by The Prairie Enthusiasts | May 1, 2020 | News
The main theme of this series of posts is the sense of nature that gives us strength and healing. The poetry of Wendell Berry often does that. He was in touch with the earth, though often from a more agricultural standpoint. He once wrote a poem about stones, from a farmer’s point of view. They are obstacles, needing to be broken up and removed so that the land can be cultivated. But Berry also shows regard and respect for these stones, for what he calls their music, mute in them until he connects to them and they connect him to the ground.
Photo by Stephen Winter
“The Stones” by Wendell Berry
I owned a slope full of stones.
Like buried pianos they lay in the ground,
shards of old sea-ledges, stumbling blocks
where the earth caught and kept them
dark, an old music mute in them
that my head keeps now I have dug them out.
I broke them where they slugged in the dark
cells, and lifted them up in pieces.
As I piled them in the light
I began their music. I heard their old lime
rouse in breath of song that had not left me.
I gave pain and weariness to their bearing out.
What bond have I made with the earth,
having worn myself against it? It is a fatal singing
I have carried with me out of that day.
The stones have given me music
that figures for me their holes in the earth
and their long lying in them dark.
They have taught me the weariness that loves the ground,
and I must prepare a fitting silence.
From Farming: A Handbook
by Wendell Berry
by The Prairie Enthusiasts | May 1, 2020 | News
This week more reptiles and amphibians are becoming active. The musical trill of American Toads can now be heard from some ponded wetlands. Toads typically breed when water temperatures are over 60⁰ F but may be heard singing from late April until mid-summer.
Bird’s-foot violets are starting to bloom in prairie areas. Bird’s-foot violets can be distinguished from the similar prairie violets by their protruding orange stamens which resemble a beak.
Red-headed Woodpeckers are known to be aggressive toward other birds, often seen chasing the much larger Pileated Woodpeckers where they co-exist. They become even more aggressive during this time of year, particularly with other Red-headed Woodpeckers, as they compete for nesting habitat and mates. Red-headed Woodpeckers are an iconic species of oak savannas. Steep population declines after the mid-1900’s were primarily due to habitat loss. Prescribed burning for oak savanna restoration creates more openings in the forest canopy and dead trees which are critical components for species recovery.
by The Prairie Enthusiasts | May 1, 2020 | News
Susan S. Chambers, Many Rivers Chapter member, explores the awe we can discover each and every day, and especially when we are isolated at home. A notable poet, she shows us how the comfort of a poem can touch us spiritually.
Aubade poem- An aubade is a morning love song (as opposed to a serenade, which is in the evening), or a song or poem about lovers separating at dawn.
Aubade: A Morning Routine
Knee reminds me to be cautious.
It only rises from the crumpled quilts
with support of end table and my third leg.
We make a metallic start.
The walk to bathroom, cold tile on bare feet,
the click of my cane. I flick the light on,
hang my extra appendage on the edge of the counter,
run the hot water, wash off gummy eyes.
Add eye-drops, run a brush through hair snarls,
take morning’s first pill. Outside my thick windows
a turkey calls. April is their month of lust.
I peek out to see a brilliant fanned tail strut close by.
This is a celebration, of sorts, my start each day.
I am still here, free of fever, cough or sore throat.
As I limp to my tea, I begin to hum.
Spring creeps closer, steered by the chortle
and mating dance of large birds.
Even isolated, I can join in the song.
By Susan S. Chambers, 2020
by The Prairie Enthusiasts | Apr 9, 2020 | News
Undaunted by the COVID-19 pandemic, the Empire-Sauk Chapter delivered its March 28, 2020 basic burn crew training workshop online. Teachers Rob Baller, Andy Sleger and Scott Fulton, together with moderator Grace Vosen, utilized Zoom to present the 6-hour program to 31 students, including a number from a Dane County Parks volunteer training class which had been cancelled.
Scott Fulton teaching the Empire-Sauk Chapter online burn class. Photo by Karen Agee
The class was based on the standard TPE burn training program developed by Rob Baller several years ago to meet the training requirements under TPE’s Burn Policy for new volunteer burn crew members. The program, which conforms with guidelines from the Wisconsin Prescribed Fire Council, includes sections on Fire Ecology, Fire Influences, Burn Techniques, Safety, Crew Assignments, Burn Plans and Equipment. Several videos are also used to illustrate fire behavior, including an excellent drone video of a complete prescribed burn conducted by TPE volunteers and staff at the Pleasure Valley Easement in 2018. The teaching team also developed a post-class quiz and feedback survey, presented to the students as an online survey using TPE’s NationBuilder website and database platform. Initial feedback has been very positive.
One challenge using Zoom was how to best receive and address questions from the participants. We decided to mute everyone except the presenters and use the Zoom Chat window for questions. This was highly successful – there was a good flow of questions, some of which were addressed immediately with others held to a question period at the end of each section. Interestingly, some of the participants chimed in with a great deal of additional information and discussion. This kind of rich interaction among the participants was unexpected but certainly welcome. Unfortunately, the online format did not allow us to do our normal hands-on demonstration of equipment and practice session with ignition and suppression, but we hope to conduct those sometime this fall.
Thanks to everyone involved – both teachers and students – for making this a success!
by The Prairie Enthusiasts | Apr 9, 2020 | News
Spring is in the air! We are blessed to have so much native habitat nearby to enjoy. We want to encourage you to go see a prairie, oak savanna, or local park to look for signs of spring. The seasonal weather we are having is just what we need to bring life out on the prairie. This will help us find that welcome feeling of hope and health! As you can see in these photos, this is a special time to be out in nature.
If you are wondering about where to go, check out the Sites page on our website (www.theprairieenthusiasts.org/sites) for detailed descriptions and directions to our properties. A few pages are still under construction, but we are working to have them all up soon. Even if you can’t go out, this is an easy way to learn about the TPE’s many preserves, most of which are fully open to the public.
We hope you can inspire your family and friends to come along. Take a walk together, relax for a while and renew yourself in nature. Please practice required social distancing and wearing a mask when others are around. On many of our sites you may be the only ones there.
Also remember that all of our preserves harbor rare plant, insect, bird, mammal, reptile and amphibian species, so please be careful as you hike around. Because of the potential for disturbance, dogs are not allowed on most of our sites.
The Prairie Enthusiasts, mainly through our member volunteers, steward and own 35 preserves totaling nearly 2,500 acres. We also care for thousands of acres of private lands for which we hold conservation easements, as well as a number of public parks and natural areas. All this Grassroots Conservation in Action is out there waiting for you to see.
Use your senses to take in the sights, sounds and smells of life springing up. Grassland birds and many others are coming back. The native bees are coming out to look for spring ephemerals. Frogs are singing, and the earth is fragrant with new growth. Many wonders of nature are out there for you to behold!
Have a great time, enjoy the prairie. Be safe, stay well. Spring is here again!
