Heat, Wind, Rain…August in the Tallgrass

“Everybody talks about the weather, but nobody does anything about it.” —Charles Dudley Warner

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After watching various pop-up storms pass us by this past week, I gave up and went out to water the garden last night. I figure it was the surest way to invite a weather change. Sure enough, we went to sleep to the rumble of thunder. Rain! We needed it.

Rain on the Schulenberg Prairie, The Morton Arboretum, Lisle, IL.

In the garden, the cherry tomatoes are ripening: Sun Gold, Sweet Million, Sweet 100. But woefully, my bigger tomatoes still hang green on the vine. My backyard neighbor Jim augments my losses with bags of vegetables he leaves on our grill. His tomatoes are going gangbusters. What am I doing wrong?

I think I may be losing the battle with shade. When we first moved into our home 27 years ago, our backyard was full sun. No longer. As least we still have ripe raspberries.

Joan raspberries (Rubus ideaus ‘Joan J’), Crosby’s backyard, Glen Ellyn, IL.

Along the back of the yard, the wilder prairie planting is flourishing. Queen of the prairie is gone to seed, but Joe Pye weed and cup plant are in full bloom.

Crosby’s backyard, Glen Ellyn, IL.

They glow in the evening light.

Sweet Joe Pye weed (Eutrochium purpureum) and cup plant (Silphium perfoliatum), Crosby’s backyard, Glen Ellyn, IL.

This week, the obedient plant flowers opened, tempting me to pause in my yard work and tinker with the blooms which give it its name. Each flower will swivel on the stem, and then “obediently” stay put in a new position. It’s a favorite of some of my grandkids, who also like to move the blooms around.

Obedient plant (Physostegia virginiana), Crosby’s backyard, Glen Ellyn, IL.

Insects are moving into the garden in greater numbers, and I’m impressed and a bit taken aback at their sheer numbers. Spiders spin webs on every surface. Aphids cluster on the swamp milkweed.

Aphids (Aphidoea sp.) on swamp milkweed (Asclepias incarnata), Crosby’s backyard, Glen Ellyn, IL.

Out on the prairie this week, grasshoppers fly up as I walk. Some completely blend in on the paved paths.

Carolina grasshopper (Dissosteira carolina), Schulenberg Prairie, The Morton Arboretum, Lisle, IL.

Others peer at me from deep in the tallgrass.

A grasshopper in the genus Hespertotettix, Schulenberg Prairie, The Morton Arboretum, Lisle, IL.

Insects are busy crunching and munching through the tallgrass wildflowers and grasses, just as they are in my garden. Other insects are busy changing the familiar to the unfamiliar. Some of the gray-headed coneflowers are disfigured and swollen. A bit of online searching suggests the culprit might be a gall midge, Asphondylia ratibidae.

Gray-headed coneflowers (Ratibida pinnata) with a gall midge issue, Schulenberg Prairie, The Morton Arboretum, Lisle, IL.

Tiny eastern amberwing dragonflies pause on white wild indigo to watch for even tinier insects they can have for breakfast.

Eastern amberwing dragonfly (Perithemus tenera), Schulenberg Prairie, The Morton Arboretum, Lisle, IL.

Japanese beetles skeletonize wild grape leaves, pausing to pair up. They gleam like amber and emerald jewels.

Japanese beetles (Popillia japonica) on riverbank grape (Vitis riparia), Schulenberg Prairie, The Morton Arboretum, Lisle, IL.

A diminutive eastern tailed-blue butterfly sips on a non-native common white clover.

Eastern tailed-blue butterfly (Cupido comyntas) on white clover (Trifolium reptans), Schulenberg Prairie, The Morton Arboretum, Lisle, IL.

Nearby, the first common milkweed seed pods burst, their contents spilling into the wind. The plant looks nibbled. A little worn out. I can’t blame it much. After all, it’s been a long, hot week.

Common milkweed (Asclepias syriaca), Schulenberg Prairie, The Morton Arboretum, Lisle, IL.

Isn’t the tallgrass is glorious in all its August fecundity? Reproduce. Reproduce. Set seed. Set seed. You can almost hear the sizzle of the August action—buzz, zip, zoom—with a shrieking summer cicada soundtrack.

Rough blazing star (Liatris aspera), Crosby’s backyard, Glen Ellyn, IL.

August is already a busy month on the prairie. There is so much going on. Why not go see?

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The opening quote about weather is often attributed to Mark Twain (1835-1910). However, it is generally believed he “borrowed it” from Charles Dudley Warner, a friend of his who wrote it in an editorial for the Hartford Courant, the United States’ oldest continuously published newspaper. I’m just grateful for the weather change.

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8/12/25–The Tallgrass Prairie: Grocery Store, Apothecary, and Love Charm Shop, 6:30-8 p.m., with the Joliet Area Garden Club. Free and open to the public if you are new visitor! Membership details and directions are found here.

8/23/25–A Literary Garden Party, 10-11:30 a.m. at The Morton Arboretum in Lisle, IL. Join us for tea, cookies, and all your favorite books! For registration and details, click here.

9/16/26–Paying Attention to The Natural World, 6:30-8 p.m., Severson Dells and Maze Books, Rockford, IL. There is a small registration fee. More information coming soon!

For more classes and programs, visit http://www.cindycrosby.com .

A Note to Readers: Walk with us! We hope to do 25 “new to us” natural areas in 25 different counties in 2025. So far we’ve explored: #1 Spring Creek Reservoir Forest Preserve, Forest Preserve District of DuPage County, Bloomingdale, IL (DuPage County); #2 Little Red Schoolhouse trails, Palos Preserves, Forest Preserve District of Cook County, Willow Springs, IL (Cook County); #3 Russell Woods, Forest Preserve District of DeKalb County, Genoa, IL (DeKalb County); #4 Red Oak Nature Center, North Aurora, IL (Kane County); #5 Isle a la Cache, Forest Preserve District of Will County, Romeoville, IL (Will County); #6 Hoover Forest Preserve, Forest Preserve District of Kendall County, Yorkville, IL (Kendall County); #7 Dayton Bluffs, The Conservation Foundation and City of Ottawa, Ottawa, IL (LaSalle County), and #8 Starhill Forest Arboretum, Petersburg, IL (Menard County); #9 Cuba Marsh, Forest Preserve of Lake County, Dee Park, IL (Lake County); #10 Kilbuck Bluffs Forest Preserve, Forest Preserves of Winnebago County, Rockford, IL (Winnebago County); #11 Amboy Marsh, Amboy, IL (Lee County), #12 Kankakee Sands, Illinois (Kankakee County); #13 Moraine Hills State Park, McHenry, IL (McHenry County); #14 Jarrett Prairie Nature Preserve, Byron, IL (Ogden County), #15 Short Pioneer Cemetery Prairie Nature Preserve, Coal City, IL (Grundy County);#16 Freeport Prairie Preserve, Freeport, IL (Stephenson County). Nine more counties left to hike in 2025! And of course we’ll be hiking other natural areas, and revisiting some of these counties we’ve already hiked. If you have a prairie recommendation or natural area in your Illinois county we should visit, please let us know in the comments. Thank you for your help! See you on the trails.

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Simple things you can do to help make a difference this week: Ask your representative to protect research universities from government overreach. Our science is in jeopardy! Visit 5Calls to learn more about how to help.

August Arrives on the Tallgrass Prairie

“I must have flowers, always, and always.” — Claude Monet

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And just like that: It’s August.

August on the Schulenberg Prairie, The Morton Arboretum, Lisle, IL.

July, where did you go?

Unknown bumblebee (Bombus sp.) on pale purple coneflower (Echinacea pallida), Schulenberg Prairie, The Morton Arboretum, Lisle, IL.

Summer is passing far too quickly.

Tall bellflower (Campanulastrum americanum), Schulenberg Prairie, The Morton Arboretum, Lisle, IL.

August’s night skies are full of meteor showers, whose soundtrack is crickets and katydids.

Katydid (Conocephalus sp.), Nachusa Grasslands, Franklin Grove, IL. (2021)

On the prairies, in the bright August sunlight, big bluestem reaches for the clouds.

Big bluestem (Andropogon gerardii), Nachusa Grasslands, Franklin Grove, IL. (2021)

Wildflowers run riot in a blur of yellow, lavender and pearl.

Sweet Joe Pye weed puffs out its pink-purple.

Sweet Joe Pye Weed (Eutrochium purpureum), Schulenberg Prairie, The Morton Arboretum, Lisle, IL.

The migratory dragonfly species show up, one after another. Black Saddlebags. Variegated Meadowhawk. Common Green Darner. Wandering Glider. Soon, they will swarm across the sky, heading south, the particulars of their journey still mostly shrouded in mystery.

Black Saddlebags dragonfly (Tramea lacerata), Schulenberg Prairie, The Morton Arboretum, Lisle, IL. (2020)

Strange creatures stalk the prairie paths.

Great golden digger wasp (Sphex ichneumoneus), Schulenberg Prairie, The Morton Arboretum, Lisle, IL.

Insects feel the press of summer waning, and explode in numbers.

Round-headed bush clover (Lespedeza capitata), and a Japanese beetle (Popillia japonica), Schulenberg Prairie, The Morton Arboretum, Lisle, IL.

The tallgrass is full of motion, above and below.

Monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus), Crosby’s backyard prairie plantings, Glen Ellyn, IL.

August, I know your days will speed by.

Schulenberg Prairie, The Morton Arboretum, Lisle, IL.

I’m going to try to walk, and look, and soak up every last drop of summer until you are gone.

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The opening quote is from (Oscar) Claude Monet (1840-1920), a French painter widely credited with helping start the Impressionist movement in painting.

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Join Cindy for a class or program in August:

8/5/25–Dragonflies and Damselflies, 1:30-3 p.m. in person, at the Geneva Public Library. Free and open to the public! To register, visit here:

8/6/25–Summer Prairie Write-and-Walk, 8:30-11:30 a.m. at The Morton Arboretum, Lisle, IL. For registration and details, click here.

8/8/25–Tallgrass Prairie Ecology for Master Naturalists, through the Morton Arboretum and Illinois Extension, Lisle, IL (Closed Event).

8/12/25–The Tallgrass Prairie: Grocery Store, Apothecary, and Love Charm Shop, 6:30-8 p.m., with the Joliet Area Garden Club. Free and open to the public if you are new visitor! Membership details and directions are found here.

8/23/25–A Literary Garden Party, 10-11:30 a.m. at The Morton Arboretum in Lisle, IL. Join us for tea, cookies, and all your favorite books! For registration and details, click here.

