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Spears Woods June 20, 2020

6/25/2020

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Spears Woods Saturday June 20
​This was my first time at Spears since the pandemic began, and it was good to be back. Our small group removed a variety of weeds, pulling butterweed and garlic mustard and snipping tops of reed canary grass as we encountered it.

For such a small group we hauled an impressive amount of weeds back to the parking lot.  Much of it was the butterweed, a plant that is native to regions south of us but becomes problematic in our area. Like the catalpa tree, also historically found farther south, we may find ourselves battling this one more if we continue to see climate change. Curious to see how this plays out.

If Given Lemons...
Subtitled, good things arising out of the undeniably bad pandemic:

Filled gas tank just once since mid-March
Discovered Julie and I are probably compatible
Sleeping in - with the rationale that proper rest promotes a strong immune system
Riding bicycle more than I have in many years
More reading than in recent memory
Several weeks (long gone now) of blessedly light traffic in the neighborhood
Witnessing parents actively engaged with their kids (pretty much gone now too)
Even picked up the guitar a few times
Whittling away at the honey-do list
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Willow Springs June 13, 2020

6/18/2020

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Willow Springs Saturday June 13
We were again a small group, with three members carrying backpacks and spraying invasive weeds. The rest of us pulled garlic mustard and butterweed, and clipped the seed heads from reed canary grass. Great to see people I hadn't seen in many weeks.

Jim Carlson pointed out a catalpa tree, cut down two winters ago (probably January 2019), lying on the ground. In several places along its length, new growth was coming out of the bark. No roots, no way of getting nourishment from the ground, yet this tree was still fighting to stay alive. Quite impressive.

As summer arrives, both prairie and woodland are thriving, no doubt loving the abundance of rain that fell in May. There are fewer blooms in the woodland now that the spring ephemerals' time has passed, but the prairie is compensating nicely.

On a recent walk at Hidden Pond I saw numerous Ohio spiderworts and an absolute abundance of foxglove beardtongue (Penstemon digitals) in flower. Other plants spotted, not blooming yet, included two members of the Silphium genus, cup plant and prairie dock. The latter were especially numerous and should grace us with a splash of yellow later in the summer. Prairie dropseed looks like it's thriving in the lower part of the prairie.
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Restoration in Palos, June 4, 2020

6/4/2020

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Phase 3 Begins in the Preserves
Forest Preserves of Cook County (FPCC) released new guidance under Illinois Phase 3 last week. The good news is that volunteers are allowed to resume restoration activities in our local preserves.

There are certainly limits, which we expected. Volunteer groups can't exceed than 10 people, including the steward/leader. We won't host any organized groups under Phase 3 or solicit new volunteers. The rationale is that having experienced volunteers limits the amount of face-to-face interaction needed to get the work started.

Workdays will be private, by invitation, so dates and locations won't be listed on the FPCC website, on this website, or in our weekly email. Volunteers interested in participating can contact me via this website's contact page or by email at janaugust@sbcglobal.net  I will forward their names, contact info, and day preferences (weekday, Saturday, or Sunday) to our stewards.

Volunteers are encouraged to bring their own water and snacks, so we won't create a risk of virus transmission via shared food or beverages. Tools and gloves will be handled differently, to minimize risk. Workdays will initially be three hours, our standard, but may be adjusted.

There will still be no bathroom facilities open in the preserves. We were told a couple days ago that CDC pandemic guidelines call for bathrooms to be cleaned every two hours, which is not remotely possible in a setting like a forest preserve. If you're coming to volunteer please be aware of this.

Cicada Time
Apparently we have a brood of cicadas on a 13 year cycle, or maybe they are calendar-challenged. At any rate, a week ago we started seeing them in out yard, and I now have numerous exit holes in my small vegetable garden. A couple of our visitors are pictured below.



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    Author

    I'm Jan Pietrzak with the Palos Restoration Project. This blog and website were created for your information and enjoyment.

    I hope you'll be encouraged and inspired to volunteer at any of the numerous forest preserves in our area.

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