A Winter Walk at the Watershed
On this guided walk, you will be directed to selected trees, but there are many others on the Watershed grounds. A good, readable guide from which some of the following information comes is The Sibley Guide to Trees by David Allen Sibley. Another fine guide is Trees of Illinois by Linda Kershaw.
White Oaks
As you enter the paved path between the walls, look left. Growing at the end of the wall by the path is a young Burr Oak (Quercus macrocarpa). It is part of a large family of oaks called The White Oak Family. The leaves of this family are typically long and deeply lobed. Burr oaks like the wet environment at the Watershed. Notice the grey, rugged bark and the corky wings on smaller branches. There is another young Burr oak where the entrance path meets the trails. Look again. It is growing somewhat near the dog waste box. Someone has pruned out the leader, which has given it an unusual shape. (Pruning the leader on most trees is not a good idea, as it distorts the natural shape of the tree and often stunts it.) Compare this second Burr oak to the Burr oak you saw at the entrance.
Cup Plants
As you walked into the Watershed, to your left, you may have noticed some really tall, dead-looking plants with notable seed heads. These are Cup Plants (Silphium perfoliatum). Because of the square stems, it is sometimes called "carpenter's plant." The Omaha people and the Poncas, according to Don Kurz in his very useful guide, Illinois Wildflowers, burned the roots and inhaled the smoke as a treatment "for head colds, nerve pains, and rheumatism." Also, the sap could be chewed as a remedy for nausea.
The City Tree
On your right, as you reach the point where the entry walk meets the trails, you can't miss a wonderful young Sugar Maple (Acer saccharum). Local fourth graders selected it to be our City Tree. It is a primary source of maple syrup, which is made from its sap, and of strong and excellent wood, used to make furniture, handles for tools, and floors. Observe the lovely, natural shape of this tree. In 10 years, it will be more than 40 feet tall.
The Bald Cypress
Turn right on the unpaved trail and notice the Bald Cypress (Taxodium distichum) growing on the corner to your left. It can grow both
in water and in drier sites. During summer and fall, it is covered with "evergreen leaves," which turn reddish brown in late fall and drop off. See these leaves on the ground around the tree. There are several large Bald Cypresses growing to the left of the Welcome Center, near the water. You will see some of them growing up the hill to the north, as you walk west on the main trail, and there are others growing beside the Marsh Walk.
Hawthorns
You may have wondered about the two trees growing on the right in front of the Welcome Center as you walk toward it. These are Hawthorns, beloved by birds for their thorny safety and nutritious red berries. The tree that still has some red berries is a Washington Hawthorn (Crataegus phaenopyrum) and the tree whose fruit has already been devoured is a Cockspur Hawthorn (Crataegus crus-galli).
Eastern Red Cedar
Back on the unpaved trail, going north, look behind the Baldcypress and see an evergreen, which is Eastern Red Cedar (Juniperus virginiana). It is a native tree in 39 States. In perfect conditions, this tree can be a nuisance, but since it prefers dry growing conditions, there are not too many at the Watershed. Birds love these trees, which offer them delicious blue cones, which look like small bluish berries, and shelter from many predators. Notice the gently shaggy bark. It is the only evergreen native to this area.
Black Willows
Turning the corner of the unpaved trail and heading west, you will see tall clumps of bare Black Willows (Salix nigra) growing beside the stream that carries storm water to Cahokia Creek. Beavers like to eat the bark of Black Willows. (They are vegetarians.) They use the trunks of younger black willows in constructing their dams. Can you see any stumps that are cut off about 2 feet above the ground with a rounded point? Beavers have done this. As you walk along the unpaved trail on the north side (and the south side too, when you come to clumps of willows), you will see the work of beavers.
Pin Oaks and Black Jack Oaks
As you continue going west on the unpaved trail, you will come to an observation tower. Looking to the right from the tower, you see a prairie with tall grasses and a number of small trees. Many of them are oaks. Their acorns are eaten by many of the Watershed's mammals, and they are hosts to many moths and butterflies; nesting birds can feed their young and themselves on the larvae. You probably will not be able to tell which of these many smaller trees are oaks, except for the ones that keep their leaves through the winter. Pin Oak (Quercus
palustris) and Black Jack Oak (Quercus marilandica) are two oaks found at the Watershed which keep their leaves.
Hackberries
At the top of the unpaved section of the trail, as it rounds to the south, many trees grow close to the trail. It has the feel of a forest. Notice clumps of these trees with conspicuous warty ridges and bumps on their trunks. These are Hackberries (Celtis). They produce a small, dark berry, sometimes reddish, which is relished by many songbirds. They also host many native insects, which some birds prefer to eat and which many birds use to feed their nestlings.
Upland Prairie
Walking south, you will soon come to a large patch of restored upland prairie. In winter, the prairie is a jumble of brownish grasses and dried seed heads of tall flowers. Birds consume these seeds, as do some animals. There is a young Red Oak growing on the corner of the path leading into this prairie. Look to the right and down the slope of the Upland Prairie, and you will see a large dead tree-trunk pointing to the sky. This is called a "snag" and is used by insect-eating birds in their search for food.
Non-native Honeysuckle
The trail turns east, and as you proceed along the paved trail, you will see piles of brush along the side of the path. These are Honeysuckle bushes, which volunteers and a hard-working intern are removing. Their flowers do smell good, but these Honeysuckles are not native, and they take up space needed by native plants, which harbor the insects and fruits needed by native birds. Non-native Honeysuckle hosts no insects. Their berries do not provide the nourishment needed by native birds. At the Watershed, there are three species of these invasive weed plants. All are bad news for native plants and animals. A native honeysuckle vine (Lonicera sempervivens) will be established at the Watershed in the future.
Common Cattail
From the Marsh Walk, you will see, among many now dormant plants, the familiar brown seed heads of Common Cattail (Typha latifolia). Cattails provide cover for waterfowl and song birds. Muskrats use the leaves of cattails to build their homes, and muskrats also eat the roots. In spring, deer graze on the tender new leaves. Small mammals, such as some mice, line their nests with the down of Common Cattail seed heads.
Bird Garden
As you finish your walk, see if you can spot some Oaks that are still holding their leaves. When you get to the walk leading to the building, notice a Prairie Bird Garden on your left. It is full of brown dead flower stems and their seeds. If you are walking early in the morning or late in the afternoon, you will see birds consuming these seeds. Among the flowers are planted native, berry-bearing Viburnum bushes, which will get taller through the years. Keep coming for walks at the Watershed, and in late February, perhaps even sooner, you will see signs of spring.