For more classes and programs, visit http://www.cindycrosby.com .

A Note to Readers: Walk with us! We hope to do 25 “new to us” natural areas in 25 different counties in 2025. So far we’ve explored: #1 Spring Creek Reservoir Forest Preserve, Forest Preserve District of DuPage County, Bloomingdale, IL (DuPage County); #2 Little Red Schoolhouse trails, Palos Preserves, Forest Preserve District of Cook County, Willow Springs, IL (Cook County); #3 Russell Woods, Forest Preserve District of DeKalb County, Genoa, IL (DeKalb County); #4 Red Oak Nature Center, North Aurora, IL (Kane County); #5 Isle a la Cache, Forest Preserve District of Will County, Romeoville, IL (Will County); #6 Hoover Forest Preserve, Forest Preserve District of Kendall County, Yorkville, IL (Kendall County); #7 Dayton Bluffs, The Conservation Foundation and City of Ottawa, Ottawa, IL (LaSalle County), and #8 Starhill Forest Arboretum, Petersburg, IL (Menard County); #9 Cuba Marsh, Forest Preserve of Lake County, Dee Park, IL (Lake County); #10 Kilbuck Bluffs Forest Preserve, Forest Preserves of Winnebago County, Rockford, IL (Winnebago County); #11 Amboy Marsh, Amboy, IL (Lee County), #12 Kankakee Sands, Illinois (Kankakee County); #13 Moraine Hills State Park, McHenry, IL (McHenry County); #14 Jarrett Prairie Nature Preserve, Byron, IL (Ogden County), #15 Short Pioneer Cemetery Prairie Nature Preserve, Coal City, IL (Grundy County); #16 Freeport Prairie Preserve, Freeport, IL (Stephenson County). Nine more counties left to hike in 2025! And of course we’ll be hiking other natural areas, and revisiting some of these counties we’ve already hiked. If you have a prairie recommendation or natural area in your Illinois county we should visit, please let us know in the comments. Thank you for your help! See you on the trails.

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Simple things you can do to help make a difference this week: Ask your representative to protect America’s National Parks and public lands. Visit 5Calls to learn more about how to help.

The Prairie’s Frequent Fliers

“Deep among the flowers, the butterflies press their way; The slow-winged dragonflies dot the water. I’d whisper to the wind and light: ‘Together let’s tarry; We shall enjoy the moment… .”

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Although I’ve pulled my share of invasive plants and invested more hours than I can count caring for prairies, the tallgrass gives back much more to me than I could ever repay. One of the best gifts it’s given me is the dragonflies. And their close relatives, the damselflies.

Great Blue Skimmer (Libellula vibrans), Schulenberg Prairie, The Morton Arboretum, Lisle, IL. (2021)

It was a love for prairie that first opened my eyes to these incredible insects. As I sat on a bridge over Willoway Brook with my journal more than two decades ago, I noticed “black butterflies” along the shoreline. When I investigated further, I learned they were damselflies. Ebony Jewelwing damselflies.

Ebony Jewelwing (Calopteryx maculata) damselfly, Nachusa Grasslands, Franklin Grove, IL. (2022).

You know how obsessions begin. One day you’re looking up information about an aspect of the natural world; the next thing you know, you’re outside deep in vegetation with a clipboard, swatting mosquitoes and collecting data. It’s all part of how the prairie invites us to look closely. To look deeper.

Four-spotted Skimmer (Libellula quadrimaculata) dragonfly, Schulenberg Prairie, The Morton Arboretum, Lisle, IL. (2021)

It’s also how the prairie invites us to invest in understanding all its component parts, from birds to grasses to soil; wildflowers to wildlife to weather.

Harlem Hills Nature Preserve, Love Park, IL. (2023)

When I tell people I collect data on “dragonflies,” I mean members of “odonata,” an insect order which includes both dragonflies and damselflies. The two types of insects are closely related, but not the same. Many people think “damselflies” are female dragonflies, so don’t feel embarrassed if you thought that was the case. But—nope. How do you tell them apart? Most dragonflies are more robust than damselflies, and hold their wings out like an airplane (and sometimes angled to the front).

Twelve-spotted Skimmer (Libellula pulchella) dragonfly, Schulenberg Prairie, The Morton Arboretum, Lisle, IL. (2015)

While most dragonfly eyes touch or almost touch, damselflies have eyes that are set apart. Their bodies are more slender than those of most dragonflies, whose bodies tend to look more robust. And, a damselfly’s wings are usually held together when at rest.

Sedge Sprite (Nehalennia irene) damselfly, Nachusa Grasslands, Franklin Grove, IL. (2020)

July is a dragonfly and damselfly celebration. Every pond, ditch, lake, stream, and prairie is chock-full of these frequent fliers and their dazzling aeronautics.

Springwater Dancers (Argia funebris), Nachusa Grasslands, Franklin Grove, IL. (2020)

We are likely to notice the dragonfly species which are willing to pose for photographs, or which endlessly patrol over the water. Often, we miss the damselflies who hover around the shoreline and perch deep in the vegetation. Small and obscure, they none-the-less come in a variety of patterns and colors…

Rainbow bluet (Anallagma antennatum) damselfly, Nachusa Grasslands, Franklin Grove, IL. (2024)

…and sometimes startle us with their displays.

Ebony Jewelwing damselflies (two left — Calopteryx maculata) and River Jewelwing damselfly (Calopteryx aequabilis), Nachusa Grasslands, Franklin Grove, IL. (2022)

I love the tiny damselflies. The dragonflies come in some small sizes as well. The challenge is seeing these littler odonates, as they often fly under the radar of our attention. And yet. Once your brain is trained to notice them, you will see the smallest dragonflies and damselflies in all sorts of places.

Halloween pennant (Celithemis eponina) dragonfly, Fermilab Natural Areas, Batavia, IL. (2018)

I love theses lines from Mary Oliver: “It’s not just size but surge that tells us when we’re in touch with something real… .” She wrote this line in a poem about owls, but I think of migrating dragonflies. For example, the Wandering Glider dragonfly, the symbol for the Worldwide Dragonfly Association, never fails to trigger a sense of awe. How can this two-inch gold insect wing its way thousands of miles in migration?

Wandering Glider (Pantala flavescens) dragonfly, Schulenberg Prairie, The Morton Arboretum, Lisle, IL. (2016).

Each dragonfly or damselfly species also has its own “personality.” How they lay their eggs varies from species to species. So does their egg color. The nymphs, hatched from eggs, will morph and morph and morph under the water, gaining size and definition. It may take as little as a few weeks to eight or more years.

Blue Dasher (Pachydiplax longipennis) dragonfly nymph, Nachusa Grasslands, Franklin Grove, IL. (2023)

Some trick of the environment—or is it heredity?—leads a dragonfly or damselfly to pull themselves out of the water at an appointed time, crack open its old “skin,” and transform into a creature of the air. Magic.

Calico pennant (Celithemus elisa), Schulenberg Prairie, The Morton Arboretum, Lisle, IL. (2020)

When you go for a hike this week—you are going for a hike, right?—why not look for a few of these incredible insects? Notice their diversity of size, color, and patterns.

Midland Clubtail (Gomphurus vastus), Nachusa Grasslands, Franklin Grove, IL. (2014)

Be patient. Your eyes may have to adjust to seeing them amid the clamor for attention of prairie wildflowers and grasses; bees and birds. Seeing them is an investment of time. Well worth it.

Eastern Amberwing (Perithemis tenera), Schulenberg Prairie, The Morton Arboretum, Lisle, IL. (2016)

Let yourself wonder at how the species you’ll see and their numbers may change from year to year. Each season, you’ll be surprised.

Blue dasher (Pachydiplax longipennis) dragonfly, Belmont Prairie, Downers Grove, IL. (2016)

Marvel at the way a dragonfly can pick off a mosquito. Most of all, take a moment and observe how dragonflies and damselflies add color, movement, and joy to the prairie. After all, don’t we need a little extra shot of joy this week?

Citrine Forktail (Ischnura hastata) damselfly, Nachusa Grasslands, Franklin Grove, IL. (2022)

When you see a dragonfly or damselfly, tell them “thanks.” We’ve got a lot to be grateful for.

Common Whitetail (Plathemis lydia) dragonfly, Nachusa Grasslands, Franklin Grove, IL. (2023)

Tell them Cindy sent you.

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The opening quote is from the poem “Meandering River” taken from Sunflower Splendor: Three Thousand Years of Chinese Poetry by Wu-Chi Liu and Irving Yucheng Lo. I encountered the poem in the beautiful and engaging book, A Dazzle of Dragonflies by Forrest L. Mitchell and James L. Lasswell.

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Join Cindy for a class or program in August:

8/1/25–Dragonflies and Damselflies for Master Naturalists, through The Morton Arboretum and Illinois Extension, Lisle, IL (Closed Event).

8/4/25–Interpretation for Master Naturalists (Online), through The Morton Arboretum and Illinois Extension, Lisle, IL (Closed Event).

8/5/25–Dragonflies and Damselflies, 1:30-3 p.m. in person, at the Geneva Public Library. Free and open to the public! To register, visit here:

8/6/25–Summer Prairie Write-and-Walk, 8:30-11:30 a.m. at The Morton Arboretum, Lisle, IL. For registration and details, click here.

8/8/25–Tallgrass Prairie Ecology for Master Naturalists, through the Morton Arboretum and Illinois Extension, Lisle, IL (Closed Event).

8/12/25–The Tallgrass Prairie: Grocery Store, Apothecary, and Love Charm Shop, 6:30-8 p.m., with the Joliet Area Garden Club. Free and open to the public if you are new visitor! Membership details and directions are found here.

8/23/25–A Literary Garden Party, 10-11:30 a.m. at The Morton Arboretum in Lisle, IL. Join us for tea, cookies, and all your favorite books! For registration and details, click here.

For more classes and programs, visit http://www.cindycrosby.com .

