Tale of Two Lakes

By Alysia Dirks

Colophon

Copyright 2013Book made by blurb

Table of Contents

Chapter 1: Process

Chapter 2: Salt Marsh

Chapter 3: Freshwater

Chapter 4: Lake History

Foreword

by Stacy AsherAssistant Professor of ArtAdvanced Graphic DesignFall 2013

MAPPING FOR A NARRATIVE ATLASDuring the Fall Semester 2013 at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, students of “Advanced Graphic Design and DesignStudio 421 / 426” authored a collection of maps, charts anddiagrams that centered around the concept of “Water and System.”Each designed artifact addressed aspects of individual designresearch and illustrates various methods of investigation. Projectsengaged students in the invention of unique graphic systems thatvisualize information about water. The designs represent quantitativeand qualitative narratives and illustrate individual perspectivesand interests.These visual displays of water and system were compiled intoan atlas — a book of maps, charts, illustrations or diagramsunited by the subject of water and system. The atlas representsa coordinated body of methods, a scheme or plan of procedurethat was used to organize data from design research. Variousproduction methods were considered and students were encouragedto explore a wide variety of media and design strategies.These methods were evaluated on their effectiveness as generatorsof visual information with respect to their project goalsand intended meanings.

Preface

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Introduction

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1P r o c e s s

Its a process!

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At the beginning of the class, we did an exercise that involved taking pictures. The pictures involved water and the different ways we use water.

Exercise 1:Image Library

Exercise 2:Zine

The separate pages of the zine are shown in the next few pages. This zine was a way to put all of the information that I had found about the different bodies of water and make them make sense. The two bodies of water I compared were salt marshes and freshwater.

2Salt MarshA salt marsh is an area of marshy ground that is scattered with salt water or retains pools of salt water together with vegetation.

Smooth Cord Grass

Pickleweed

Widgeon Grass

Phragmite Reeds

Salt Grass

Sea Lavender

Salt Marsh Asher

Native Plants to Salt Marshes

Lake Location

Capitol Beach lakes’ location is right off O street. This area is surrounded by homes.

Capitol Beach Lake

There are four plants native to salt marshes that were found at Capitol Beach Lake and they are: pickleweed, salt marsh aster, Smooth Cord Grass, and Phragmite Reeds.

Pickleweed

A perennial with straight and spreading fleshy stems. It does not require air passage to its roots, and it tolerates salt by concentrating it in its segmented stems which break off when full. Dodder (Cuscuta salina) is an orange, string parasitic plant found growing on pickleweed.

Salt Marsh Aster

Salt Marsh Aster is a perennial that has alternate flexuous linear leaves and pale purple, bule or white daisey-like flowers that bloom from July to September. The plant grows 1-4 feet.

Smooth Cord Grass

Smooth Cordgrass is tall, smooth grass ranging in height from 6 to 7 feet. It grows in three different sizes depending on where it is growing. Near the water, it grows taller.

Phragmite Reeds

common reed, is a wetland plant species found in every U.S. state.

It can grow up to 6 meters high in dense stands and is long-lived. Phragmites is capable of reproduction by seeds, but primarily does so asexually by means of rhizomes. Recent research has now shown that native and introduced genotypes of this species currently exist in North America.

3FreshwaterFresh water is naturally occurring water on the Earth’s surface in ice sheets, ice caps, glaciers, icebergs, bogs, ponds, lakes, riv-ers and streams, and underground as groundwater in aquifers and underground streams.

Cattail

Eelgrass

Duckweed

Water Poppy

Freshwater Algae

Fasle Ivy

Bur-reed

Native Plants to Freshwater

Holmes Lake

Lake Location

The lake I chose to focus on for freshwater was Holmes Lake. I decided since the lake is so large that I wanted to pick a certain area to focus on. I thought focusing on one area would make the lake less overwhelming. To the right, there are two pictures. On the bottom, is a view of the lake as a whole and then on the top is the zoomed in view of the area I focused on.

Algae

Algae is a freshwater plant that was found at Holmes Lake. Algae is chiefly aquatic, eukaryotic, photosynthetic organisms, ranging in size from single-celled forms to the giant kelp. Algae was once considered to be plants but are now classified separately because they lack true roots, stems, leaves, and embryos.

Duckweed

Duckweed is a plant that was found at Holmes Lake. This plant is small, free-floating, and stemless. It is an aquatic flowering plant of the genus Lemna. Duckweed grows in close, often carpetlike colonies on the surface of quiet water.

False Ivy

False ivy is a freshwater plant that was found in Holmes Lake. This plant is a climbing vine that looks and acts like ivy but is not related to it. The plant is related to grape vines, as it is part of the family Vitaceae. False Ivy though it appears to look like poison Ivy it actually isnt. The leaves have three lobes, like ivy and are glossy green, red or purple depending on the season. The size of the leaves range from really large to quite small. The vine itself can reach maximum heights and widths of 50 feet if conditions are right for optimum growth.

Bur-reed

The Bur reed is a freshwater plant that was found at Holmes Lake. It is a moderately tall, aquatic wildflower that measures approximately 30-90 cm. in height. The light green stem is robustly grass-like and forms a zig-zag pattern wherein spiky, green, ball-shaped flower clusters are positioned at each stem juncture. The leaves of the bur reed are long and slightly channeled.The bur reed is not a perfect flower; female flowers have a single stigma, light green, scaly sepals and petals, and form large, spiny clusters, measuring 2.5 cm in width, along the lower part of the stem. The male flowers form slightly smaller and more numerous flower clusters above the female clusters. These light green, male clusters are covered with a fuzzy coating of pollen and tend to shrivel and fall off after pollination.

4 Lake History

Timeline and history

Holmes Lake

1995Estimated 40% residential and commer cial use; wate rshed cover s 5.2 squa re miles

1962

1970

Native Animals: Rough fish: carp, gizz ard shad, white per ch

Lake was added to the Clean Water Act

1998

Holmes lak e reservoir is built by the US Army Corps of Enginee rs

2003

Lake is drained and restoration begins

Dredging r emoves sever al feet of sediment that was carried in f rom water e rosion .

Much of the sediment that enter ed Holmes Lake came fr om development of land into residential and comme rcial housing.

2004

2005

Lake is refilled; filled with la rgemouth bass, channel catfish, bluegill

The restored Holmes Lake after the renovation is complete.

2006

Started to plant r ain gardens east of Holmes Lake

2007

2013

What Holmes L ake looks li ke now .

Typology

Shown on the graph is an overview of the age of the homes around Holmes Lake. This graph also shows the future of where I think the lake is headed. As I drove around the lake and the neighborhoods around it, there are many older homes. This area has a mixture of both older generations and newer generations. Unlike Capitol Beach Lake, Holmes Lake is a constantly growing community with houses being built all the time. There are a substantial amout of older homes but thats quickly changing as the years go by.

Timeline and historyCapitol Beach Lake

Typology

Shown on the graph is an overview of the age of the homes around Capitol Beach Lake. This graph also shows the future of where I think the lake is headed. As I drove around the lake and the neighborhoods around it, there are many older homes. This lake has become a place where few big houses are built and many middle class families are raising families. There arent too many new homes being built.