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2021 Programs
The Kettle Moraine Wild Ones meets at 10 AM (unless otherwise noted) on the third Saturday of each month except December.
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Due to Covid-19, October and November programs will be presented virtually via Zoom.
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Indoor programs are given at the South Kettle Moraine State Forest Headquarters, Eagle, Wisconsin: S91 W39091 Highway 59 (one mile west of Eagle). Indoor programs are open to the public and guests are welcome. No admission fee. Refreshments will be available. 10 AM (unless otherwise noted).
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Outdoor programs, April to September, are held in various locations and are for members only. No dogs allowed.
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Membership: Basic annual family membership is $40. For more information, email KMWildOnes@gmail.com. To join: wildones.org/membership/.
Tips and Tools for Prioritizing Restoration of Recoverable Oak Ecosystems
January 16, 2021
Aaron Feggestad, PWS, Senior Ecologist, Stantec
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The ongoing decline in the abundance and quality of oak ecosystems in southeastern Wisconsin and beyond is driving a mounting regional oak conservation effort. Ongoing mapping efforts are providing a better understanding of the locations of present-day oaks across the region and are assisting with regional oak recovery planning efforts. Most remaining oak ecosystems in the region are degraded in some manner resulting in a wide range of ecological conditions across the regional oak landscape. The most highly disturbed sites may retain only oak trees but lack other compositional or functional elements of a healthy oak ecosystem. These areas are difficult and costly to recover. Recoverable oak ecosystems, on the other hand, retain much greater ecological character and therefore offer greater recovery potential using standard ecosystem restoration practices. As they decline due to lack of management there is a need to identify them and prioritize them for preservation and stewardship. it will be discussed, from a practitioner’s standpoint, concepts of recoverable oak ecosystems including ecological significance, characteristic species assemblages, and readily identifiable field indicators using case studies. The goal is to facilitate discussion and work towards a regional framework for identifying and prioritizing recoverable oak ecosystems.
Herbicides: Minimizing Impact and Maximizing Benefit
February 20, 2021
Mark Renz, University of Wisconsin Extension Specialist
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​Can we succeed in an herbicide-free native landscape? Many times we can, but herbicides can improve the result and reduce the potential for failure in some instances. Professor and Extension Specialist Mark Renz of UW- Madison helps us understand when to use herbicides and how to use them correctly to minimize risk while maximizing benefit.
Meadow or Prairie Gardening
March 20, 2021
Jean Weedman, Chapter Plant Sale Coordinator
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Is it time to rethink your garden? Your lawn? Your yard?
Your outdoor space can help save the bees! increase biodiversity! and help limit the effects of climate change! That's a powerful punch that you can contribute by creating landscapes that enhance local ecosystems rather than degrade them.
The presentation will look back at how grassy lawn landscapes became the norm. How to change to a more vibrant landscape is described, along with suggestions on how to set your expectations for the new look. The program incorporates many pictures of local yards that have made the transition.
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Members of the Eagle Nature Trail committee contributed to this presentation.
Fostering Wisconsin’s Native Bees in Your Garden
April 17, 2021
Susan Carpenter, Native Plant Gardener at the UW-Madison Arboretum
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Learn about Wisconsin’s remarkable native bee diversity. Explore their life cycles and where they develop and live. We can foster these important pollinators in our gardens with bee-friendly plants and practices. This presentation will help you appreciate and support native bees—from bumblebees to tiny solitary specialist species.
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Susan Carpenter is the native plant gardener at the UW-Madison Arboretum, where she works with students and community volunteers to maintain and monitor a 4-acre garden representing the plant communities of southern Wisconsin. She leads a bumblebee conservation project that monitors these important pollinators, including the federally endangered rusty-patched bumblebee, Bombus affinis, which lives at the Arboretum and perhaps in your own garden.
Tour: Susan and Mike Bong’s Woodland Restoration
May 15, 2021
The couple welcomes members to their 20 acres of woodland. Mike likes to tell people how he crawled on his hands and knees with a clippers and compass, through multiflora rose and buckthorn, to create the path. They've since developed their own method of buckthorn removal that's back saving and more efficient. In many areas native flowers popped up, including a few they had not seen elsewhere. Some areas just grew a carpet of garlic mustard. These invasives were removed and the area was seeded with a "no mow" grass and native flowers that Sue found grow well in the grass. The walk is about a mile and quite flat.
