January-February 2019 • Nebraskaland 25
W
hile everything around me that
morning was gorgeous, a few plant
species seemed perfectly suited to
their crystal coatings. The fuzzy golden seeds
of Indiangrass, for example, caught the light
wonderfully when wrapped in ice, and ended up
in nearly one-third of all the photos I took that
morning. The panicled seed heads of switchgrass
were also fabulous, creating drooping clusters of
glittering globes, each encasing a tiny switchgrass
seed. A surprising addition was stiff goldenrod,
whose compact flower heads had lost most of
their fluffy seeds, but now were handsomely
enclosed by clear ice.
When I finally left the prairie, it wasn't
because I ran out of beauty to photograph – it
was because I was emotionally spent. I felt very
much like I had just gorged myself on a fantastic
Thanksgiving meal, except that my brain was full
of goodness, rather than my stomach. The ice
melted away pretty quickly that afternoon, but
my memories from that day will stay with me for
a very long time.
A long frozen drop of
water extends from a
small reservoir of ice in
a grass leaf.
A stiff sunflower seed
head carries an icy clear
coat.
Jewels of ice-covered switchgrass seeds dangle in the
morning light.
