Learn about the many types of native flowers, vines, shrubs, and trees that grow in the Rouge River watershed. Also, read about invasive plant species that have settled into the watershed and find ideas on controlling them.
FLORA FEATURES
FLORA FEATURE – Standing Tall in the Winter Ice
GET TO KNOW –Cattails Along the edge of a frozen pond, dried stalks of cattails decorate the winter landscape. Rising up through ice and snow, cattails are stalwarts of their…
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FLORA FEATURE: Celebrating a New Year in the Winter Garden
American goldfinch on a snow covered sunflower head – public domain Finding Joy and Beauty in Winter’s Cold On a cold, wintry day – when summer’s flowers are but a…
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FLORA FEATURE: Wintertime Sustenance for Wildlife
GET TO KNOWMichigan Native Sumac Shrubs Sumac shrubs, well-known for their brilliant fall colors, also serve as a wintertime superfood for wildlife. The large and colorful, upright fruit clusters (known…
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FLORA FEATURE – Autumn Glory
Sugar Maple (Acer saccharum) – photo: David Ohmer CC-BY-2.0 GET TO KNOWThe American Sugar Maple Once again, the beautiful fall color season is upon us. The sugar maple (Acer saccharum),…
FLORA FEATURE – The Street Life
Trees on Main Street in Plymouth – FOTR GET TO KNOWUrban Street Trees The Rouge River watershed encompasses 467 square miles of land across 48 urban and suburban communities. It…
FLORA FEATURE – Replacing the Turf
GET TO KNOW: Michigan Native Grasses In the late 1700’s, Lancelot Brown, a British landscape designer, rose to international fame by blanketing England’s country estates in grass. FUN FACT: The…
FLORA FEATURE – Life in the Shrub Lane
GET TO KNOW Our native shrubs Two hundred years ago, the Rouge River watershed encompassed vibrant communities of beech-maple forests, hardwood swamps, and wet prairies. There were tall trees, tall…
FLORA FEATURE – A Great Lakes Hitchhiker
GET TO KNOW European frog-bit European (or common) frog-bit (Hydrocharis morsus-ranae) is a pretty, free-floating aquatic plant that thrives in still freshwater. It looks very much like a tiny water…
FLORA FEATURE – The Importance of Place
GET TO KNOW Garlic Mustard In its native range across Europe, garlic mustard is a welcome wildflower. A NOT-Fun Fact: Strongly flavored plants (such as garlic mustard) that invade cow…
FLORA FEATURE – All-Star Host for Pollinators
GET TO KNOW American Pussy Willow The pussy willow, with its soft and fuzzy flower catkins, is an all-star of wetland habitat plants. This fast-growing deciduous shrub provides a bountiful…
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FLORA FEATURE – Fleeting Flowers in the Woods
GET TO KNOW Spring Ephemerals In early spring, as the snow melts and the sun shines through barren branches, a carpet of flowers spreads across the woodland floor. Fleeting in…
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FLORA FEATURE – A Wintertime Bounty for Birds
Winterberry One of the prettiest plants in the winter landscape is the winterberry shrub. A member of the holly family, winterberry offers an abundance of brilliant red berries that last…
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Keep Butterflies in Mind When Planning Your Garden
For most gardeners, each year’s garden is a new adventure – a chance to improve, expand or just reimagine your own lovely patch of blooms. Now is the time to…
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