Despite their somewhat barren appearance, the giant sand dunes in the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore are host to an amazing assortment of wild flowers and plants. As you walk on the immense Sleeping Bear Plateau, you begin to realize that it truly is a garden, featuring bright yellow hoary puccoon, exotic-looking spotted orange dune lilies, delicate pink wind anemone and the ungainly Pitcher's Thistle. Although officially listed as threatened (the last stop before becoming an endangered species), the Pitcher's Thistle is quite common in this unusual ecosystem. Holding these dynamic dunes together and helping other plants to proliferate are the fragile dune grasses. By securing the dunes, dune grasses allow other plants to move in and populate this unlikely and magnificent garden.
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