No one has seen anything like this habitat for trout lilies, trilliums and orchids near Cairo, Ga. Photo by Robin Kennedy
Grant will pay half the price; owner chips in; now it's up to everyone
Unique Wolf Creek habitat effort seeks $161,250 in donations
to purchase 140 spectacular acres of rare trout lilies and orchids
| By Michael E. Abrams Good news of a grant by the Georgia Land Conservation Program leaves a challenge for the public to create a fabulous 140 acre public land preserve, unique in the world. With your help, one of the most important and beautiful new natural discoveries in the South can be saved for future generations. It's home of the greatest expanse of trout lilies known to exist anywhere, say experts. The $342,250 grant will pay half the price of the property, according to Dan Miller, a prominent native plant nurseryman of Tallahassee, who leads efforts to preserve 140 acres of a highly diverse hardwood forest five miles west of Cairo, Georgia, not far beyond the Florida line. The owner has agreed to donate $145,000 of the remaining costs. With $36,000 in pledges, that leaves $161,250 to be raised. The grant is the result of a collaborative effort of the Magnolia Chapter of the Florida Native Plant Society, the Georgia Botanical Society and the Georgia Native Plant Society. |
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 Trout lily - Erythronium umbillicatum |
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| The land would be owned by
the Grady County Commission, which is also
behind efforts to preserve this fragile habitat. The rare trout lilies thrive in moist, cool, rich soil under very special conditions. They were first noted by botanist Angus Gholson of Chattahoochee, Miller told a large group from the Plant Society. Miller is requesting pledges for future donations, which will be kept confidential, with written receipts – and all donations would be returned by Grady County if for some reason the land cannot be purchased. "We are soliciting first from those who are most passionate about native plants, their beauty and their value to our natural heritage," writes Miller. The trout lily is an endangered species in Florida, and rarely seen in South Georgia. It is a harbinger of springtime. Among plants present are the Trillium maculatum, bloodroot, the crane fly and green fly orchids, and the Southern tway blade orchid. Visitors to the site in spring were full of wonder at the expanse of flowers. Click on the white document in the middle of the page to read more about the effort and a pledge form. |
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