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Take a (virtual) wildflower hike with us!

Spring has arrived, bringing beautiful woodland wildflowers with it. To celebrate the season, ACRES invites you to take a virtual hike with us! Retired professor and botanist Dr. Dave Hicks is joined by Jason Kissel on the trails of Kokiwanee. Hike along with them to learn more about the many species of spring flowers thriving ...

  • 05/06/2020
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In nature, some partnerships persist for millions of years

In the fall, helicopter sugar maple seeds brush your face as they spiral downward towards leaf-covered ground. “Sticktight” beggars cling to your clothes as you explore an ACRES preserve near you. These seeds are the result of a partnership that has remained intact without a legal contract for millions of years … a partnership between ...

  • 08/29/2018
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Curtain now going up on nature’s grand show

The curtain is going up on the greatest show on earth. Its nature’s display of spring wildflowers. And we have ringside seats, because the most beautiful display of spring wildflowers in the world is found in the American Midwest. Actually the curtain parted over a month ago, but few people recognized that the show had ...

  • 04/26/2018
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Color Me Bright, Color Me Orange

Article and photos by Fred Wooley, ACRES member, former Wing Haven caretaker and retired DNR Pokagon State Park naturalist Every growing season, changes take place in the wildflower world. Although we may not always consciously think about these changes, we may be noting them in our subconscious. They are as subtle as the changes in daylight when spring ...

  • 07/19/2017
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Field Notes: early March birds, blooms & ballads

While spring has not yet officially sprung, the preserves are already increasingly active. Spring wildflowers are beginning to bloom and wildlife is returning. As hikers do the same, they’re capturing images and video of the hullabaloo. Enjoy these sights and sounds of early March from ACRES preserves across our region. In video: March 7, 2016 | ...

  • 03/08/2017
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Exploring the preserves: anticipating spring wildflowers

By John J. Smith Skunk cabbage (picture 1 below) is the first native plant to flower, most years in March. Then come harbinger-of-spring, hepatica, false rue anemone and many more. But 2016 may have surprises. Already on Christmas day 2015 I found skunk cabbage spathes starting to emerge a few inches, and one hepatica flower and one ...

  • 03/01/2016
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