Milwaukee Urban Ecology Blog

Nothing prepared me for the first time I went to Alaska. Mountains everywhere, turquoise blue rivers, friendly people and yes, a seemingly unending expanse of wilderness that captured my heart and changed the way I viewed the world. It is a true pleasure to be able to share the best of Alaska with all of you. My friends from Premier Alaska Tours and the Denali Education Center, both Alaska owned and operated, will be our hosts for the eight-night, nine-day experience. Our visit will include some of my favorite adventures including a trip from Anchorage to Seward on the iconic Alaska Railroad, a boat tour into magical Kenai Fjords National Park and a bus ride all the way to Eielson…

Here at the UEC, we have always loved working with volunteers. Actually, as many of you know, the Center was started by a group of neighbors volunteering their time to create something special. Volunteerism has always been a part of who we are and what we do, and it always will. This last year we had over 4,500 volunteers walk through our doors (or into our parks!), how amazing is that?!

The Washington Park branch of the Urban Ecology Center has a sense of family. Once you’re there and interacting with everyone around the place, you will for sure feel the vibe too! There are so many reasons why the UEC feels like a home away from home.

If you're a UEC volunteer, YOU are the reason we're able to the many things we do. You are an integral part of helping our community get outdoors, so we're throwing you a party! Come for heavy hors-d'oeuvres, dessert, a special thank you from the staff and more! RSVP today for a night of fun, laughs, love, and gratitude.

Late last February, we received an email from a community member about a beaver found dead in Riverside Park. This news was especially disheartening to us considering the near celebrity status the Milwaukee River Greenway beaver couple had gained not only publicly, but amongst staff. We had watched the activities of the beavers in Riverside Park for nearly five years and enjoyed hearing the stories from other staff and community members about their encounters.

New England Aster (Symphyotrichum novae-anglea) is one of the most common native asters and when covered in one inch diameter flowers, it's also one of the showiest. This member of the daisy/sunflower family grows in a variety of soil types and moisture levels and is well adapted to disturbed areas like roadsides and young prairie plantings where it can be a dominant species. 

Environmental: the air, water, minerals, organisms, and all other external factors surrounding and affecting a given organism at any time. Community: an assemblage of interacting populations occupying a given area Center: a building used as a meeting place for a particular group or having facilities for certain activities

The Tallgrass Prairie ecosystem is both the most biodiverse in northern North America and one of the most endangered with 1% or less remaining. It is full of a wide variety of beautiful grass species and yet we industry continue to produce and market primarily nonnative grasses from Europe and Asia which do not contribute ecologically and have the potential to become invasive species. It is both patience trying and heartening to see more of our native grasses very slowly gaining traction in the landscaping industry including beautiful Indian grass (Sorghastrum nutans).

When it comes to attracting monarch butterflies for nectaring, meadow blazing star (Liatris ligulistylus) wins hands down! This patch had 15 monarchs on it before I got close to take a picture. Meadow blazing star will grow in seasonally damp, medium, or slightly dry sites but it prefers loam to sandy loam soil with a good amount of organic material (not a fan of heavy clay). While it does best in full sun this is one of the better blazing stars for yards with partial shade.

As my summer internship comes to an end, I begin to reflect upon the impacts and memories made during my time at Urban Ecology Center. I remembered when I first received a call from Anna, the Marketing Manager about an in-person interview. My interest in photography went perfectly with the job duties. The interview quickly approached and I was nervous but, at the same time, confident about the interview and getting the summer internship. Two weeks later, I received the big news- I was hired! I was beyond thankful and super excited to learn, make memories and gain more skills over the summer.