Gorge Stewards Quarterly — Fall 2006

In this issue

• Harvest in the Gorge
• Seeds: Star snapshots
• Blazing new trails in the Gorge

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Harvest in the Gorge

Each fall, Gorge Stewards take part in their own type of harvest at the restoration site at 36th Street and West River Parkway in Minneapolis. They collect by hand the mature seeds of grasses and forbs (flowering plants) and broadcast them elsewhere at the site to increase the strength of the planting.

At the time of European settlement Minnesota supported vast expanses of prairie and oak savanna. Today these plant communities remain in only tiny remnant patches, and seed collection plays an important role in maintaining these remnants. Conservation biologist Carolyn Carr leads groups of Gorge Stewards in this process, giving special consideration to the life cycle of the plant, its germination habits, and the timing of collection.

While seed collections in the gorge are often redistributed right away, seed is sometimes collected to be used in spring, or to be grown up as plant plugs. Some seeds used in this way must be dried under specific temperature and moisture conditions, then cleaned and separated from the supporting plant material prior to being stored, or planted in a nursery situation.

On Wednesday, October 4, 5:30 - 7:00 p.m. Gorge Stewards will collect grass and wildflower seeds from prairie plants at the 36th Street restoration site. During the event youll also have opportunity to learn more about the restoration and cultural information about plants from which were collecting.

For more information about seed collection, visit this informative page at the Pleasant Valley Conservancy web site.

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Seeds: Star snapshots

As summer comes to a close and Gorge Stewards thoughts turn to seed collection, take a look at some facts and folklore about the plants going to seed at the restoration site at 36th Street and West River Parkway:

Canada Milk-vetch Asragalus canadensis

Other common names: Rattle vetch

Loved by bees, the luscious Canada Milk-vetch is found at 36th Street in the prairie near the turf-grass picnic area. The Teton Dakota tribes used it to alleviate fever in children, and it had the folkloric reputation for increasing cow or goat milk yield.

A legume, it hosts root bacteria with the ability to turn nitrogen gas from the air to a form of nitrogen that helps the plant to grow. This process is called nitrogen fixation. When the plant dies, the nitrogen helps to fertilize the soil. Most legumes have this nitrogen fixation ability.

Showy Tick-trefoil Desmodium canadense

Other common names: Beggars lice, Devils thistle

Another legume, Showy Tick-trefoil is a summer-blooming perennial with purple flower blossoms clustered atop hairy stems more than 4 feet tall. The seed pods are flat and jointed and the seeds stick to everything. In 1856 Thoreau said of the seeds of Showy Tick-trefoil, There is something witch-like about them; expecting to come in contact with some traveling man or beast without their knowledge, to be transported to new hillsides…and so get a lift to new quarters.¹

There are approximately 70,000 seeds in one pound of showy tick trefoil!

Culvers Root Veronicastrum virginicum

Other common names: Culvers physic, black root, Bowman root

Located in the prairie bowl at 36th Street, Culvers Root is a favorite in the mesic prairie. A perennial growing up to 4 feet, Culvers Root has tapering spikes of small, white flowers in July. Possibly named for a physician settler who used it in his practice, Culvers Root has been used historically as a cathartic. European settler John Bartram wrote, One handful of the roots of this plant, boiled in a pint of milk, and drank, is used for a powerful vomit. ²

Reference

The History and Folklore of North American Wildflowers by Timothy Coffey. Houghton Mifflin, 1993.

Notes

1. Thoreau, Henry David. The Journals of Henry D. Thoreau. Edited by Torrey and Allen. 14 vols. 1906.

2. Bartram, John. A brief account of those plants that are most troublesome in our pastures and fields, in Pennsylvania; most of which were brought from Europe. 1758. In Memorials of John Bartram and Humphry Marshall.

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Blazing new trails in the Gorge

Later this month St. Paul Division of Parks and Recreation will begin a significant trail and picnic area development project near the ruins site of Meeker Island Dam, the first lock and dam structure on the Mississippi River. The new trail will follow roughly the path of The Old Wagon Road, which dates to 1899 when the US Army Corps of Engineers began construction.

An existing wood staircase in poor condition will be removed and replaced with a 4-foot trail paved using a Turfstone™ permeable paver system. The project also includes plans for erosion control and the removal of invasive trees and shrubs. The replacement planting of native trees and shrubs may include community volunteers like Gorge Stewards. The trail is scheduled for completion by November 15.

The Meeker Island Lock and Dam is on the National Register of Historic Places. Its historical and cultural significance is highlighted during annual walking tours hosted by Friends of the Mississippi River and presented by National Park Service historian Dr. John O. Anfinson, who is also a founding board member of Friends of the Mississippi River.

A park area that is used regularly is safer and more appealing than an underused one. The development of The Old Wagon Road Trail will create even more opportunities for recreation, environmental education, and interpretation in the Twin Cities gorge.

For more information about this project, contact City of St. Paul Division of Parks and Recreation at 651-266-6400.

More about the Meeker Island Dam