Inspiration | Prairie Enthusiasts

Keeping Prairies in the News

by The Prairie Enthusiasts | Sep 30, 2021 | Inspiration

We are excited to share this Milwaukee Journal Sentinel article and the mention of The Prairie Enthusiasts below:

Wisconsin’s prairies shine in late summer, from Lapham Peak to the UW Arboretum
by Chelsey Lewis
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
August 19, 2021

As August winds down, the flowers in my home garden are nearing the end of their seasonal lifespan.

But here at Lapham Peak, yellow prairie dock and compass plant shoot into the sky, leaning toward the bright late-summer sun like miniature sunflowers. The goldenrod has just begun to bloom, its feathery yellow stalks peppering the hillsides. The wispy purple spikes of blazing stars are beginning to open, bees buzzing around them in search of pollen. A patch of black-eyed Susans are in full bloom, while a few yellow coneflowers hold on to their delicate yellow petals. Even the big bluestem grasses are getting in on the action, small buds emerging from the tips of their 6-foot-tall stalks.

I’ve missed the peak of wildflower season here, which usually comes in July, but late summer and fall are almost like a second spring for Wisconsin prairies, with a variety of colorful flowers blooming in August and head-high grasses reaching their apex before turning golden colors to complement the changing leaves.

This savanna might not have the flashy rock formations of Devil’s Lake, or the stunning sand dunes of Kohler-Andrae, but it’s one of my favorite places to hike in southern Wisconsin — not only because it’s not as popular as those places, but also because this landscape is so rare, and carries its own subtle beauty. I love that I can see the contours of the land, the big bluestem
grasses waving from the rolling hillsides in the late summer breeze. I love the little oak tree enclaves, like woodland oases in the middle of that sea of grasses. I love the almost comically tall prairie dock, its skinny stems trying to outreach those grasses in a quest for sunlight. The scattering of oaks here make this part of the park an oak savanna, a subset of prairies, which are landscapes populated by grasses, sedges (grass-like plants) and forbs (flowering plants). Prairies aren’t just pretty to look it and nice to walk through. They’re vital to species like American kestrels, bobolinks, sandhill cranes, eastern meadowlark, federally endangered Karner blue butterflies, bees and other pollinators.

They’re also vital to us. Prairie plants like big bluestem have deep root systems that filter groundwater and store carbon — the root systems are so extensive that they’ve been likened to underground forests. Prairies also create fertile soil for farming and grazing.
Prairies used to cover 2 million acres of Wisconsin, mostly in the southern part of the state. But as more settlers cleared the fertile land for farming, Wisconsin’s grasslands became a much rarer landscape. Today there are only about 12,000 acres left — less than .1% of the original landscape, according to the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources.

Conservationists are working to reverse that trend and restore prairies, but as with most things when it comes to the environment, it’s not easy. Land where prairies flourished, especially in the southeastern part of the state, is heavily populated, fragmented and farmed today.

Plus, prairies need something dangerous to thrive that other landscapes — including human populated ones — don’t like: fire.
Fire reduces the leaf litter that accumulates in grasslands, allowing sunlight to penetrate and warm the soil, which increases microbial activity that releases nutrients to feed new plants as they grow. Fire also helps eliminate non-native and faster-growing species like maple trees, which overshadow prairie plants and slow-growing oaks.

Before Europeans arrived, American Indian tribes actively burned prairies to improve grazing for game species, for safety (in order to see enemies as they approached), and to make travel easier.

In the Curtis Prairie at the UW Arboretum in Madison, it’s easy to see why they burned prairies to make travel easier.

Eight-foot-tall big bluestem tickled my arms and legs as I walked along a narrow path cut through the prairie. Without the trail, walking and navigating would have been a challenge.

