December Mystery of the Month

Which fish is which?

Above are two ~3” long fish that were pulled from Markham Pond. As you can see they are very similar in appearance. They are also very similar in their dining habits. So who is who in this round-up of benthic feeders?



1 fish, 2 fish, 5700 goldfish!


The answer to the question is the fish on the left is a goldfish, and the fish on the right is a young-of-the-year common carp. The differences between young carp and goldfish are fairly subtle, although much easier to discern when you have them side by side. First and most obviously is the golden cast to this goldfish – this is not always a reliable characteristic, as the color of goldfish in the wild varies. Another difference is the size of the scales and the eyes, relative to body size; goldfish scales and eyes are larger. Again, this is easiest to spot when you are looking at both. A more reliable characteristic is the presence of 2 sets of barbels (whiskers) near the mouth on the common carp; goldfish have none. And though they are there, you can’t actually see them on either fish in the photo above!


Several young-of-year carp and goldfish were visible on one side of the
draw-down net.  The net was set up to keep adult carp from swimming
downstream.  These little guys, however, swam upstream and were trapped.

The fish above were pulled from Markham Pond. Markham Pond is a 13 acre shallow pond in Hazelwood Park in Maplewood. Markham is a part of the flow path for the Phalen Chain of Lakes and is connected to Kohlman Lake through Kohlman Basin and Kohlman Creek. Markham serves as a carp ‘nursery’; a spot where conditions occasionally allow a large number of carp eggs to hatch and young-of-the-year to thrive. There is also a large resident population of goldfish. A 2010 capture/mark/recapture study of fish in Markham Pond by a U of M graduate student found an estimated 21,000 goldfish along with 35,000 young-of-the-year carp.

Large adult carp swim in the shallow Markham Pond near the outflow pipe
while thousands of young carp and goldfish swim between the net and the outflow pipe.

Removal involved only a few staff with nets.

 As a step in the ecological restoration plan for Markham Pond, RWMWD and Maplewood staff are in the midst of conducting a drawdown of the pond, to reduce or eliminate the carp and goldfish population and help clear the water. During the early stage of the draw down, District staff removed 6,600 small fish from Markham. Upon close examination, it appears about 86%, or 5700 are goldfish, and about 900 are young of the year carp. We will be writing more about the Markham Pond ecological restoration plan in next month’s Ripple Effect.

Approximate size range of those removed from Markham Pond.  With your new
knowledge, can you tell which fish is which in the photo above? 

 

Jack Frost Earns Lifetime Achievement Award - Expanding on the Watershed Stewardship Awards

Jack Frost.  Photo by Anita Jader.

Jack Frost was awarded the Roger Lake Stewardship Excellence Award. Named for the 30-year Watershed District leader who passed away last December, this award recognizes an individual who has, during his or her lifetime, played a significant and long-term role in watershed management and demonstrated leadership in natural resources stewardship.



A fitting first recipient of this award, Jack had a long dedicated career as a professional engineer, water resources coordinator for the Metropolitan Council and 19-year Manager of the Ramsey-Washington Metro Watershed District. In his 34 years at the Metropolitan Council, Jack was known for his working knowledge of wastewater, stormwater and overall water management issues in the region. At the Watershed District, Jack’s ability to blend technical understanding of water management approaches with his innovative, practical approaches to water quality and flood control, was a major contributor to thoughtful, considerate, and innovative Board actions. His service as the Board Treasurer was very much valued by the Board and staff. Jack’s budgeting skill and financial management contributed to the Watershed District’s high accounting standards and our routine clean audit reports. Jack has moved to the Madison, WI area to be closer to his kids and his grandchildren but systems he developed are still valued and in use.

Simon Properties Earns Stewardship Award - Expanding on the Watershed Stewardship Awards

The Outstanding Partner Award, accepted by Jennifer Lewis and Tim Pothen.

Storm before the calm.  Tree trench construction was an organized
disruption to the parking lot before completion.

Simon Properties, owner of Maplewood Mall, was selected for the Outstanding Partner Award, which recognizes an individual, group or business that effectively collaborates with Ramsey-Washington metro Watershed District to achieve exceptional results in water resources management.

Five years ago, District staff approached the Mall management with a bold idea, saying: “Let us alter your parking lot to capture stormwater runoff, take parking spaces to create rain gardens to infiltrate the stormwater and let us do this without purchasing property or easements.” The proposal was enthusiastically accepted. For the past five years, the District has worked with Mall management staff and headquarters, tenants, anchor stores and maintenance staff to retrofit the property with stormwater management features while beautifying the site.

