Wagner Natural Area preserves calcium-rich, spring-fed marl ponds surrounded by forests of spruce, aspen, birch, tamarack and willow. Sixteen of the 24 orchid species known to occur in Alberta have been found here, including lady's-slipper and the rare bog adder's-mouth. Other plant species in the area include northern green bog and sparrow's egg. The area is also home to several unusual carnivorous plants such as sundew, bladderwort and butterwort. Wagner's groundwater springs are its lifeblood. These springs not only provide water to the area; they have also created the calcium-rich marl ponds. Marl is an insoluable carbonate residue used in some industrial products. Wagner contains some of the few undisturbed marl ponds in the Edmonton area.