I emerged from the tall grasses and walked into another segment of the prairie that had been burned more recently, as evidenced by the barely knee-high grasses. At least a portion of the prairie has been burned nearly every year since 1950, making it the
oldest ecologically restored prairie in the world. That restoration work began even earlier than 1950. When the Arboretum was dedicated in 1934, work was already going on to establish representations of all of Wisconsin’s plant communities, from the
northern forests to the southern plains. A portion of the land that used to be a farm was set aside to become prairie, and the first plants were planted in 1935.

“That had never been done before. Nobody really knew how to do it,” said Michael Hansen, land care manager for the Arboretum.

Since nobody had attempted that kind of land restoration before, nobody knew how to manage things like invasive grasses, left over from the fallow farm field that was there before. University of Wisconsin-Madison botany professor John Curtis came up with the idea
of intentionally burning the prairie to kill the invasive plants. Other universities out west were doing fire research at the time, but theirs was mainly geared toward increasing forage for livestock grazing, Hansen said. The idea of using fire to restore a landscape to prairie was new. In 1940, the first experimental burn was held at the Arboretum.

“They were assuming those native prairie plants were adaptive to fire and would respond really well, and that was what happened,” Hansen said.

The success of the first fire led to more experiments, and in 1950, the Arboretum began landscape-wide burns — establishing prescribed fire as an effective method to restore and maintain prairies.

Today, prescribed burns are used to manage grasslands throughout the Midwest. Trained professionals intentionally set the fires in defined areas under specific conditions to meet certain land management objectives. They’re typically set in the early spring or late summer or fall. communities. … I think that’s good just from a resilience standpoint and living on. The results are the big bluestem grasses and federally endangered rusty patch bumblebee that are found in the Arboretum and the soaring prairie dock and honking sandhill cranes in Lapham Peak. A snapshot of what Wisconsin was before Europeans moved in. A snapshot worth preserving.
“(Prairies) are part of our natural heritage, especially in this part of the country. They help make all that good soil that was farmed. It’s the foundation of that whole industry,” Hansen said. “It played an important part in the history of our state, and the Great Plains in general. … I think that’s important to try and preserve like you would an old historic building or some other artifacts.

“We often refer to different parts of the Arboretum as a living museum. It’s a collection of what our state used to look like in terms of the plant healthy land. But also for a healthy mind, I think diversity is important, too. Having that accessible to people is important.”

Prairies in southern Wisconsin
Here is a sampling of prairie sites you can visit in southern Wisconsin. Many prairies are protected as part of state natural areas. To find more, visit dnr.wi.gov/topic/Lands/naturalareas.

Havenwoods State Forest, Milwaukee: Don’t let the forest in this site’s name throw you — much of the interior of this urban forest is prairie and wetlands. Six miles of trails wind through those landscapes; the main loop is open to pets.

Lapham Peak, Delafield: More than 5 miles of trails wind through prairie and oak savanna on the west side of Highway C. Access the
trails from the Evergreen Parking lot (carefully cross Highway C) or a small Ice Age Trail parking lot on South Cushing Park Road. Leashed pets are permitted.

Ice Age Trail Stony Ridge Segment, Eagle: This 3-mile segment of the Ice Age Trail passes through a patch of prairie just west of the Kettle Moraine State Forest’s southern unit headquarters on Highway 59. Look for goldenrod and prairie dock in late August. Find parking and access at the Emma Carlin trailhead on County Highway Z or the forest headquarters.

Bald Bluff, Kettle Moraine State Forest-Southern Unit, Palmyra: American Indians
used this open prairie site on a bluff for signal fires and ceremonial dances, according to the DNR. U.S. troops also camped at the site during the Blackhawk War — future presidents Abraham Lincoln and Zachary Taylor among them. Today a half-mile nature trail climbs the bluff then connects with the Ice Age Trail and travels through a prairie that the DNR is working to restore. Find a parking lot on County Highway H south of Palmyra. Because this is a nature trail, pets are not permitted. Pets are permitted on the Ice Age Trail.

