Friends of Indian Lake workday at the lake – Saturday, July 11

We hope you can join us on Saturday, July 11 from 8 am-noon for a special workday at Indian Lake county park. Over the past few years we’ve been working to restore Indian Lake. On July 11 we’ll be planting native aquatic and wet prairie species. The goal is to establish a more diverse plant community and benefit fish and wildlife. With the guidance of Dane county and DNR biologists we’ve targeted areas in and along the lake for this planting.

We’ll have more than 2000 aquatic plants to plant along the shore and in shallow water areas of Indian Lake. Species include sweet flag, marsh marigold, duck potato, swamp milkweed, wild senna, prairie cord grass, various bulrush species (hard-stemmed, green), waterlilies (yellow, white), and sedges (broom, bottlebrush, crested, owl-fruited, fox).

This planting day is in combination with efforts to remove carp and restock a healthy fishery in Indian Lake. Invasive carp were treated in early March, and DNR and Dane county have begun restocking the lake. Fish stocking will continue during the year. If you can make it to the July 11 planting party you’ll have a chance to learn more about the carp removal and restocking, and efforts to improve lake recreation.

We’ll meet at the Indian Lake boat landing next to highway 19. (This is different from the park’s main entrance and parking lot.) We’ll have plenty of refreshments and lunch will be provided. Bring your own water bottle, and work gloves if you have them. It’s best to have shoes both for water and land, since we’ll be planting on- and off-shore. If you have a small canoe or kayak (life preservers too!) and you’re willing to help plant in the lake, we’d like to know. We’re looking forward to an exciting morning at the lake!

If you plan to join us, or if there’s a possibility you can make it, please let us know so we have an estimate. Feel free to send questions our way ahead of time, or to forward this to others if you think they’d be interested. Thank you! We’ll send an update before the 11th.

Sherry, John, and Jeff
Friends of Indian Lake