Boardwalk replacement has begun at the Quaking Bog

by Lauren Husting

As you are reading this, work is likely nearly completed on the new boardwalk for the Quaking Bog. MPRB approved budget funding for the project in 2024 and initiated a design process to find the best fit for this important and sensitive site.

In late August, the failing plastic dock system and bridge at the entrance were removed. Installation of the new floating wooden walkway, which will primarily follow that of the old path around Mariana's Island, began in late September. The floats and suspensions in the design will allow for light and air to pass under and around the boardwalk and foster a healthier ecosystem. A second entrance to the Bog will be created slightly up the hill to the south from the original bridge entrance, and there will be wider sections with seating and room for groups to congregate.

In November, a larger exterior loop will be added. The addition of low rails on the sides of the boardwalk aim to keep visitors from stepping off path onto the delicate sphagnum moss. Members of the Quaking Bog Advocacy Committee also contributed to new educational signage that will be posted at both entrances as a part of Theodore Wirth's new wayfinding project.

While construction efforts are underway, visitors are asked to stay out of the Bog to help protect the wetland and keep the area clear for crews to do their work.

Community efforts to preserve this ecological wonder continue with advocacy for maintenance and restoration including glossy buckthorn removal, new plantings, educational resources, continued MPRB funding, and celebrations of this unique ecosystem in our own backyards. One new potential project would be to reestablish ground cover on the hillside above the Bog, utilizing native sedges and smaller plants to help diminish the amount of soil runoff that enters the bog and contributes to its decomposition.

If you would like to get involved or know more, please reach out to quakingbogadvocacy@gmail.com.

Look for an invite to a celebration in spring 2026 to open the Quaking Bog's new boardwalk!❖

Photos:
Old boardwalk at top - Genna Souffle
New boardwalk - Colin Bartol

Additional reading: Three articles on the Quaking Bog published in 2024 in The Fringed Gentian™.

Back to the top.

---

Introducing a New Garden Dweller

by Candyce Bartol

It began with a video of dark-chocolate-brown minks frolicking in the Garden on a recent July day. Plenty of questions popped up for people curious about their presence. Let’s see what we can find out!

It is important to note that American minks are native to North America from Alaska and Canada to Mexico. They were inhabitants here well before most of our ancestors. Research tells us Native American peoples wore their fur and created stories featuring minks in the trickster role, according to Bill Bower,  retired Pennsylvania wildlife officer.

In Lynn M. Stone’s book on minks she notes, “Minks always seem to be in motion—running, swimming, diving  and sniffing.” One is more likely to see evidence of them on the banks by water bodies in and around the Garden rather than a rare daylight sighting involving a group of young ones or an individual who is hunting, according to Garden Curator Susan. Discovery was easy when they began leaving distinctive muddy paw prints on the Boardwalk. Last year, footprints were seen in the wetland; this year, evidence has been noted throughout the Garden, including the wetland and the hillside above the Geranium Path and the meadow. It is likely they move outside the Garden for individual territorial needs.

  

Minks are related to weasels but keep their dark coats year round, though some have a white spot on the chin and throat area. The Minnesota DNR mink website gives the basics for what they call the most common water mammal predator in Minnesota, with adult length being 14 to 20 inches including a five- to nine-inch tail and weighing about two to four pounds. Males generally weigh more and are longer than females. Life expectancy in the wild is about three to five years. Because they love water, their exclusively carnivorous diet consists of fish, crayfish, frogs, insects, worms, waterfowl, and bird nest eggs found along the shores. When hunting on land away from water, they seek meals of mice or rabbits. They are considered an apex species although they do have predator foxes, coyotes, and owls. Naturalists in the Garden suggest that "having additional predators in the ecosystem keeps prey populations under control and adds biodiversity to the area."  

Below: American mink just out of the pond. Photo by Needsmoreritalin CC BY-SA 3.0

 

According to the Wildlife Illinois website, minks can swim underwater for over 100 feet and dive over 16 feet. Yet  they still climb trees with ease thanks to their adaptable feet. In winter they den without hibernating. They may dig their own dens or take over holes in logs or stumps as well as dens originally dug by muskrats. During their time in a den each winter, baby mink come into the world hairless, in average groups of five to six kits and unable to see until their eyes open at about five weeks. They spend time learning from their moms until late summer before going off on their own.