Riveredge Nature Center, Saukville: Ten miles of trails wind through a variety of landscapes, including a 28-acre prairie named for Lorrie Otto, who founded the natural landscaping movement and helped lead the push to ban DDT in Wisconsin and the rest of the
country. The nature center also has an all-terrain wheelchair that’s available to borrow for free through Access Ability Wisconsin. Trail fees are $5 for adults and $2 for kids ages 3-12 (free for kids 2 and under).

Pope Farm Conservancy, Verona: This former farm features a handful of restored prairies, including tall grass, short grass and oak savanna. The conservancy has a pamphlet on its website that outlines a one-hour self-guided walking tour of the prairies. The conservancy is open from sunrise to sunset daily and is free to visit. Dogs are not permitted.

UW Arboretum, Madison: More than 300 native grasses, sedges and wildflowers grow in the 73-acre Curtis Prairie, the world’s oldest ecologically restored prairie. The prairie’s 8-foot-tall big bluestem and Indian grasses are especially beautiful in the fall. A handful of trails wind through the prairie, which is accessible via a parking lot on McCaffrey Drive south of the visitor center. The Arboretum is home to a few other grasslands, including the 47-acre restored Greene Prairie, the 14-acre Wingra Oak Savanna, and the 53-acre Southwest Grady Oak Savanna.

Military Ridge Prairie Heritage Area, Dane and Iowa counties: About 30 miles west of the Arboretum are the Thomson Memorial Prairie and the Barneveld Prairie, part of the 95,000-acre Military Ridge Prairie Heritage Area. The area contains 60 prairie remnants in Dane and Iowa counties — one of the highest concentrations of native grasslands in the Midwest. The DNR has recognized the area as being a high priority for protection and management, and together with the Nature Conservancy — which manages the Thomson and Barneveld prairies — and other nonprofits and government agencies, is working to do that. The 706-acre Thomson Memorial Prairie does not have any official trails (and poison ivy is abundant, according to the Nature Conservancy), but the 1,193-acre Barneveld Prairie does have a rough, unmarked trail. The prairie is home to rare grassland bird species including bobolinks, meadowlarks, dickcissels and vesper sparrows — all species of special concern in Wisconsin; and upland sandpipers, a state threatened species. Dogs are permitted but must be on a leash from April 1 through July 31.

Pleasant Valley Conservancy, Black Earth: Nearly every landscape native to southern Wisconsin, including oak savanna and dry and wet prairie, is present at this 143-acre state natural area. Tom and Kathie Brock began restoration work on the property in 1995, and it continues today with the support of The Prairie Enthusiasts, a Viroqua-based nonprofit. More than 300 flowering species have been documented at the site, including rare ones like purple milkweed. Trails that wind through the property are open to hiking; bicycles and dogs are not permitted.

Contact Chelsey Lewis at clewis@journalsentinel.com. Follow her on Twitter
at @chelseylew and @TravelMJS and Facebook at Journal Sentinel Travel.

Remembering Tom Brock

by The Prairie Enthusiasts | Apr 27, 2021 | Inspiration

We were deeply saddened to learn of the passing of longtime The Prairie Enthusiasts member Tom Brock. A true champion for prairies, Tom was also an accomplished microbiologist. Take a look at these remembrances that have been shared everywhere from our own Prairie Promoter to The New York Times.

Photo by Kathie Brock

Tom and his wife Kathie were the driving force behind the 140-acre Pleasant Valley Conservancy. Pleasant Valley is an amazing example of remnant and restored prairie, oak savanna, oak woods and wetland ecosystems. Tom, an emeritus professor of microbiology, went “all in” on restoring the property starting in the late ’90s. The Brocks were also instrumental in rejuvenating Black Earth Rettenmund Prairie, a Prairie Enthusiasts-owned property about 5 miles north of Pleasant Valley. Kathie still plays a central role in the volunteer maintenance of this site.

