Hart’s Tongue Fern, Asplenium scolopendrium L. var. americanum By Joyce Tuharsky, WORC Member The Niagara Escarpment is a limestone ridge that stretches in a huge arc from New York through Ontario, upper Michigan, Wisconsin, and into Illinois. It was formed from lime mud deposited from corals on an ancient sea floor 430 million years ago. The ridge that […] Continue reading "Natives to Know: Hart’s Tongue Fern"
Native versus Nativar: What’s the Difference and Does It Matter? By Linda Shuster, WORC member One dilemma that native plant gardeners face is how and where to acquire plants. As Heather McCargo notes in her article for Maine’s Wild Seed Project (https://wildseedproject.net/2022/02/navigating-the-nurseries-how-to-find-native-plants/), the number of small growers of nursery stock of any kind has shrunk […] Continue reading "Native versus Nativar: What’s the Difference and Does It Matter?"
MANOOMIN: THE STORY OF WILD RICE IN MICHIGAN * Notes from Sr. Lucille Janowiak OP with additions by Linda Shuster, WORC Members I do not recall paying much attention to the growing of Manoomin (wild rice) in Michigan, but I paid attention to researcher and author, Barbara J. Barton, as she shared her findings and stories […] Continue reading "Manoomin: The Story of Wild Rice in Michigan – Program Recap"
IS IT A BEETLE OR A BEE? By Amy Heilman, WORC Garden Co-Chair Have you ever been fooled by an insect’s appearance, assuming it was one thing and then learning it was something entirely different? This happened to me one day when I heard a buzzing sound near a compost pile in my garden. As […] Continue reading "Is it a Beetle or a Bee?"
Sweetfern Comptonia peregrina By Joyce Tuharsky WORC Member Despite its name, Sweetfern is not a fern but rather belongs to the bayberry family: Myricaceae. It gets its name from its leaves which are up to 4 inches long, simple, zig-zagged, pinnatifid, and a lustrous olive green…. looking very much like “fern” fronds. And “sweet” because the […] Continue reading "Natives to Know: Sweetfern"
