Friends of County Grounds Park September 2021 Updates |
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September has the most activities of the whole year! This is the Month to Participate!! |
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Sanctuary Woods Invasives Removal - 3rd year of buckthorn removal - and we are making GREAT progress! We believe that this buckthorn removal is also reducing the vandalism at the park.
- Join other volunteers for a few hours of hand-sawing, dragging, and stacking invasive buckthorn
- No experience necessary; onsite equipment / training / supervision, just bring work/gardening gloves
- Also consider if you know a group looking to "get out somewhere" together
- Registration requested for planning purposes the first three dates have links
- We ESPECIALLY NEED VOLUNTEERS for this first event on 8/29
- For more information, email friendsofcountygroundspark@gmail.com
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Youth Friends of County Grounds Park - There is a group of students at Wauwatosa East forming a new school group: "Youth Friends of County Grounds Park"
- They have already been helping with some of the invasives removal in 2021 (checkout the photo about invasives) - thank-you!
- They will be developing some additional programming geared directly for youth to engage and improve the park
- Consider following this group on their new Instagram
- For more information, email friendsofcountygroundspark@gmail.com
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Forest Therapy - Guided Meditation - Shinrin Yoku is the Japanese practice of Forest Therapy, where one is present to the full experience of nature by engaging all of the senses
- Let the sights, sounds, aromas, and sensations of the old-growth Sanctuary Woods wash over you
- Receive the many benefits of Forest Therapy including a decrease in stress and the stress hormone cortisol, improved immunity, relaxation, greater vigor, feelings of awe, and connection with nature
- Enthusiast Sheila Nolte will provide a 2.5 hour experience where participants "unplug" from technology and daily life, and immerse themselves in the beauty of Sanctuary Woods.
- Also consider if you know a group looking to "get out somewhere" together
- Registration requested for planning purposes - the dates below have links
- Got questions? More tour details are included at the end of the newsletter
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Tree Survey - Appeal for Volunteers - Starting in April, a group of six volunteers has identified the genus and species and measured the diameter of all the trees over 4 inches in diameter in about two-thirds of the area of Sanctuary Woods, for a total of well over 1000 trees
- We have recorded this data in a special program on a tablet computer that is capable of displaying the data in geographical format
- Our objective is to gather enough data to do a report that would support a forest management plan to be done/approved by the County that would sustain the health of Sanctuary Woods which is essentially an old growth forest, with many very large native oak, maple, basswood and cottonwood trees
- The data will tell us which species are not replacing themselves. We have already noticed that while the magnificent white oak is prominently present in sizes of 20 to 30 inches diameter, there are no smaller trees of that species coming up to replace them. This might be a species that should be planted under the management plan.
- It is also very obvious that buckthorn is dominating the forest, choking out other tree species, not allowing native species to regenerate. Buckthorn is an invasive species that must be eliminated if the forest is to survive in anything like its beautiful historic form.
- Please everybody consider joining the fall tree survey effort. We could use about three more steady volunteers. It's always a good time of fellowship and fresh air in the pleasant Woods.
- No experience needed and we have all the equipment (including specialty tape measures). Everyone is matched with someone who can identify trees - and teach you how to as well!
- If you are interested in further logistics please send an email to to Charlie Mitchell at cmitchell@wi.rr.com
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**photo credit: Eddee Daniel Monarch Butterfly Tours - Jim price and Barb Agnew have graciously agreed to provide three tours this fall of the Monarch Trail adjacent to County Grounds Park. Both are founders of The Monarch Trail, decades-long advocates for conservation on the County Grounds, and butterfly enthusiasts.
- For a few peak days each year monarch butterflies may be seen here in the thousands during their migration to Mexico. While those onsite days cannot be predicted, these tours are close to local historic peak migration. Participants can be confident they will see some monarchs, along with other insects and butterfly-types.
- As tour guide, Jim or Barb will also share insights on the native flora and fauna featured on the trail, the rich history of the preservation of this space which also includes an old-growth oak savanna, and the characteristics that bring the monarchs to this site.
- As featured in, Michelle Madden’s “111 Places in Milwaukee That You Must Not Miss”.
- Registration requested for planning purposes - the dates below have links
- Got questions? More tour details are included at the end of the newsletter
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Bird Houses County Grounds Park Bluebird House initiative was featured by CBS 58, available at this link While FOCGP installed 12 boxes and while we did not get any bluebirds. The bluebird count around the state has been low in 2021 due to a southern freeze. Most birders haven't even SEEN a bluebird on the grounds this year. But, we did have success with 9 of 12 boxes occupied by Tree Swallows which also need protection. These 9 boxes fledged 49 Tree Swallows!!! Happily, we had NO issues with House Sparrows All the nests were monitored by students from the Medical College of Wisconsin - thanks for the continued partnership!! They formed teams for monitoring, and several teams even made their own shirts (one shown above - including the image of a bird holding a biological cell the students are also studying).
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Two Tree Tours - In September we have two tours all about trees - led by two different tour guides. You could attend either or both, and have completely different experiences. More details below:
- Tree Identification Tour 9/12 @10am
- Caitlin Reinartz is the Forester at the Urban Ecology Center Riverside Park branch, attended the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and studied Forest Management. This tour will help participants be able to identify the wide variety of trees in County Grounds Park using a variety of methods (bark, branches, leaves, seeds, etc). This park represents a unique ecosystem, including an old forest that has many trees over 200 years old!
