Harvesting flora of fall
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| Perry Weaver of Sterling harvests seeds in the sunshine at the patch of prairie maintained in front of Sauk Valley Community College. (Alex T. Paschal/apaschal@svnmail.com) |
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This time of year, seeds of spiderwort, golden alexander, wild bergamot, mountain mint, compass plant, culver’s root and bottle gentian are being gathered at the Whiteside County Landfill between Sterling and Morrison, and at the Lyndon-Agnew Prairie Nature Preserve and other areas around the Sauk Valley.
Some of the seeds are used for restoration work, while the surplus is sold to raise money for scholarships.
The area is maintained by the Whiteside County chapter of Natural Area Guardians, a committee of the Whiteside County Soil and Water Conservation District dedicated to locating, promoting and preserving natural areas, to protecting flora and fauna, to educating the public, and to assisting conservation-minded landowners.
To learn more about the Whiteside County NAGs, call the district at 815-772-2124. To learn about Lee County’s Natural Area Guardians, call the LCSWD, 815-857-3621.
