More signs of Spring

Despite the fact that I live in an urban area, prairies are a common sight around town. There is a city-maintained prairie at the end of my street which we have often walked through. The nearby University Reseach Park (URP) is landscaped with swaths of prairie surrounding the assorted contemporary office buildings. The land itself is gently rolling rather than flat which makes these landscapes of interest any time of the year. Should you drive by them right now you can clearly see how prairies are managed: by regular burning. This process helps to restore and enhance native vegetation which, in turn, filters and improves ground water quantity and quality.

We took a shortcut through URP the other day and discovered they'd burned the prairies and we missed seeing it take place. Mark has helped a couple of friends burn their prairies which is a pretty dramatic sight. 

The sign notes that this area is a "Native Habitat Planting" and says "Please do not mow, plant or dump" and describes the benefits of the planting.

Here's a brief video of what that controlled burn process looks like at URP. 

 

The URP prairies are localized plantings and generally smaller than what many people are doing with prairie restoration projects in the country. Curtis Prairie, at the UW-Madison Arboretum in Madison, is the world's oldest restored prairie. When it is burned it is quite a sight (below). The Arboretum was recently listed in the National Register of Historic Places, recognizing its significance as the birthplace of ecological restoration.

Comments

[Peter/Outlaw]

This looks like a lot more fun than mowing and raking. How wonderful to have such restored prairie areas in your urban setting.

[Linda from Each LIttle World]

Prairies, Oak trees and cockspur Hawthornes are the sure signs you are in southern Wisconsin. Georgraphically there is a slanted line that splits Wisconsin: On one side we are the eastern most edge of the tall grass prairie and on the other side we are the western edge of the hardwood forest. A beautiful landscape in either direction.

[ceci]

We're headed for South Dakota later in the spring and I am very much looking forward to visiting some prairie sites, having never seen that kind of terrain. As well as the Badlands and so on which I'm told will be more obviously exciting. Didn't know about the burning aspect of prairie maintenance, but it makes sense. I wonder what the impact on small animals and insects is? Some research in my future, clearly.

ceci

[Linda from Each LIttle World]

Interesting question and one I've never thought about. In a managed prairie they burn to control invasive plants etc and I think animals and pets would be considered. I tend to think of prairies as homes to buffalo and prairie dogs both of which could survive based on speed/underground habitat.

[Kris P]

Controlled burns are used in California too and have been recommended by some experts to manage forest areas where trees have been killed off by drought. It's controversial, though, as controlling the spread of such fires remains a concern.

[Lisa at Greenbow]

What an awesome sight seeing a prairie burn. Our area was a forest way back when. The Prairie started just across the river from us. I would loved to have seen the forest where the squirrels didn't ever have to touch the ground to get around.

[Linda from Each LIttle World]

I wonder if there were more squirrels then or now. Seems like so many in the garden all the time that I can't imagine more of them!