Project: Hay Meadow Flowage and Pat Shad Wild Rice Seeding
County: Forest
Project Start Date: 10/25/2016
Project End Date: 10/25/2016
By Peter Ziegler, WWA Project Director:
Once again, our Northern Wetlands chapter has helped to organize our wild rice restoration efforts in northern WI. In late October I joined forces with the Northland Pines Charter School and Three Lakes Global Science Class to continue our efforts in wild rice restoration where we seeded over 200lbs of rice. Both schools have helped me in the past on this endeavor and are key components to getting the work completed.
In the morning we seeded Hay Meadow Flowage which is in its second year of planting, but greatly varying water levels appear to be significantly hampering the seedings. This site will have to be re-evaluated prior to another seeding to make sure it can sustain a successful self-sufficient rice bed into the future prior to planting again. In the afternoon we hauled out canoes and kayaks down the walk in access and through the bog into Pat Shay.
Here we seeded into a significantly depleted rice bed but with historical records. The goal is to get it back up to standards where it can maintain itself once again and provide the value to the ecosystem it’s lacking now.
This paddle was interesting. It appears you are in only 3-4″ of water but you float and paddle like 5 ft. The highly unconsolidated substrate probably aides in the struggles of the rice in this lake and also provides perils for anyone who tries to step out of their canoe as we could not find a bottom the length of the paddle. This lake is unique and I have never been on one quite like it, hence the fact that it is a State Natural Area, so others must agree. Many of the best rice restoration projects come from those who utilize the resource the most and that included many of the waterfowl hunters who make WWA. So, if you have ideas in the northern WI where potential wild rice restoration could take place let me know.