A Note to Readers: Walk with us! We hope to do 25 “new to us” natural areas in 25 different counties in 2025. So far we’ve explored: #1 Spring Creek Reservoir Forest Preserve, Forest Preserve District of DuPage County, Bloomingdale, IL (DuPage County); #2 Little Red Schoolhouse trails, Palos Preserves, Forest Preserve District of Cook County, Willow Springs, IL (Cook County); #3 Russell Woods, Forest Preserve District of DeKalb County, Genoa, IL (DeKalb County); #4 Red Oak Nature Center, North Aurora, IL (Kane County); #5 Isle a la Cache, Forest Preserve District of Will County, Romeoville, IL (Will County); #6 Hoover Forest Preserve, Forest Preserve District of Kendall County, Yorkville, IL (Kendall County); #7 Dayton Bluffs, The Conservation Foundation and City of Ottawa, Ottawa, IL (LaSalle County), and #8 Starhill Forest Arboretum, Petersburg, IL (Menard County); #9 Cuba Marsh, Forest Preserve of Lake County, Dee Park, IL (Lake County); #10 Kilbuck Bluffs Forest Preserve, Forest Preserves of Winnebago County, Rockford, IL (Winnebago County); #11 Amboy Marsh, Amboy, IL (Lee County), #12 Kankakee Sands, Illinois (Kankakee County); #13 Moraine Hills State Park, McHenry, IL (McHenry County); #14 Jarrett Prairie Nature Preserve, Byron, IL (Ogden County), #15 Short Pioneer Cemetery Prairie Nature Preserve, Coal City, IL (Grundy County); #16 Freeport Prairie Preserve, Freeport, IL (Stephenson County). Nine more counties left to hike in 2025! And of course we’ll be hiking other natural areas, and revisiting some of these counties we’ve already hiked. If you have a prairie recommendation or natural area in your Illinois county we should visit, please let us know in the comments. Thank you for your help! See you on the trails.

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Simple things you can do to help make a difference this week: Visit Charity Navigator to learn how you can best donate to promote peace building and alleviate suffering in Gaza and Israel here.

At Home with Prairie in July

“The Earth is what we all have in common.” —Wendell Berry

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There is such solace to be found in one’s garden. I find this even during the hottest days of July, when I pull weeds in the early mornings and late evenings, then water our thirsty plants. No matter what the headlines, I can block the news out for an hour or so while I admire the hummingbirds and bees visiting the wildflowers in my backyard.

Wild bergamot (Monarda fistulosa), with an unknown bumble bee (Bombus sp.), Crosby’s backyard, Glen Ellyn, IL.

In July, you finally see what the results of your winter dreaming, planning and purchasing have brought about.

Purple coneflower (Echinacea purpurea) with an unknown bumblebee (Bombus sp.) Crosby’s front yard, Glen Ellyn, IL.

You also realize what hasn’t gotten done. Case in point: Our little hand-dug pond has grown over with marsh marigolds, several ill-advised iris, and a whole lotta black-eyed Susans purchased early on in our homeownership. (Are they the natives, Rudbeckia hirta? It’s unclear.) There is also some sort of sharp-edged grass which has grown into the middle of the pond and is slowly spreading. Ugh. The pond needs a good cleaning out, and I’m sure I’ll find excuses to not do it well into August. Instead, I’ll admire the button bush, planted a few years ago on the pond edge. It’s happy here, where it gets its feet wet, and blooming for the first time.

Buttonbush (Cephalanthus occidentalis), Crosby’s backyard, Glen Ellyn, IL.

The thriving swamp milkweed, which—although taller than I thought it would be—looks pretty in its pink on the far end.

Swamp milkweed (Asclepias incarnata), Crosby’s backyard, Glen Ellyn, IL.

I’ve pinched back the rather weedy New England asters so they won’t be quite so sprawling when they bloom in the fall, but when I looked the other way, they seemed to grow another 24 inches. Will they bloom if I pinch them back again in July? I’m not sure. And are the cardinal flowers and great blue lobelia still in there, along the edges of the pond, amid all those weeds? In August, I’ll know the answer. I can picture them now, in my mind.

Great blue lobelia (Lobelia siphilitica), Crosby’s backyard, Glen Ellyn, IL. (2021)

I’ll watch for them both next month.

Cardinal flower (Lobelia cardinalis), Crosby’s backyard, Glen Ellyn, IL. (2019)

In the prairie planting which rims the boundary of our yard and our neighbor’s yard, queen of the prairie has about exhausted all her cotton candy colored blooms.

Queen of the prairie (Filipendula rubra), Crosby’s backyard, Glen Ellyn, IL.

It has rapidly competed with cup plant and Joe Pye weed for “most energetic” native plant in our backyard planting, likely because we planted all three in a wet part of our yard. I wish the rabbits would nibble on it, instead of my vegetables. It’s been a banner year for bunnies, and Jeff thoughtfully bought me three large planting beds on stands (Costco had a sale). In it have gone the early greens and some of the edible flowers like violas and nasturtiums, just out of reach of a hungry rabbit.

Crosby’s backyard, Glen Ellyn, IL.

Unfortunately, the bunnies turned their efforts to my cut-and-come-again zinnias, which have suffered early morning and late evening raids on their blooms, stems, and leaves. I should have protected the zinnias, but it’s a bit late to be thinking of that now. Would of, should of, could of. The June-planted sweet potato starts, a gift from a friend, and spring-seeded sugar snap peas were also early cottontail casualties. Basil, okra, and tomatoes have plodded on, so perhaps there will be something to eat for Jeff and myself in August. The rabbits are nice and plump.

Garlic will soon need pulled and dried.

Garlic (Allium sativum), Crosby’s backyard, Glen Ellyn, IL.

All the green tomatoes are failing to ripen. They seem to be biding their time until August. I’m anticipating an avalanche of tomatoes then, assuming the squirrels don’t gang up on the garden with the bunnies and tackle the tomatoes, too.

Meanwhile, I am over-the-moon happy with our small front yard prairie planting, now in its third year. What a joy that little patch is! The royal catchfly is thriving; its brilliant red blooms a siren call to dog walkers and neighborhood joggers. Stop! Look.

Royal catchfly (Silene regia), Crosby’s front yard, Glen Ellyn, IL.

The pale purple coneflowers (Echinacea pallida) are ragged and bloomed out at this point in July, but the later-flowering purple coneflowers have picked up the bloom baton and are running with it.

Purple coneflowers (Echinacea pupurea), Crosby’s front yard, Glen Ellyn, IL.

I enjoy seeing the contrast between the two natives, both Echinaceas. A little different leaf and petal shape (pale purple coneflower petals are narrower, as are the leaves), and different pollen colors (yellow pollen for the purple, white for the pale purple). Many restorations here in Illinois don’t plant the purple, Echinacea purpurea, for various reasons. Here in my garden, however, I’ve recently given it a place. No regrets.

Purple coneflower (Echinacea purpurea) with an unknown bumblebee (Bombus sp.), Crosby’s front yard, Glen Ellyn, IL.

If I had it to do over again, I’d likely not plant three mountain mint plants in this small planting. Maybe only one. Mountain mint is enthusiastic. Very enthusiastic. It’s difficult to take issue, though, with its frothy mounds of white flowers covered with pollinators and other insects, even when they crowd out some of the other plants.

Virginia mountain mint (Pycnanthemum virginianum), Crosby’s front yard, Glen Ellyn, IL.

Butterflyweed is more well-behaved…

Butterflyweed (Asclepias tuberosa), Crosby’s front yard, Glen Ellyn, IL.

…as is the wild quinine.

Wild quinine (Parthenium integrifolium) with Eurasian drone fly (Eristalis arbustorum), Crosby’s front yard, Glen Ellyn, IL.

Rattlesnake master, which can be a bit lanky and floppy in some parts of my garden…

Rattlesnake master (Eryngium yuccifolium), Crosby’s front yard, Glen Ellyn, IL.

…has been remarkably sturdy in the front yard prairie patch. I hope the showy goldenrod is still in there. I’ve lost track of the difference between its leaves and the leaves of the Ohio goldenrod and flat-topped goldenrod (also in the front planting). I think I plotted out where everything was at some point. But I’m not sure where the paperwork went to. And of course, the bunnies will prune and trim and remove and make their own changes in the garden. They did a lot of munching among the sky blue asters in this same plant bed, so we’ll see what we see in the fall. At least they left most of the blazing stars alone.

Eastern cottontail rabbit (Sylvilagus floridanus), Crosby’s backyard, Glen Ellyn, IL. (2021)

Ah, well. When we moved to the Chicago region in 1998, this was almost all lawn. Over the years, we’ve slowly turned it into something different. Maybe later this week I’ll pick some of the garden’s ever-bearing red raspberries, stir them into an ice-cold lemonade, and sit on the back patio and enjoy the view. Remembering how far we’ve come, instead of thinking about how far we have to go.

Raspberries (Rubus idaeus ‘Joan J’), Crosby’s backyard, Glen Ellyn, IL. (2023)

Even if I didn’t get all the weeding done that I planned to do this month, it’s been a good summer. After all, the weeds will always be with us. I don’t want to forget to take joy in what has been accomplished, rather than fretting over what I haven’t gotten done.

There’s always next season.

*****

Wendell Berry (1934-) whose quote from The Unsettling of America opens this blog post, is a farmer, a poet, an essayist, a novelist, and a voice of sanity for sustainable agriculture and caring for our prairies, wetlands, and forests in an increasingly chaotic world. If you haven’t read him before, July is a good month to begin.

*****

Join Cindy for a class or program in August:

8/5/25–Dragonflies and Damselflies, 1:30-3 p.m. in person, at the Geneva Public Library. Free and open to the public! To register, visit here:

8/6/25–Summer Prairie Write-and-Walk, 8:30-11:30 a.m. at The Morton Arboretum, Lisle, IL. For registration and details, click here.

8/12/25–The Tallgrass Prairie: Grocery Store, Apothecary, and Love Charm Shop, 6:30-8 p.m., with the Joliet Area Garden Club. Free and open to the public if you are new visitor! Membership details and directions are found here.

8/23/25–A Literary Garden Party, 10-11:30 a.m. at The Morton Arboretum in Lisle, IL. Join us for tea, cookies, and all your favorite books! For registration and details, click here.

Please note: Cindy takes off the month of July from teaching and speaking to write. For more classes and programs later this year, visit http://www.cindycrosby.com .