Stakeholders at a tile breaking ceremony prior to the start of the project.

Innovative rock tree trenches, planted with 375 trees, have created parking lot groves. Fifty-five rain gardens capture pollutants from the parking lot and main entrance and a 5,700-gallon rainwater cistern collects polluted runoff from the Mall’s roof. Educational signs and artwork illuminate the clean water features. Together, the mall improvements meet the goal of treating the first inch of rainfall runoff from the entire site to improve water quality of Kolman Lake and the remainder of the Phalen Chain of Lakes. This project is the first major mall retrofit in the country and has attracted national and international attention.


The completed main entry with porous pavers, rain gardens, native plantings, a cistern, educational signage and mural, artificial creek bed and rain trenches.  Phew!

Watershed District Advisory Committee Openings

The Ramsey-Washington Metro Watershed District is seeking residents to serve on its Citizen Advisory Committee. The Committee provides input to the District on its projects, programs and annual budget and assists with events and education activities. The Committee generally meets six times per year. Members are appointed to a two-year term. Interested applicants should send an email to cliff[at]rwmwd.org with your contact information and a brief statement of why you would like to serve. 

The application deadline is January 10, 2014.



Information about the District, its programs and boundaries can be found at www.rwmwd.org. 

To determine if you live in the District, click on About the District and then Are You in the District?

Golf, Gangsters, and Great Blue Heron

On the green in 1957 for the St. Paul Open Golf Tournament.

In 1931, a couple of years after the course opened, undercover FBI agents were suddenly attracted to Keller Golf Course (GC), not for the fabulous golfing, but for its notorious golf patrons. Legend has it that the infamous bank robber, John Dillinger, would frequent the course with two golf bags – one with clubs and the other filled with machine guns. Young caddies would earn generous tips for toting the extra firepower. There are even tales of cagey gangsters being chased off the course by federal marshals, leaving their clubs, and jumping on a nearby train for a getaway.


Well, even if these gangster stories seem a bit farfetched, everyone can agree that Keller GC enjoys an incredibly robust golf history. It has played host to a PGA tour stop, the St. Paul Open for 38 years, two National PGA Championships, and the Ladies PGA Tour nine times. On top of the tournaments, the course has been a local favorite for tens of thousands of recreational golfers for nearly a century.

In 1996, Superintendent Paul Diegnau, had a vision to minimize the golf course’s impact on the environment, striking a balance with the landscape and restoring and preserving its unique natural features. Over the years, Diegnau has been committed to preserving the top-flight golf experience, and at the same time, establishing an “urban nature preserve” on the property. “I have been able to implement a variety of management practices that have multiple benefits – to the course and to the natural environment,” he says.


Ten years ago, the Watershed’s Landscape Ecology Awards Program (LEAP for short) recognized Paul’s work and presented him with top honors in the commercial-government land category. Through the awards process, Diegnau had a chance to get to know Bill Bartodziej, a Natural Resources Specialist with the Watershed. “Paul is one of our local leaders that have stepped up to try some innovative practices. The LEAP Award opened the door for the Watershed and Keller GC to really start discussing partnership possibilities,” Bartodziej said.
 

Sean Uslabar, Ramsey County Corrections Greenhouse Manager,
helps seed prairie areas in the Keller restoration.

Over the last several years, Paul and Bill have been systematically restoring no-play areas on the course. This land provides critical habitat on the course, improves water infiltration, and composes an important ecological connection in the Phalen Chain of Lakes corridor. Cliff Aichinger, RWMWD Administrator, says “what happens on Keller GC is especially important considering its close proximity to the Phalen Chain, the most prominent series of lakes in our watershed.”



This spring, the Watershed and Ramsey County received funding from the Ramsey Conservation District to restore seven acres of no-play area. A Phase II project, slated for next year, will likely treat another seven acres. Project sites included pond and wetlands buffer areas, prairie, and woodlands. “This will likely be the number one golf course in the Metro area that supports such large expanses of high quality natural areas.” Bartodziej said.

Jerry Horgan (foreground) and Don Vegoe (background), both Ramsey County Master Gardeners, help students put in native plants in a new restoration area below the 12th tee complex.  The newly-renovated club house can be seen in the far background.

