Coulee Region Sites

Marowski Bluff Prairie

In December 2023, The Prairie Enthusiasts acquired ownership of this 11-acre bluff prairie in Ferryville, WI.  Dr. Christopher Marowski generously donated half of the value of the property and contributed to a land management endowment to ensure funding for restoration is available in the future. Knowles Nelson Stewardship Program provided funding for one half the value of the property.

The Coulee Region Chapter began restoring the site in 2022. Sumac control began first, followed by cedar and hardwood removal, invasive species management, and our first burn was conducted in the spring of 2025. The restoration includes work on a 3-acre bluff prairie and the adjoining oak woodland.

Holland Sand Prairie

The Holland Sand Prairie is a 61-acre floodplain terrace sand prairie. The Coulee Region partners with the Mississippi Valley Conservancy and the Friends of the Holland Sand Prairie to manage this site.

There are large patches of Pasque flower and Prairie smoke in the spring, and Rough blazingstar and Showy goldenrod in the late summer. Along with these typical prairie plants, the site has a good population of Silky prairie clover, and New Jersey tea is common. Several grassland species nest at the site, and badger frequently search for pocket gophers.

TPE leads an effort to collect seed at the site to be interseeded into degraded areas on the property. We sponsor work parties to help with brush control. The chapter developed an informational display for the site and provided a weather-resistant version attached to the site kiosk.

DNR Scientific Natural Area page for the Holland Sand Prairie.

La Crosse Bluff Prairies

Our chapter collaborates with the Friends of the Blufflands (FBL) organization to help manage eight bluff prairies in the City of La Crosse. These 1- to 2-acre remnants contain typical plant community composition of bluff prairies. Some sites are used by Timber Rattlesnakes.

The collaboration includes joint workdays in which we alternate working on La Crosse bluff prairies and TPE project sites. Our chapter plays a key role in restoration by providing prescribed burning on the La Crosse blufflands. The City budgets for some of the management, and FBL and TPE apply for grant funding. Management plans for come sites have been approved by the TPE Land Management Committee.

Properties owned by our members

We are fortunate to have many members with remnants and/or plantings in our chapter. We work together on to manage these sites.

Projects

Bluff prairie educational materials developed for landowner outreach

The Coulee Region Chapter has developed some educational materials for use with landowners. These materials are the very basic information that would be of interest to landowners with bluff prairie remnants. The materials include a brochure, writings about plant species of hill prairies, and display/posters.

Citizen Science:  Prairie Butterflies and Moths

We are hoping to add to the information on the distribution of three skippers and two moths by reporting what we find on prairies in the Coulee region. Armund Bartz gave a presentation about these at a recent meeting. Here’s a video clip from a similar presentation at the 2013 Iowa Prairie Conference. The clip is about a half hour long, but critical parts are: