Prairie — Craig Elston

Tag: Prairie

Illinois and Wisconsin Prairies

July

This past weekend I attended the Iowa Prairie Conference and took two days to travel there. For a day and a half I visited prairies along the way, wow what beautiful scenery. It is always good to visit someplace new and in the case of prairies, it is good to see and observe in prairies that are different and larger than our Michigan ones. On Wednesday and Thursday I visited 5 beautiful prairies in Illinois and 3 in Wisconsin before continuing on to Decorah, Iowa for the conference.

Beach Prairie IL

The first prairie in Illinois was the Afton Township Center Cemetery, the flattest of the 5 for the day. This prairie is 3 acres on two sides of the cemetery and has a good variety of prairie flowers. Compass Plant, White and Purple Prairie Clovers, Western Sunflower, Quinine, Milkweeds, and Bergamot are just a few of the species there. Then it was on to Merritt Prairie which has a good population of Cup Plant with the grasses and other flowers. Next was the Beach Cemetery Prairie Nature Preserve, this was the first of the hill prairies, but nothing like the hill prairies I would climb in Iowa. This is a gently rolling hill with a fantastic view and good variety of flowers and grasses. In these natural prairies you see good drifts of species mixed in with a lot of grasses. It is hard to explain but you can tell by to openness and composition that these are not planted, but natural prairies. Waves of Pale Purple Coneflower and other species add a peaceful beauty to these prairies. A lone, worn tombstone at the top of the hill is quite picturesque as it ascends amongst the flowers and grasses.

Wade Prairie IL

The Douglas E. Wade Memorial Prairie was another breath taking rolling prairie with large stands of Gray-Headed Coneflower, Bergamot, Compass Plant, Pale Purple Coneflower and Big Bluestem Grasses. Even though this prairie has houses on two sides and farm fields on the others, it is easy to forget you are that close to civilization.

Jarrett Prairie IL

The 450 acre restored Jarrett Prairie is part of a larger forest preserve that also includes a golf course. It is easy to get lost here and not see the golf course or other modern features from within the rolling prairie. Not only are there very large colorful drifts of drifts of flowers, but grassland birds and butterflies as well. I did see Bluebirds, a Dickcissel and grassland sparrows, what a treat. If you are near Rockford, Illinois and are going to visit one prairie, this is the one I would recommend and plan on spending at least a couple of hours here.

Purple Milkweed

In Wisconsin I visited the Newark Road Prairie which is a wet/mesic prairie and very rich in plant diversity. You should plan on a somewhat tough walk through the grasses, but the beauty of the blooming flowers is worth it. Blazing Star, Purple Milkweed, Michigan Lily, Prairie Dock and many other species make this a worthwhile visit. I found two other prairies that were posted or too far off the road through the woods for the heat and late hour of the day. On Thursday morning I visited the Avoca Prairie and Savanna, with large groupings of Culver’s Root, Leadplant and other interesting species. Avoca is a place to return when not by myself as I did not feel safe to venture very far in the tall grasses and wet conditions with marsh and river close by.

Eldred Prairie WI

The final prairie was the Eldred Prairie near Lancaster. This is another hill prairie that is well worth the visit. With Butterfly Weed, Compass Plant and very large drifts of Gray-Headed Coneflower the view can be breath taking. The 45 acres is surrounded by farm land and I never saw another car the entire time I was there, just me, the flowers, birds and bugs.

When traveling, if you are not in a hurry or have an extra day I would recommend locating and stopping at prairies or natural areas along the way. This can be a great learning opportunity and is better than just driving all day, so get off the beaten path and see what this country looked like before settlement. For you heirloom and organic gardeners the Seed Savers Exchange center in Decorah, Iowa is a worthwhile stop as well.

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Traveling Opportunities

April

My wife was going to Branson Missouri for a conference for work and suggested I go along. At first I thought what am I going to do in Branson? Shows and tourist traps aren’t exactly what I would call a good time! But then like I always do when traveling to a new area, I began to look for natural areas and parks in the area to spend my time. Surprisingly there are some great natural areas in and close to Branson that are well worth the time to visit.

