That's skunk cabbage poking up through the snow on the first day of Spring (March 20th) at Spring Grove's Horse Fair Spring Fen! The little creek was thick with those early-rising, prehistoric-looking plants that are a sure sign of a natural, high quality wetland.Kudos to Linda Balek for exploring this forgotten corner of the Village last year and finding this hidden gem! March 20th was the second Volunteer Work Party at the property, and what a Party it was. Just five of us made a big dent in the invasive brush, two with chain saws and three hauling & stacking the cut wood!
Who knew it would snow on that first Spring morning! But a few flakes didn't stop the volunteers, just as they didn't stop the skunk cabbage from poking up after its long winter nap.
The pictures on the right and left show the area before and during clearing -- lots of brush is visible. The picture on the right shows Ted Thornton & Rich Paull wrestling with a box elder that has been cut, but won't fall because its upper branches are hung up by grape vines. Snags like that have can't be left to fall later -- they could hurt someone if they fell unexpectedly.
The final picture is of the same area after the clearing is complete. The dark spot in the middle appears to be a wet area that will probably be thick with skunk cabbage next time we're out there!!
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