*****

A Note to Readers: Walk with us! We hope to do 25 “new to us” natural areas in 25 different counties in 2025. So far we’ve explored: #1 Spring Creek Reservoir Forest Preserve, Forest Preserve District of DuPage County, Bloomingdale, IL (DuPage County); #2 Little Red Schoolhouse trails, Palos Preserves, Forest Preserve District of Cook County, Willow Springs, IL (Cook County); #3 Russell Woods, Forest Preserve District of DeKalb County, Genoa, IL (DeKalb County); #4 Red Oak Nature Center, North Aurora, IL (Kane County); #5 Isle a la Cache, Forest Preserve District of Will County, Romeoville, IL (Will County); #6 Hoover Forest Preserve, Forest Preserve District of Kendall County, Yorkville, IL (Kendall County); #7 Dayton Bluffs, The Conservation Foundation and City of Ottawa, Ottawa, IL (LaSalle County), and #8 Starhill Forest Arboretum, Petersburg, IL (Menard County); #9 Cuba Marsh, Forest Preserve of Lake County, Dee Park, IL (Lake County); #10 Kilbuck Bluffs Forest Preserve, Forest Preserves of Winnebago County, Rockford, IL (Winnebago County); #11 Amboy Marsh, Amboy, IL (Lee County), #12 Kankakee Sands, Illinois (Kankakee County); #13 Moraine Hills State Park, McHenry, IL (McHenry County); #14 Jarrett Prairie Nature Preserve, Byron, IL (Ogden County), #15 Short Pioneer Cemetery Prairie Nature Preserve, Coal City, IL (Grundy County); #16 Freeport Prairie Preserve, Freeport, IL (Stephenson County). Nine more counties left to hike in 2025! And of course we’ll be hiking other natural areas, and revisiting some of these counties we’ve already hiked. If you have a prairie recommendation or natural area in your Illinois county we should visit, please let us know in the comments. Thank you for your help! See you on the trails.

****

Simple things you can do to help make a difference this week: Head Start is an important program that helps young children with high quality early education. Will it be eliminated? Will Congress approve funding for the program? Make your voice heard. Don’t know who to contact? Visit 5Calls for more information and contacts. Together, we can make a difference.

An Unexpected Prairie Detour

“To finish the moment, to find the journey’s end in every step of the road, to live the greatest number of good hours, is wisdom.” — Ralph Waldo Emerson

*******

Have you ever set out for one destination and ended up somewhere completely unexpected?

Freeport Prairie Nature Preserve, Freeport, IL.

This past weekend, Jeff and I pointed our car toward Boone County, Illinois, ready to hike a forest preserve an hour away for our “25 in 2025” hikes (an attempt to visit 25 natural areas new to us in 25 different counties in Illinois). And yet…we had the whole day in front of us. Before we knew it, we were whizzing through Boone County, then Winnebago County, and off to visit Le-Aqua-Na State Recreation Area, which was featured in one of my old Illinois guidebooks and much further away. However, as we entered Stephenson County, I was scrolling through prairie Google searches on my phone while Jeff drove. “Freeport has a prairie!” I said, and almost before it was out of my mouth, he had flipped the turn signal on.

Freeport Prairie Nature Preserve, Freeport, IL.

We followed the directions and found ourselves in a Ford Dealership parking lot. Over to the side was…yes! A small prairie, squeezed in-between the dealership, a farm field, a racetrack, and a few shops.

Freeport Prairie Nature Preserve, Freeport, IL.

Freeport Prairie, we learned, is a four-and-a-half to six-acre remnant (depending on your source), representative of a larger swath of prairie that once covered more than half of Stephenson County.

Freeport Prairie Nature Preserve, Freeport, IL.

We walked the edges of the prairie under skies hazy from Canadian wildfires. Jeff saw another gate on the far side of the prairie, so we jumped back in the car. We approached it from a different direction. Here was a sign and entry point, long grown over.

Freeport Prairie Nature Preserve, Freeport, IL.

Later, I read that this little remnant contains at least 125 species of plants, including spring treasures like prairie pasque flower and prairie smoke. We just missed most of the touted pale purple coneflowers and downy painted cup blooms. In July, wild bergamot…

Unknown bumblebee (Bombus spp.) on wild bergamot (Monarda fistulosa), Freeport Prairie Nature Preserve, Freeport, IL.

…false sunflower, gray-headed coneflower, and other prairie wildflowers and grasses cover the hillside.

Freeport Prairie Nature Preserve, Freeport, IL.

There was the promise of goldenrod, and some of the grasses were getting ready to make their reach-for-the-sky move. We found a few sunflowers in bloom.

Possibly sawtooth sunflower (Helianthus grosseratus), Freeport Prairie Nature Preserve, Freeport, IL.

Pollinators were busy with the blooms. Even the more unwelcome invasive plants, like Queen Anne’s lace, had a few visitors.

Monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus) on non-native Queen Anne’ s lace (Daucus carota), Freeport Prairie Nature Preserve, Freeport, IL.

It was sobering to see this small remnant that escaped the plow and development—possibly saved by its situation on a steep ancient bluff—side by side with the cornfields and development which would eventually replace most of the tallgrass prairie in Stephenson County.

Freeport Prairie Nature Preserve, Freeport, IL.

I’m grateful to the organizations and people who continue to ensure the prairie’s survival.

Freeport Prairie Nature Preserve, Freeport, IL.

Prairie remnants, no matter how small, evoke lots of emotion. It was impossible to not feel moved, standing at the edge of what was once part of 22 million acres of tallgrass prairie in Illinois, now reduced to small parcels like this one.

Freeport Prairie Nature Preserve, Freeport, IL.

Hang on, little prairie.

Freeport Prairie Nature Preserve, Freeport, IL.

An unexpected detour. With surprising rewards.

*****

From Freeport, we headed to our original Stephenson County destination, Lake Le-Aqua-Na State Recreation Area, in Lena, IL. The recreation area, I learned, got its name from the winner of a marketing contest, in which the Latin word for water was sandwiched between part of the town’s name. My outdated guidebook mentioned a “bustling” town, however, the town and the park both turned out to be almost deserted on a Sunday in July. We made the most of the quiet.

We marveled at the prairie plantings along the roadside around the 40-acre lake: butterfly milkweed, wild bergamot, white wild indigo going to seed…

White wild indigo (Baptisia alba), Lake Le-Aqua-Na Recreation Area, Lena, IL.

…and other July favorites. But where were the people? The concession stand was closed. A few folks swam off the beach or fished from the accessible pier. In the distance, we saw a small fishing boat.

Lake Le-Aqua-Na Recreational Area, Lena, IL.

We walked to the shoreline and found the busiest traffic: dragonflies and damselflies. We counted almost 20 Eastern Amberwings without trying, in tandem and in the wheel, ovipositing in the shoreline floating vegetation. For the first time, I found two males in tandem, usually a preliminary to mating. What was going on?

Male Eastern Amberwing dragonflies (Perithemus tenera) in tandem, Lake Le-Aqua-Na Recreational Area, Lena, IL.

A little online investigation turned up this from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee’s “Bug Lady” blog: evidently if the male has already mated with a female, he tries to keep other males away. It goes on to say, “In his zeal to protect his ‘investment,’ the male sometimes grabs an intruding male and flies in tandem with him, keeping him away from the female.” I’ve not seen this before! Cool.

Widow skimmers and Eastern Pondhawks darted back and forth, the males basking in the sun…

Eastern Pondhawk dragonfly (Erythemis simplicicollis), Lake Le-Aqua-Na Recreational Area, Lena, IL.

….and the females busy ovipositing.

Eastern Pondhawk dragonfly (Erythemis simplicicollis), Lake Le-Aqua-Na Recreational Area, Lena, IL.

A lone Skimming Bluet damselfly soaked up warmth on the paved path.

Skimming bluet damselfly (Enallagma geminatum), Lake Le-Aqua-Na Recreational Area, Lena, IL.

Our best piece of luck was a badger which scampered out of the roadside brush, gave us a look, then disappeared before I could grab my camera. We both rubbed our eyes…”Was that a… .?” It was the first badger either of us have ever seen in the wild. Or was it a groundhog? Or??? We’d like to think badger but it disappeared too fast to be sure. In our minds, we will always hope for “badger.”

Black-eyed Susan (Rudbeckia hirta), Lake Le-Aqua-Na Recreational Area, Lena, IL.

As much as we enjoyed the quiet, prairie wildflowers, dragonflies and possible badgers at our ultimate destination, Le-Aqua-na Recreation Area, the real gem of our Stephenson County visit was the impromptu trip to Freeport Prairie Preserve. Jeff and I both agreed we’d love to re-visit it in the spring, when the pasque flowers and prairie smoke are in bloom.

Gray-headed coneflowers (Ratibida pinnata), Freeport Prairie Nature Preserve, Freeport, IL.

Sometimes, the best part of a trip is a detour you don’t plan. Or, as the old saying goes, “It’s the journey, not the destination.” Our Stephenson County adventure was a reminder to me to stay flexible as we visit natural areas this summer. When you are willing to take a detour, who knows what you’ll see—and where you will end up?

Happy Hiking!

****

The opening quote is from Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882), an essayist and philosopher. Many versions of this quote have made the rounds in songs, on greeting cards, and as a general saying among friends. Read more about this quote here. No matter who first said it in what form, it’s a good one.

*****

Join Cindy for a class or program in August:

8/5/25–Dragonflies and Damselflies, 1:30-3 p.m. in person, at the Geneva Public Library. Free and open to the public! To register, visit here:

8/6/25–Summer Prairie Write-and-Walk, 8:30-11:30 a.m. at The Morton Arboretum, Lisle, IL. For registration and details, click here.

8/12/25–The Tallgrass Prairie: Grocery Store, Apothecary, and Love Charm Shop, 6:30-8 p.m., with the Joliet Area Garden Club. Free and open to the public! Details coming soon.

8/23/25–A Literary Garden Party, 10-11:30 a.m. at The Morton Arboretum in Lisle, IL. Tea, cookies, and all your favorite books! For registration and details, click here.

Please note: Cindy takes off the month of July from teaching and speaking to write. For more classes and programs later this summer, visit http://www.cindycrosby.com . She’ll be updating it soon!

*****

A Note to Readers: Walk with us! We hope to do 25 “new to us” natural areas in 25 different counties in 2025. So far we’ve explored: #1 Spring Creek Reservoir Forest Preserve, Forest Preserve District of DuPage County, Bloomingdale, IL (DuPage County); #2 Little Red Schoolhouse trails, Palos Preserves, Forest Preserve District of Cook County, Willow Springs, IL (Cook County); #3 Russell Woods, Forest Preserve District of DeKalb County, Genoa, IL (DeKalb County); #4 Red Oak Nature Center, North Aurora, IL (Kane County); #5 Isle a la Cache, Forest Preserve District of Will County, Romeoville, IL (Will County); #6 Hoover Forest Preserve, Forest Preserve District of Kendall County, Yorkville, IL (Kendall County); #7 Dayton Bluffs, The Conservation Foundation and City of Ottawa, Ottawa, IL (LaSalle County), and #8 Starhill Forest Arboretum, Petersburg, IL (Menard County); #9 Cuba Marsh, Forest Preserve of Lake County, Dee Park, IL (Lake County); #10 Kilbuck Bluffs Forest Preserve, Forest Preserves of Winnebago County, Rockford, IL (Winnebago County); #11 Amboy Marsh, Amboy, IL (Lee County), #12 Kankakee Sands, Illinois (Kankakee County); #13 Moraine Hills State Park, McHenry, IL (McHenry County); #14 Jarrett Prairie Nature Preserve, Byron, IL (Ogden County), #15 Short Pioneer Cemetery Prairie Nature Preserve, Coal City, IL (Grundy County); #16 Freeport Prairie Preserve, Freeport, IL (Stephenson County). Nine more counties left to hike in 2025! And of course we’ll be hiking other natural areas, and revisiting some of these counties we’ve already hiked. If you have a prairie recommendation or natural area in your Illinois county we should visit, please let us know in the comments. Thank you for your help! See you on the trails.

