20401, Bloomington, MN55420

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One of donated plant presses

Thank youFollowing are excerpts from a

thank-you letter from the GreaterWest Metro Humane SocietyMemorial Garden Committee.

“In the spring of 2004, [we]received a $200 grant from yoursociety to purchase seeds of nativeplants for our planned prairiewildflower and pond edge areas. TheMemorial Garden was planned tocreate a peaceful landscape next toour adoption center where peoplecould enjoy perennial beds andnative plantings. With supporters’donations, we place small graniteplaques in the garden in honor andmemory of beloved people and pets.

“This year we have seen a greatblossoming of our native areas inspite of the harsh heat and drought.

“In the fall of 2004, we planted ashort mesic prairie area above aboulder wall and a small area of shortgrass woods edge savanna where thetrees produced some shade. In thespring of 2005, we planted the edgeof our pond with a short sedgemeadow mix.

“We hope to develop a path in theprairie area with educational markersand to develop a woodlandwildflower garden with path. Theplanting you funded has broughtpleasure to many people and hascreated a wildlife habitat. … We hopeyour members may visit the adoptioncenter and garden someday.” Thegarden is located at 4375 Hwy. 55S.E., Buffalo, MN 55313.

Compatibilityproblem with FloraID CDs can be fixedby Bruce Barnes, Flora IDNorthwest, LLC

The default settings in the just-released Internet Explorer version 7interfere with the Flora ID XIDsoftware the keys run in. Some usersmay not notice this problem. Belowis a description of the problem andthe changes in the IE7 settings whichare needed for one of the minorfeatures of the program to work

The ProblemIf your computer has Internet

Explorer version 5 or 6, when anattribute image or a species image isclicked, it expands to full size in aseparate window and there is noproblem. If you have InternetExplorer version 7 (IE7), thiswindow appears as a blank screen.

The SolutionIE7 calls the page which is created

“about:blank”. So if you add thisURL to the list of trusted pages, itwill show its content.

The simplest way to do that is: Goto Tools> Internet Options > SecurityTab. Select “Trusted sites” and click“Sites” button.

First remove any check mark thatmay be in the box at the bottomlabeled “Require server verification(https:) for all sites in this zone.”

Type: “about:blank” (withoutquotation marks) into the “Add thiswebsite to the zone” field(overwriting any address that appearsthere), and then click “Add” buttonin the Dialog Box. The words“about:blank” should appear belowin the list of websites. Click “Close”to save the settings. In this screen,make sure that the “Security level”for the trusted sites is set to Mediumor lower. If the security level is aCustom setting, click Default levelto provide a slider that enables youto select the level you wish, in thiscase Medium or lower. Click OK.

The image problem between IE7and XID will now be corrected.

If you choose to not change thesettings, you can still view images attheir full size by simply dragging tothe left the vertical divider betweenthe left and right windows.

Oakdale Parkbenefits from ‘ThinkNative’ plantingsby Ron Rogstad, administrativeservices director, City of Oakdale;from a city newsletter.

A group of volunteers from HopeEvangelical Free Church in Oakdale,along with Oakdale city staff, acommunity volunteer, and theOakdale Tree Board chair, plantedmore than 100 native plants and treesin Oakdale Park on June 9 from 9:30a.m. to noon.

The plants were given as part of the“Think Native” grant programsponsored by the Minnesota NativePlant Society, which is a non-profitorganization dedicated to theconservation of the native plants ofMinnesota through public educationand advocacy.

The Oakdale planting wasoriginally planned for the wetlandbuffer area near 4th St. N. and HadleyAve., but was moved to Oakdale Parkbecause the majority of the plantsobtained were shade or semi-shadevarieties. City Forester Chris Larsonprepared prairie, woodland, andmeadow sites for the plant materials;all the sites are adjacent to pavedwalking trails in the park.

The Society established its grantprogram to educate the public aboutnative plants and to encourage theuse of native plants in home andpublic projects. The city alsoreceived surplus seeds from theSociety’s annual November seedexchange.

Larson plans to use the surplusseeds to help replace the groundcover in the buckthorn removal areasin the park.

