https://www.springfarmcares.org/visit/nature-sanctuary/

Spring Farm CARES Nature Sanctuary, 3364 State Route 12, Clinton, NY (2026)

08/29/2026

At the Sanctuary, we have a small community of Golden Digger Wasps seen in our gardens. They are large, bright orange, and quite eye-catching.

Luckily for us, these wasps are non-aggressive and simply enjoy visiting blooming flowers to get some sugary, nutrient-rich nectar to fuel their hunt for prey. These wasps have a short lifecycle, only living for a few weeks as adults, where their main goal is to mate, dig a large, multi-room burrow to lay eggs, and hunt food for their larvae.

In this case, their main food source for their larvae is grasshoppers and katydids. As adults, the male wasps gather outside of closed-off burrows where females may emerge in the late summer and fight for mating rights with the female.

Once the female has successfully mated, she begins her life's purpose, protecting her eggs from fall until summer.

Only females are equipped with a stinger, which they use ONLY to paralyze prey. She creates a special venom that only stuns her prey, so she can take it back to her burrow, place it in one of the many chambers, and lay an egg on top of it.

The prey is paralyzed in order to keep the food source from rotting while the larvae develop into an adult, which can take up to 2 weeks.

The wasps are also accidental pollinators! While visiting flowers for food and energy, they accidentally pick up pollen. They have distinctive golden hairs along their head and thorax that accidentally gather pollen and transfer it to other plants.

Due to their clumsy nature and large, strong bodies, they don't carry much pollen, but are able to knock it off easily onto plants adjacent to them. In particular, they are much better at reaching the pollen of plants like milkweed, which have special large packages of pollen. These large and strong wasps are able to tear into the flower further to reach these packages and break them apart, better than butterflies can.

So next time you see them in your garden visiting your flowers, its ok to take a closer look from a safe distance and observe their behavior. They are fierce, yet peaceful creatures and extremely beneficial for flowers and soil!

08/28/2026

Fruiting this week at the Nature Sanctuary!

This yellow coral fungus (Ramaria sp.) caught our eye along the trail in the old woods. The fruiting body is made of multiply branched stems that truly do look like coral emerging from the forest floor! Ramaria, like many mushroom genera, can be hard to identify to a species level without a microscope or genetic testing.

The American caesar mushroom (Amanita jacksonii) can be found growing in temperate forests from Quebec to Mexico. They reliably emerge here mid-to-late summer into early fall, always in the same hemlock-dominant grove. They are considered a choice edible by squirrels and chipmunks and thus rarely make it to maturity. Their transformation from white, immature egg to fully opened orange/red mushroom is magical when you do see it!

The purple-gilled Laccaria (Laccaria ochropurpurea) has an unassuming cap color that surprises with bright purple gills on the underside. Mycorrhizal with hardwoods and conifers, found here under hemlock and beech.

This gorgeous bolete (Neoboletus sp.) had a velvety orange cap, orange/reddish pores, and all parts stained dark blue instantly when cut. Staining is an important identification feature in boletes, and can help distinguish between lookalikes.

Join us for a mushroom walk on Saturday, September 5th at 8 a.m. to see what's fruiting in the woods. Registration is required, see pinned event page for details!

08/27/2026

Flowering this week at the Nature Sanctuary!

The leaves and flowers of sneezeweed (Helenium autumnale) were used as s***f to cure colds by various Native American tribes. Having sniffed the flowers closely, it does not produce sneezing from smelling alone! Sneezeweed prefers wet soils and is often found growing on riverbanks or marsh edges, but is thriving in the average soil of our gardens. It forms attractive clumps that flower in the latter half of August into October, providing nectar for various bees, wasps, and butterflies.

Turtlehead (Chelone glabra) is wetland plant that grows wild in wet places throughout the Sanctuary. The flowers range from pure white to blush pink, and have a shape that is reminiscent of, you guessed it, a turtle’s head. In the right conditions, turtlehead forms large clumps that spread by rhizome. Turtlehead is the primary host plant for the Baltimore checkerspot butterfly. The aerial parts of the plant contain iridoid glycosides, which provide a chemical defense for the butterflies that feed on the leaves. Research shows that iridoid glycosides also reduce parasite contamination in bumblebees that drink turtlehead's nectar.