****Simple things you can do to help make a difference this week: The Senate is set to vote on defunding NPR and PBS this week. Let them know your feelings on this issue! Don’t know who to contact? Visit 5Calls for more information and contacts. Together, we can make a difference.

Little Prairie in the Cemetery

“Oh lost, and by the wind grieved; ghost, come back again.” —Thomas Wolfe

*****

Every prairie has its own personality, or atmosphere. Short Pioneer Cemetery Prairie Nature Preserve is no exception.

Short Pioneer Cemetery Prairie Nature Preserve, Coal City, IL.

This weekend, Jeff and I went for a hike in Grundy County, IL, as part of our “25 in 2025” hikes in 25 different Illinois counties this year. Short Pioneer Cemetery Prairie Nature Preserve came highly recommended. As with most of last week, Saturday was blazing hot. We were already sweating when, after a few false turns, we arrived at the prairie.

Short Pioneer Cemetery Prairie Nature Preserve, Coal City, IL.

As I read about this prairie remnant on Stephen Packard’s wonderful blog, Strategies for Stewards, (12/1/20) I learned Short Pioneer Cemetery was a dry-mesic sand prairie. As with our trips to Kankakee Sands in Illinois and Indiana, many of the plants were unknown to me. I was stunned by the magenta blooms of clustered poppy mallow, scattered across the cemetery. This poppy harbored a tasty insect that this Eastern Pondhawk dragonfly was about to surprise.

Clustered poppy mallow (Callirhoe triangulata) with Eastern Pondhawk (Erythemis simplicicollis), Short Pioneer Cemetery Prairie Nature Preserve, Coal City, IL.

The deep magenta poppy mallows were interspersed with wild petunia, a native prairie plant that looks like that traditional stalwart of hanging baskets and garden beds. Appearances, however, can be deceiving. They aren’t even kissing cousins.

Prairie petunia (Ruellia humilis), Short Pioneer Cemetery Prairie Nature Preserve, Coal City, IL.

But you can see where the “petunia” got its name. Even under the glare of the late morning sun, the colors of the two wildflowers together was striking.

Clustered poppy mallow (Callirhoe triangulata) and prairie petunia (Ruellia humilis), Short Pioneer Cemetery Prairie Nature Preserve, Coal City, IL.

Nearby, goats rue was going to seed.

Goat’s rue (Tephrosia virginiana), Short Pioneer Cemetery Prairie Nature Preserve, Coal City, IL.

Its long and stringy roots led to its nickname, “devil’s shoestrings,” and contain rotenone, a natural insecticide. Nearby, leadplant, with its somewhat similar leaves, is still blooming and abundant in the more open areas of the remnant.

Leadplant (Amorpha canescens), Short Pioneer Cemetery Prairie Nature Preserve, Coal City, IL.

Wild bergamot was blooming among the gravestones, a familiar flower from my backyard as well as the more northern prairies.

Wild bergamot (Monarda fistulosa), Short Pioneer Cemetery Prairie Nature Preserve, Coal City, IL.

In their “Vascular Flora of Short Pioneer Cemetery Prairie Nature Preserve,” the authors note that wild bergamot was present here in 1976, but absent when they conducted their plant inventory in 2005-2006. Although it is a fairly common plant on prairies, I was excited to see it was indeed here. Perhaps the stewardship of this prairie has been instrumental in bringing it back?

Wild bergamot (Monarda fistulosa), Short Pioneer Cemetery Prairie Nature Preserve, Coal City, IL.

Jeff and I expected summer prairie wildflower blooms and grasses when we planned our trip to Short Pioneer Cemetery. What we didn’t expect was the poison ivy, which in a good way, reminded us to step carefully and respectfully as we admired the prairie. One of the biggest surprises: dragonflies and damselflies. So many, in one place! There were more double-striped bluets here together than I have seen in my 20 years of dragonfly work. Little jazz notes of blues floating low across the preserve.

Double-striped bluet (Enallagma basidens), Short Pioneer Cemetery Prairie Nature Preserve, Coal City, IL.

These tiny bluets—one of the smallest damselfly bluets at about one inch in length—were feeding on tiny insects, and finding romance among the wildflowers.

Double-striped bluets (Enallagma basidens) in the wheel position, Short Pioneer Cemetery Prairie Nature Preserve, Coal City, IL.

I wish I had the right words for just how blue they are! It is a blue rarely seen in nature, except…well..in damselflies. Rivaling them for size were Eastern Amberwing dragonflies, at less than an inch from head to abdominal tip. About the size of my pinky finger.

Eastern amberwing dragonfly (Perithemis tenera), Short Pioneer Cemetery Prairie Nature Preserve, Coal City, IL.

There were also the “pennant” dragonflies fluttering through. Halloween Pennants…

Halloween pennant dragonfly (Celithemis eponina), Short Pioneer Cemetery Prairie Nature Preserve, Coal City, IL.

…and the dainty Calico Pennants.

Calico pennant dragonfly (Celithemis elisa), Short Pioneer Cemetery Prairie Nature Preserve, Coal City, IL.

Under the bright sun, their verve and swerve kept our heads swiveling between oohing and ahhing over prairie wildflowers down in the grass and then, looking up to watch their antics. By comparison to the smaller dragonflies and the tiny bluet damselflies, the Eastern Pondhawks, at up to two inches long, seemed like giants.

Eastern pondhawk (Erythemis simplicicollis) on leadplant (Amorpha canescens), Short Pioneer Cemetery Prairie Nature Preserve, Coal City, IL.

As did the Widow Skimmer dragonflies, at just under two inches.

Widow skimmer dragonfly (Libellula luctuosa), Short Pioneer Cemetery Prairie Nature Preserve, Coal City, IL.

As we marveled at the treasures of this Grundy County gem—just over an acre in size—we were grateful for the stewardship that has preserved Short Pioneer Cemetery Prairie, and its suite of plans.

Hairy rosette-panic grass (Dichanthelium acuminatum), Short Pioneer Cemetery Prairie Nature Preserve, Coal City, IL.

Even with the damselflies dancing around our feet and dragonflies darting all around, there was a atmosphere of solemnity. It was impossible to stand among the wildflowers and grasses and gravestones, and not to think of the passage of time for both people and prairie.

Short Pioneer Cemetery Prairie Nature Preserve, Coal City, IL.

It was sobering to remember, as we pointed out each wildflower, that millions of acres of tallgrass prairie wildflowers and grasses have vanished in Illinois, leaving these diminutive repositories to stand in their place. And, as we stepped carefully along this pathless acre, we wondered. What would those pioneers, eternally resting here, have thought of us, reading the dates of their life spans and imagining their lives?

Short Pioneer Cemetery Prairie Nature Preserve, Coal City, IL.

Could they have believed that the prairie their generations worked so hard to plow under, and turn to corn and other crops, would now be so rare that people would come from thousands of miles away to see this place? Questions arose with every step. Questions of legacy. Conservation. Questions of what is most important to different generations of people. And well… so many questions.

Short Pioneer Cemetery Prairie Nature Preserve, Coal City, IL.

We left Short Pioneer Cemetery Prairie knowing we’d brushed shoulders with the past. As a designated Illinois Nature Preserve, I feel hopeful for its future. Perhaps someday, my great-great-great grandchildren will come here and reflect as we did, on how an acre of prairie remnant can elicit so many questions, and so much emotion. I hope the people immortalized here would feel joy that this place where they came to rest is also a place of inspiration and learning today.

Short Pioneer Cemetery Prairie Nature Preserve, Coal City, IL.

Thank you, prairie stewards and Illinois Nature Preserves, for caring for this place. We’re grateful.

*****

To read more about Short Pioneer Cemetery Prairie Nature and its restoration history, visit Stephen Packard’s terrific blog “Strategies for Stewards” here. It contains a terrific link to the 2010 report on “Vascular Flora of Short Pioneer Cemetery Prairie Nature Preserve” that is well worth the read (Kudos to the authors, including Paul Marcum!).

Grateful thanks to Paul Marcum and Barb Hildy who suggested visiting this beautiful prairie remnant. I’m grateful for their recommendations.

*****

The opening quote is by Thomas Wolfe from his classic book, “Look Homeward Angel.” It is quoted as part of the closing sentences of John Madson’s iconic book on the tallgrass prairie, “Where the Sky Began.”

******

Join Cindy for a class or program in August:

8/5/25–Dragonflies and Damselflies, 1:30-3 p.m. in person, at the Geneva Public Library. Free and open to the public! To register, visit here:

8/6/25–Summer Prairie Write-and-Walk, 8:30-11:30 a.m. at The Morton Arboretum, Lisle, IL. For registration and details, click here.

8/12/25–The Tallgrass Prairie: Grocery Store, Apothecary, and Love Charm Shop with the Joliet Area Garden Club. Details coming soon!

8/23/25–A Literary Garden Party, 10-11:30 a.m. at The Morton Arboretum in Lisle, IL. Tea, cookies, and all your favorite books! For registration and details, click here.

Please note: Cindy takes off the month of July from teaching and speaking to write. For more classes and programs later this summer, visit http://www.cindycrosby.com . She’ll be updating it soon!