Roberts Cemetery Savanna

But first, if you have the time when traveling like we did on this trip, look for stops of interest along the way. Since the conference didn’t start until mid day on Wednesday and it is nearly 700 miles to Branson, we left early Tuesday morning and made some stops at prairies and savannas in Illinois. Some of these prairies I had visited a few years ago while taking my daughter to band camp in Illinois, but it is always interesting and a learning opportunity to visit places at different times of the year. If you always vivit at the same time or season, you will not see new or different flowers in bloom and I believe the best way to learn about and understand natural environments is to observe them in as many seasons as possible.

We made it to five places in Illinois as we passed through the state. Three of which had recently been burned and vegetation was already beginning to grow again. As we stopped in a couple of areas further south there were Trilliums in the savannas and woodlands, but they were not yet blooming. Based on location and leaf description I concluded they are likely Trillium recurveatum or Prairie Trillium. There were many other species of spring flowers along the way at most stops as well.

Rainbow Trout

After checking into our room overlooking Table Rock Lake, I headed out check out the area and see what I could find. The Shepherd of the Hills Fish Hatchery, Table Rock Dam and visitor center and the Sate Park where all within five minutes of our room. I always enjoy a walk through a fish hatchery and Shepherd of the Hills was no disappointment. They have a nice visitor center with displays of not only the trout they raise, but also snakes, turtles and other things found in the area including three venomous snakes and an Alligator Snapping Turtle. Next to the hatchery you can also gain access to the river.

Bald

The Ruth and Paul Henning Conservation Area is well worth the visit when in Branson. This 1,534 acre area just on the edge of the city is a wonderful and diverse place. The Roark Creek begins here with some bottomland forest and small waterfalls. There are forests with spring wildflowers and a six story observation tower that yields a great view of not only Branson but the surrounding Ozarks. There are also White River Balds here. The balds or glades are dolomite glades where the dolomite rocks protrude from the mountain sides, not a lot of soil for plants in many places. This is a very specialized ecosystems with many rare species and many prairie species as well. In some ways they are reminiscent of the Maxton Plans on Michigan’s Drummond Island, except they are anything but flat.

There are many other conservation areas within a short drive of Branson that are worth the time as well, such as the nearly 6,000 acre Drury-Mincy Conservation Area. Here I found Sessile Trilliums and many other flowers of the riparian zone woodlands and balds.

Ozark Green Trillium

On the morning of the last day with only a few hours before leaving for Tennessee, I found two great places near the Table Rock Dam for spring wildflowers. One of these is in the State park and the other next to the fish hatchery on the opposite side of the river. There is a nice little water fall and a lot of spring flowers. On the Caneback Trail next to the fish hatchery, I found the Ozark Green Trillium giving me three new Trilliums in the wild so far on this trip. In the Missouri area I found nearly 60 flowering plants and 26 of those were blooming.

Scissor-tailed Flycatcher

The last thing we saw as were leaving the Branson area and hitting the road was this Scissor-tailed Flycatcher. Pretty cool!

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Winter Wonderland

January

Karner Blue Preserve

Now that winter is finally here, get out and enjoy the beauty that comes with the cold. Birds are now easier to see close as the temperatures drop and the snows come. My bird feeders are now very active with a large number of birds. If you are looking for water fowl, try around the piers on Lake Michigan as they are congregating by the dozens or hundreds in the calm open water just past the ice. Be extremely careful as the piers are covered in ice and don’t venture out on the ice piles as they are always to be considered unsafe to be on.

St Joe Light Covered in Ice

The recent days of wind have left some interesting ice formations and covered everything in a layer of ice along the lake shore. The lake effect snows have also blanketed trees in a winter wonderland of snow.

Great-Horned Owls will be beginning to nest at any time now. If you live near a wooded area you may want to listen for them after dark in the evenings. Remember if you feed the birds; don’t stop during the cold snowy weather as they become dependent on the food source once you start. Watch for unusual or rare winter visitors at your feeders. The Redpolls and others are always a welcome site this time of year.

Get and enjoy the beauty before it is gone. Local parks are great places to see the snow covered trees and look of birds or drive to one of the beaches along Lake Michigan to see what the wind and waves can do. If you are extremely brave you could kayak as I saw someone doing in St. Joe. For the rest of us snowshoes or cross country skis are a great way to get out.

And don’t forget to dress warm!

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