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Memorial garden in bloom

Winter fieldtrips plannedby Kenneth J. Arndt

We have planned three MN NPSwinter field trips. If you haven’tsigned up yet, just send an e-mail tome at karndt@pioneereng.com orsign up at our general meeting inFebruary. I will be at the field triptable with sign-up sheets and otherinformation on upcoming trips.

Saturday, Feb. 17, 1 - 3 p.m.,Terrace Horticultural Books, 503St. Clair Ave., St. Paul. Owner KentPatterson has opened his store to allMN NPS members and is offering todonate 20 percent of all sales fromthe afternoon to the Society. So if wespend $1,000, then the MN NPS willget $200. There is no limit to thenumber of Society members who cancome, but I do appreciate your lettingme know if you can make it.

Saturday, March 3, 1-4 p.m.,Pine Bend Bluffs SNA in InverGrove Heights. Join botanists ScottMilburn and Jason Husveth andurban forester Ken Arndt for anafternoon of winter botany at thisfantastic Scientific Natural Area. Wewill hike from atop the bluffs downthrough the mixed hardwood/coniferous forests to the MississippiRiver, where we will explore theseeps for skunk cabbage in bloom.The hiking will be moderate indifficulty, due to the 150- to 200-footelevation change from the top of thebluff down to the river. The trail itselfis easy going; it’s the elevationchange I want people to be aware of.We have to limit the number ofpeople to 20, due to site-sensitivereasons. More detailed informationwill be available in mid-February.

Late March or early April,Warner Nature Center in Marineon St. Croix. Join Dr. Jans A.Janssens of Lambda-Max,Ecological Research as we explorethe world of bryophytes at thisunique natural area. A date will beset in the next month.

Growth pressures onnatural resources studiedby Sharon Pfeifer, DNR Central Region community assistance manager.This is an abstract of her talk Dec. 7, 2006, at the MN NPS meeting.

In the next quarter century, growth pressures in the Twin Citiesmetropolitan region will be intense, as more than one million new residentsand 500,000 new homes consume unprotected, sensitive natural areas.

This GIS-based regional assessment was conducted to: 1) examinesocioeconomic changes and potential natural resource impacts, and 2)provide recommendations to address trade-offs between future growth andconservation. Sensitive land and water habitats and groundwater availabilitywere analyzed in the context of social and economic factors, includingchanges in population, urbanized land area, number and size of new housingsubdivisions, commute times, job locations, community types, and localfiscal capacities.

Growth scenarios suggest that regional growth will be most intense at thefringes of the seven-county core region and just beyond in the four “collarcounties,” where groundwater is an additional constraint to growth. Becausemost communities in the path of growth have modest or below average taxcapacities, they will be challenged to conserve land and water resources. Ifgrowth continues in the form of large lot, low-density development, almostall remaining unprotected sensitive natural areas will be developed.

Future conservation will require strategic regional scale planning,conservation cost-sharing, and additional resources to bridge gaps ininformation, analyses, and technical assistance to communities.

The Arden Hills Army Training Site (AHATS) is a 1,786-acre militaryinstallation in Ramsey County, Minn. The Original Land Survey, completedin the late 1800s, makes note of bur oak and white oak woodlands, withtamarack swamps in the low areas in the approximate vicinity of the property.

Thirty home sites were displaced when the site was purchased in 1941 bythe federal government for use as a military installation. The site hosted 22years of active munitions production through the Vietnam War. At its peak,26,000 people were employed there. It was listed as a superfund site in1983. Clean-up at the site continues.

Tallgrass prairie restoration projects have occurred at the AHATS sincethe early 1990s. As part of a Masters of Science project, a study assessingthe relationships among management (seeding and burning), vegetation,and environmental factors (soil, aspect, and slope) was completed. Thestudy included completion of 75 vegetation surveys, consisting of threerandom plots in 25 purposively placed grids. The surveys consisted ofcover class data for all plant species. The surveys were completed twiceduring the summer of 2002 (late June/early July and mid-August).Multivariate statistical analyses of the vegetation survey data revealedrelationships between vegetation and soil texture, vegetation and shallowdepth to ground water (within 1 m), and individual plant species and firefrequency. The intended use of the findings is to improve management ofdesignated tallgrass prairie restoration sites at the AHATS.

