Green Works Twilight Gathering – Eshqua Bog Guided Tour

By kristinamackulin | June 26, 2017 | Comments Off on Green Works Twilight Gathering – Eshqua Bog Guided Tour

July 12, 2017 – Wednesday
6:00 – 7:30 pm

Eshqua Bog Natural Area
Garvin Hill Road
Hartland, VT  05048

Join Green Works board member and VTC professor Marlys Eddy for a guided tour of Eshqua Bog and eshquoa bogexplore bog and fen plants, including a selection of wetland ferns.  The new accessible 460′ boardwalk brings you up close to lots of cool plants in this sensitive habitat.  Trails also extend into upland areas of this 41 acre preserve.  You may want to bring along a guide book and bug repellent!

The Eshqua Bog Natural area is co-owned and managed by The Nature Conservancy of Vermont and The New England Wildflower Society.  Eshqua Bog is a botanical wonderland of cold-climate holdovers–small pockets of bog plant species and a two acre fen–from the post-glacial era 10,000 years ago. This preserve contains a diverse array of bog and fen plants: labrador tea, cotton grass, pitcher plants, showy lady’s slippers, larches and buckbean.

What to See: Plants

This bog, which is technically a fen, supports a diverse community of native plants such as the alder-eshquoa bog1leaved buckthorn and shrubby cinquefoil. The difference between a bog and a fen is the water source and the acidity of the site. Bogs tend to be acidic; fens are more alkaline. Water flows into bogs solely through rainwater and run-off, while fens are also fed by calcium-rich groundwater.

What to See: Animals

A number of mammals use the fen including deer, hares, and red squirrels. Eshqua Bog is also a haven for many species of dragonflies.

Directions

Eshqua Bog Natural Area is located in Hartland. From I-89 take Exit 1, for Rte. 4 west toward Woodstock and Rutland. Drive 10.4 miles nearly into Woodstock, where Rte. 4 makes a sharp 90-degree bend to the right. (There is a gas station on the right hand side.) DO NOT GO RIGHT. Instead turn left on Hartland Hill Rd. Drive 1.2 miles and bear right onto Garvin Hill Road. Drive another 1.2 miles and look for the Nature Conservancy parking area with room for 4 cars on the right. The well-marked trail is also on the right, just beyond the pull off.

Costs

There is no charge for this event.

To Register:

Please email Kristina in the office if you will be attending:  kristina@greenworksvermont.org.  You can also just drop-in the day of.

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