Tom was also involved initially with what is now the Lakeshore Preserve on the University of Wisconsin-Madison campus. He helped found the Invasive Plant Association of Wisconsin. More recently, he received the prestigious UW-Madison Distinguished Alumni Award. Tom’s writings about prairie management continue to provide advice and inspiration for countless prairie enthusiasts.

Tom’s obituary can be found here.

The article in The New York Times about Tom’s achievements in the field of microbiology can be found here.

An article about Tom’s honorary doctorate from UW-Madison can be found here.

**Profile of Tom and Kathie Brock from The Prairie Promoter, Vol. 32 No. 2 (August 2019)**

By Willis Brown

What do The Prairie Enthusiasts member and emeritus professor Tom Brock have in common with rock-n-roll star Steve Miller? In addition to never hearing of the other, they both were awarded Honorary Doctorate degrees from UW-Madison in May.

Tom received the degree for his pioneering work on thermophilic (heat-loving) bacteria he had isolated and characterized from the hot springs of Yellowstone National Park. He was also recognized for the work he and his wife Kathie Brock did in the restoration of their property, Pleasant Valley Conservancy. In a relatively small area (140 acres) they have restored several ecotypes- wetland, prairies, oak savanna and oak woods.

(Miller, as you might suspect, was honored for his music.)

In 1980 and 1984, Tom and Kathie Brock purchased the PVC property in two separate transactions primarily for recreation. Sometime later, when Kathie was volunteering for The Nature Conservancy, she heard about oak savannas – the critically endangered ecosystem once common in southern Wisconsin.

Tom also recalled seeing side-oats grama on the property and remembering it was a prairie plant. The presence of
large bur and white oaks with the prairie plants suggested PVC once was an oak savanna. Overtaken by honeysuckle and buckthorn, and other invasives, the Brocks turned their property from recreation to re-creation of the oak savanna and prairie.

They went all in starting in 1997, going so far as to hire the town of Vermont crew for a week to remove trees along the south slope below a prairie remnant (still referred to as Kathie’s Prairie). They also had their first prescribed burn that year and hired some additional help. Soon after, in 1999, they hired Paul Michler and myself to cut and treat buckthorn. Our equipment in those days was marginal – one small Stihl brush cutter, a spray bottle of Roundup and a Geo Tracker – all borrowed from the Brocks.

In those early days, Kathie would sometimes locate desirable species along nearby roadsides and collect the seeds. One day she found a new species for us to collect. Before spreading the seed, she took a sample to Madison for positive identification. That proved fortunate as this was the first time any of us had encountered Japanese hedge-parsley.

Rather than burning large logs from the cleared trees, the Brocks would leave logs by the side of the road for neighbors to take for firewood. Some cherry and walnut logs were given away for lumber.

If you visit PVC, you may notice a relatively high number of paper birch in a fire-dependent area. Kathie likes these trees, so the area around them are cleared to avoid damage by fire. Happily, the birch seem to be good habitat for redheaded woodpeckers, a state endangered bird.

Tom and Kathie treated this property like a huge experiment. They kept extensive notes and have taken numerous photographs over the years. The property is divided into several management areas. A plant species list was prepared initially with about 300 species identified. A plant survey in 2008 identified 493 species present at PVC.

A geology professor was invited to come out to describe the geology. Once most of the invasive trees were removed, all trees over 10 inches DBH (a forestry term describing diameter at breast height) were tagged and geolocated. Over 4,000 trees were mapped this way and data entered as to size, species and whether dead or alive. This data was useful in showing the extent of bur oak blight at PVC, which Tom reported in the April 2018 edition of The Prairie Promoter.

In addition, many trees were present in aerial photos from the 1930s. Some of the larger oaks have been aged, and the oldest is over 200 years old. For several years, starting in 2003, Tom and Kathie hired summer interns to continue the restoration work. Always the professor, Tom would present a lecture on various topics on restoration during lunch. They are also willing to have research done on their land (with approval), including using plant hormones to control reed canary grass, or the study of great blue lobelia.