Restoration of Arden Hills siteby Wade J. Hammer, wetland ecologist, Svoboda Ecological Resources.This is an abstract of his presentation at the April 6, 2006, MN NPS meeting.

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Plant Loreby Thor KommedahlWhat is leadplant?

Leadplant is Amorpha canescens,a native perennial shrub in the peafamily. It is also called prairieshoestring, downy indigobush, orfalse indigo.

How did it get these names?Amorpha is a Greek word meaning

“deformed,” because it has only onepetal instead of five typical oflegumes. Canescent refers to thehoary leaf appearance due to theshort, white hairs, which accounts forthe name leadplant, but also it wasonce thought (erroneously) to be anindicator of lead ore. Shoestringdescribes the long, tough roots.Because it resembles plants in thegenus Indigofera, it is sometimescalled false indigo or downyindigobush.

What do plants look like?They are perennial shrubs usually

less than three feet, but up to fourfeet tall. The alternate leaves arepinnately compound with 15-51nearly stalkless, whitish, hairyleaflets. Blossoms, in dense terminalspikes, are bluish-purple with asingle petal, at first tubular, thenunfolding. It has one seed per pod.Bees and wasps are attracted forpollination.

Where do the shrubs grow?Leadplant grows in the dry, prairie

areas of the state and sometimes insandy, open woods.

Is it edible?Not for humans, but deer, rabbits,

and livestock find it palatable; it ishigh in protein. It is not poisonouseither.

Has it medicinal properties?Not really; however, Omaha

Indians made a paste from stems totreat neuralgia and rheumatism.

Is it economically important?It has no particular landscape

features, but it is sometimes includedin native plant gardens.

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Leadplant photo by Peter Dziuk

110-acre prairie is gift toRegal Meadow PreserveBy Melissa Andrie. This excerpt is reprinted with permission from theAug. 2, 2006, Paynesville Press.

“We have a prairie. What it needs is help continuing as a prairie.”

With these words, Don Knutson [former MN NPS president] passed onthat land at a dedication ceremony. The prairie, one of very few remainingparcels of wet to wet-mesic prairie, was donated by Knutson to The NatureConservancy, and it is now one of three areas of land in the Regal MeadowPreserve, which covers a total of about 620 acres. Knutson donated the landin memory of his son, Dean Anders Knutson, who died in 1997.

Grazing and fire created good natural disturbances to the prairie in thepast, and it has never been plowed. “You can’t rebuild this. It’s a genuinenative stand,” said John Maile, the project manager of the Ordway/GlacialLakes Project, of which the Regal Meadow is a part.

There are “a whole suite of plants associated” with wet prairie, accordingto Carmen Converse, the “plant lady” and program director of the MinnesotaDepartment of Natural Resources’ County Biological Survey. Someexamples are cord grass, blazing star, prairie anemone, and heartleaf goldenalexander.

In the floodplain of the Crow River, the Regal Meadow is also home tothe small white lady’s slipper as well as non-plant life, like the regal frittilaryand the Poweshiek skipper, both species of butterflies.

“You get addicted to things,” Knutson said of his interest in conservation.Through an unusual series of events, he became the catalyst for the donationof this special piece of land, with its hundreds of species, many of themunique. While he taught a botany class at the University of Minnesota, TwinCities campus, he was approached by a student who said she and her husbandowned a piece of prairie land and wanted him to look at it, to see if it wasthriving. Though prairies were not his specialty, he came and discovered itto be thriving prairie.

After Knutson recommended that the couple contact The NatureConservancy if they ever wanted itto become publicly protected land,he did not hear from them for 10years. Then the former studentcontacted him. She wanted to givehim the land to take care of and to“keep it as a living, vital, naturalprairie system,” according toKnutson.

After owning the land for a coupleof years, two years ago he began theprocess of shifting the land fromprivate to public ownership, to makesure that it was protected while hewas “still in shape to do it.”

The land is located about a half-mile west of Regal on Highway 55.It is open to the public and and willcontinue to be open for hunting.

Minnesota Native Plant Society

P.O. Box 20401

Bloomington, MN 55420

Winter 2007

Thompson County Park

Take Hwy. 52 to the Butler Ave. E. exit in West St. Paul. Go west on

Butler 0.2 miles, then go south on Stassen Lane, the park entrance road.