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CHAPTER 2 <br /> Ecological Context <br /> The City sits on the boundary between the Anoka Sand Plain ■ <br /> and the Saint Croix Moraines. Ecosystem diversity increases <br /> naturally at such boundary lines; but St.Anthony can be con- <br /> sidered even more diverse, as each of the ecosystems it <br /> straddles has inherent diversity within its boundaries. The <br /> Anoka Sand Plain is a well drained, dry upland, pockmarked <br /> with glacial depressions and tunnel valleys and flanked by e <br /> terraces descending to the Mississippi River. It is a mosaic <br /> of plant communities, changing with slight differences in soil <br /> moisture and sun exposure. The Saint Croix Moraines tran- <br /> sition from small steep hills to level or rolling plains to deep <br /> stream-cut ravines. Glacial drift is relatively thin, exposing ■ <br /> bedrock outcrops in some areas, and the soil is generally <br /> richer and more diverse than on the sand plain. The ex- <br /> treme microclimate changes across these two ecosystems <br /> ` can range from hot dry sandy uplands to cool stream bot- <br /> toms meandering between rock outcrops. Vegetation is <br /> resultantly diverse. <br /> The Village at St. Anthony recognizes <br /> local ecosystem diversity by incorpo- <br /> rating a variety of landscape experi- <br /> ences into the central park, and by se- . <br /> lecting a variety of flowering trees, <br /> shrubs, and perennials to add a diver- <br /> sity of color throughout the site. <br /> e <br /> 6 Village at St. Anthony Framework Manual <br />