Tom conducted his own research on controlling invasives such as sumac and honeysuckle. He has published results of his work in Restoration Ecology and The North American Prairie Conference Proceedings in addition to The Prairie Promoter. They are always willing to share their experiences and show their results to various groups such as Madison Audubon Society, Blue Mounds Area Project, and Land Trust Alliance among others. They have guided tours of their property annually on Labor Day. They also host group tours to identify birds, butterflies and other fauna and flora.

Over the years, Kathie has propagated desirable plants from seed that were not present or present in small numbers such as purple milkweed, a state endangered plant. Purple milkweed appeared on their property shortly after initial clearing of non-savanna species. She transplanted the seedlings to appropriate areas, flagged them to determine survival rates and watered them if needed. In addition, Kathie has compiled data and produced a table of the best time of year to collect seeds from individual species.

They’ve collected and/or traded seeds with Goose Pond (Madison Audubon), Swamplovers and others. The result is a fabulous example of oak savanna (with added birches), remnant goat prairie, wetland, restored prairie and oak woodlands. The property was dedicated a State Natural Area on June 6, 2008. While Tom and Kathie received some money from grants, they paid for this beautiful restoration project essentially with their own money from which we all benefit and are grateful.

Salvaging Black Earth (Rettenmund) Prairie
About five miles north of PVC is Black Earth Prairie. It’s a prairie remnant of spectacular diversity. Previously owned by The Nature Conservancy, BEP was suffering from benign neglect because, as a relatively small property for TNC, there were only 1-2 volunteer work parties each year. The southern end of this 17-acre prairie had been severely taken over by brush.

Tom and Kathie gave TNC money in 2003 to have the brush removed by contractors. They also restored the area by the entrance, which had become mainly brome grass. They then took over stewardship of the prairie in 2005 by hosting monthly work parties to continue controlling invasives, collecting seeds and managing controlled burns. Due to the unusual configuration of the property, burning only within the boundary was difficult, so they convinced the neighboring landowner to include part of his pasture in the burn unit. This produced an unintended benefit with the appearance of copious little bluestem and butterfly milkweed in the pasture. TNC transferred BEP to The Prairie Enthusiasts in 2007. Tom and Kathie are the site stewards to this day.

Tom keeps a blog about PVC, found at pleasantvalleyconservancy.org. Tom recently compiled a history of the work performed over the years, entitled Restoring a Fragile Landscape. The two volumes can be readily downloaded from their website. While the number of pages may seem daunting, they consist primarily of photographs, and one can quickly discern how much Tom loves controlled burns. PVC is open to the public. There are several hiking trails and even a boardwalk to access the wetland. Check it out if you can.

Our Winter Reading List

by The Prairie Enthusiasts | Nov 22, 2020 | Inspiration

Updated 12/5/2024

Pour some coffee, curl up in your favorite chair, and delve into these books written by members and friends of The Prairie Enthusiasts!

Is there a book that should be on this list? If you’re an author writing about ecology, or have a favorite Prairie Enthusiasts author you want to share with the world, reach out at info@theprairieenthusiasts.org.

Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer

Robin was a featured speaker at our annual conference in 2021!

“As a botanist, Robin Wall Kimmerer has been trained to ask questions of nature with the tools of science. As a member of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation, she embraces the notion that plants and animals are our oldest teachers… In a rich braid of reflections that range from the creation of Turtle Island to the forces that threaten its flourishing today, she circles toward a central argument: that the awakening of a wider ecological consciousness requires the acknowledgment and celebration of our reciprocal relationship with the rest of the living world. For only when we can hear the languages of other beings will we be capable of understanding the generosity of the earth, and learn to give our own gifts in return.” (text from Milkweed Editions)

