By: angiehongmn September 17, 2018 Buckthorn, Yards and Landscapingbuckthorn, featured, invasive species, oriental bittersweet, wildlife habitatLeave a Comment

Living the buckthorn and bittersweet life

Sometimes ignorance is bliss. I have a faint (ever-so-faint) recollection of the carefree joy I used to feel while hiking in the woods. “Aren’t these woods pretty?” I would think. “Look at all those pretty wildflowers along the roadside. Isn’t life grand?” My bliss was permanently disrupted, though, when I took my first ecology class…

By: angiehongmn September 17, 2018September 17, 2018 Keeping water clean, Partners and Updatesagriculture, featured, St. Croix River, St. Croix Watershed Reserch Station, Sunrise River, SWAT model, watershed restorationLeave a Comment

Using models to guide water restoration efforts

Jim Almendinger, Director of the St. Croix Watershed Research Station, has spent nearly 30 years studying the connections between rain, runoff, land use, and water quality. We know that many of our favorite waterways have too much sediment and phosphorus. As a result, we see more algae blooms during the summer and fewer fish on…

By: angiehongmn August 30, 2018August 30, 2018 Yards and Landscapingfeatured, irrigation, lawn care, University of Minnesota, water conservation, Woodbury, yardsLeave a Comment

When the sprinklers are running but the grass is still dry

Have you ever wondered why some parts of your lawn remain stubbornly dry even on days when the sprinklers have run? You might be surprised to learn that water pressure is often to blame. According to Lindsay Brown, most cities serve homes with water at a pressure of about 60 psi (pounds per square inch).…

By: angiehongmn August 22, 2018 Partners and Updatesclimate change, climate resiliency, featured, flooding, infrastructure, stormwaterLeave a Comment

The day the lake disappeared

Have you ever built a lake? William Newman did. When the construction company owner from Chicago moved to Delton, Wisconsin in 1926, he immediately bought all of the land along both sides of Dell Creek and set to work to create his lake. One year later, a 30-ft high dam and 1000-ft long dike blocked…

By: angiehongmn August 15, 2018 Outdoor Adventures, WildlifeCottage Grove, featured, Grey Cloud, Mississippi River, Mooers Park, river restoration, wildlife habitatLeave a Comment

Stepping off the beaten path and into Mooer’s Park charm

For a big river, the Mississippi can be awfully hard to find. Though it traverses 21 miles of Washington County, from the City of Newport to the St. Croix River confluence in Hastings-Prescott, there are precious few places to access the water as it flows. To find the river here requires a road map and…

By: angiehongmn August 7, 2018 Wildlife, Yards and Landscapingbirds, featured, leadplant, monarchs, native plants, prairie, soil and water conservationLeave a Comment

Putting Down Roots in the Prairie

The roots of the leadplant chart a course toward the center of the earth. Thirsty and longing for stability, they branch, spread and burrow further and further into the soil. Encountering a rock or a flat pan of clay, they will pause, turn, and then continue their travels laterally. In sandy soils, where rainwater is…

By: angiehongmn July 30, 2018July 30, 2018 Partners and Updatesclimate change, featured, flooding, south washington watershed district, wildfiresLeave a Comment

Goldilocks forecasts the weather

“It should be cooling down to 95° by the time you get here, but we’re still in an extreme drought,” my dad lamented as we discussed my upcoming visit to Pueblo. The weather has been so hot and dry in Colorado this summer that people aren’t even allowed to smoke outside in many places, due…

By: angiehongmn July 17, 2018 Keeping water clean, Outdoor Adventuresclean water, featured, Minnesota lakes, Square Lake, triathlon, Washington County, water qualityLeave a Comment

Along came a loon and swam up beside her

I’m training for an Ironman triathlon and, despite my best intentions to prevent triathlon from taking over my life, triathlon has taken over my life. On a typical day I get up at 4:45am to fit in my first workout before starting work at 7am. I do my second workout over lunch, leaving the evening…