Tour: Mariette and Dave Nowak’s Twin Kettles Property
June 19, 2021
Mariette and Dave Nowak have two small kettles bisected by their driveway, plus a small woodland, several prairie patches and a small water feature. They have worked over the years to remove invasive shrubs from their woodland and Crown Vetch and Knapweed from their prairie patches. Today, they harbor about 250 native species, as well as many frogs, turtles, and birds. In June, Lupine and Spiderwort are likely to be in bloom. But don’t expect a pristine yard – the Nowaks are firm believers in Lorrie Otto’s warning about the “Tyranny of the Tidy Yard.”
Tour: Jim Marrari and Barb Carstens’s Bird Sanctuary
July 17, 2021
Jim Marrari and Barb Carstens purchased their 5-acre property, located in the town of Troy, in 2006 and immediately began removing garlic mustard and Japanese hedge parsley. They built their house and moved onto the property in 2008 and then began their efforts to restore the oak savanna. To the south, their property overlooks the Nature Conservancy’s Scout Road preserve, which includes one of the headwaters of the Mukwonago River. To the north, the property borders the Nature Conservancy’s recently acquired addition to the Crooked Creek preserve. Active birders interested in providing bird habitat, Jim and Barb have documented 153 bird species on the property so far.
Tour: Ray and Kathy Knoeppel‘s Hillside Prairie
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August 21, 2021
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As you approach the Knoeppel property, you’ll enjoy a beautiful view of the prairie on a hill below their home. On site, members will be able to compare an established prairie with a newly planted one. The hillside in front of the house has two prairie plantings. The original prairie was established approximately 20 years ago by seed in and is 3/4 acre. The second prairie was planted in fall 2018 is approximately 1 1/2 acres.
Special Meeting: Hummingbird Banding
September 11, 2021
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Micky O’Connor, an ornithologist at the Milwaukee Zoo, will again be banding hummingbirds at Larry and Emily Scheunemann’s home. The Scheunemanns have landscaped their 30-acre property to attract wildlife of all types. Every year, banding efforts have been very successful including their first recapture of a female banded in 2014! Enjoy watching the banding and holding a hummer in hand! Children are welcome.
Special Meeting: Monarch Tagging
September 12, 2021
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Wild Ones members and Rock County Conservationists will gather at Larry and Emily Scheunemann’s home to tag Monarch Butterflies. A short talk on monarchs with instructions on how to tag monarchs will be followed by hands-on netting and banding of monarchs. The Scheunemanns have created a Monarch Wayside Station and have landscaped their 30-acre property to attract wildlife of all types. Monarch banding has been helpful in determining monarch migration and winter sites. Children are welcome.
Tour: Jacki Lewis and Dick Adduci‘s Garden Ponds, Native Landscaping, and Wetlands
September 18, 2021
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Having planned a simple birdbath, the couple instead ended up with three garden ponds, connected by waterfalls, overflowing into a small constructed wetland - all landscaped in locally native plants. In a separate project, they are replacing the landscaping at the front of the house, adapting Roy Diblik’s “Know Maintenance” concept to native plants. Finally, if time permits, members can walk back to some newly cleared areas of former wet-mesic prairie, where sunlight and buckthorn removal have brought the return of several special plants including gentian, narrow-leafed loosestrife, and more.
Ecological Responses to Climate Change: Lessons from the Past
October 16, 2021
Dr. John Williams, Professor in Geography and Affiliate with the Center for Climatic Research at UW-Madison
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How do species adapt to changing climates and how can we help them? Some of our best examples come from the end of the last ice age, when the world warmed by 5-10 F. Here we’ll review how we study past climates and ecosystems, what we’ve learned, and insights for today.
All About Galls
November 20, 2021
Tricia Bethke, Morton Arboretum Outreach Coordinator
Presentation will be followed by Annual Membership Meeting and Election of Officers
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Galls are everywhere and they are hiding in plain sight! Join Tricia Bethke for a lively conversation and learn how to identify tree galls based on size, shape, and color, and find out what's causing galls to form and how to manage galls on your trees. We'll explore the natural history of galls on hackberry, maples, and oak trees and discuss what's causing them to persist in a changing climate.
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Tricia Bethke is the Forest Pest Outreach Coordinator for the State of Illinois. Her position is funded through a cooperative grant with USDA APHIS and The Morton Arboretum. Tricia’s responsibilities include statewide training on federally regulated invasive species, forest pest identification, regulations and quarantines, and reporting protocols. Tricia also coordinates and instructs tree identification, pest detection, and tree health monitoring programs.
Happy Holidays!
December
No program in December.