Gathering Moss by Robin Wall Kimmerer

“In this series of linked personal essays, Robin Wall Kimmerer leads general readers and scientists alike to an understanding of how mosses live and how their lives are intertwined with the lives of countless other beings. Kimmerer explains the biology of mosses clearly and artfully, while at the same time reflecting on what these fascinating organisms have to teach us. Drawing on her diverse experiences as a scientist, mother, teacher, and writer of Native American heritage, Kimmerer explains the stories of mosses in scientific terms as well as in the framework of indigenous ways of knowing. In her book, the natural history and cultural relationships of mosses become a powerful metaphor for ways of living in the world.” (text from OSU Press)

Hidden Prairie by Chris Helzer

Chris gave the keynote address and led a photography workshop at our annual conference in 2021.

“Chris Helzer illustrates the beauty and diversity of prairie through an impressive series of photographs, all taken within the same square meter of prairie. During his year-long project, he photographed 113 plant and animal species within a tiny plot, and captured numerous other images that document the splendor of diverse grasslands. Even readers familiar with prairies will be fascinated by the varied subject matter Helzer captured with his camera. In addition, his captivating and accessible natural history writing tells the story of his personal journey during the project and the stories of the characters he found within his chosen square meter of prairie.” (text from University of Iowa Press)

The Ecology and Management of Prairies in the Central United States by Chris Helzer

“Grasslands can be found throughout much of North America, and the ideas and strategies in this book apply to most of them, particularly tallgrass and mixed grass prairies in eastern North Dakota, eastern South Dakota, eastern Nebraska, eastern Kansas, eastern Oklahoma, northwestern Missouri, northern Illinois, northwestern Indiana, Iowa, southwestern Wisconsin, and southwestern Minnesota. By presenting all the factors that promote biological diversity and thus enhance prairie communities, then incorporating these factors into a set of clear-sighted management practices, The Ecology and Management of Prairies in the Central United States presents the tools necessary to ensure that grasslands are managed in the purposeful ways essential to the continued health and survival of prairie communities.” (text from University of Iowa Press)

The Driftless Reader by Curt Meine

Curt was featured in a panel discussion at our annual conference in 2021.

“The Driftless Reader gathers writings that highlight the unique natural and cultural history, landscape, and literature of this region that encompasses southwestern Wisconsin and adjacent Minnesota, Iowa, and Illinois. The more than eighty selected texts include writings by Black Hawk, Mark Twain, Laura Ingalls Wilder, Frank Lloyd Wright, Aldo Leopold, David Rhodes, and many other Native people, explorers, scientists, historians, farmers, songwriters, journalists, and poets. Paintings, photographs, maps, and other images complement the texts, providing a deeper appreciation of this region’s layered natural and human history.” (text from UW Press)

When Things Happen by Randy Hoffman

Randy is the site steward of The Prairie Enthusiasts’ Hauser Road Prairie.

“Busy families want to have meaningful experiences in nature. This book identifies the best times to view spring wildflowers, bird migrations, insect emergence, mammal birthing, and even meteor showers. In addition, in-depth articles give additional meaning to natural events. Nearly 40 pictures and illustrations support the book.” (text from Randy Hoffman)

With Wings Extended by Greg Hoch

“A century ago, many people had given up on the wood duck, dooming it to extinction along with the passenger pigeon and Carolina parakeet. Today, the wood duck is one of the most familiar and most harvested ducks in the eastern half of the country, and one of America’s great conservation success stories. In With Wings Extended, Minnesota conservationist Greg Hoch introduces readers to a duck they probably recognize but may not know well. Hoch illustrates the complexities of wildlife and habitat management that landowners as well as state and federal wildlife agencies deal with on a daily basis, and takes readers through the life stages of what is largely considered the most beautiful duck in the world. In this fascinating and practical read, Hoch blends the historical literature about the species with modern science, and also shows how our views of conservation have changed over the last century.” (text from University of Iowa Press)

