The Indian Springs Neighborhood Association had a busy year in the Nine Springs E-Way. In addition to clearing brush along the creek, they built and installed 78 bird houses, and then cleaned and repaired them in the fall. We hope the bird houses will be occupied by tree swallows dining on mosquitoes.
The Madison Nordic Ski Patrol had only two or three weeks to operate this year, when we had a brief period of good snow in early January. Our thanks to John Neis, the patrol captain, and to Dorothy Dumontier, David Robb, Pat Terry and Roy Johnson. We’re all hoping for more snow next winter!
The Friends of Pheasant Branch worked throughout the year cutting burdock, burning and cutting brush, and working with County Parks to redirect foot traffic away from environmentally sensitive areas on the hill at Bellefontaine. They hope to plant a small demonstration prairie next spring. Carl Thedens and his crew completed construction of a beautiful observation deck at the top of the hill.
The Nine Springs Network continued to work hard in the McCoy Rd section of the E-Way. They had help this winter from volunteers from the University of Wisconsin, who celebrated the university’s sesquicentennial by performing community service projects.
Temple Beth El Mitzvah Day volunteers once again cut brush in the Nine Springs E-Way in early January. Miles Gerstein and his crew worked hard in the snow and made a lot of headway. Ken Siemers treated stumps as he has in the past.
The Friends of Old Halfway Prairie Schoolhouse board members now include Lisa Feiner, Cleo Brockmann, Alan Barsness, Ernest Kahl, Jam Van Deurzen and Frank & Margaret Basthemer. These dedicated volunteers host school children and tourists during spring and summer at the schoolhouse.
The 1999 Garden Expo was a great place to meet new friends and to talk to current and future volunteers. Carol Schiller, Renae Alswager-Klein, Donna Fisker, Ken & Gina Schumacher, Mary Brown, Mary Conroy, Kim Bonebrake and Ken Siemers staffed the exhibit. Ken LePine, Wayne Pauly, Jeff Fowle, Tina Kilgore, Dave Lemke, Louise Goldstein and Ranger Susan Krebs from the Parks Department staff took shifts along with the volunteers.
Oregon Middle School students cut brush with the Madison West and Middleton Kiwanis Clubs in the Jenni & Kyle Preserve in the Nine Springs E-Way. Teacher Jody McCoy led nine kids and their adult chaperones. They had such a good time they’re considering repeating the project. Thanks to volunteers Marv Beatty and Harry Fisker for supervising the kids.
Mary Tremaine led weekend field work days at Lake Farm Park, with Ken Siemers treating stumps. They are working on the lake shore path, opening up the view and allowing breezes to waft through in the summer. |
 |
| As Bill & Helga Giesellmann discovered, sowing seeds can be a painstaking process. Photo by David Sandell, Capital Times. |
Prairie Plant Propagator volunteers sowed seed in flats in early February. These seeds are now undergoing the process of stratification, which mimics the cold and wet conditions found in nature this time of year, and helps many species break dormancy. READI volunteers sowed the seeds, along with Ruth Fahnestock, Carol Schiller and Bill & Helga Giesellmann. The READI volunteers werecoordinated by Earl Strutz.
Corinne Conner and Deb Frosch, students from the UW, are working on interpretive material for a kiosk in the Ice Age Trail Junction Area. Working with Prof. Don Field, they are developing text that interprets the geology of the Ice Age Trail, the adjacent prairie restoration, and the relation of the two to the local environment. This kiosk will be placed near the Reddan Soccer Park, on the west edge of the prairie. The interpretive kiosk is funded in part by a grant from the National Park Service.
The Donald Park volunteer crew spent Wednesday mornings throughout the fall and winter on various projects, including brush cutting and burning, fence removal, and getting ready to plant more prairie in the spring. Among the regulars are Pat Hitchcock, Mary Spaay, Earl Hazeltine, Sal & Marcelle Gamboro, Jonathon Rooney, Jack Borders, Norma Ball, Bob & Jackie Geimer, and many more. (See Photo Page 6)
The prairie in the Ice Age Trail Junction Area yielded a very satisfying amount of seeds during seed collection last fall. In the future a trail system will provide access to the prairie as well as to the Ice Age Trail. Check the Volunteer Opportunities page for projects in this area.
Edgewood High School students under the direction of Nick Burrows spread woodchips on trails at Prairie Moraine. Our ranger, Jeff Gregersen was very impressed with how hard the kids worked and how much they accomplished. Both two- and four-footed park users will be treated to cleaner and dryer paths this spring.
The Goose Lake neighbors, working in the Ice Age Trail Junction Area, concluded a successful fall season of brush cutting, and are eager to begin again in the spring. They will start with an April prairie burn, and they’ve lined up a Girl Scout troop to help clear trails in the spring. |
