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Archive for the ‘Nature’ Category
 UW Arboretum on New Year's Day 2010 Photograph © Nadine Goff
Join a tour of the UW -Madison Arboretum from 1 p.m. until 2:30 p.m. on Sunday, March 7th that will show you “the places where Aldo Leopold, the Arboretum’s first director, conducted wildlife research and helped to establish the first-ever restoration of Wisconsin’s natural ecosystems.”
Participants will hear brief excerpts from his writings at appropriate points along the way.
The free tour starts at the Arboretum Visitor Center, 1207 Seminole Highway.
If you’d like to learn more about Aldo Leopold, considered by many people to have been the most influential conservation thinker of the 20th Century, visit The Aldo Leopold Archives online at the University of Wisconsin Digital Collections.
You may interested in reading some of Leopold’s books, including A Sand County Almanac.
Shakey, a Neil Young cover band, will perform in the Overture Hall Lobby at 5 p.m. on Wednesday, February 10th as part of the free Overture After Work series.
The Overture After Work program is now in its 5th year. All shows are from 5 p.m. until 7 p.m. Doors open at 4:30 p.m. Happy hour food and drink are available for purchase. The Overture Center for the Arts is located at 201 State Street. For additional information, call (608) 258-4177.
If you want to spot bald eagles in their natural habitats, instead of staring at some sulky bird at the zoo, you may want to head up Highway 12 to Sauk City and Prairie du Sac this weekend to participate in Sauk Prairie’s 23rd Bald Eagle Watching Days on Friday evening, January 15th and Saturday, January 16th.
Each winter, bald eagles gather in the Sauk Prairie area near the Wisconsin River because of a unique combination of factors: For winter survival, eagles need open water for fishing, undeveloped shoreline with large trees for perching, and sheltered valleys for night time roosting.
According to The Ferry Bluffs Eagle Council, which is co-hosting this event with the Sauk Prairie Area Chamber of Commerce and the DNR Bureau of Endangered resources, the best eagle watching is in the morning, when the birds are actively fishing.
Spotting scopes are available for use at the Ferry Bluff Eagle Council’s Overlook in on Water Street in Prairie du Sac (not far from the Blue Spoon Cafe).
On January 16th, eagle watching bus tours will leave hourly from the River Arts Center at the Sauk Prairie High School, 105 Ninth Street in Sauk City. To reserve a spot, call 1-800-68EAGLE. There is a $5 per person fee/donation (children 5 and under are free).
In addition to eagle spotting, there are many other related activities, including kids activities and a White Eagle Wine Tasting at the Wollersheim Winery. A full schedule of events is available on The Ferry Bluff Eagle Council website.
In the midst of a cold, snowy January — when the fragile glass Christmas ornaments were safely tucked away and the Valentine’s chocolates were still a distant promise — my grandmother knew what to do to bring sunlight and summer into the house: She sat down and began pouring through the myriad FREE seed and nursery catalogues that started to arrive in her mailbox after the New Year.
Whether you have a couple of acres, a plot in a community garden, or a few of pots on the balcony of your apartment, you, too can escape to summer by leafing through FREE gardening catalogues and making selections from the dizzying array of fruits and vegetable seeds they offer.
We’ve made a list of a dozen of our favorite sources for seeds (and fruit trees) and included links to their websites, as well as links to their catalogue request forms. If you’re worried about too much paper in your mailbox, most companies also have online editions of their catalogues that you may read online as flipbooks or download as PDFs.
Even if you order a paper catalogue, you may want to take a few minutes to browse each website for deals. Many had discounts and other incentives (free seeds!) for ordering early.
If you know about some terrific seed and nursery companies with free catalogues that aren’t on our list, please share your knowledge with the rest of us by leaving a comment.