Tending the Valley by Alice D’Alessio

“In Tending the Valley, Alice chronicles [her husband’s and her own] efforts to return the land to its natural prairie state and to manage their oak and pine woods. Along the way they joined the land restoration movement, became involved in a number of stewardship groups, and discovered the depths of dedication and toil required to bring their dream to fruition. With hard-earned experience and the evocative language of a poet, D’Alessio shares her personal triumphs and setbacks as a prairie steward, along with a profound love for the land and respect for the natural history of the Driftless.” (text from Wisconsin Historical Society Press)

Why The Prairie Enthusiasts?

by The Prairie Enthusiasts | Oct 14, 2020 | Inspiration

By Debra Behrens, Executive Director

It started as a wish. As a child visiting my grandparents in rural Minnesota, I fell in love with the vast prairie skies and the steady hum of insects on summer nights. Only later did I realize that this place filled with wonder had long since lost the complex beauty that once thrived there. This growing awareness gave me a sense of responsibility to do what I could to heal the land. But finding an answer to the question of what I can do has been a 20-year journey.

The actual seed of an idea wasn’t formed until I met my husband and realized we shared the same dream: to become stewards of the land. We nurtured our seed along through the lean early years of our marriage until we were able to afford a small homestead near Viroqua.

We thought we had achieved our goal, but as part-time residents we weren’t making much progress. And it was becoming harder and harder to leave the beauty and tranquility of our rural home to return to the city for work. We resolved to find a way to make this our permanent home and spent the next year rearranging our lives to make that possible.

I first discovered The Prairie Enthusiasts while researching what to do about our problem with wild parsnip. I followed your progress through the years with interest. When the Landowner Services program was announced, we reached out to Dan immediately for advice on the projects we were finally ready to undertake on our land. Then I saw your job posting for an Executive Director, and my heart skipped a beat. Here it was: my ideal job! The more I learned, the more I became convinced that my 20-year career in nonprofit development, combined with my values and my connection to this mission, were a match.

You have built a strong organization, and you have the ability to grow. Some of the most rewarding work I’ve done involved helping nonprofits through the next phase in their organizational growth. I’ve developed an entrepreneurial approach to solving problems, focusing collective energy, and building momentum. Together, we’ll pursue strategies that improve our overall health and viability so that what we leave for those coming after us is a thriving organization.

It all starts with having clear goals. We will need to work together to define what we want for our future. This is a grassroots organization, with all the beauty and messiness that entails. We won’t always agree, but we need to be willing to trust one another and commit to pursuing our strategic goals together.

There is much to learn. In the coming weeks and months, I will be reaching out to gather your stories, ideas, and advice. But please feel free to share your suggestions at any time. There will be challenges ahead, and we’ll be prepared to meet them through the strength of our commitment — not just to our mission, but to one another.

This note appeared in the Fall 2020 edition of the Prairie Promoter, a publication of news, art and writing from The Prairie Enthusiasts community. Explore the full collection and learn how to submit your work here.

Free Prairie Curriculum Ready for Use

by The Prairie Enthusiasts | Sep 2, 2020 | Inspiration

How do children learn to care for the land? Often, it’s time spent outside with a family member that first makes them curious about nature. But teachers also have the power to spark curiosity. Walter Mirk of The Prairie Enthusiast’s Glacial Prairie Chapter has created a resource to bring the prairie into the classroom.

A sampling of slides in Walter Mirk’s prairie curriculum.

Walter’s presentation contains 400 slides of information and photos. It covers topics within prairie ecology, from soil organisms to birds and from the Miocene to European settlement. While it was created for teachers in Wisconsin, the program can be tailored to any audience. The best part? It’s available for free to schools, nonprofits, and public agencies.