*****

A Note to Readers: Walk with us through 102 counties of Illinois by 2030! We hope to do 25 “new to us” natural areas in 25 different counties in 2025. So far we’ve explored: #1 Spring Creek Reservoir Forest Preserve, Forest Preserve District of DuPage County, Bloomingdale, IL (DuPage County); #2 Little Red Schoolhouse trails, Palos Preserves, Forest Preserve District of Cook County, Willow Springs, IL (Cook County); #3 Russell Woods, Forest Preserve District of DeKalb County, Genoa, IL (DeKalb County); #4 Red Oak Nature Center, North Aurora, IL (Kane County); #5 Isle a la Cache, Forest Preserve District of Will County, Romeoville, IL (Will County); #6 Hoover Forest Preserve, Forest Preserve District of Kendall County, Yorkville, IL (Kendall County); #7 Dayton Bluffs, The Conservation Foundation and City of Ottawa, Ottawa, IL (LaSalle County), and #8 Starhill Forest Arboretum, Petersburg, IL (Menard County); #9 Cuba Marsh, Forest Preserve of Lake County, Dee Park, IL (Lake County); #10 Kilbuck Bluffs Forest Preserve, Forest Preserves of Winnebago County, Rockford, IL (Winnebago County); #11 Amboy Marsh, Amboy, IL (Lee County), #12 Kankakee Sands, Illinois (Kankakee County); #13 Moraine Hills State Park, McHenry, IL (McHenry County); #14 Jarrett Prairie Nature Preserve, Byron, IL (Ogden County), #15 Short Pioneer Cemetery Prairie Nature Preserve, Coal City, IL (Grundy County). Ten more counties left to hike in 2025! And of course we’ll be hiking other natural areas, and revisiting some of these counties we’ve already hiked. If you have a prairie recommendation or natural area in your Illinois county we should visit, please let us know in the comments. Thank you for your help! See you on the trails.

Simple things you can do to help make a difference this week: Our government has made devastating cuts to our weather warning systems staff, especially the National Weather Service and scientists at National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). Call your congressperson today and let them know your position on fully funding these important agencies. Don’t know who to contact? Visit 5Calls for more information and contacts. Together, we can make a difference.

July Arrives on the Tallgrass Prairie

“A prairie…requests the favor of your closer attention. It does not divulge itself to mere passersby.” —Suzanne Winckler

*****

It’s hot.

False sunflowers blaze open on the prairie.

False sunflower (Heliopsis helianthoides) Jarrett Prairie, Byron Forest Preserve, Byron IL.

The dew point eclipses 70 daily. Temperatures stretch into the high 90s.

Thimbleweed (Anemone cylindrica), Jarrett Prairie, Byron Forest Preserve, Byron IL.

For many prairie lovers, the week of July Fourth is the most spectacular week on the tallgrass prairie. And so, even with the high temperatures and humidity, we go for a hike. Why? We don’t want to miss the ever-changing display of wildflowers that kaleidoscope through the prairie at this time of year.

Jarrett Prairie, Byron Forest Preserve, Byron IL.

Pale purple coneflowers explode like fireworks.

Pale purple coneflowers (Echinacea pallida), Jarrett Prairie, Byron Forest Preserve, Byron IL.

Leadplant sizzles and sparks.

Leadplant (Amorpha canescens), Jarrett Prairie, Byron Forest Preserve, Byron IL.

The first compass plants push into the sky, with their fist-like buds opening into sunbursts.

Compass plants (Silphium laciniatum), Jarrett Prairie, Byron Forest Preserve, Byron IL.

Black-eyed Susans add their bright orange rays to the festivities.

Black-eyed Susans (Rudbeckia hirta), Jarrett Prairie, Byron Forest Preserve, Byron IL.

Like any fireworks show, there are a few fizzles.

Ohio spiderwort (Tradescantia ohiensis), Jarrett Prairie, Byron Forest Preserve, Byron IL.

For our prairie fireworks experience, Jeff and I walk the 441-acre Jarrett Prairie Nature Preserve in Byron, IL, where the rolling hills cradle rare dolomite prairie remnants…

Whorled milkweed (Asclepias verticillata), Jarrett Prairie, Byron Forest Preserve, Byron IL.

…spared by their rockiness from the settler’s plow. Today, a nuclear plant steam plume adds a modern backdrop to the scene.

Jarrett Prairie, Byron Forest Preserve, Byron IL.

The planted prairies, together with the remnants…

Purple milkweed (Asclepias purpuracens), Jarrett Prairie, Byron Forest Preserve, Byron IL.

…give us some idea of the beauty of Illinois several hundred years ago.

Jarrett Prairie, Byron Forest Preserve, Byron IL.

As we hike, the oak savanna and woodland give us a bit of shade, welcome in the heat.

Jarrett Prairie and savanna, Byron Forest Preserve, Byron IL.

Overlooking the prairie is the gorgeous Jarret Prairie Center…

Jarrett Prairie, Byron Forest Preserve, Byron IL.

…designed so visitors may view the prairie from a high point…

Jarrett Prairie, Byron Forest Preserve, Byron IL.

…while learning more from interpretive panels about the prairie’s wildlife, its plants, and its history in Ogle County, Illinois.

Jarrett Prairie Center, Byron Forest Preserve, Byron IL.

As we hike, we marvel at so many insects. Monarch butterflies…

Monarch butterfly (Danaus plexipus) on common milkweed (Asclepias syriaca), Jarrett Prairie, Byron Forest Preserve, Byron IL.

….and tiny moths.

Possibly the snowy urola moth (Urola nivalis), Jarrett Prairie, Byron Forest Preserve, Byron IL.

There was even a little critter that tried to hitchhike out of the preserve with us.

Hammertail (Genus Efferia), Jarrett Prairie, Byron Forest Preserve, Byron IL.

With our Merlin App on, we hear a Yellow Breasted Chat and a Dickcissel; Rose-breasted Grosbeak and Eastern Bluebirds and Indigo Buntings. Plus so many more birds! What a beautiful soundtrack to our morning. As #14 in our “25 in 2025” hikes this year (discovering 25 different natural areas new to us in 25 different Illinois counties), Jeff and I both agree: Byron’s Jarrett Prairie far exceeds anything we had hoped for.

False sunflower (Heliopsis helianthoides), Jarrett Prairie, Byron Forest Preserve, Byron IL.

The beautiful visitor center was an unexpected bonus. The prairie itself would have been enough to make the trip worthwhile.

Jarrett Prairie, Byron Forest Preserve, Byron IL.

When we began our “25 in 2025” adventure we looked forward to learning more about our home state, and the diversity of its natural areas. So far, we haven’t been disappointed.

Purple prairie clover (Dalea purpurea), Jarrett Prairie, Byron Forest Preserve, Byron IL.

This Fourth of July week, why not hike a natural area new to you? Let me know what you discover in your part of the world in the comments.

Jarrett Prairie, Byron Forest Preserve, Byron IL.

Happy hiking, and have a wonderful Fourth of July week!

*****

Suzanne Winckler, whose quote opens this blog post, is the author of Prairie: A North American Guide (Bur Oak Books, University of Iowa Press, 2004). You can find this quote on an interpretive panel in Byron Forest Preserve’s Jarret Prairie Center in Byron, IL.

*****

Join Cindy for a class or program in August:

8/5/25–Dragonflies and Damselflies, 1:30-3 p.m. in person, at the Geneva Public Library. Free and open to the public! To register, visit here:

8/6/25–Morning Prairie Hike and Write at The Morton Arboretum. Details coming soon.

8/23/25–Literary Gardens at The Morton Arboretum. Details coming soon.

Please note: Cindy takes off the month of July from teaching and speaking to write. For more classes and programs later this summer, visit http://www.cindycrosby.com . She’ll be updating it soon!

*****

A Note to Readers: Walk with us through 102 counties of Illinois by 2030! We hope to do 25 “new to us” natural areas in 25 different counties in 2025. So far we’ve explored: #1 Spring Creek Reservoir Forest Preserve, Forest Preserve District of DuPage County, Bloomingdale, IL (DuPage County); #2 Little Red Schoolhouse trails, Palos Preserves, Forest Preserve District of Cook County, Willow Springs, IL (Cook County); #3 Russell Woods, Forest Preserve District of DeKalb County, Genoa, IL (DeKalb County); #4 Red Oak Nature Center, North Aurora, IL (Kane County); #5 Isle a la Cache, Forest Preserve District of Will County, Romeoville, IL (Will County); #6 Hoover Forest Preserve, Forest Preserve District of Kendall County, Yorkville, IL (Kendall County); #7 Dayton Bluffs, The Conservation Foundation and City of Ottawa, Ottawa, IL (LaSalle County), and #8 Starhill Forest Arboretum, Petersburg, IL (Menard County); #9 Cuba Marsh, Forest Preserve of Lake County, Dee Park, IL (Lake County); #10 Kilbuck Bluffs Forest Preserve, Forest Preserves of Winnebago County, Rockford, IL (Winnebago County); #11 Amboy Marsh, Amboy, IL (Lee County), #12 Kankakee Sands, Illinois (Kankakee County); #13 Moraine Hills State Park, McHenry, IL (McHenry County); #14 Jarrett Prairie Nature Preserve, Byron, IL (Ogden County). Eleven more counties left to hike in 2025! And of course we’ll be hiking other natural areas, and revisiting some of these counties we’ve already hiked. If you have a prairie recommendation or natural area in your Illinois county we should visit, please let us know in the comments. Thank you for your help! See you on the trails.

***

Simple things you can do to help make a difference: This holiday week is a good time to post pictures of your favorite natural area to social media, and invite people to visit it. When people get to know a natural area, they will be more inclined to care about it and want to preserve it. What place will you choose to share? Let me know in the comments!

The Prairie Heats Up

“All flourishing is mutual.” —Robin Wall Kimmerer

****

Summer blazes in, coming on fast and hot…

Butterflyweed (Asclepias tuberosa), Schulenberg Prairie, The Morton Arboretum, Lisle, IL.

…steamy and wild…

Leadplant (Amorpha canescens), Schulenberg Prairie, The Morton Arboretum, Lisle, IL.

… and windy. So very windy.

Mostly pale purple coneflower (Echinacea pallida), Nachusa Grasslands, Franklin Grove, IL.

You’d think the prairie would wilt in the face of all this heat and bluster. But no.

Mixed prairie wildflowers at Nachusa Grasslands, Franklin Grove, IL.

The prairie blooms…

Nachusa Grasslands, Franklin Grove, IL.

…and blooms…

Common milkweed (Asclepias syriaca), and daisy fleabane (Erigeron philadelphicus), Schulenberg Prairie, The Morton Arboretum, Lisle, IL.

…and blooms…

Schulenberg Prairie, The Morton Arboretum, Lisle, IL.

…and blooms…

Indian hemp (sometimes called dogbane) (Apocynum cannabinum), Schulenberg Prairie, The Morton Arboretum, Lisle, IL.

…and blooms. Even the birds seem amazed at all this flourishing.

Eastern kingbird (Tyrannus tyrannus), Schulenberg Prairie, The Morton Arboretum, Lisle, IL.

Contrasts are everywhere. Regalness…

Regal fritillary butterflies (Speyeria idalia), Nachusa Grasslands, Franklin Grove, IL.