Wild cucumber vine (Echinocystis lobata) grows wild all over the Sanctuary and has formed a particularly resplendent arbor in our Chestnut Grove garden! The fragrant flowers attract bees, flies, and butterflies. The most visually interesting part of this plant is the seed pod, which do indeed look like some kind of spiky cucurbit. The pods contain one or two large black seeds that disperse by explosion. While the vine grows vigorously, it doesn't seem to kill its host.

Goldenrod (Solidago spp.) season has begun, tipping the balance of the color scale from green to yellow. New York State is home to at least twenty species of goldenrod. Common species in CNY include tall goldenrod, early goldenrod, Canada goldenrod, wrinkle-leaf goldenrod, grass-leaved goldenrod, zigzag goldenrod, blue-stemmed goldenrod, and silver rod, to name a few!

Swamp rose mallow (Hibiscus moschuetos) is still going strong. It tops out at about 6 feet, and its vibrant and showy flowers are a hit with humans, insects, and birds alike. The flowers are pollinated by various bees including the specialist Hibiscus bee, Ptilothrix bombiformis, and ruby-throated hummingbirds. Our patch is having an especially good year!

Come see all these plants and more at our next sunset garden tour, Wednesday 9/2 at 6:30 p.m. Registration is required, please sign up on Bookwhen! See pinned event post for details.

08/18/2026

Fruiting this week at the Nature Sanctuary! Join us on Saturday morning for a mushroom walk to see and learn about these mushrooms in person.

The wooly chanterelle (Turbinellus floccosus) is mycorrhizal with conifers. Here we find them under hemlock. Although these look somewhat like (edible) chanterelles, they are not edible and are known to cause stomach upset if consumed.

Amanita sp. probably Amanita flavoconia and not its close look alike Amanita frostiana

Many mushrooms in the genus Suillus fruit under conifers in the fall. Though they have notoriously slimy caps, people eat a handful of species in the genus.

Chicken of the woods (Laetiporus sulphureous) grows on dead or dying hardwoods, often cherry or oak, from late summer to fall, occasionally in spring. It has a velvety soft texture when young and hardens with age. It is considered a choice edible mushroom by humans, and is also popular with other mammals and invertebrates.

Ramaria is a genus of coral fungi with a global distribution. Fungi in this genus often have eye-catching colors and interesting branching shapes. Depending on the species, they will grow in soil or on wood. This one was growing out of moss. Whether it was attached to wood or soil underneath is unclear.

First time seeing the ornate-stalked bolete (Retiboletus ornatipes) here. They are mycorrhizal with various hardwoods; this one was growing under beech and hop-hornbeam.

Mystery mushroom that I thought was an egg-stage Amanita or puffball that turned out to be…a golfball that had been nibbled by something

08/14/2026

Flowering this week at the Sanctuary!

Cardinal flower (Lobelia cardinalis) is a hummingbird favorite with a penchant for wet, sandy soils. Given the right conditions, it will self-seed its way into a long-lived patch. A great place to see cardinal flower locally is at the Nine Mile Swamp in Hubbardsville. It flowers from late July into September, and the red flowers are a choice source of nectar for hummingbirds. Hummingbirds are also a main pollinator of cardinal flower. The flowers are protandrous, with the male parts maturing before the female. They bloom sequentially, and when hummingbirds visit cardinal flowers for nectar and dip their beaks into the flowers, they will often come away with grains of pollen on their heads, to be deposited when they visit the next flower.

Blue lobelia (Lobelia siphilitica), a close relative of cardinal flower, has thickly clustered, tooth-like irregular flowers. Lobelia blooms from July into September and prefers wet places with full to partial sun: beaver meadows, stream and pond margins, and floodplains, although it also flourishes in the average soil of our gardens, where it has self-seeded into the pathways and beds. For this reason it’s a good choice for naturalizing in a wet area. The flowers are attractive to many bumblebees.

The trumpet creeper (Campsis radicans) is an outstanding native vine that provides both beauty and wildlife benefit. The tubular flowers are very attractive to hummingbirds, who along with various long-tongued bumblebees are the flower’s main pollinators. Because it can spread somewhat vigorously, trumpet creeper would like to be planted in a place where it can spread freely - not for small spaces! It looks tropical, but is in fact native to the Northeast.