Such a resource is a tangible way to combat what author Richard Louv has called “nature deficit disorder”. Walter’s project was inspired by the students at Mayville Middle School in southeastern Wisconsin. A retired licensed clinical social worker, Walter has volunteered at MMS since 2015. He started by giving presentations about prairie in the school’s fifth-grade classes. Year after year, the kids were attentive and asked thoughtful questions, leading Walter to describe them as “the toughest audience I ever had.”

Walter and his wife Alice also helped to nurse the school’s 3/4-acre prairie planting back to health. They worked with a Fish & Wildlife Service biologist stationed at nearby Horicon Marsh to obtain prairie plants. They spent a whole day planting the seedlings alongside 89 fifth-graders. Although the work was hard, Walter remembers, the kids were “outstanding” and had a keen interest in nature. Their excitement spurred him to build a prairie curriculum.

MMS students water their prairie and themselves. Photo by Walter Mirk

The core of his presentation was a PowerPoint created by fellow Prairie Enthusiasts member Rob Baller. Walter says he kept finding more resources to add until the slides practically wrote themselves. He used the opportunity to learn more about topics that interested him, such as the arthropod life of the prairie. “And the more I read,” says Walter, “the more I became excited about what I was learning and thought of the inquisitive and enthusiastic fifth grade learners at MMS.”

He’s also learning from experts who review the project. As he puts finishing touches on the Wisconsin program, Walter is working with the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources to create a presentation for that state. This will be challenging, he explains, because the DNR’s extensive ecological data will need to be translated for an audience of beginners. Not to be deterred, Walter is moving ahead on the project and also plans to write curricula for Illinois and Iowa.

Walter has copyrighted his work, which means that users can’t change slide content or profit from the resource. However, teachers are free to remove slides to suit their classes. It’s not just for children, either; Walter envisions the chapters of The Prairie Enthusiasts using this curriculum for outreach events.

To use the PowerPoint in your classroom, email us at info@theprairieenthusiasts.org.

Walter at a burn training. Photo by Rob Baller

Native Habitat as an Educational Centerpiece

by The Prairie Enthusiasts | Aug 5, 2020 | Inspiration

Updated 12/5/2024

In the heart of Driftless Wisconsin lies Viroqua, home to the Prairie Enthusiasts Chapter Support office. We are lucky to be surrounded by many prairie remnants, State Natural Areas (like Romance Prairie), and several public native gardens within walking distance of the office. One consists of a planted prairie and small oak savanna between two schools.

This outdoor classroom is an urban oasis for bees, butterflies, and birds. What was once an asphalt playground has been transformed into a native plant “Greenspace.” The Prairie Enthusiasts staff have led field trips for students there and assisted with the management plan. As you will see, the native plants are a wonder to behold.

Sign greeting visitors to the PRWS Greenspace. Photo by Joe Rising

From the Pleasant Ridge Waldorf School website:

“In 2012, Pleasant Ridge Waldorf School (PRWS) was able to begin the Greenspace Permaculture Garden in the area between PRWS and the Landmark Center. This had been the former roadway (East Ave) and was an asphalt playground area between the two schools. It was prone to flooding during the spring thaw and generally had limited aesthetics for our school grounds. The focus of this project was twofold: 1) to provide another outdoor classroom area for the children that would incorporate our native habitats of the Driftless Area as well as edible landscaping using Permaculture design, and 2) to enhance the aesthetic of this school and public area between the neighborhoods surrounding our school while improving the infiltration and drainage of water on the site.”

Mark Shepard, a permaculture expert and designer of the PRWS garden, said he “used two different seed mixes both sold as blends by Prairie Moon Nursery [in Minnesota]. The majority was the PDQ mix and in the ‘rain garden’ corner it was their wet prairie blend. I haven’t seen a whole lot of wetland associated species… I especially wanted the Joe-Pye weed to flourish because I have fond memories of it as a lil’ tyke.”

Learn more about the School’s nature programs and outdoor classrooms here.

Thanks to Chris Larson for helping assemble this photo gallery. She has a great eye for natural beauty.