That said, you’ll find our list after this jump: Continue reading Now’s the time to send for free seed catalogues
 Bolz Conservatory Photograph ©Nadine Goff If you need a respite from the icy-cold winter weather we’ve been having — and can’t afford to take off for a tropical isle — consider a visit to the Bolz Conservatory at Olbrich Botanical Gardens, where admission is only $1 (and FREE on Wednesdays and Saturdays from 10 a.m. until noon).
Wonderfully warm and surprisingly humid, when we visited this afternoon the Bolz Conservatory is a tropical paradise on Madison’s East Side… “a glass pyramid filled with exotic plants and flowers, small birds, a rushing waterfall, and fragrant orchids.”
The current exhibit is “Chocolate: The Bitter and the Sweet,” but it’s very modest in scale and not nearly as interesting or relaxing as sitting and watching the birds feeding, gawking at the wide array of tropical plants, or staring down from a footbridge at the bright orange koi swimming in the sparkling waters below you.
Olbrich Botanical Gardens is located at 3330 Atwood Avenue. The Bolz Conservatory is open Monday through Saturday from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. and Sunday 10 a.m. until 5 p.m.
Join a naturalist-led tour at the UW Arboretum from 1 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. on Sunday, December 27th and explore the winter wonders that abound when the ground is frozen and the air is cold. See beauty and activity in the natural world.
The free tour starts at the Arboretum Visitor Center, 1207 Seminole Highway.
Warm up the winter day with festive holiday music during Olbrich Botanical Gardens’ Holiday Concert Series. At 2 p.m. Sunday, December 27th, Marcy & the Highlights perform “50’s and 60’s, country, blues, rock and standards.” A $1 donation is suggested.
Olbrich Botanical Gardens, 3330 Atwood Avenue, is owned and operated by the City of Madison Parks Division in partnership with the non-profit Olbrich Botanical Society.
For additional information, call (608) 246-4550.
The Suzuki Strings, will perform at Olbrich Botantical Gardens at 2 p.m. on Sunday December 13th. The concert is free, but donations are encouraged.
While you’re there, consider visiting Olbrich’s Holiday Express: Large-scale model trains winding through festive gingerbread houses and hundreds of colorful poinsettias.
During the event, which runs through December 31st, members of the Wisconsin Garden Railway Society come from all over the state to show off their large-scale model trains. You’ll see different trains depending on the day of your visit.
The elaborate gingerbread houses have been created by an array of local bakers, including Blue Plate Catering, Sharon Payne, David Bowden and Market Street Diner Metcalfe’s Market, Clasen’s European Bakery, Lane’s Bakery, Megan Belle, and Nutshell Catering.
Admission to Olbrich’s Holiday Express is $3 for adults and $2 for children 3-12, and includes admission to the Bolz Conservatory. Admission is free to Olbrich Botanical Society members and free for everyone from 10 a.m. to noon on Wednesdays.
Please note the following message from Olbrich Gardens: “Strollers are not allowed in Olbrich’s Holiday Express. Please enjoy the show with children on foot. Stroller parking is available in Olbrich’s Lobby, and strollers are permitted in the Bolz Conservatory and outdoor gardens. We apologize for any inconvenience.”
Olbrich Botanical Gardens is located at 3330 Atwood Avenue. Please visit its website for additional information about hours and admission, as well a dirctions.
 Photograph © Peter Patau Join Paul Zedler’s Arboretum Seminar class from the UW-Madison for free music and food as they host an open house designed to help you “Discover What the Arboretum Has to Offer!” from noon until 4 p.m. on Sunday, December 6th at the UW-Madison Arboretum.
Music will be provided by local bands: The Grasshoppers, Elf Lettuce, and Banjo Kyle T.
There will also be prize raffles throughout the event with proceeds going to the Arboretum.
Free transportation to and from the Arboretum will available at the Memorial Union, 800 Langdon Street. Buses will depart at 11:45 a.m., 12:45 p.m., 1:45 p.m., and 2:45 p.m.
All events begin at the Visitor Center, 1207 Seminole Drive.
Thanks to Diana Portner, a member of the Arboretum Seminar class for providing the information about this even.