Diegnau was pleased that this restoration project coincided with major golf course and clubhouse renovations. The course shut down in the fall of 2012 and is scheduled to reopen in the summer of 2014. Having the course closed made it easier to bring in materials, work trucks, and work crews for the ecological restoration. As with most large restoration projects, the Watershed partnered with Ramsey County Corrections work crews. In addition, students from Farnsworth Aerospace 5-8 School and the French Immersion School had a chance to plant plugs in one of the prairie restoration areas. Updates on the course renovation can be found at: http://kellerrenovation.blogspot.com.


Keller GC is an excellent example of effectively mixing land uses with the goal of improving natural resources. Very soon, golfers will hit long drives on the newly seeded, lush and green bentgrass fairways, and then grab a cold drink in the newly renovated clubhouse. But wait, there is a rare bonus. The urban golf experience will be maximized at Keller by providing a tranquil, intriguing, and very dynamic setting. The natural habitat areas hold soils in place, filter runoff, and attract an amazing diversity of wildlife. Next summer, golfers will view acres of prairie flowers in bloom and wildlife in action - great blue heron searching for elusive frogs, a curious juvenile fox pawing at a golf ball, and mamma wood ducks herding their young through the lush stands of native shoreline vegetation. Get ready for an unbelievable outdoor experience!

The restoration at Keller Golf Course's water feature on the 6th hole looks amazing with the late fall colors. 
Photo by Bill Bartodziej.

To see the student planting activities associated with Keller Golf Course this week, see our article Mending the Pot.

Mending the Pot

by Tracy Leavenworth, District Education Consultant


Prior to their restoration planting efforts, all six classrooms participated in lessons to prepare them for the experience. Weaving in with their studies of ecology in science class, I presented a slide show that vividly displayed the various ways humans alter their environment.

Mending the broken pot.

During an emotionally teachable moment, I took a terra cotta pot, beautifully painted with a lovely riparian natural scene, and broke it in front of the students. “Some people want to put a shopping mall here,” I told them. Wide-eyed, and open-mouthed, to whispers of “She broke that pot! I can’t believe she broke that pot!” the students were effectively stunned. They shot their hands into the air when I asked them if anyone would like to work to restore it. Several students were given a paper plate and glue, and as I continued with the lesson, they worked together to restore the pot.

At the end of the lesson, the restorers were asked to give their reflections:

“It was hard.”

“It was like putting a puzzle back together.”

“It looks pretty good, but not quite like it did before.”

I added that it was likely that Bill and Simba and the other folks at the Watershed District who do restoration plantings would probably have similar reflections about their own experiences.

The lesson completed with a shift to their upcoming planting at Keller Lake Golf Course; I told the students that they all have the power to make a difference, to help restore natural ecosystems, and to chose a lifestyle where they can live in harmony with the land rather than destroy it. The energy in the room was palpable!

 Getting Their Hands Dirty

The future prairie buffer will add beautiful contrast to the surrounding turf.

Simba Blood, District Natural Resources Technician, teaches the students
proper planting techniques.

 

Laurie Holmberg, Ramsey County Master Gardener, helps a 5th grader
plant prairie natives.

High on a hillside overlooking Keller Lake in late October, 7th and 8th graders from Farnsworth Aerospace science and 5th graders from L’Etoile du Nord French Immersion School gathered together to put something back that had been lost over time. 

Keller Golf Course, once an oak savanna dotted with wetlands was getting a face lift. With trowels and plant plugs, these St. Paul students had the opportunity to make the shattered pot lesson real by assisting the Watershed District in a prairie restoration with support from Natural Resources Technician, Simba Blood, her interns, Janna and Tessa , six Ramsey County Master Gardeners and a few parent volunteers by their sides. 

Paul Diegnau, Keller Golf Course Superintendent explains how he integrates
golf course management with habitat restoration and management.

Paul Diegnau, the Golf Course Superintendent came out and greeted each class and described the care the golf course takes to protect nearby Keller Lake. He explained their irrigation methods and mentioned the features on the site that provide habitat and food for birds, animals and butterflies. He told the students that the Keller Lake eagles who nest above Highway 36 regularly spend time there and that the golf course was a Certified Audubon Cooperative Sanctuary.

This student was also a powerhouse
worker at the Ames Lake spring cleanup.  No
wonder he needs two trowels!

Talk about making a difference!

Don Vegoe, Ramsey County Master Gardener, digs in to help
teach students how to properly transplant plant plugs. 

[For more on the Keller Golf Course Restoration, see our previous post this month, Golf, Gangsters, and Great Blue Heron]

Honoring Outstanding Landscapes & Watershed Excellence

Beautiful awards were hand crafted and designed by local artist, Aaron Dysart.

