Olmsted County Parks Newsletter - Winter 2022

In this Issue:

What happens at Chester Woods in the Winter, Fall Volunteer Groups, Prairie Seed Collection and more...

Fall Volunteer Groups

by Jaide Ryks

On behalf of Oxbow Park and Zollman Zoo, we would like to give a huge thank you and shoutout to the work groups that helped us out this fall season! Think Bank, Kasson-Mantorville Middle School, and the Rochester Athletic Club all put in hundreds of hours of volunteer work helping maintain and beautifying Oxbow Park and Zollman Zoo! This includes brush cutting, invasive natural resource work, wood splitting/stacking, leaf raking, and much, much more. Thank you all for your hard work, we couldn’t do it without you!

Woolly Bear Caterpillars

This fall we’ve been seeing lots of Woolly Bear caterpillars as they’re scouting out their winter hiding spots. It is said that Woolly Bear caterpillars can predict what the coming winter has in store, but is it true?

Woolly Bear caterpillars, which are the larval stage of Tiger Moths, have 13 body segments, or bands.  The 13 segments are supposed to correspond with the 13 weeks of winter. It is said that by counting the amount of brown and black bands you can predict what the upcoming winter will be like.  A wide brown section means a mild winter. The more black there is, the more severe the winter will be – longer, colder, snowier. The position of the largest black section is supposed to predict which part of winter will be the worst. If the larger section is at the head, the beginning will be severe, if it is at the tail, the end of winter will be cold.

Dr. Charles Howard Curran, insect curator at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City, tested this theory from 1948 – 1956 by collecting caterpillars and counting bands.  Dr. Curran’s eight years of sampling was a small data set and not enough to scientifically prove that Woolly Bears could predict the upcoming winter.  Although he couldn’t scientifically prove it, Dr. Curran thought the folklore had some merit and might be true.

Woolly Bears may not be able to predict the upcoming winter, but their bands do tell us something.  Instead of predicting the upcoming winter, their bands tell you about the previous year.  The amount of brown and black coincide with the age of the caterpillar (how long the growing season was) and moisture levels where the Woolly Bear was growing.  Because of this, the Woolly Bears will look different from year to year but they’re telling you about the weather that has already happened, not predicting the upcoming winter.

Even though they can’t tell us what the upcoming winter has in store, we can still look forward to seeing them in the fall as they cross our paths on the way to their winter homes.

What Happens at Chester Woods in the Winter

by Ernie Fruedenburg

Winter is a season that we either love or love to hate.  Tim Allen says, “Winter forms our character and brings out our best.” We can either choose to do all we can to avoid the winters in Minnesota or get outside and embrace the season and all that nature has to offer. At Chester Woods, just like in all our county parks, the staff remains busy with quite a variety of tasks. However, at Chester Woods one new task is on the agenda for the winters to come.

Olmsted County received a grant to purchase winter recreation equipment which will include cross country skis and boots, snowshoes, and kick sleds. These will be offered to the public for rent. Due to supply problems, the skis won’t be available this winter. How is “Friends of Chester Woods” involved in this service? A part of the grant includes a certain dollar amount of matching funds provided. The county park superintendent came to FOCW with the offer that if we supply the matching funds needed, then FOCW would be able to keep the income from the rentals in the future. FOCW was also asked to help in supplying volunteers to help staff the office to help with rentals and help keep the supply of equipment organized. Our FOCW Board approved this expenditure and is looking forward to another partnership with the park staff to provide equipment for people to get out into nature and “get out our best” in what the winter season has to offer. These rentals will begin during the winter of 2023-2024.

Our volunteers also provide other needed services in the winter which include grooming of our 10 miles of ski trails and operating the forestry mower for resource management. Last year nearly 65 acres of park land was mowed which makes it easier to use fire and other means to seriously stunt the advancement of buckthorn. We also have volunteers that come out regularly in the winter to stack firewood. This is why we like to say that “Volunteers don't get paid. It is not because they are worthless, but rather because they are priceless.”

The park staff also takes the winter months to plan for future programming at the park, maintain equipment, and still have time to keep the park operating. Then there are the snow events. This is when the staff of our parks not only plows snow in the park, but also plows snow at the county campus on the east side of Rochester.

There is one more activity that is included in the winter projects. That is the burning of wood piles. Most often this is done when conditions are right, but we hope to be able to advertise on the spur of the moment to come out to the park for a bonfire. Another way to “form our character and bring out our best” is to gather together for a winter bonfire. We hope to be able to do that the winter of 2023.