Kellianne Mathews, writes this on A-Z Animals: “As babies (and even  adults), minks have an adorable and innocent appearance, with small furry bodies and tiny round eyes…but they actually have a surprisingly aggressive side.” They  have a few behaviors similar to cats, making “a soft rumbling sound when they’re happy and content”, but can hiss when threatened. 

Since minks are mostly nocturnal, visitors might rarely spot them in the daylight. Of course, lucky visitors who spot minks in the Garden are not encouraged to use any techniques with minks that get their pet cats purring. We’ll just have to trust Kellianne Mathews on that behavior. In case you encounter minks while strolling in the Garden, give these animals plenty of space and don’t approach them. If they hiss, that means they feel threatened. Be warned that minks have a scent gland to use if provoked. Leave baby minks alone for obvious reasons. If a mink does get too close, make loud noises. The basics just boil down to giving Garden minks the same respect given to any animal in their natural habitat.

Below: American mink in the Wildflower Garden wetland. Photo MPRB.

Parents may want to show children what mink pawprints look like and encourage them to see if they can spot any during a Garden visit. Susan adds that it would be great if someone would get motivated and decide to track minks in the Garden so we all can benefit and learn more about their activities.❖  

*Photo note: Photos with a “CC” credit are used for educational purposes under Creative Commons license. Learn about this at https://creativecommons.org/share-your-work/cclicenses/

Back to the top.

---

Chasing Wildflowers by Phyllis Root and Kelly Povo

Review by Colin Bartol

If your wanderings through the Eloise Butler Wildflower Garden leave you hankering to explore more hidden pockets of Minnesota’s botanical charm, or you just listened to the author at the Friends’ annual guest lecture, Chasing Wildflowers is the perfect next stop.

In this engaging new guide, Phyllis Root and photographer Kelly Povo invite readers along on their quest to locate and document Minnesota’s native wildflowers in “unexpected” places. What we experience is part travelogue, part field guide, part inspiration, and all delivered with warmth, curiosity, and respect for the plants and habitats they celebrate.

From the outset, the authors’ passion is clear: they aim not only to catalog species, but also to chronicle the joys and challenges of pursuing them across bogs, sand dunes, rocky outcrops, fens, and more. In contrast with their earlier book, Searching for Minnesota’s Native Wildflowers, which was somewhat more conventional in scope, Chasing Wildflowers reaches deeper into lesser-known habitat types. Over the course of their travels, Root and Povo identify nearly 200 species and among them 28 Minnesota orchids and 43 of the state’s rarer taxa.

One of the book’s greatest strengths is how it weaves narrative into natural history. Root’s writing brings to life not just the botanical details—leaves, petals, bloom times, key identification features—but also the physical experience of fieldwork: wading across streams, struggling through muddy terrain, racing against storms, and the occasional triumph of finding a plant in a burn scar or remote fen. These vivid scenes serve not as distractions, but as reminders that wildflower study is rarely neat or easy; it’s embodied and sometimes unpredictable.

Povo’s photographs are a companion marvel. Eschewing sterile “ID shots”, she often seeks to portray each plant’s character and individuality with leaves and blooms in delicate focus, backgrounds softly blurred, light diffused. These images don’t just tell you what a wildflower is; they help you feel where it lives and how it asserts itself in its surroundings. For a garden reader accustomed to curated plantings and controlled habitats, Povo’s photos offer a refreshing counterpoint: the wildness of real places, at once raw and beautiful.

For Eloise Butler readers, there’s much to love and learn. The authors include practical sections on equipment, timing, travel logistics, and habitat selection. All useful for budding “flower chasers”. They also include a glossary, an index, habitat-by-habitat organization, and a thoughtful epilogue about conservation and stewardship. Though only a small fraction of the species in Chasing Wildflowers overlap with those planted in Eloise Butler, the book gently nudges readers beyond familiar paths. It encourages us to explore ditches, floodplain forests or sand ridges, not just curated trails.

In sum, Chasing Wildflowers is a rich blend of adventure and natural history, ideal for Friends of Eloise Butler who wish to deepen their connection to Minnesota’s wild flora. It beckons us outside the gates, into dunes, fens, and uplands, with eyes open and hearts curious. For anyone who has ever paused at a roadside bloom or felt restless for a new spring ephemerals hunt, this book is a rewarding companion.❖

Chasing Wildflowers is published by the University of Minnesota Press and released May 13, 2025.  

