Super Swampers Build a Path

The Super Swampers met today and worked on a new path going across Wet Meadow II. It was a little bit snowy at the beginning, but it got better and we all warmed up with the hard work.



Feel free to walk on the new path as much as you want.

12 people, 1.5 hours= 18 volunteer hours of work

Weather to burn - finally

The prescribed ecological burn at the Buhr Park Childrens' Wet Meadow on Wednesday, April 2 was a success.

Many families and adult spectators gathered to celebrate Spring and watch the burn.









Trained staff from the City of Ann Arbor Natural Area Preservation unit explained the purpose of the burn and safety considerations. They conducted the burn while the spectators oohed and aahed.

Super Swampers, Global Warming and Observations

The Buhr Park Children's Wet Meadow Super Swampers met today to talk about the city of Ann Arbor mayors visit to the Blossom Eco Circle. They also took a stroll around the park to post signs and see what was happening at the wet meadows.

We compared our carbon footprint pie charts - they showed where the carbon we produce carbon comes from. And we talked about different things that we can do around our homes to reduce our carbon output.

We checked out Wet Meadow I. It still had water and slush in it. The winter melt that fills the wet meadow doesn't soak in to the frozen ground.

We also noticed that some small shrub seedlings at the north end of Wet Meadow II had been pummeled by sledders. They might not have noticed that the stakes and plastic guards were protecting small plants. Maybe we'll need to mark them more carefully and sturdily next time.

We also put up signs for the upcoming Wet Meadow Burn on March 26.

Wet Meadow I

The Wet Meadow still has some snowmelt.

Design Vindicated!

This afternoon's rainfall and snowmelt combined with frozen ground to yield large quantities of surface run off.

The three basins of WM II functioned exactly as designed - the swale behind the ice rink fed the upper (northernmost) basin.

When that filled, it overflowed through its spillway to the middle basin.




That one, in turn, filled and overflowed to the lower basin.





It's the most water I've seen since WM II was built in 2004.

Hats off to Jane Kleiner, the designer, Chris Mueller who excavated the basins and built the spillways stone by stone, the teens who helped plan, and everyone who helped.

Wet Meadow Full of Water

A day later, the rain and warm temperatures change the snow in Buhr Park to fine deluge. Note the ducks in this photo.

Winter thaws cause the largest buildup of water in the wet meadows, since the ground is frozen. It takes much longer for the water to disappear.

Wet Meadow Full of Snow

A day of sledding near Wet Meadow I. A beautiful sunny day, but the forecast was for a thaw.