You can search for wild turkeys like wildlife scientists do by exploring the tracks, signs, and behavior of these native birds at the UW-Madison Arboretum from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. on Sunday, November 22nd
During this free program you’ll learn why the Arboretum is such a fine habitat for wild turkeys
All events begin at the Visitor Center, 1207 Seminole Drive, unless otherwise indicated. Dress for the weather; outdoor and indoor activities are planned
The Four Lakes Group Sierra Club will sponsor a hike through the Pheasant Branch Conservancy from 10 a.m. until noon on Saturday, November 14th.
Pheasant Branch Conservancy is a regionally significant natural area located on the north side of Middleton, Wisconsin. It contains a marsh with open water, springs, prairies, meadows, lowland forest, and wooded hills. These various habitats sustain a wide variety of plants and animals, including some that are threatened or endangered.
Join Sierra Club member Bill Fenske for a guided hike through the conservancy. You may see deer and wild turkeys while hiking. The hike will last for about 2 hours. It will start up the hill where hikers wil be able to see Lake Mendota and the Capitol Building. Then the group will hike in the wooded area on the Conservancy Loop Trail.
Wear hiking/walking shoes and bring water and a snack. Meet at the Conservancy parking lot at 4484 Pheasant Branch Road, Middleton, WI at 10:00 am. This event is free and open to the public, but participants are asked to please R.S.V.P. to Bill Fenske: duh.guru
The Arboretum’s annual tour of the Lost City, an abandoned dream of a “Venice of the North,” will take place from 1 p.m. until 3:30 p.m. on Sunday, October 25th. Learn more about this failed 1920s residential area and how understanding the land can be important for proper development.
Baby Boomers who grew up in Madison may remember it as a favorite “parking”place, but nature is slowly erasing all traces of the Lost City. Plan to wear substantial walking shoes and make certain your arms and legs are covered because this tour goes “off trail” and you may find yourself ducking under (or climbing over) fallen trees, and holding back overhanging branches so fellow tour members can move ahead.
Before the tour begins, you’ll be briefed about the history of the Lost City and see some slides of what was planned and what was accomplished before this site was abandoned.
The free tour begins at the Arboretum Visitor Center, 1207 Seminole Highway. For additional information, call (608) 263-7888. Directions to the Arboretum are posted on its website.
You may not be able to jump aboard the Bucky Wagon during tonight’s Homecoming Parade down State Street, but you can tour the Arboretum in the Badger Trolley this weekend.
On Sunday, October 18th, the Arboretum will offer free narrated tours aboard the Badger Trolley. View the prairies and woodlands in beautiful fall color and learn more about the Arboretum’s history and purpose. Tours begin at 1, 2 and 3 p.m. and last approximately 45 minutes. View the prairies and woodlands in beautiful fall color and learn more about the Arboretum’s history and purpose.
The free tours start at the Arboretum Visitor Center, 1207 Seminole Highway.
Hike through the UW-Madison Arboretum from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday, September 27th and listen as plants and animals tell their tales through the voices of the Arboretum’s naturalists.
Outdoor and indoor activities are planned, so dress appropriately for the weather.
This is a family-friendly event, part of the Arboretum’s Earth Partnership for Families series.
All events begin at the Visitor Center, 1207 Seminole Drive, unless otherwise indicated
 Photograph © Nadine Goff Join a naturalist-led tour at the UW Arboretum from 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Tuesday, September 22nd and learn more about the autumnal equinox, an annual occurrence heralding the first day of fall.
While some people believe this is an occasion when the length of day and night are equal and eggs can stand on end, according to the National Geographic this is not true:
“…don’t be fooled into thinking that on the equinox the length of the day is exactly equal to the length of the night. It’s not.
The day of light and dark equality always happens before the spring and after the fall equinoxes, according to Geoff Chester, a public affairs specialist with the U.S. Naval Observatory in Washington, D.C.
“Exactly when it happens depends on where you are located on the surface of the Earth,” he said.
