306 Can This Wildflower Route Be Saved? - webapps8

CAN THISLDFLOWERROUTEAVED?By MARGARET A. HAAPOJAVolunteers make a last'ditch effort to rescue nativeorchids in the path of roadwork.PAUL RUNDELL REMEMBERS WHEN ORCHIDS GREW LIKE DANDELIONS ALONGHighway 11 between Baudette and Greenbush along the Canadianborder. The retired park resource specialist for the Department ofNatural Resources once estimated 2 million to 5 million orchids grew there,including about 800,000 showy lady's-slippers, the state flower. Indeed,orchids were so profuse that in 1990 Gov. Rudy Perpich designated thatstretch of Highway 11a Minnesota Wildflower Route, one of the first of fivesuch routes in the state. Since then, the Williams Garden Club has hosted anannual Wildflower Route Celebration every year in mid-June. Led by localwildflower advocate Celeste La Valla, club members flag some 40 differentwildflower species in the area and provide maps for enthusiasts searchingfor the flowers.The roadway is so unusual and beautiful that it is no wonder area residentswere upset when road construction threatened to destroy their "orchid highway."LaValla still mourns the loss of so much wildflower habitat. "If you