Saturday, September 7, 2013

Gales Pond, Genevieve Casey Nature Sanctuary, Park Road End

2013 08 19  Late August, Marie and I visited Oceana County, Michigan, stopping at Gale's Pond and Genevieve Casey Nature Sanctuary (53-acre sanctuary with a large marsh in the north; groves of pine and cedar in the south; and a low-shrub and lichen barren area that lies in the center).  The day started  very foggy.

Gale's Pond
 Wintergreen with pod
 Cardinal Flower

 Downy Rattlesnake Plantain with Marie holding a quarter to show the size of the plant.

  Turtlehead
 Great Lobelia (Lobelia siphilitica) Bellflower Family


We saw two kinds of Skullcap, Mad Dog and Marsh, both of the Mint Family.
Skullcap

 Pelecinid Wasp (Pelecinus polyturator)
 
Genevieve Casey Nature Sanctuary
Indian Tobacco (Lobelia inflate) Bellflower family
Steeplebush or Hardhack (Spiraea tomentosa) Rose Family

Helleborine (Epipactis helleborine) Orchid Family
 
 Marie spied something in all this lush vegetation, do you see it?
She found one Smaller Purple Fringed Orchid (Platanthera psychodes)
Smaller Purple Fringed Orchid





We also made a stop at Park Road end in Oceana County along the shore of Lake Michigan.

That was it for this day in August.

4 comments:

New Hampshire Gardener said...

I like the blue lobelia-that's one I've never seen. Nice shot of the Indian tobacco-that's a tough one to get a dewcent photo of.
The purple fringed orchid is beautiful. That's another one I haven't found yet.
That wasp is really strange!

Plants Amaze Me said...

Maybe that type doesn't grow in New Hampshire? I thought at first the Indian Tobacco was Kalm's Lobelia, until I gave it a closer look and saw the inflated calyx and the little green-yellow spots on the flower.
Just the one purple fringed orchid, it was fun to find, they seem to like damp, shaded places.
Thanks for stopping by Allen.
:)

Mike said...

Lots of great finds and beautiful photos. The scene with the 3 Cardinal Flower stalks and the scene with the Turtlehead are beautiful. No manicured garden looks better to my eyes.

We had an unusual find a while ago - one lone Swamp Rose Mallow (Hibiscus palustris) plant, in bloom, on the Lake Michigan shore. At one time I had a spot on Lake Erie where I could see them, but I can't find them there anymore.

Plants Amaze Me said...

Thanks, Mike. I have been trying to get a picture of the whole plant, I tend to take mostly close-ups. The turtlehead was out of the weeds by itself so it was easy, but sometimes the plants (as you know) are buried in with other plants.

Last year we found a Swamp Rose Mallow along the shore of Max Lake at Bass River Rec. Area. It was huge and beautiful! I didn't check for it this year though.
:)