By the time the center of the sun passes over Earth’s Equator—the official definition of equinox—the day will be slightly longer than the night everywhere on Earth. The difference is a matter of geometry, atmosphere, and language.”
The free tour starts at the Arboretum Visitor Center, 1207 Seminole Highway.
The UW-Madison Arboretum is offering a free guided walk on Sunday, September 20th.
Enjoy a late summer walk through goldenrods, asters, sunflowers and gentians of the Grady Tract from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m.
This free walk offers a basic introduction to the Arboretum, and you can expect some identification of plants and animals as well as brief scientific explanations for various ecological concepts.
Meet for this walk at the Grady Tract parking lot, located at the southeast corner of the Beltline and Seminole Highway. You may download a PDF of a map of the Arboretum, showing the location of the Grady Tract HERE.
For additional information, call (608) 263-7888. Directions to the Arboretum are posted on its website.
The UW-Madison Arboretum is offering two free guided walks on Sunday, September 13th:
Tour the Curtis Prairie from 1 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. and see the tallgrass prairie at its peak of height and color.
Or, from 1:30 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. explore “Fun with Fungi, ” as you participate in a family-friendly walk about mushrooms growing in the natural areas and wood chip mulch of the gardens.
These free walks offer a basic introduction to the Arboretum, and you can expect some identification of plants and animals as well as brief scientific explanations for various ecological concepts.
Both walks begin at the Arboretum Visitor Center, 1207 Seminole Highway. For additional information, call (608) 263-7888. Directions to the Arboretum are posted on its website.
Attend this week’s free Wednesday Night at the Lab program on plant genetics and you’ll get to take home your own materials for growing plants at home.
Although the Wednesday Night at the Lab series tends to emphasize lectures, the program format is flexible. The first time we attended a couple of years ago, we not only learned how candy is made, we left with a bag full of samples.
People who attend this week’s hands-on, family-friendly program from 7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. on September 9th, 2009 in Room 1111 (the auditorium) at 425 Henry Mall (the Genetics-Biotechnology Center Building) will also be able to:
• Make their own necklace garden
• Explore plants with genetic differences using their own magnifier
• Learn how you can grow a plant without a seed
• Extract DNA from strawberries and bananas
• Explore plants and flowers under the microscope
• Try out the technique of gel electrophoresis
Wednesday Nite @ the Lab is organized by the Wisconsin Alumni Association, Science Alliance @ UW-Madison and by BioTrek, the outreach program of the Biotechnology Center at UW-Madison/Extension.
This week’s program will be co-run by BioTrek staff, Professor Emeritus Paul Williams – Wisconsin Fast Plants and Bottle Biology, and Biology Outreach Club volunteers.
Note: There is FREE parking in Lot 20, 1390 University Avenue. Lot 20 is a three-level parking structure on the right side of University Avenue, just before Henry Mall. Lot 20 is attached to the Genetics/Biotechnology Center. Park on the top level, and you can enter the building without going up any steps.
 Sterling Hall at the UW-Madison Wednesday, August 19th is one of two monthly public telescope viewing nights at the UW-Madison; but until the work on the Washburn Observatory is finished, the viewing nights are being held atop Sterling Hall.
Here’s specific information from the UW-Madison Astronomy Department:
Continue reading Free public telescope viewing night
Enjoy the last summer concert on the Great Lawn of Olbrich’s outdoor gardens at 7 p.m. Tuesday, July 28th as Marcy & the Highlights perform “50’s and 60’s, country, blues, rock and standards.” A $1 donation is suggested.
The concerts are sponsored by the Olbrich Botanical Society, which suggests that concert-goers, “Bring a lawn chair or blanket, pack a picnic, or purchase hot dogs and brats at the Gardens from the Madison East Kiwanis. Picnics are allowed in the Gardens for Tuesday concerts only.”
If it rains, the concert will be held indoors, and the Kiwanis brat and hot dog stand will not be available.
For additional information, call (608) 246-4550.
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