First thing that struck me is that there was no admission fee to get into the north side of the park and there were not that many people there.
At first when I found out that this park was named after a former Broward County Commissioner my jaded nature of politicians kicked in. But further research about Annie Kolb, the centers namesake ,revealed her to be a strong environmentalist. She had convinced the Commission here to pass the Urban Wilderness Park System to preserve endangered lands. Her efforts placed a building moratorium in Southwest Boward County for 61,000 acres. The Florida Wildlife Association named her conservationist of the year in 1977.
Because of her foresight this park was created and the 1,500 acres preserved. Ok maybe I was wrong.
The Nature center is enclosed within WestLake Park. It has been converted to protected coastal Mangrove wetlands and native plants and wildlife.
The idea is to return this area to a native habitat and remove the exotic plant species.
They have built several nature trails that you can walk extending out into the mangroves. The area is mud flats and wet ground so the elevated paths are great.They are all made out of that gray plastic composite from recycled plastic. This picture is from a top a five story observation tower in the park of one of the nature trails.
I got the feeling that this place was serious about teaching conservation . The more that I read and saw the more I liked it.
The grounds also has lots of wild flowers growing along with native plants to this area.Here is some Lantana Plant which does great in the heat here and is drought tolerant. Did I say it is a fantastic Butterfly attractor.
They even give you an excuse to have some weeds in your lawn as well as a reason to stop wasting your money on Weed and Feed.
The issue of pesticide use to me now is pretty much common sense. Whatever you spray on your lawn or plants sooner or later you will be drinking in your water or eating in your food.
Some more wildflowers growing along the walkways.These are Blanketflower which grow really well here .
But the real star of the place is the Mangroves themselves. This park is covered in Mangrove wetlands. The Mangrove trees themselves are really not that impressive to look at compared to a lot of other trees at first glance.
But when you begin to learn just how important the mangrove tree is to the marine ecosystem they take on a new light. The Mangroves provide the nursery for countless juvenile marine fishes as well as wildlife. Their tangled root systems provide protection for the fish and wildlife giving them a place to hide and prosper.This picture is of the Mangrove roots. It was low tide so they are visible . You can see the white tide lines on the roots to tell where the high tide water will come up to on the plants. Don't they make a great hiding place for juvenile fish.
I thought this park to be an outstanding example of what we could do to conserve some of our native habitats. Personally I would much rather have my tax money spent on an effort like this than on another baseball stadium. Maybe I'm just weird. It just seems that we have to be stewards of nature.
After a while we went to the other side of the park and rented some Kayaks for a few hours adventure. There are three Kayak trails carved out of the Mangroves that you can paddle down or you can just paddle around in the large shallow saltwater lake.It is a great way to observe nature close up as you want and have a lot of fun doing it.
The canals extend all the way out to the inter coastal waterway just inside the beach shoreline.
The bottom line here is that Westlake Park and the Anne Kolb Nature Center is a really neat place. Not a lot of people , Minimal costs and a lot to see both plants and wildlife.Then add in a bright blue South Florida sky, Fresh air , and a sultry pre- summer day. Topped by being surrounded by your best girls. Who could want more?
--SANDDUNE--
Sanddune....I don't have a clue where this is. But I've been gone since '77.
ReplyDeleteI just recently started following your blog =) Love it by the way...and just had to comment that I live about 10-15 min from here. Crazy how small the world is!!
ReplyDeleteWhat a nice park. It looks like you really enjoyed it. Kayaking around the mangroves sounds scenic and fun. Natural settings are hard to find these days.
ReplyDeleteI live in broward county, and did not know there is such a place existing. Shame, shame... It looks very beautiful. Glad we preserved a place like this. Glad you had good time with your best girls there!
ReplyDeleteIt is wonderful to see places like this, with down to earth signs telling everyone what to do to make the world a better place. Glad you had a great outing.
ReplyDeleteFlorida has so many beautiful spots such as this one to visit. Sounds like the "perfect" day!