 

Ramsey-Washington Metro Watershed District volunteers, partners and staff gathered on November 14 to honor 2013 Landscape Ecology Award Program (LEAP) winners and the celebrate the first-annual Watershed Excellence Awards.

We are very proud to announce the winners from these two categories (in no particular order)

Landscape Ecology Awards

Since 2002, LEAP has recognized private residences and public and commercial properties that preserve and improve water quality and natural resources. The City of Shoreview, Trinity Presbyterian Church in Woodbury, and homeowners in St. Paul, Little Canada and Maplewood received awards this year.

• St. Paul resident Karri Bitner of 2280 Case Ave. E, lives on a one-acre lot near Beaver Lake with her husband and two children. A horticulturalist, Karri has developed a love for insects that pollinate and control pests. The family’s yard includes asters, bee balm and coneflowers that attract beneficial insects, and Karri’s passion for habitat has rubbed off on her children, who have each created and maintain a garden plot.

Left: Karri Bitner at her award-winning property.  Right: LEAP Team members Phyllis Hunter
and Dana Larsen-Ramsay present Karri with a yard sign (one of many fabulous prizes)  

• Becky Brenner and Steve Van Allen of 2879 Arcade St. in Little Canada converted their steeply sloped front yard to a native garden dotted with decorative rocks that attract birds and butterflies and control erosion. For Becky it was not hard to make the change. “I was doing all the mowing and wrestling with it,” she said. “I’m not a fan of turf grass and want to show alternative ways to landscape our yards.”

Left: Becky wasn't a fan of turf grass, or of mowing the hill, so she got creative. 
Right: Becky and Steve accept their award.

• Mary Leigh and Joel Sabean inherited a water problem when they purchased their home at 2413 Hillwood Dr. E in Maplewood. Their steeply sloped backyard was dominated by invasive buckthorn and ponded water in the spring. They worked with a landscaper to create a natural landscape, removing the buckthorn and other invasive vegetation, planting native grasses, flowers and shrubs and adding a 700-square-foot shady rain garden. They also redirected their downspouts into dry creek beds that lead to the large rain garden.

Left: A dry creek bed helps guide runoff into the rain garden. 
Right: Mary Leigh and Joel accept their award.

• The City of Shoreview, represented by Volunteer Coordinator Kent Peterson and volunteer Karen Eckman, was recognized for its native plantings at the Haffeman Pavilion. An Eagle Scout started the project in 2008 with a native buffer strip along Brennan’s Pond. When the scout went off to college, city volunteers stepped in to maintain the buffer and add native plant gardens. The strong focus on native plants brought in a wealth of wildlife—great spangled fritillary butterflies, tree frogs, bumble bees and many birds. The city hosts summer concerts at the pavilion each week, and with the project’s signage and the eye-catching landscape, Kent notes, “we have the opportunity to educate the public.”

  

  Left: A former Eagle Scout project, the shoreline of Brennan's Pond has been adopted by city volunteers. 
  Right: Kent Peterson and Karen Eckman accept their award.

  
  
• Trinity Presbyterian Church at 2125 Tower Dr in Woodbury has catalyst Barb Outcelt to thank for their ever-growing landscape projects. Encouraged by the City of Woodbury with a $500 grant, the church installed a small rain garden a few years back. When that project proved successful, they installed a large 750 square-foot, showy, manicured rain garden, funded in part through the Watershed District’s Best Management Practices (BMP) Incentive Cost Share Program. The newest addition is a patio with pervious pavers and a cistern that captures stormwater. “We are a small church with about 250 members,” Barb said. “We could not have done the rain garden without the Cost Share Program.”

 

Watershed Excellence Awards

Awardees with District board members.

This new award program honors the accomplishments of exceptional “leaders” that are improving the health of the watershed.

• Jack Frost was awarded the Roger Lake Stewardship Excellence Award, named for the 30-year Watershed District leader who passed away last December. A fitting first recipient of this award, Jack has had a long dedicated career as a public servant and Manager of the Ramsey-Washington Metro Watershed District. Jack’s innovative, practical approaches to water quality and flood control, service as the Board Treasurer and excellent financial management contributed enormously to the Watershed District’s effectiveness.

Left: When he was not helping us make important decisions, Jack (in blue) helped host countless events.
Right: Cliff Aichinger, District Administrator, presents Jack with this lifetime-achievement award.

