Yes that is a wonderful area up there I wish I could make more time to travel up that way.
I probably won't be using a lot of native plants for this setup. Unfortunately most of the marginal emergent species in WI are plants that requirea cold winter dormancy, so they aren't so good for a permanent indoor display. FOr the planted area I am going to instead use some common cpond plants (
Cyperus, Acorus and a few others) as "stand-ins" for the native grassy plants.
Here's another idea that I had for the abovewater background...
ReefCetnral.com: My Shadowbox Background
This would only work if the plants were trimmed back so that a good deal of negative space could be maintained in the planted layout. For this idea I would frame up a shot enlargrement showing a view through the trees near a stream and then use the shadowbox for an enhanced perception of depth.