Below: Phyllis Root discussing her book Chasing Wildflowers at the October 14 Friends Lecture.
Photo G D Bebeau

Colin Bartol is editor of The Fringed Gentian™

Back to the top.

---

Maria Sibylla Merian (1647-1717)

by Jennifer Olson

Now through January 5, 2026, the Arboretum’s Andersen Horticultural Library is exhibiting “Metamorphosis: Maria Sibylla Merian’s Art and Impact in Minnesota”.  Some consider Maria Sibyllia Merian to be the first entomologist and first ecologist.

Maria Sibylla Merian was born in 1647 in Germany, where her father was a book publisher. At age three, her father died and her new stepfather, a still life artist of flowers, included her in his studio, teaching her to draw and acknowledging her talent. 

In the 17th century, the belief was that butterflies were the result of spontaneous generation. Maria was curious about where caterpillars, moths and butterflies came from. At age 13, she raised silkworms and identified the cycle of egg to caterpillar to pupa to moth. She continued to collect all kinds of caterpillars, documenting their transformation to moths or butterflies. During her lifetime, she kept a study book of her detailed observations.

At age 18, she married artist Johann Andreas Graff and moved to Nuremberg, where they opened an engraving and publishing business. Maria continued to paint and created a series of engraved flower prints for her female students to use as templates. These templates with added insects became her first book in 1675, followed by two more in 1677 and 1680.

Maria continued collecting caterpillars and wondering why certain plants attracted specific insects, all the while documenting these relationships in her paintings. In 1679, she published The Wondrous Transformation of Caterpillars and Their Particular Nourishment from Flowers, illustrating the work with her engravings.

Maria and her two daughters returned to Frankfurt when her stepfather died and her marriage was failing. She decided to seek seclusion with her mother and daughters in a communal religious community in the Netherlands. Here she had time to rewrite her insect observation notes. After six years, she and her daughters, both of whom were artists, moved to Amsterdam to make a successful life selling paintings and painting supplies. 

 

In 1699, Maria and her daughter Dorthea left Europe for Surinam, a Dutch colony in South America, to study and paint the local plants and their insects. Challenged by the heat and illness, Maria returned to Amsterdam with sketches and specimens after only two years. In 1705, Metamorphosis Insectorum Surinamensium was published at twenty-two inches high with 60 engravings, many which were hand-painted. The work was widely received throughout Europe. Carl Linnaeus was able to use her descriptions to name 100 insects not seen before using his nomenclature in Systema Naturae, 1758–1759. 

   

Two Minnesota authors have written books about Maria Sibylla Merian: Chrysalis by Kim Todd in 2007 and The Girl Who Drew Butterflies, a young adult book by Joyce Sidman in 2018. Both are a great introduction to this remarkable artist and naturalist. ❖

Jennifer Olson is president of the Friends of the Wildflower Garden

Back to the top.

---

President's Greeting

Dear Friends,

Autumn is here, all varieties of asters are blooming, and leaves are falling onto the trails. The Garden season will end on October 26. But with two anonymous donations to the Garden, winter programming will be funded at the Loppet, and plant data beginning from 1907 will be entered into Hortis, a modern platform for managing botanical collections.

A big THANK YOU to the Garden naturalists who do so much for the Garden. This year, core naturalists Debbie, Keygan, Lisset, and Linette staffed the Visitor Center with backup from Cheyanne, Jodi, Katie, and Maria. They also led tours, planned and set up educational displays in the Visitor Center, and worked special evening programs including two evening Firefly Programs with 550 participants! 

Naturalist Tammy leads the Early Birders on Saturday mornings and Kim, Garden Program Director, coordinates the educational programs. Debbie says “I love it that working at the Garden is a constant learning experience and I can share that with visitors and deepen our connections with nature!” Keegan, listening to a hooting owl, “appreciated a visitor’s approach by quieting other nearby visitors, so everyone could enjoy the owl.” Lisette loves being in the Garden to view the birds. Her favorites are the hummingbirds and catbirds! She is responsible for the wetland’s catbird signage!

This summer at the Kiosk, the Touch and Feel items included a gall–small, hard and tan. After my shift, I walked through the Upland Meadow and spotted a goldenrod gall. I took my photo to the Visitor Center and not only did the naturalist confirm it was a gall, but also showed me their informative gall exhibit! 

