Northlandia: 31,000 plants preserved, documented thanks to UMD botanist

Northlandia: 31,000 plants preserved, documented thanks to UMD botanist

DULUTH — How many plants can you name in your own backyard? If you're renowned botanist Olga K. Lakela, that number is upward of 30,000. At least, that's how many specimens were in the herbarium she started when she retired from the University of Minnesota Duluth, where she worked as a professor and department head for a few decades. Today, the herbarium at UMD bears her name in honor of her lifelong work in botany. The herbarium contains 49,000…