• Sherry Brooks, Science and Technology Specialist at Farnsworth Aerospace in St. Paul won the Youth Engagement Award for her years of hands-on science education work with K-4 students. Her classes designed, planted and now care for the school’s native demonstration garden. With her help they continue to grow hundreds of plants for neighborhood rain gardens, BMP projects and school demonstration gardens in the district. Sherry is also very active in supporting non-point source education for her classes, engaging students at WaterFest and promoting awareness about the water-friendly features at Maplewood Mall.

Left: A fantastic butterfly garden outside Farnsworth School is just one of Sherry's many projects.  Middle: Demonstrating how water runs off surfaces on a watershed model.  Right: Receiving the Youth Engagement Award.

• University of Minnesota graduate students Justine Koch and Reid Swanson received the “Carpie” Award that recognizes individuals who have enthusiastically persevered in the face of adversity. All hours of the day and night you can find them conducting surveillance and simultaneously masterminding many technical hurdles in pursuit of the monumental goal of helping the District determine how to manage carp and their impacts on water quality.

Left: Justine holds up one of the oldest carp they've found in the Phalen Chain to date.  Middle: Justine and Reid are presented with the Carpie award.  Right: Reid pulls migrating carp out of a trap net.

• The City of Maplewood was honored with the Innovation in Government Award for adopting a Living Streets policy and implementing a model project in the Bartelmy/Meyer neighborhood to add “green” enhancements during street reconstruction. Through the project, streets were narrowed from 32 to 24 feet wide, sidewalks were added, 32 rain gardens and one regional infiltration garden were installed and 200 drought-resistant boulevard trees were planted.

Left: Sidewalks, rain gardens, and narrowed streets are just a few of the features installed in Maplewood that benefit both neighborhood and local waters.  Right:  Steve Love, City Engineer, accepts the award on behalf of the City of Maplewood.

• Maplewood resident and LEAP award winner Mary Leigh Sabean received the Citizen Engagement Award in honor of her strong role in advocating for water quality improvements. Her neighborhood garden parties to promote the District’s BMP Incentive Cost Share Program and native habitat restoration have resulted in four new rain gardens and several native plantings for habitat. She also notified the City of Maplewood about drainage problems on private lands and collaborated with the city to install three rain gardens on parkland.

Left: When she's not hosting rain garden parties for the neighborhood, Mary Leigh tends to her native plantings, rain gardens and dry creek bed.  Right: Mary Leigh accepts the award for Citizen Engagement.

• Simon Properties, owner of Maplewood Mall, was selected for the Outstanding Partner Award for the Maplewood Mall Volume Reduction Retrofit Project. For the past five years, the District has worked with Mall management staff and headquarters, tenants, anchor stores and maintenance staff to retrofit the property with stormwater management features while beautifying the site. Tree trenches have created parking lot groves, rain gardens frame the parking lot and main entrance, and a cistern collects some of the roof runoff. These all work to accomplish the goal of treating the first inch of rainfall runoff from the entire site to improve water quality of Kolman Lake and the remainder of the Phalen Chain of Lakes. This project is the first major mall retrofit in the country and has attracted national and international attention.

Left: Maplewood Mall was retrofitted to include several artistically-designed stormwater management features.  Right: Jennifer Lewis and Tim Pozner accept the award on behalf of Simon Properties.

If you know of people or projects that are making a difference in the watershed, let the District know about it! Nominations for the 2014 LEAP awards will be due July 1, 2014. For details visit www.rwmwd.org and click on the Natural Resources Program. Candidates for the Excellence awards can be suggested to Watershed District staff, which will review suggestions with the Citizen Advisory Commission.


We leave you with a few more shots from the Recognition Dinner.  A big thank you to those who attended, and to Anita Jader, LEAP Team member and photographer at the event!

Over 100 guests gathered for dinner, conversation, and awards.

One of our newest board members, Jen Oknich.

Our recently retired board member, and winner of the Roger Lake Stewardship Excellence Award, Jack Frost.  

LEAP Team members from left to right:  Phyllis Hunter, Gail Acosta, Glenda Mooney, Dana Larson-Ramsay and
Anita Jader.  

Our fantastic welcoming crew, left to right: Nicole Soderholm (District Inspector), Paige Ahlborg (District Project Manager) and Shelly Melser (District Secretary).

Toddlers are not really big fans of awards ceremonies.

Marion Seabold, one of our favorite local historians.

Cecilia Shiller, artist creating the next art installment at Maplewood Mall (photo of her prototype below)

Dinner is served.

District Administrator, Cliff Aichinger and Board President Paul Ellefson.

A prototype of the new sculpture to be installed at Maplewood Mall in 2014.

Farnsworth current and retired teachers, principal, and student.