 

While the other galls discussed in this display are found on woody plants, herbaceous plants are also affected by gall-making insects and mites. A common example is found on late goldenrod (Solidago altissima) and  giant goldenrod (S. gigantea).

     

Hackberry Blistergall and Nipple Galls have similar life cycles with adult insects overwintering before emerging in spring and laying eggs on hackberry leaves. The immature nymphs develop within the galls –one per gall–during the summer before emerging as adults in late summer. These insects can be a significant food source to birds.

Now the Visitor Center hosts a display on “Stopovers: Refueling Stations for Migration Species” and another on bird nests, including the blue-gray gnatcatcher’s nest. We enjoy being immersed in nature, but be sure to stop by the Visitor Center to also enjoy the educational displays prepared by our Garden naturalists.❖
Jennifer Olson, President, Friends of the Wildflower Garden  

Below: Bird nest display case at the Martha Crone Shelter. Photo Jennifer Olson.

Archive of previous President's Letters.

Additional reading on galls:

Goldenrod galls

Cedar Apple Rust gall

Sumac leaf galls

Willow Pine-cone gall

Back to the top.

---

A Symphony of Spring and Summer Programs at the Wildflower Garden!

from Garden Curator Susan Wilkins

It has been a busy season of programming at the Wildflower Garden!  This spring and summer over 5,000 youth and adults have participated in programs with Garden staff at the Wildflower Garden!  

Public programs are offered every day we are open and have ranged from our daily Garden Tours to our popular weekly Early Birders Program to our family-filled Garden Storytime programs. We’ve offered a wide variety of nature-themed programs on a variety of topics from trees, to birds, to insects, to wildflowers and more. There’s no end to the curiosity that can be sparked and nurtured while in nature with other inquisitive minds. 

We’ve also welcomed in partners from across the city to work together to reach new audiences and provide unique experiences for participants. New this season is a collaboration with the American Swedish Institute (ASI) to offer select Nature Explorers family programs here with Garden Staff co-teaching with ASI staff. Stories, nature exploring and some Swedish language learning in nature make for fun, engaging programs all together!

We also had a blast Star Partying in partnership with the Bell Museum of Natural History as we hosted another Annual Statewide Star Party here, including hosting a special talk from Tanya Melnik about Chasing the Northern Lights! This is our third year of being a host site for the Annual Statewide Star Party and we can’t wait for 2026, it’s such a great event to be a part of. 

.

We welcomed over 550 people over two evenings in July for Firefly Nights programming and people were so happy to be here! The fireflies filled the night with sparkles for us all, too. It was a magical experience for so many, including a lot of first-time visitors and kids (and adults) who had never seen fireflies before. More than one grandparent approached staff to let them know how meaningful it was to them that this free, accessible program was available for their family in the city. They wanted their grandchildren to experience the wonder of seeing a firefly at night, and now they could share this with them. A lot of memories were made and remembered at the Garden thanks to these amazing insects and the Garden habitats that make it possible for them to be doing so well here.

 

Minneapolis Public Schools outdoor learning photo with Garden Naturalist. MPRB photo

And thanks to having two bilingual Garden Naturalists on staff, Lisset and Maria, we have offered Spanish-language-centered public birding programs, Pajareando, in partnership with the Urban Bird Collective this season! Lisset also translated the Garden’s birding checklist into Spanish, and this new resource has been well-received by many birders. In addition, the wonderful Spanish-language Garden Storytime has been offered again this year, with fun stories and engaging activities offered each time. 

Garden Naturalists and staff have also led over 60 special, paid programs for groups ranging from senior-focused organizations like Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI) to youth-focused programs for Minneapolis Public School summer school participants. The Naturalists have led tours for Hennepin County Master Gardeners, area garden clubs, public schools, charter schools, private schools, homeschool co-ops, preschools (including Spanish immersion programs), university and college programs, professional organizations, area businesses and more!  With the autumn season of programming underway, there is still more learning and wonderment ahead for so many community members, young to wizened and everything in between.

