Plant of the Week: Celastrus scandens
Plant of the Week! We love decorating with plants for the holidays. Their colors and scents bring warmth and memories to our doors, dining tables, and living rooms. But we have to remember to be careful when selecting our favorite botanical baubles. Plants from big box stores are often transported from out of state, potentially... Learn More
Plant of the Week: Wisconsin’s Native Cacti
Plant of the Week! Wisconsin has a rich diversity of natural communities and ecological landscapes. Although there is no true desert here, there are sand prairies with specialized plants and animals that are adapted to the dry, hot conditions. Wisconsin is home to two species of cactus in the genus Opuntia: O. fragilis (Brittle Prickly... Learn More
Plant of the Week: Acer spicatum
Plant of the Week! Acer spicatum, Mountain Maple, is a shrub-form maple found in the understory of wet forests, more common in northern Wisconsin. It can also be found on thin soils over limestone or dolomite. It’s a beautiful shrub that forms upright pointed clusters of flowers in June/July. Mountain Maple is very useful for... Learn More
Plant of the Week: Acer platanoides
Plant of the Week! Wisconsin’s trees are in full fall glory right now, but one tree that you aren’t likely to be smitten by is Acer platanoides, Norway Maple. This tree, like many exotic invasive species, is still pretty darn green. The fact that this is a shared trait among many of the invasive plants... Learn More
Plant of the Week: Smilax herbacea
Plant of the Week! A beautiful and elegant vining plant, Smilax herbacea (Smooth Carrion Flower) features beautiful leaves with wavy margins and parallel veins, globes of white flowers followed by large berries that ripen to dark blue-black, and last but not least, rotten meat-scented flowers! Don’t let that stop you from admiring and utilizing this... Learn More
Plant of the Week: Drosera rotundifolia
Plant of the Week! You can see fall colors in the summertime if you get up close to a muskeg, which is a nutrient poor, water saturated peatland. Due to the high acidity and low nutrients, such environments are not very diverse, but many of the plants that live there are unique to such a... Learn More
Plant of the Week: Lilium philadelphicum
Plant of the Week! A stunning forb whose deep orange flowers can be seen from a mile away, Lilium philadelphicum, Wood Lily, is a beautiful addition to a prairie garden. Wood lilies have the largest range of any native lily in North America, covering much of the US and Canada. There are two subspecies, L.... Learn More
Plant of the Week: Lathyrus japonicus
Plant of the Week! Summertime beach days are waning, but it’s not too late to get out and explore some Great Lakes dune plant communities! Here is an early successional plant commonly found on the foredune (see the Indiana Dunes diagram shown here). Lathyrus japonicus, Beach Pea, is a native legume, although its species name,... Learn More
Plant of the Week: Dirca palustris
Plant of the Week! It might not have showy flowers, a grand stature, or particularly unusual features, but this plant geek 🙋♀️ cannot get enough of Dirca palustris, Leatherwood! An understory shrub, it typically has an open form in the wild (such as the first photo), but it is just as at home in the... Learn More
Plant of the Week: Arceuthobium pusillum
Plant of the Week! Wisconsin’s smallest shrub, Arceuthobium pusillum, Eastern Dwarf Mistletoe, only grows a couple centimeters tall. In the photo, it is the orange-brown plant growing out of this Black Spruce branch. A hemi-parasitic plant, it derives nutrients from host plants, eventually weakening and killing them. Dwarf Mistletoe is one of the causes for... Learn More