Return of the Prairie

---

Note: This article was first published in the Fall 2004 edition of INHF's quarterly magazine.

In December 2002, the Iowa Natural Heritage Foundation board of directors voted to take a risk-purchasing a never-plowed, 80-acre pasture in Kossuth County.

"It was a leap of faith for both our board and staff," said Joe McGovern, INHF Land Stewardship Director. "We saw a potential prairie remnant there, but we weren't positive we could bring it back. After less than two years of prairie management, the species diversity is already better than we dared hope-and it's just going to keep getting better!"

A family's legacy

The site was purchased from the estate of George Wildin, who had owned it since 1946. Unlike neighboring properties, the site was never plowed, never drained and never treated with herbicides-except for occasional spot-spraying of Canadian thistle. When the Wildins expressed interest in selling their land to a conservation group, Algona attorney Thomas Lipps referred them to INHF.

Jim Wildin of rural Algona, one of George's four children, can remember his father using horses to harvest wild hay from the site: "You'd see all kinds of wildflowers and prairie flowers in the hay that you wouldn't see anywhere else." After decades of harvesting prairie hay, the family grazed livestock there in recent years.

"Iowa's prairie is 99.9 percent gone-and most of the remnants are in tiny, scattered patches," noted McGovern. "Because of their low-impact management approach, the Wildins have preserved part of a disappearing ecosystem: 80 acres of virgin prairie remnant, completely clear of invasive trees and shrubs, located on some of Iowa's best, flat, black soil."

Because it was never drained, the site also contains at least a dozen prairie potholes-the wet depressions that once dotted north-central Iowa. The site's moisture variations contribute to its diversity.

The legacy continues

INHF's short-term goal is to restore the native prairie community. To date, INHF staff members and interns have used hand labor to remove invasive species and conducted a limited, prescribed burn. Long-term goals include continuing to improve the site's health and, someday, using it as a source of local seed for other area projects.

Early results are promising. Dr. Thomas Rosburg, an INHF advisor and Drake University Ecology and Botany professor, conducted an extensive site inventory during 2004 and identified an impressive 125 native plant species, including 14 "high conservatism" and three "special concern" species, indicators of a high-quality site.

"Though hurt by intensive grazing, the site probably has more species that will show up when it's had more time to recover," noted Rosburg. "With this kind of diversity, at least the western half is of state preserve quality."

Another family's legacy

Though INHF's risk had paid off in terms of quality, staff and board were still concerned about the financial risk. The concern was allayed when, in June 2004, INHF received a gift from the estate of Susan Connell Magee, a Clear Lake native and ardent conservationist. Susan had noted in her will that she wanted her gift to be used for the protection of prairies. After consulting with her family, INHF chose to direct her gift toward the purchase of Wildin Heritage Prairie.

"I met Susan several years ago and was struck by her knowledge of and commitment to protecting prairie remnants," noted McGovern. "We didn't know about Wildin Heritage Prairie during Susan's lifetime, but I believe it's exactly the kind of place she would have wanted preserved."

For more information, e-mail Cathy Engstrom, Director of Communications, or call (515) 288-1846.