Gasser Sand Barren
Gasser Sand Barren
More information coming soon!
SITE STEWARDS
ACCESS & DIRECTIONS
Feist Prairie
Feist Prairie
Feist Prairie is a 3 acre site with 1 acre of remnant prairie that was purchased in 2013. Although small, it contains a large number of species on land that was never cultivated, pastured, or sprayed. Rare insects have been observed on this site: Goldenrod soldier beetle (Chauliognathus pensylvanicus) and Robber fly (Promachus vertebratus).
Gerald and Patricia Feist, who owned this parcel as part of their larger farm operation, sold this site to the Southwest Chapter after many years of leasing the land. The farm had been in the Feist family since 1875; this site is a wonderful example of a pre-European settlement prairie/savanna community.
Current efforts include removing woody invasives and trees to expand the range of the original remnant.
ACCESS & DIRECTIONS
From Stitzer, head east on County Rd E. Turn right (south) on Ridge Road, then left (east) on Sleepy Hollow Rd. The prairie is approximately .6 miles on the left.
Google Map
Usage Policies
Allowed:
- Outdoor Recreation
- Hunting (for all species, no permit or reservation required)
Not Allowed:
Eldred Prairie
Eldred Prairie
The forty-five acre Ellenboro Prairie, now called Eldred Prairie is located on a low ridge with a dry mesic quality and somewhat sandy soil. About two-thirds of the site has a southern aspect, and one-third a northern aspect.
ACCESS & DIRECTIONS
This prairie is in Grant County, Wisconsin, Section 8, Ellenboro Township, about five miles east of Lancaster.
Googe Map
Usage Policies
Allowed:
- Outdoor Recreation
- Hunting (for all species, no permit or reservation required)
Not Allowed:
Ownership History
Originally called the Ellenboro Prairie, the Southwest Wisconsin chapter changed the name in February 2004 to the Gary Eldred Prairie Preserve to honor Gary’s many contributions to prairie preservation.
The site was located by TPE SWC members in 1987 while doing a county-wide inventory. Several trips back to the site resulted in a list of over 55 species, including such rarities as cream gentian (Gentiana flavida), wild quinine (Parthenium integrifolium), and tall nut rush (Scleria triglomerata). Several years later a trained botanist from the DNR visited the site to evaluate the quinine population. His comment was “there are probably 10,000 or more plants here!” A purely biased guess is that this may be Wisconsin’s largest single population of this state-threatened species. Over the last 14 years several attempts to purchase the site have been made but not until 2000 was any interest shown in selling. Jaye Maxfield, a dedicated and persistent member of the SWC, was asked by the chapter to help with the project. Meetings were set up with the owners, Grantland Growers, and they expressed an interest in selling. After nearly a year’s effort by Jaye, including paper work, phone calls, filling out forms, back tracking and resubmitting forms and agreements for the sale, closing finally took place on November 13, 2001.
Management
Portions of the site are high quality prairie, but others are not. While the Christmas trees have been removed, much of the northern aspect is now covered with briars, brush and aspen. We have done some mowing and burning, but much more, including forestry mowing and girdling of aspen, is required.
The high-quality prairie is on the south slope. Unfortunately, oak sprouts have been spreading throughout this prairie in ever dense stands. Burning and mowing top kill these stands, but do not kill them. We are now taking a more aggressive approach, including chemical treatment. Crown vetch is a serious problem, though we seem to be making headway with our annual attack. With limited volunteers and limited funds we are able to make progress, but it is slow.
Bush Clover Prairie
Bush Clover Prairie
More information coming soon!
SITE STEWARDS
ACCESS & DIRECTIONS
Description & Significance
Natural History
Volunteers
Usage Policies
Ownership History
Management
Borah Creek Prairie
Borah Creek Prairie
In 2009, The Prairie Enthusiasts, Mississippi Valley Conservancy, and Driftless Area Land Conservancy, with funding from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the WI DNR Knowles-Nelson State Stewardship Fund, procured 138 acres of this site near Fennimore, WI. It was immediately designated a WI State Natural Area. In 2010, title was transferred to The Prairie Enthusiasts. It has since been managed and cared for by TPE. In 2013, another 43 acres were added to the preserve for a total 181. The preserve consist of 10 acres of high quality remnant dry and dry-mesic prairie, 17 acres of former cropland planted to prairie vegetation, and 5 acres of overgrown oak savanna. Most of the rest of the preserve is former pasture with varying amounts of native prairie vegetation that survived the grazing, including a large population of the Federally Endangered prairie bush-clover. Surveys of this property have found such rare prairie specialist as woolly milkweed, prairie Indian-plantain, Hill’s thistle, wild quinine, and prairie turnip. Rare and declining grassland birds detected using the area include upland sandpiper, eastern kingbird, brown thrasher, dickcissel, eastern meadowlark, grasshopper sparrow, and bell’s vireo.
ACCESS & DIRECTIONS
From the west side of Fennimore, head south on Rodger Hollow Road for 2.7 mi. Turn right onto Townline Road. Go west for 0.8 miles. Turn left (south) on Mt Ridge Road. Go 1/3 mi to the access road and parking lot to Borah Creek Prairie on the right, at 11949 Mt Ridge Road.
Google Map
Usage Policies
Allowed:
- Outdoor Recreation
- Hunting (for all species, no permit or reservation required)
- Trapping (for all species, no permit or reservation required)
Not Allowed:
- Collecting Plants, Seeds, Rocks or Animals without permission from The Prairie Enthusiasts