ReplyDeleteJim,
ReplyDeleteThe park probably wasn't built yet in 77. It is located on Sheridan Street just a tad west of the bridge that crosses the inter coastal waterway. No Roses in sight but a great place to see and learn about the original Florida Mangrove ecosystem before it was all paved over.
Shelby,
Thanks for visitin' my blog and for the nice comments. I agree it really is a small world and is really neat to be able to communicate around the world sitting at a computer.
NanaK,
The park was really a ray of light in the darkness. Broward County Did something smart when they made this preserve. Now if they will quit pumping millions of gallons of raw sewage into the ocean as does Miami-Dade and Palm Beach county's things might start gettin better. Too bad Anne Kolb is not still around to enlighten them.
Ami,
The nature center is on Sheridan street just before you get to the intercoastal waterway bridge if you are going toward the beach. It's a great place to get away from the city for awhile. I think you would like it. Check it out.
And yes being with my family with everyone together is definately the best times.
Gillian,
It was a great time and refreshing to see some progress for preserving some of the Native plants and ecosystems here. About Time.
Susan,
I agree Florida is a jewel. Hope we are smart enough to recognize this and take care of it.
I love your blog and I'm glad to see that you are enthusiastic about Florida native plants. I, too, am new to florida gardening. Something I am in to is the idea that in order to have a thriving garden in Florida, it's important to have beneficial plants and insects in your yard along with your edibles. For instance, native pines and scrub oak trees create filtered light, mulch and roosting points for red-shouldered hawks...all great for florida gardening. I think it's important to offer food for wildlife and shelter for wildlife in our attempts to create edibles for ourselves in our gardens. I think in the long run, adding a diverse selection of food and nesting sources such as native trees, shrubs, grasses and groundcovers creates a mini ecosystem in your yard that is self-sustaining and good for the environment as well as you. I'm also into this because I'm working at the Florida Native Plant Nursery in Sarasota, where we are starting to sell florida-friendly edibles. I think its important to think beyond ourselves and our food needs and to those of other creatures too if we are privileged enough to have the space (yard). In fact, I feel it is our responsibility to do so, especially in Florida, where there are few regulations about planting invasive species, over-use of pesticides and fertilizers, and the mindset of a lot of gardeners is still in that New England style of maintaining lawns and such. So, keep up the cool blog entries and if you are ever in Sarasota, we'd love to have you out to our nursery...www.floridanativeplants.com
ReplyDeleteWhat a wonderful outing! I am glad this area is being preserved and is used to teach the public about ecology and conservation. Every bit helps!
ReplyDeleteAnnie,
ReplyDeleteThanks for visiting and for the kind words. I agree that native plants are an important part to be included in my backyard garden. I'm also learning how to get along with the bugs and wildlife that show up here. As I learn I am applying the principals of perma-culture and organic methods. And I can see a slow change for the better the more I figure out how best to plant and regenerate the soil here.
Hi Deborah,
It is hard to find much nature that has not been concreted over around here. That's what makes areas like this so refreshing.
Sanddune,
ReplyDeleteWhat a beautiful place. It looks so much like "old Florida". I just LOVE mangroves and all the benefit they are to the wildlife. What a perfect thing to do for Mother's Day with your best girls.
Meems
Sanddune, what a great park! I share your thoughts when it comes to the commissioners, but am impressed by this one and the resulting park/educational opportunities. Love the blanket flower...I grow it in my yard and plan on relocating the numerous seedlings throughout my landscape. I don't use weed and feed, or lawn fertilizer at all. Occasionally I've spread epsom salt, especially around my trees. As you've stated previously, weeds are only unwanted plants...they could be anything! Great post!
ReplyDeleteMeems,
ReplyDeleteIt's a pretty cool place to discover considering it is a county level park in the middle of the beach urban sprawl. Everyone had a great time.
Kimberly,
I really like the Blanket flower also. I hope your spread as a wildflower they seem like pretty tough plants.I think I have three blanket flower plants growing now. The epsom salts seem to work well here during the Summer when the heat really lays on to give the plants a boost.
Looks like you were enjoying yourself.
ReplyDelete