Vascular Flora of Arend\u27s Kettle, Freda Haffner Kettlehole State Preserve, Dickinson County, Iowa

Arend\u27s Kettle is a 5 ha glacial landform in Dickinson County, Iowa. The flora of this kettle was studied over two years prior to acquisition by the Nature Conservancy in 1973. The known vascular flora of Arend\u27s Kettle as of 1973 consisted of 299 species, representing 177 genera and 59 families. The vegetation ranged from xeric short grass prairie along the rims of the kettle to mesic prairie along the middle and lower slopes. In the bottom of the kettle, there was a marsh/seasonal pond community that varied greatly in the amount of water present, depending on rainfall within the 30 ha drainage into the kettle. At the time of this study, cattle grazing was occurring in the kettle, and there was a prominent ruderal flora associated with trails running along the rims and down to the bottom of the kettle. The shoreline of the marsh also was frequently disturbed by cattle. One federally and state threatened species, Lespedeza leptostachya, prairie bush clover, and one state threatened species, Asdepias lanuginosa, wooly milkweed, were present on the site. Two species were added to the Dickinson County flora