- We will be able to identify various species of trees including sugar maple, black walnut, burr oak, American basswood, white oak, striped maple, catalpa, rare mature Siberian elm, black walnut, white poplar, cottonwood, pagoda dogwood, white swamp oak, black cherry, northern hackberry, ironwood, Douglas fir, and black oak. Participants will learn many elements of a tree lifecycle including how their shape is influenced by various tropisms including heliotropism, geotropism, and thigmotropism. This tour may especially appeal to families with youth.
- Forest Tour 9/12 @2pm
- Charlie Mitchell (pictured above) is a guy who loves the forest and has a lifetime of knowledge of trees and experience in woodlands to share. At the University of Maine in the 1960s, when he wasn’t studying mechanical engineering, he was out in the boondocks with the Outing Club. Living in Eagle River 1991 - 2013 he owned and managed a 10-acre woodlot.
- This tour will help participants identify and appreciate the most significant and handsome species in this remnant of old growth forest that survived the rampant deforestation of the 1800s. You will see fine large specimens of sugar maple, white oak, burr oak and basswood, many of them hundreds of years old. Also to be noticed are smaller trees, shrubs and ground cover. Charlie will reflect on the precarious health of this forest and the stewardship and nurturing that will be needed to ensure its survival.
- Charlie serves on the board of directors of Partners in Forestry, a forest-management oriented non-profit organization with headquarters in Conover.
- Got questions? More tour details are included at the end of the newsletter
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Saturday, September 18th @ 10am County Grounds Park / Sanctuary Woods 1950s Life on County Grounds - The County Institutions were Nancy Mitchell’s backyard in the 1940s and 1950s because her parents worked in the Tuberculosis Hospital on Watertown Plank Road. Nancy will share her firsthand accounts of those decades including experiences with the staff and patients. The ~1-mile tour will visit some of the remains that still exist, augmented by photos and video that will transport participants to re-experience those decades.
- Eventbrite Sign-Up
- Got questions? More tour details are included at the end of the newsletter
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Sunday, September 25th @ 10am County Grounds Park Coyote Tour - Danielle Pahlisch, who is a local nature photographer (including the photo above), will lead this tour
- Final description and sign up is pending - check our events webpage regularly for posting of the sign-up
- Alternately, email your interest to friendsofcountygroundspark@gmail.com
- Got questions? More tour details are included at the end of the newsletter
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Friends of County Grounds Park (FOCGP) Monthly Meetings - We meet monthly, but will be modifying times/locations as the sun sets earlier.
- Standing committees/topics include park improvement, communications, wildlife, outdoor classroom, and health/wellness
- We have a new committee on establishing permeant signs for the park - consider if this is an issue you'd like to participate in!
- For more information on times/locations to join the monthly meeting, email friendsofcountygroundspark@gmail.com
- FOCGP monthly meetings are usually the 2nd Monday of every month, all year long
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More Information Regarding Guided Tours - Tours are free, donations are appreciated. The tour guides are volunteering in support of the non-profit Friends of County Grounds Park (initiatives include conservation, invasives removal, signage, trail building, and communications). Donations to the Friends group of any amount are appreciated and $4/person per tour is a wonderful value. If so inspired, donations can be made:
- Again, these tours are free, any donations are based on your inspiration
- County Grounds Park has no formal address, but can be found and navigated to via Apple/Google/Waze Maps searching “Sanctuary Woods Parking”. That parking circle is 0.5 mile north and west of 87th & Watertown Plank Road. Eventbrite requires an address, but this address only gets you close. The tour begins and ends at the parking lot in the center of the park, see park map at: www.countygroundsfriends.org
**Monarch tour has a different meeting point included with the registration - Dress for the weather. There are no onsite restrooms. Consider bringing bug spray. Tours are suitable for people of all ages.
- Most tours are ~1 mile, with regular stops. The paths are not suitable for mobility impaired. Special access tours can be facilitated by contacting the email below.
- Friendly pets on leash are welcome on the following tours: History, 1950s Life on the Grounds, Tree Identification, Forest, and Fall Colors
- Pets are not allowed on the following tours: Cemeteries, Forest Therapy, Birding, Monarchs, and Coyote
- Got questions? Send email to friendsofcountygroundspark@gmail.com
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Reporting Suspicious Activity - Unfortunately, the Milwaukee County Grounds have come under increased abuse during the COVID crisis. Perhaps increased boredom is leading to more extreme behavior. Perhaps perpetrators believe there is less use and oversight. This has decreased in the past 12 months thanks to very engaged visitors and more presence by the county sheriffs.
- The Milwaukee County Grounds is patrolled and enforced by the Milwaukee County Sheriff's Department. Please be part of the solution and directly report any suspicious activity:
- Sheriff: 414-278-4788
- Fire or medical emergency: 911
- Thanks for helping take clear ownership for our shared space
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Sincere appreciation for a community that has been such good stewards for this precious space. We have a lot to be proud of, the ability to make a difference, and hope for the future. Thank you!! |
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