…and poop? Yes, poop. Butterflies absorb minerals as they “puddle” on it and other substances on the ground.

Regal fritillary butterfly (Speyeria idalia), Nachusa Grasslands, Franklin Grove, IL.

Each day seems a little bit hotter. Dragonflies and damselflies hang out near the ponds and streams, looking for mates.

Twelve-spotted skimmer (Libellula pulchella), Nachusa Grasslands, Franklin Grove, IL.

It feels cooler here by the pond…

Nachusa Grasslands, Franklin Grove, IL.

….although the wind threatens to blast the fliers from their perches.

Common whitetail dragonfly (Plathemis lydia), Nachusa Grasslands, Franklin Grove, IL.

Hang on, little dragonflies.

Blue dasher dragonfly (Pachydiplax longipennis), Nachusa Grasslands, Franklin Grove, IL.

There’s an echo of thunder, still far away, in the breeze. Can you sense it?

Two-lined grasshopper (Melanoplus bivittats), Schulenberg Prairie, The Morton Arboretum, Lisle, IL.

Rain is coming.

Beaver activity at Nachusa Grasslands, Franklin Grove, IL.

After four days of blistering humidity, intense heat, and drying winds, I’m ready for a good storm.

Pale purple coneflowers (Echinacea pallida), Nachusa Grasslands, Franklin Grove, IL.

But despite the heat, I’m glad summer is officially here.

Unknown bumblebee (Bombus sp.) on white wild indigo (Baptisia alba), Schulenberg Prairie, The Morton Arboretum, Lisle, IL.

It’s one of the most beautiful times of the year on the tallgrass prairies.

Nachusa Grasslands, Franklin Grove, IL.

The summer prairie is waiting for you.

Nachusa Grasslands, Franklin Grove, IL.

Why not go see?

*****

The opening quote is from Robin Wall Kimmerer (1953–) from her beloved book, Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge, and the Teachings of Plants. If you haven’t read it, why not give it a try? If you’ve already read it, the book is worth revisiting again. It is a lovely antidote for the times we find ourselves in.

*****

Join Cindy for an upcoming class or program later this summer:

6/27/25–Ethnobotanical Tour of the Prairie (University of Chicago) (Closed Event for Students).

8/5/25–Dragonflies and Damselflies, 1:30-3 p.m. in person, at the Geneva Public Library. Free and open to the public! To register, visit here:

8/6/25–Morning Prairie Hike and Write at The Morton Arboretum. Details coming soon.

8/23/25–Literary Gardens at The Morton Arboretum. Details coming soon.

Please note: Cindy takes off the month of July from teaching and speaking to write. For more classes and programs later this summer, visit http://www.cindycrosby.com .

*****

A Note to Readers: Walk with us through 102 counties of Illinois by 2030! We hope to do 25 “new to us” natural areas in 25 different counties in 2025. So far we’ve explored: #1 Spring Creek Reservoir Forest Preserve, Forest Preserve District of DuPage County, Bloomingdale, IL (DuPage County); #2 Little Red Schoolhouse trails, Palos Preserves, Forest Preserve District of Cook County, Willow Springs, IL (Cook County); #3 Russell Woods, Forest Preserve District of DeKalb County, Genoa, IL (DeKalb County); #4 Red Oak Nature Center, North Aurora, IL (Kane County); #5 Isle a la Cache, Forest Preserve District of Will County, Romeoville, IL (Will County); #6 Hoover Forest Preserve, Forest Preserve District of Kendall County, Yorkville, IL (Kendall County); #7 Dayton Bluffs, The Conservation Foundation and City of Ottawa, Ottawa, IL (LaSalle County), and #8 Starhill Forest Arboretum, Petersburg, IL (Menard County); #9 Cuba Marsh, Forest Preserve of Lake County, Dee Park, IL (Lake County); #10 Kilbuck Bluffs Forest Preserve, Forest Preserves of Winnebago County, Rockford, IL (Winnebago County); #11 Amboy Marsh, Amboy, IL (Lee County), #12 Kankakee Sands, Illinois (Kankakee County); #13 Moraine Hills State Park, McHenry, IL (McHenry County). Twelve more counties left to hike in 2025! We are halfway there. And of course we’ll be hiking other natural areas, and revisiting some of these counties we’ve already hiked. If you have a prairie recommendation or natural area in your Illinois county we should visit, please let us know in the comments. Thank you for your help! See you on the trails.

Simple things you can do to help make a difference this week: Congress is trying to sell off our public lands as part of “The Big, Beautiful Bill.” Let your congressperson know our public lands are not for sale. If you aren’t sure how to reach your representatives, visit 5 Calls. Your voice matters!

Prairies Old and New

“Life is a blank canvas, and you need to throw all the paint on it you can.”—Danny Kaye

****

When I was a kid, we sang an old round, “Make new friends, but keep the old, one is silver and the other gold.” I thought of that song this week as I was reflecting on Illinois hikes. It’s easy to get into a routine of only visiting one or two favorite prairies or natural areas. These prairies are our “gold” standards.

Schulenberg Prairie, The Morton Arboretum, Lisle, IL.

There’s nothing wrong with returning to the same place. There is something joyous about regular hikes at the same location over time. You develop a relationship with a place; its wildflowers…

Prairie phlox (Phlox pilosa), Schulenberg Prairie, The Morton Arboretum, Lisle, IL.

…its animals and insects…

Short-horned grasshopper (Family Acridadeae) on rattlesnake master (Eryngium yuccifolia), Schulenberg Prairie, The Morton Arboretum, Lisle, IL.

…the dragonflies…

Widow skimmer dragonfly (Libellula luctuosa), Schulenberg Prairie, The Morton Arboretum, Lisle, IL.

…and the tiniest damselflies.

Variable dancer damselfly (Argia fumipennis), Schulenberg Prairie, The Morton Arboretum, Lisle, IL.

You might even catch some of them sneaking a snack on the bridge.

Variable dancer damselfly (Argia fumipennis) with a small insect, Schulenberg Prairie, The Morton Arboretum, Lisle, IL.

This week, as I hiked the Schulenberg Prairie, the prairie I call “gold” at The Morton Arboretum, I was wowed by the display of white wild indigo.

Schulenberg Prairie, The Morton Arboretum, Lisle, IL.

What a year for this wildflower!

White wild indigo (Baptisia alba var. macrophylla), Schulenberg Prairie, The Morton Arboretum, Lisle, IL.

The pale purple coneflowers are just coming on strong.

Pale purple coneflower (Echinacea pallida), Schulenberg Prairie, The Morton Arboretum, Lisle, IL.

Some are still pushing out petals (or petaloid rays, if you will), and others are in full bloom. They mingle with the white wild indigo and compass plants.

Schulenberg Prairie, The Morton Arboretum, Lisle, IL.

Nearby are tumbleweeds of scurfy pea…such a hilarious name.

Scurfy pea (Psoralidium tenuiflorum), Schulenberg Prairie, The Morton Arboretum, Lisle, IL.

The wild quinine in June is almost cauliflower-like.

Wild quinine (Parthenium integrifolium), Schulenberg Prairie, The Morton Arboretum, Lisle, IL.

And the purple milkweeds…

Purple milkweed (Asclepias purpuracens), Schulenberg Prairie, The Morton Arboretum, Lisle, IL.

…and prairie milkweeds are in bud, ready to nurture another generation of monarch butterflies.

Prairie milkweed (Asclepias sullivanti), with tiny aphids (Family Aphididae), Schulenberg Prairie, The Morton Arboretum, Lisle, IL.

The native northern bedstraw…

Northern bedstraw (Galium boreale) Schulenberg Prairie, The Morton Arboretum, Lisle, IL.

…and the purple meadow rue throw washes of bright white and cream flowers across the grasses.

Purple meadow rue (Thalictrum dasycarpum), Schulenberg Prairie, The Morton Arboretum, Lisle, IL.

I love revisiting this prairie, as I have hundreds of times since we moved near it in 1998.

And yet. It’s easy to focus so closely on a single place that we miss the other interesting natural areas that surround us. When Jeff and I decided to attempt our “25 in 2025” hikes this year (visiting 25 new natural areas in 25 Illinois Counties) our goal was to break out of our routine hikes and see a little more of our state. We also wanted to learn more about Illinois, celebrate its diversity—from wetlands to woodlands to prairies—and understand how its natural areas fit together.

*****

Our hike at McHenry County this week—a far north county that bumps up against Wisconsin—was another reminder of why we set off on this adventure.

Moraine Hills State Park, McHenry, IL.

From the familiar DuPage County’s Schulenberg Prairie, we adventured an hour due north to the more unfamiliar Leatherleaf Bog of Moraine Hills State Park.

Yes, there were prairies there…

Whitetail Prairie, Moraine Hills State Park, McHenry, IL.

…but the real draw was the bog. Before we hiked, we read a little of Susan Post’s and Michael Jeffords’ book Exploring Nature in Illinois: A Field Guide to the Prairie State to read and understand more about this area. We learned a “moraine” is a geologic feature formed when the ice margin of a glacier temporarily stood in one place. This formed the slight hills and ridges of the state park. The Lake and Leatherleaf Bog were formed, they said, from kettle holes. A “kettle hole” forms after a glacier melts.

Blue flag iris (Iris virginica shrevei), Leatherleaf Bog, Moraine Hills State Park, McHenry, IL.

There were so many dragonflies…

Blue dasher (Pachydiplex longipennis), Moraine Hills State Park, McHenry, IL.

…buzzing the bog and then, enjoying a rest on the lily pads.

Dot-tailed whiteface dragonfly (Leucorrhinia intacta), Moraine Hills State Park, McHenry, IL.

And so many damselflies, too.

Eastern forktail damselfly (Ischnura verticalis), Moraine Hills State Park, McHenry, IL.

Many of the plants were new to me…

Big bur-reed (Sparganium eurycarpum), Moraine Hills State Park, McHenry, IL.

…although the waterlilies were familiar.

Variegated yellow pond-lily (Nuphar variegata) and American white waterlily (Nymphaea odorata), Moraine Hills State Park, McHenry, IL.

I loved learning the names of the unfamiliar wildflowers…

Marsh cinquefoil (Comarum palustre), Moraine Hills State Park, McHenry, IL.

…and ferns.

Marsh fern (Thelypteris palustris), Moraine Hills State Park, McHenry, IL.

We followed the boardwalk through the bog. And then! It abruptly ended.

Moraine Hills State Park, McHenry, IL.

Our hike was full of birdsong, from the yellow warbler that greeted us as we started on the trail, to the gray catbird, northern house wren, swamp sparrow, common yellowthroat and many others that sang us on our way. Music, wildflowers…what else could you ask for on a beautiful June day?

