hystadriparianwetlandsassignment#3

8/9/2019 HystadRiparianWetlandsAssignment#3

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Plants of the Lake

Helena WildlifeManagement Area

A field guide


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Marshelder -Iva xanthifolia Division - Angiosperms

Class - Dicots -

Order - Polygonales

Family - Polygonaceae

This plant thrives is moist soils andcan be found all over North

America. This perennial plant growsto a maximum height of 90 cm. Theleaves are narrow and grow in pairsof opposite sides of the plant. Thetops of the stems are covered byclusters of small flowers.

Look for this plant in the sandy soilalong the shores of Silver Creek

between the waters edge and thegroves of sandbar willows.


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Watercress - Rorippa

nasturtium-aquaticum Division - Angiosperms

Class - Dicots -

Order - Capparales

Family - Brassicaceae

This plant is another nonnative plant

that grows in wetlands. This plantoriginated from Europe and Asia, andwas first found in the the Great Lakesregion in the US. This plant can growto heights of 50-120 cm tall and getsmall white flowers in the spring. Thisplant is harvested and eaten, and hasa tangy, peppery flavor.

This plant grows in the irrigationstream that flows into Lake Helena.Look for this plant in the irrigation

ditch along the roadway to the lake.


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Rough Bentgrass -

Agrostis scabra Division - Angiosperms

Class - Monocots -

Order - Cyperales

Family - Poaceae

This grass grows to a heightof 2-3 feet tall when fullymature. Rough Bentgrass isa bunchgrass and can befound growing along shoresof the lake and the streams

that flow into the lake in theshallow, saturated soilsalong the waters edge.

Look for this grass along thewaters edge.


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Meadow Foxtail -

Alopecurus pratensis Division - Angiosperms

Class - Monocots -

Order -

Family - Poaceae

This grass can grow to heights ofup to over a meter tall. Theleaves of this plant are about 5mm wide. This plant flowers inlate spring, and then again inearly fall. This grass is anothernonnative species. This grassoriginates from Europe and Asia.

Look for this plant along theedge of the lake, and along theedges of the irrigation canals

going into the Lake.


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Brook-pimpernell -Veronica anagallis-aquatica

Division - Angiosperms

Class - Dicots

Order - Scrophulariales

Family - Scrophulariaceae

This biennial (or sometimesperennial) plant is an exotic(not native) plant to Montana,but is found as a native plantthrough much of the unitesstates. The plant grows alongstreams and rivers. The plant

has narrow leaves that grow inpairs opposite one another.Look for this plant along theshores of the irrigation canalalong the road to the Wildlife

Management Area.


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Water Sedge - Carex

aquatilis Division - Angiosperms

Class - Monocots -

Order - Cyperales

Family - Cyperaceae

This rhizomatous perennial can grow

to heights of between 10 and 40inches in height. This plant growsprimarily in wetlands where thewater is 1-3 inches deep, but will diein depths of 25 inches. Thewaterfowl that nest in the LakeHelena Wildlife Preserve use therhizome and the seeds as food.

Look for this plant along the smallirrigation stream along the road

from the parking lot to Lake Helena.


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Creeping Spikerush -

Eleocharis palustris Division - Angiosperms

Class - Monocots -

Order - Cyperales

Family - Cyperaceae

This plant grows along wetlands

spanning from the West coast ofthe USA east to Michigan and southto Louisiana. This plant has a denseroot mass that can reach depths ofmore than 40 cm into the soil.Creeping Spikerush can grow 1.2 mtall and the height depends on thewater level of the wetland. The

plant will continue to grow in orderto keep the heads out of the water ifthe water level of the wetland rises.

Look for this plant along the shoresof Lake Helena, where the rootsmight be underwater.


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Broadleaf Cattail - Typha

latifolia Division - Angiosperms

Class - Monocots -

Order - Typhales

Family - Typhaceae

The broadleaf cattail has flatleaves, 6-23 mm wide. Thisplant grows in marshy areasall over the United States.The broadleaf cattail flowersin late summer. The plant

can grow to a height of 5-10feet tall.

Look for the large field ofcattails along the eastern

edge of Lake Helena.


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Sandbar Willow - Salix

exigua Division - Angiosperms

Class - Salicales

Family - Salicaceae

This plant is a shrub in the

willow family that occupiesshores of streams, lakes orrivers throughout the NortheastUS and the Great Plains. Thissuckering plant readily formsthickets. It likes areas with lotsof water. The shrub can grow toheights of 20 feet. The leaves ofthis plant are narrow withserrated edges.

Look for this plant along theshores of Silver Creek justbeyond the field of Cattails

hystadriparianwetlandsassignment#3

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