Took a 10 mile stroll from downtown today to visit this park, which I only recently realized existed (a great personal failing after seven years here). Chief among the attractions is the Quaking Bog, a small naturally occurring sphagnum bog (park literature says it has an estimated age of around 3700 years) complete with carnivorous plants! Restoration has been underway since 1986, when Minneapolis parks and rec undertook the considerable task of cleansing the bog of invasive buckthorn, and the floating walkway that makes it accessible these days was installed in 1995. End history.
I didn't spot any sundews today, like Voodoolizard did a few years back, but there were S. purpurea a-plenty, all flowering.
Neat place, and one I'm sure I'll visit again (if there be sundews there, I must see them). I'd love to make it up to Big Bog state park one of these days (500 square miles of peat bog near Red Lake), but that'll take some doing for a car-less city dweller with nothing but a state ID at his disposal. For something practically in my back yard, this was a pretty cool find.
Anyway, pics! First of the sphagnum (gorgeous, and doubtless benefiting from all the rain we've had this week / weekend - it had engulfed the walkway in places), then of the purps. You can see a spider shacked up in one of the pitchers if you look closely at the last pic.
I didn't spot any sundews today, like Voodoolizard did a few years back, but there were S. purpurea a-plenty, all flowering.
Neat place, and one I'm sure I'll visit again (if there be sundews there, I must see them). I'd love to make it up to Big Bog state park one of these days (500 square miles of peat bog near Red Lake), but that'll take some doing for a car-less city dweller with nothing but a state ID at his disposal. For something practically in my back yard, this was a pretty cool find.
Anyway, pics! First of the sphagnum (gorgeous, and doubtless benefiting from all the rain we've had this week / weekend - it had engulfed the walkway in places), then of the purps. You can see a spider shacked up in one of the pitchers if you look closely at the last pic.
