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TUESDAY, JANUARY 8, 2008
Plants of theOkefenok ee Swamp
“The prairies of theOkefenokee are gorgeous expanses of flower-studded wilderness. The growls of hidden alligators,piercing cries of sandhill cranes, and haunting cypress tressdraped in Spanish moss create a place of primeval beauty” Writes Leslie Edwards for the Georgia Botanical Society.“Land of the Trembling Earth” to Native Americans, thisunique ecosystem has been designated a National Wilderness Area, and remains one of the oldest and best preservedfreshwater wetland areas in America.The water throughout the swamp is clear but stained the colorof iced tea by tannins and other products of decaying vegetation. The result of this decay is to make the swamp extraordinarily acidic, with an average pH value of 3.7. Add tothis low levels of nitrogen and phosphorous and it is hard to believe that the swamp supports roughly 600 species of plants including pond cypress taxodium ascendens and bald cypress T. distichum.Other trees found here include blackgum, loblolly-bay, sweet bay, and others. Carnivorous plants can be found inabundance including the best known and most obvious Pitcher Plants. Three varieties are found including goldentrumpet pitcher Sarracenia flava; the hooded pitcher plant, Sarracenia minor and the parrot pitcher plant Sarraceniapsittacina. Sundews Drosera L, Butterworts Pinguicula L. and Bladderworts Utricularia L. are also common.Other plants to watch for include Golden Club Orontium aquaticum in the spring, Water Lilly Nymphaea odorata for itsfragrance, Climbing Heath,Pieris phillyreifolia, Spanish Moss Tillandsia usneoides(not a true moss, but an air plant)and Southern Blue Flag Iris verginica.For more information about the Okefenokee, see the United States Fish & Wildlife Service website for theOkefenokeeNational Wildlife Refuge. According to this website, “the refuge, established in 1936, includes over 400, 000 acres of theswamp, and an additional 350,000 acres in the interior designated a National Wilderness Area.To plan a visit for this and other Georgia destinations, visit theSherpa Guides website.
POSTED BY KAY STEPHENSON AT8:40 AM 
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ABOUT ME AND NATIVE PLANTS
Kay Stephenson is a transplant toGeorgia from the St. LawrenceRiver valley of New York. An avidgardener, she served on the boardof theGeorgia Native PlantSociety and advocates for the useof native plants through severalother park and greenspaceorganizations likePiedmont Park Conservancy .Georgia Gardeninghas published several of herarticles. In the interest of fulldisclosure, her own gardens arenot exclusively native, but she is working on it. A freelance writer and fiber artist,Kay lives in Atlanta, Ga with herhusband, Mark, and her dog,Lady.
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