New York ironweed (Vernonia noveboracensis) is one of the tallest plants in our gardens, reaching up to ten feet! Its showy, deep purple flowers are always covered in flies, bees, and butterflies. This stunner elicits many gasps of appreciation when people see them in full bloom.

Swamp rose mallow (Hibiscus moschuetos) is our most exotic-looking native! Commonly confused with Rose of Sharon, swamp rose mallow is actually native to a wide swathe of eastern North America. Typically found in wetlands, it flourishes in the average soil of our garden, and has continued to thrive without watering even during periods of drought. It tops out at about 6 feet, and its vibrant and showy flowers are a hit with humans, insects, and birds alike. The flowers are pollinated by various bees including the specialist Hibiscus bee, Ptilothrix bombiformis, and ruby-throated hummingbirds. Swamp rose mallow will do best planted in an area with room to spread out, like in a rain garden, pond margin, or hedge.

Downy skullcap (Scutellaria Sincana) produces abundant clusters of blue-purple flowers on attractive silvery foliage. We see bumblebees and butterflies visiting the flowers, and apparently a small mammal has taken to the foliage as well. Skullcap has a long history of traditional use as a mild sedative, so perhaps the deer or rabbit who has been nibbling needs to take the edge off.

08/13/2026

We're doing another sunset garden tour tonight at 7:15! The gardens are absolutely incredible right now. No need to sign up this time, just show up. We will be gathering by the stone cairn in the main Spring Farm lot. Come admire all the flowers - hope to see you there!

08/12/2026

Amanita bisporigera, the destroying angel, is one of North America’s deadliest mushrooms. It typically fruits from summer into fall, and locally seems to appear under beech trees, though it's also known to be mycorrhizal with oaks.

Starkly white from cap to gills, with a white spore print, the destroying angel has a smooth, unblemished cap, a stem with a flared ring (annulus) around it, and a sack-like base that often needs to be excavated to be seen clearly. These mushrooms contain amatoxins, which can cause liver failure if treatment is not received in time. Unfortunately, people who eat A. bisporigera often don't experience symptoms until the toxin has already begun damaging the liver. Amanita bisporigera and its close relative Amanita phalloides are responsible for the majority of mushroom poisonings in North America.

Although deadly to humans and canines, other mammals, including chipmunks and deer, can eat amatoxin-containing mushrooms without apparent issue. It's not unusual to find destroying angels with little nibbles taken out of them!

Amatoxins are not destroyed by heat, so cooking does not make them safe to eat. Contrary to popular belief, it’s not dangerous to touch these or any other toxic mushrooms. Just wash your hands after, especially before eating. Never eat a mushroom you cannot identify with 100% confidence, and always follow reliable preparation guidelines if you are eating wild mushrooms.

08/07/2026

GenLo has a 2 AM grooming session on the shore of Morton’s Pond

08/07/2026

This glittering gem is the dogbane beetle (Chrysochus auratus), a leaf beetle that feeds exclusively on plants in the dogbane genus (Apocynum). Here it is munching on a leaf of h**p dogbane, a widespread plant across much of North America. All dogbanes contain alkaloids that make them poisonous to mammals. Dogbane beetles munch the leaves and then store the alkaloids until they need to release them to defend against predation. Apparently, the beetle’s fantastic coloration telegraphs its inedibility to would-be predators.

08/03/2026

Ghost pipe (Monotropa uniflora) is surprisingly eye-catching for being so diminutive and pale! Commonly mistaken for a mushroom, ghost pipe is actually a perennial plant that lacks chlorophyll and cannot perform photosynthesis.

Instead, they are mycotrophic — they sustain themselves by siphoning nutrients from the mycelium of fungi in the Russula family, which in turn form symbiotic relationships with a number of tree species. Locally, Russula mushrooms and ghost pipe seem to especially favor beech trees, but Russula are also mycorrhizal with oak, hemlock, and hickory trees (to name a few).

Ghost pipe is pollinated by several native bumblebees in the genus Bombus. Because they thrive in places with intact and robust mycorrhizal networks, you're most likely to see ghost pipe in relatively mature, undisturbed forests.

They cannot be cultivated, and they should never be picked. Instead, appreciate them as the luminous forest dwellers that they are!

Spring Farm CARES Nature Sanctuary

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