Intermediate bellflower (Campanula intercedens), Moraine Hills State Park, McHenry, IL.

I’ve felt my sense of awe and wonder rekindled as we’ve set out on this “25 for 2025” adventure. I love Illinois. And slowly, I’m developing a deeper relationship with the landscape of my state.

Whitetail Prairie, Moraine Hills State Park, McHenry, IL.

We still have a dozen more counties to visit, so please let me know in the comments where you think we should go next (and if we missed any great places in the counties we’ve already been too). I think our adventures in Illinois will continue far longer than these 25 hikes this year.

Red-winged blackbird (Agelaius phoeniceus), Moraine Hills State Park, McHenry, IL.

I can’t wait for our next hike!

Leatherleaf Bog, Moraine Hills State Park, McHenry, IL.

See you on the trails, friends.

*****

The opening quote is from Danny Kaye (1911-1987), an actor and comedian who starred in 23 films. He spent years working for UNICEF, a charity for children. He was also a life-long Dodgers fan, and recorded a song celebrating the team. Listen to it here.

****

Join Cindy for an upcoming class or program later this summer:

6/27/25–Ethnobotanical Tour of the Prairie (University of Chicago) (Closed Event).

8/5/25–Dragonflies and Damselflies, 1:30-3 p.m. in person, at the Geneva Public Library. Free and open to the public! To register, visit here:

8/6/25–Morning Prairie Hike and Write at The Morton Arboretum. Details coming soon!

8/23/25–Literary Gardens at The Morton Arboretum. Details coming soon!

More classes and events coming soon!

Please note: Cindy takes off the month of July from teaching and presenting programs to write. For more classes and programs later this summer, visit http://www.cindycrosby.com .

A Note to Readers: Walk with us through 102 counties of Illinois by 2030! We hope to do 25 “new to us” natural areas in 25 different counties in 2025. So far we’ve explored: #1 Spring Creek Reservoir Forest Preserve, Forest Preserve District of DuPage County, Bloomingdale, IL (DuPage County); #2 Little Red Schoolhouse trails, Palos Preserves, Forest Preserve District of Cook County, Willow Springs, IL (Cook County); #3 Russell Woods, Forest Preserve District of DeKalb County, Genoa, IL (DeKalb County); #4 Red Oak Nature Center, North Aurora, IL (Kane County); #5 Isle a la Cache, Forest Preserve District of Will County, Romeoville, IL (Will County); #6 Hoover Forest Preserve, Forest Preserve District of Kendall County, Yorkville, IL (Kendall County); #7 Dayton Bluffs, The Conservation Foundation and City of Ottawa, Ottawa, IL (LaSalle County), and #8 Starhill Forest Arboretum, Petersburg, IL (Menard County); #9 Cuba Marsh, Forest Preserve of Lake County, Dee Park, IL (Lake County); #10 Kilbuck Bluffs Forest Preserve, Forest Preserves of Winnebago County, Rockford, IL (Winnebago County); #11 Amboy Marsh, Amboy, IL (Lee County), #12 Kankakee Sands, Illinois (Kankakee County); #13 Moraine Hills State Park, McHenry, IL (McHenry County). Twelve more counties left to hike in 2025! We are halfway there. And of course we’ll be hiking other natural areas, and revisiting some of these counties we’ve already hiked. If you have a prairie recommendation or natural area in your Illinois county we should visit, please let us know in the comments. Thank you for your help! See you on the trails.

Small but important ways you can help change the world this week: Invite a friend who doesn’t consider themselves “outdoorsy” to go for a hike with you this week in an area you think they might enjoy. Introduce them to the beauty of the tallgrass prairie—or whatever natural area is in your part of the world.

June at Kankakee Sands

“Our ability to perceive quality in nature begins, as in art, with the pretty. It expands through successive stages of the beautiful to values as yet uncaptured by language.”—Aldo Leopold

*****

Kankakee Sands, which sprawls across Illinois and Indiana, is a treasure chest full of of wonders in early June.

Kankakee Sands, Kankakee County, Illinois.

On our first visit to Kankakee Sands in Kankakee County, Illinois, this past weekend (part of our “25 Hikes in 2025” effort to visit 25 nature preserves new to us in 25 different Illinois counties ), I marveled at the diversity of birds. Here were pileated woodpeckers, chipping sparrows, and gray catbirds. Indigo buntings, yellow warblers, and red-winged blackbirds. As I listened to the birdsong, something big and hawk-like soared over in the gloomy drizzle. I couldn’t put a name to it before it disappeared. So. Many. Birds.

Kankakee Sands, Kankakee County, Illinois.

Their chips, calls, and songs were the soundtrack to the glorious savannas of Kankakee Sands.

Kankakee Sands, Kankakee County, Illinois.

Jeff and I continued our explorations into Indiana, with a drop-in visit at the Hoosier State’s Kankakee Sands, an old favorite preserve we try and visit anytime we are headed south to visit family in Indianapolis. No bison visible today, but the killdeer met us at the entrance with their namesake calls.

Killdeer (Charadrius vociferus), Kankakee Sands, Newton County, Illinois.

We were impressed with Indiana’s beautiful new outdoor interpretive center, a viewing ramp, and the new interpretive and wayfaring signs. Wow!

Kankakee Sands, Newton County, Indiana.

A smoky haze hung over the prairies, drifting south from Canadian wildfires.

Kankakee Sands, Newton County, Indiana.

As we admired the new signage, I wondered. Where did all this sand under our feet at both the Indiana and Kankakee sites come from, anyway?

Kankakee Sands, Kankakee County, Illinois.

According to Susan Post and Michael Jeffords in their book Exploring Nature in Illinois: A Field Guide to the Prairie State, in Illinois “the Kankakee Torrent, a flood produced by the receding Wisconsin Glacier, shaped this landscape and created its deep sand deposits. While most of the area’s swamps and marshes have disappeared, the sand load of the torrent is still evident… .” The Nature Conservancy writes of the nearby Indiana site that it was “once part of the Grand Kankakee Marsh system and the home of Beaver Lake…seven miles long and five miles wide.” The draining of this lake took place, it says, in the late 1800s and early 1900s. There is so much history and geology at both Illinois and Indiana Kankakee Sands. You could spend a lifetime trying to understand their past and present, and imagining what the future might hold.

Bison (Bison bison) at Kankakee Sands Indiana, Newton County, Indiana (December 2022).

The wildflowers in both sites were stunning in June. Hairy puccoon’s gold.

Kankakee Sands, Kankakee County, Illinois.

Purple spiderwort.

Ohio spiderwort (Tradescantia ohienses), Kankakee Sands, Newton County, Indiana.

Common milkweed.

Common milkweed (Asclepias syriaca), Kankakee Sands, Kankakee County, Illinois.

White wild indigo.

White wild indigo (Baptisia alba), Kankakee Sands, Newton County, Indiana.

And rosette grasses, with their unusual curves and waves.

Probably Heller’s Rosette Grass (Dichanthelium oligosanthes, formerly Panicum oligosanthes), Kankakee Sands, Kankakee County, Illinois.

What a beautiful world we live in! With all the conflict and discord in the headlines this week, it is easy to forget. But a visit to a natural area is a welcome respite from the news and a mental refresh. As Aldo Leopold said, we first notice “the pretty.” But, as Leopold told us, as we gaze longer and deeper, we realize we are perceiving things that we have difficulty finding words for.

Kankakee Sands, Kankakee County, Illinois.

Illinois’ and Indiana’s Kankakee Sands reminds us that the world is full of complexity and diversity. And that beauty comes from both.

I’m grateful for the reminder.

***

The opening quote is from Aldo Leopold (1887-1948), from his classic conservation book, A Sand County Almanac. His work shaped the conservation ethics still used today. One of my favorite quotes from Leopold: “Ethical behavior is doing the right thing when no one else is watching—even when doing the wrong thing is legal.” What are some of your favorite quotes? Leave me a note with them in the comments, if you wish. Read more about Leopold and his work here.

*****

If you’re interested in visiting Kankakee Sands in Illinois or Indiana, contact the Nature Conservancy for information on the best places to hike and park before you go. In Illinois click here. For Indiana, click here.

*****

Join Cindy for an upcoming class or program in June:

6/10/25–Tuesday Virtual: “Add A Little Prairie To Your Garden” 7-8 p.m. Plainfield Area Public Library. ONLINE! Free and Open to the Public. Register here.

6/27/25–Ethnobotanical Tour of the Prairie (University of Chicago) (Closed Event).

Please note: Cindy takes off the month of July from teaching and presenting programs to write. For more classes and programs later this summer, visit http://www.cindycrosby.com .

A Note to Readers: Walk with us through 102 counties of Illinois by 2030! We hope to do 25 “new to us” natural areas in 25 different counties in 2025. So far we’ve explored: #1 Spring Creek Reservoir Forest Preserve, Forest Preserve District of DuPage County, Bloomingdale, IL (DuPage County); #2 Little Red Schoolhouse trails, Palos Preserves, Forest Preserve District of Cook County, Willow Springs, IL (Cook County); #3 Russell Woods, Forest Preserve District of DeKalb County, Genoa, IL (DeKalb County); #4 Red Oak Nature Center, North Aurora, IL (Kane County); #5 Isle a la Cache, Forest Preserve District of Will County, Romeoville, IL (Will County); #6 Hoover Forest Preserve, Forest Preserve District of Kendall County, Yorkville, IL (Kendall County); #7 Dayton Bluffs, The Conservation Foundation and City of Ottawa, Ottawa, IL (LaSalle County), and #8 Starhill Forest Arboretum, Petersburg, IL (Menard County); #9 Cuba Marsh, Forest Preserve of Lake County, Dee Park, IL (Lake County); #10 Kilbuck Bluffs Forest Preserve, Forest Preserves of Winnebago County, Rockford, IL (Winnebago County); #11 Amboy Marsh, Amboy, IL (Lee County), #12 Kankakee Sands, Illinois (Kankakee County). Thirteen more counties left to hike in 2025! We are halfway there. And of course we’ll be hiking other natural areas, and revisiting some of these counties we’ve already hiked. If you have a prairie recommendation or natural area in your Illinois county we should visit, please let us know in the comments. Thank you for your help! See you on the trails.

Small but important ways you can help change the world this week: Go for a walk in a natural area near you, then share a photo of it on social media. Help your friends and social media connections be reminded of the value of preserving our natural areas. Sometimes, it begins with sharing something “pretty.” As Aldo Leopold said, our understanding will expand from there.