My Fairy Meadow-The Glade

A few years ago, on one of my walks in the woods, I came upon a rocky opening ablaze with wildflowers. Rock pink and lichen grew between and on the limestone/dolomite rock beds; pale purple coneflowers swayed in the breeze, and coreopsis glowed with its golden splendor. My own fairy meadow! As I stood gazing at the enchanting vision in front of me, I thought for a moment that it was a mirage. I remembered a meadow of my childhood, where forget-me-not's bloomed in profusion, and where I was sure I had seen an illusive fairy, singing a sweet song that only I could hear. Surely there must be some fairies, dancing among the flowers, in this lovely meadow, I thought pensively.

Of course, my fairy meadow was not a mirage at all. It was a naturally occurring rocky opening surrounded by forests, and known as a glade. Locals refer to them as bald knobs. As I read up on the subject of glades, I found out that they usually occur on south or west-facing slopes, where the sun shines more directly and creates a less conducive environment for trees and other woody plants that surround the area. The soil in glades is thin and rocky, with underlying bedrock exposed as ledges and boulders. In the Missouri Ozarks, the type of bedrock on which they form classifies glades. My glade, a limestone/dolomite glade, occurs in the Ozarks extensively. Plants growing in this type of environment are similar, and they reflect the chemical characteristics of the rocks and the soil that forms over them.

Perennial plants such as grasses and wildflowers dominate glades. Many of these same plants usually grow in prairies. In fact, these limestone/dolomite glades are the closest one can come to a desert-type environment in the still much-forested Ozarks. Yet, this seemingly dry, hot, hostile environment is actually a distinct ecosystem teeming with life. And although the soil is very shallow, usually not more than 2 inches deep, and conditions are dry in the summer; glades can get saturated in fall, winter and spring, sometimes even boasting seasonal spring seeps.

Plants such as certain grasses, wildflowers, and lichens dominate these sunny, fairy meadows among the forest. Many of the plants that grow in glades are the same as those found in prairies. Like grasses such as bluestem, Indian grass, side-oats gramma, and switch grass; lichens such as reindeer moss, which is common in the tundra.

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