 

Below: Bell Museum Star Party - Photo of “Chasing the Northern Lights” speaker Tanya Melnik and listeners. Photo MPRB

Thank you to all of the Garden staff who lead these wonderful programs at the Garden! Kimberly Ishkov, Lisset Olvera Chan, Debbie Keyes, Linette Maeder, Keygan McClellan, Tammy Mercer, Jodi Gustafson, Katie Laux, Maria Montero, Cheyanne Rose, Nicholas Purcell, Evva Jischke, and Maggie Lile. Your knowledge, efforts, and contributions are so appreciated! ❖ Susan-

Read Susan's previous letters here.

Susan Wilkins is Curator of the Eloise Butler Wildflower Garden. Her article and the photos of the Garden are presented courtesy of the Minneapolis Park & Recreation Board.

Back to the top.

---

News and Notes

MPRB celebrates The Friends

On Thursday evening July 17 the leadership of the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board (MPRB) held an event celebrating the work of the Friends of the Wildflower Garden over the past decades.

Superintendent Al Bangoura specifically highlighted two recent efforts - the Friends $95,000 contribution for completing the new fencing on the east side of the Wildflower Garden and the 20 years of effort of the Friends Invasive Plant Action Group (FIPAG), initiated and led by Jim Proctor, in removing invasives and restoring native habitat in Volunteer Stewardship Area surrounding the Garden. Fittingly, the event was held on the southeast hillside next to the new fence and overlooking the hillside where the volunteers of FIPAG have been restoring the oak savanna habitat that once covered that area of the Wirth Park.

Besides Mr. Bangoura, Commissioner Meg Forney, Friends President Jennifer Olson and Jim Proctor spoke, followed by a tour of the restoration area led by Jim Proctor.

Thanks to Superintendent Bangoura, Commissioner Forney, the leadership of the Environmental Stewardship Division of the MPRB and Garden Curator Susan Wilkins, all of whom were present, for putting on this event, and to all the volunteers who enable the success of the Friends.

Below: MPRB Commissioner Meg Forney speaking at the Friends celebration. Superintendent Al Bangoura at right. Photo G D Bebeau.

Below: MPRB superintendent Al Bangoura speaking in front of the new fencing the Friends funded. Photo MPRB.

Back to the top.

---

Notes For and About Our Donors and Volunteers

Annual financial Support: June 16 to October 30, 2025

All 2025 Annual Support

Back to the top.

---

Other Donations and Memorials Received

Memorials/In-honor-of Received
June 16 to October 30, 2025

For Bennett Laurey Busselman from Nancy Busselman
for Lisa Locken from Edy Miller

IHO Anne Luckow, from Karen Wass

 

Other Donations Received - separate or an addition to annual support giving
June 16 to October 30, 2025

All 2025 donations and memorials

To make a donation go to our 'Donate & Support' page.

Back to the top.

Other means of Support

Want to honor someone?

A gift in their honor can simply be a means of honoring a living person or some group

or

use this as an alternate type gift for a holiday, a birthday, an anniversary, etc. We will notify them of your gift and of how they will receive our newsletter and other communications for the year ahead. This will introduce them to the Friends and to the Garden. Use the mail-in form or the credit card link on our website 'Donate & Support' page.

Board of directors positions

The Friends Board of Directors can use your talents! We are an all-volunteer board that meets several time per year and if you have an interest in the Wildflower Garden and in helping support it and our mission of educating the public about the Garden and the natural world get more details by sending an email to to our president at this address.

---

You can also support our program by buying a plant identification book.

Do you have our Plant Identification Guide? The 3rd edition has 1,950 photos of the 787 flowering plants, trees and the ferns of the Eloise Butler Wildflower Garden including many that are of historic interest. Four hundred of these books have been sold, so why not get yours!

From a buyer in New Hampshire: What a terrific collection of photos. I’m sure this guide will be a great compliment to other guides I have. From Minnesota: I love the book and will cherish it for many years to come. Credit card order or use the mail order form, both on our website here.

Back to the top.

---

Sign up for Twigs & Branches: A monthly email update from the Friends containing news from the Garden and relevant MPRB projects, as well as access to website content featuring short articles from our Board and membership. These articles are written to highlight connections of the plants, history and lore of the Eloise Butler Wildflower Garden with different time frames or outside events.

If you already are signed up for our emails, you should be getting these. If you are not here's the link to the sign-up form. The form also allows you to sign up for our Fringed Gentian™ announcements and for the Friends Invasive Plant Action Group's emails.

Sign-up Form