By: angiehongmn June 26, 2026June 24, 2026 Yards and Landscapingart, featured, hiking, native plants, prairieLeave a Comment

Fields of flowers beckon birds and butterflies

Prairies once covered one-third of North America and one-third of the land that is now called Minnesota. Rivaling the African savanna, this sea of grass stretched from Saskatchewan to Texas and was home to deer, elk, antelope, prairie dogs, and an estimated 30-60 million bison. For 12,000 years, humans have been part of the prairie as well. Though only 1-4% of the original native prairie remains today, helping hands are spreading seeds and pulling weeds. Piece by piece, the prairie is rising.

By: angiehongmn June 19, 2026June 18, 2026 Keeping water cleanfeatured, native plants, stormwater, stormwater ponds, WetlandsLeave a Comment

Caring for your local neighborhood pond

There are a few clues you can look for to determine if your local neighborhood pond is natural or manmade.

By: angiehongmn June 14, 2026June 13, 2026 Aquatic Biology, Keeping water cleanbluegreen algae, featured, lakes, Minnesota lakesLeave a Comment

Grimy green, or clear and clean?

Bluegreen algae in lakes are fed by phosphorus and can sometimes grow out of control when the weather gets hot. Lakes with elevated levels of chloride (salt) are also more likely to experience algae blooms.

By: angiehongmn June 5, 2026June 2, 2026 UncategorizedBdote, Dakota, featured, Fort Snelling, History, Minnesota, Minnesota River, Mississippi River1 Comment

Where two worlds and waters meet

“The Mississippi River is my heart. She is everything to me,” says Tara Perron Tanaǧidaŋ To Wiŋ, as she greets our group along the edge of the river at Fort Snelling State Park. It’s a beautiful spring day and there are twenty of us gathered for “Learning from place: Bdote,” a tour organized by the Minnesota Humanities Center, Minnesota Pollution Control Agency, and We Are Water Minnesota.

By: angiehongmn May 21, 2026May 19, 2026 WildlifeDeer, featured, roadkill, turkeys, turtles, WildlifeLeave a Comment

Sign-up for the Memorial Day Wildlife Casualty Count

Help gather data that road authorities and local communities can use to design safer roads and wildlife crossings. The Wildlife Casualty Count week of action will take place from May 22 to May 29.

By: angiehongmn May 15, 2026May 11, 2026 Aquatic Biology, Outdoor Adventures, UncategorizedAIS, featured, fishing, lakes, Minnesota, spiny waterflea, zebra musselsLeave a Comment

Preserving Minnesota fishing tales for generations to come

I don’t think it’s much of an exaggeration to say that fishing saved my family during the summer of 2021 when we navigated yet another summer of COVID with no day care and only a few weeks of camp. That summer was Minnesota at its quintessential, and in spite of chaos in the world, life was pretty good.

May 9, 2026 marks the beginning of another year’s fishing season, and with luck, many children just like Charlie will be making lifelong memories. As Minnesotans hit the water with fishing poles and boats, a well-trained team of watercraft inspectors, conservation officers, and even K9 officers will also be rolling out to lakes and rivers to help keep them safe from aquatic invasive species (AIS).

By: angiehongmn May 8, 2026May 5, 2026 Keeping water clean, Partners and Updatesart, artist residency, clean water, drones, featured, lakes, photography, south washington watershed district, stormwater, WoodburyLeave a Comment

A view from above tells stories of people and water

Over the past year, Taylor Mills has been working with the South Washington Watershed District to document water and habitat restoration projects across the watershed, from Woodbury to Grey Cloud Island. She is a Minnesota-born video, photo, and drone professional who specializes in cinematic storytelling that is filmed from above.

By: angiehongmn May 1, 2026May 1, 2026 Outdoor Adventures, Uncategorizedbirding, buckthorn, environmental education, featured, hiking, Lake Elmo, Sally Manzara Nature Center, Sunfish Lake Park, woodsLeave a Comment

A place for everyone at Sunfish Lake Park

On a sunny Friday in April, the dog and I hiked at Sunfish Lake Park in Lake Elmo and found rue anemone, wood anemone, and an abundance of violets sprinkled on the forest floor. Higher in the trees, two barred owls enjoyed an extended conversation. Who cooks for you? Who cooks for you all? I counted 17 painted turtles sharing one long skinny log in the lake, and was excited to see red breasted mergansers and a pair of mallards as well.