Volunteer Appreciation

by Tom Eckdahl

Nearly every day of the week there is someone coming to our Olmsted County Parks to volunteer. I hate to guess how many individuals have showed up in the 53 years of the parks department existence. I know that we were not as automated at keeping records of them as we are now. If I were to guess, I bet it is well over 30,000 volunteers. If that isn’t amazing!

Now stop and ponder about how many hours have been donated over this time. I have known of individuals that showed up and put in nearly 40 hours a week and this continued for several years of service. On the other end of the spectrum are the individuals that come to volunteer a few hours and might be a part of group. My hope is that they leave having learned something new about the parks and better understanding of the work it takes to maintain them. I can only hope that they would eventually become involved in being stewards of their own “park” land.

I recently participated in a memorial service of one our long-time members of the Friends of Chester Woods. In fact, Dennis Tooley, amongst others, started the non-profit group in 2008. Dennis had been volunteering at Chester Woods Park since the late 1990’s. I can still remember our first conversation about how he wanted to make certain there would be an opportunity for him to share the park with his grandkids. That he did and more, he was able to introduce his great grandchildren and numerous others to Olmsted County Parks.

I think I can speak for all the park staff that our department truly depends on our volunteers for the daily operation of our park system. Our parks would not be what they are today without the dedication of these individuals. The talents, wisdom, and time they bring to our parks is truly amazing.

I also know as staff we are always seeking out new volunteers. We never know whom we may be introduced to and where that first conversation will lead. Our job is to be honest and make a lasting first impression and the rest will fall into place.

For all you volunteers that are reading this, Thank You for your dedication and gifts that are being given to Olmsted County.

Preparing Prairie Seeds for Winter Seed Spreading

by Aspen Eck

As one walks throughout Chester Woods Park, they’re eyes will detect numerous tints, shades, tones, and hues as Minnesota’s fall color season is back in action. Despite the alluring beauty of fall, there is still work afoot by the staff and volunteers (Friends of Chester Woods) such as the “fall harvest” or in this case, prairie seed collection. Two well-seasoned volunteers, John and Patty Trnka lead the calvary of staff and volunteers alike in instructing others on how to collect, dry, clean, and store native prairie seed. One might ponder why such action(s) are necessary to keep the zestful prairies of Chester Woods viable for seasons to come.

Most of the prairie seeds were collected from planted prairie regrowth’s and remnants at several separate locations throughout Chester Woods Park, Root River, and Oxbow Park & Zollman Zoo. The seeds used for the prairies located in Chester Woods were meticulously cleaned and sorted. Each species of plant was collected separately, labeled, and stored temporarily in paper bags in a shed to allow them to fully dry out before processing. 

After seed collecting, volunteers and staff alike would begin to process seeds. Processing seed heads can vary based on size and seed pods. As seen below, John Trnka is breaking open the larger seed heads of Purple Coneflower with a seed processor. For some species with very small heads, their mixture was sifted through fine mesh to let the seeds pass through, but to withhold chaff or any stems. For seed pods of like Butterfly, Whorled, and Swamp Milkweed were all cleaned by hand by fervently stripping the seeds.

Results of seed spreading may appear to be slow, but well worth the wait. Most prairie plants devote their first few years on root growth with tiny crowns of leaves appearing above ground. Chester Woods aims to continue to develop deep root systems of drought tolerant and long-lasting prairie plants. It will take almost two years before any of plants from seed spreading to start flowering. However, the array of prairie flowers keeps steadily increasing in beauty and overall display upon each year of seed dispersal. 

Friends of Oxbow (FOX) Update

by Kris Nelson

Friends of Oxbow has been busy this fall with continued efforts to fundraise for the new Nature Center. A generous donation of up to $50,000 was pledged by a local family if we could match the funds dollar for dollar. This “Match the Woodland Hatch” campaign is to finish funding the Woodland Edge educational exhibit and habitat for raptors and snakes. As of mid-October, we’ve raised over $20,000 toward the match goal. We couldn’t reach these goals without community support. Twice this fall, Rochester Athletic Club yoga instructors hosted “Asana with the Animals”, a free yoga class near the bison exhibit. Many of the patrons donated generously to the Match the Woodland Hatch campaign! As always, please keep an eye on our social media or website for updates.