Not a terribly creative title to steal from the Beatles, I know, but I have decided that I need to buckle down and get some thoughts on the blog. My last post was written just before I hosted a gathering of eight conservation professionals at my restoration for a field day and brainstorming session. There were three biologists from the South Dakota Game, Fish and Parks Department (GFP), the rangeland specialist for the South Dakota Cooperative Extension Service, and employees for Audubon Dakota, Ducks Unlimited (DU), The Nature Conservancy (TNC), US Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) and my partner in this venture, Ben who works for Pheasants Forever (PF). What surprised me a little was the depth of interest and knowledge from some of the participants. Most were prairie nerds, just as I am, and really dug into what was out there.

Selfishly, I was most interested in what I could learn from the collective experience of the participants, of course. Secondarily I hoped to deliver the message that the site is available as an example of what can be done with marginal farmground. I put together some maps and handwritten summaries of the project history and goals, similar to what I put into my last blog post, and off we went on walkabout.

The main questions I wanted to explore were:

1. How seriously should I pursue Canada thistle control?
2. How should I go about augmenting forb diversity in areas lacking diversity? This is especially true in areas where I have had to apply Milestone herbicide to thin out thistle patches.
3. Ideas on burning.
4. Could my restoration be used as the basis of a “learning group” of prairie enthusiasts? (That name is already used for an organization in Wisconsin, but as long as I don’t capitalize it I feel it is fair game to use as a descriptive phrase)

The first question was the most trenchant, as I hope to do some spraying of thistle patches in the next couple weeks as opportunity allows. Not sure how the picture will translate, but here is what at least 2-3 acres of the restoration looks like.

The consensus of the group was simply to go easy. As far as I could tell, none of the participants were purists, and most had personal experience with handling thistles in restorations, including the use of Milestone herbicide. There were a couple comments along the lines of “You call this a bad infestation?” However, I had made the choice of showing them the best of the restoration, and we didn’t spend much time in areas with dense thistle patches. That was probably the right choice, considering time constraints, but it skewed their view of my restoration. In effect, they think it is better than it really is. I have several areas that I know the thistle patches are thick enough to preclude growth of the native vegetation, and I think I need to respond to that. However, my thoughts before the gathering were to hire the farmer who rents my land to apply Milestone as a broadcast application over 2-3 areas with the worst thistles on perhaps 20 acres. This would mean that close to half the restoration would have been treated with herbicide in the past two years. Rather than do that I am now planning to use my ATV to spot treat. This will provide much more control over what is treated and probably mean that no more than a couple more acres of the restoration will receive herbicide. This decision became even easier when I found two species growing along the draw next to some of the thistles I had been planning to spray, Great blue lobelia (Lobelia siphilitica) and Canada tick-trefoil (Desmodium canadense). Though a great many forbs have tolerance to Milestone, as I have seen this summer, there is no doubt I will be eliminating species (such as the lobelia) that I don’t want to eliminate in areas where I spray. I have known all along that I would be living with thistles and I just need to make my peace with it.

The second question, that of adding more forbs to forb-deficient areas, is a thornier one, because there are several layers to reaching an answer for a particular site. First, quite simply, is whether more forbs are necessary. Of course I would like a hundred species every damn place I look, but we go back to the concept of ecosystem services. Are more species needed to deliver the services I desire. More is better than less, but we are talking expensive plants here. The success rate of establishment into a three year old planting will be poor and seed will be expensive, whether in the actual cost of purchase or in the time it took to gather. And as long as I have other more receptive areas to seed there is an opportunity cost. Seed spread in one spot obviously can not be spread in another spot. Other factors to consider are whether I have a good grass sod building which will make it difficult for new seedlings to establish, whether I should burn or graze before (and perhaps after) I spread seed, how much I am willing to spend and whether I have, or am likely to treat with Milestone. Over-analysis of a question tends to lead to inaction, not something that suits my personality, but neither do I want to waste a lot of money and time beating my head against a wall.

Here, again, there seemed to be a consensus. Even in areas where it looked like there was room for more seed there might not be. Much of the action in the prairie occurs below the ground. The roots of the various species are doing battle and doing their damndest to lock up as much of the turf under the surface as possible to support what goes on above the surface. Right now I have 20 acres that were seeded last fall that still has a great deal of biotic space to colonize. That is where I should put my resources. I spread a little forb seed in the area of the 100 acre restoration that had been managed to control thistles earlier this year. I will probably purchase some seed of some species which are tolerant of Milestone (which was sprayed there last fall) and spread some more as an experiment, and try to be happy with what I have on the rest. The decision might be different in three or four years if I see forbs being out-competed by the grasses and forb populations and diversity declining in the heart of the restoration.

The third question, regarding burning, was quite immediately relevant because the summer’s drought (which has ended in the 5 weeks since the field day) had opened up the restoration to emergency haying, and one of my renters has cattle, so I was faced with the decision on whether to hay the entire 100 acres or whether to leave some forage standing to burn next spring. The decision is complicated by the fact that because of the drought, the gravel hills with the best forb diversity to manage didn’t have enough biomass to make haying worthwhile or to carry a fire next spring. It is fair to say, however, that every conservation professional I have met loves to burn prairies. Fire is fun, and the short term results oflten tend to be dramatic and very satisfying. My renter with the cattle cut about half of the restoration, including the most productive soils, for hay, and then cut a fire break around the rest. We will attempt to burn the remaining area next spring, realizing that part of it may not carry a burn. It is very possible that it will mean burning on a couple different days, or at least re-starting the fire if it reaches a point where it burns itself out. In native prairies a major goal of fire is often to set back cool season invasive species of grass such as brome and Kentucky bluegrass. While I have a little of those two grasses establishing, a larger short term goal on my restoration will be to discomfit a different invasive species, wormwood sage (Artemisia absinthium). This might mean a different timing for the burn as wormwood grows very early in the spring. It will be incumbent on me to get my resources together so that there is some flexibility in getting the fire done right.

The fourth question, concerning the use of the site as an educational tool, has no immediate answer, and we didn’t spend significant time in discussion at the field day. Really, it has two parts. First, is this a good site to elicit discussion and to provide examples of what can be done with the land? I think it is premature to answer that in full because so much is in flux. The restoration, after three years, is really not yet grazeable, though it might be next year. The new 20 acres is just a weed patch, and will still look like just a weed patch next year. The fencing which will allow rotational grazing is not yet complete. A work in progress is a candidate for a good teaching tool, but it seems to me it will be better in another year. The second part is tougher. I am turning 66 with health issues and an inability to speak. It will be difficult for me to “manage” an educational farm. I hope to have conversations with a wide variety of people to explore the possibilities both in how the site might be used, and who will develop/lead/promote events and tours at the farm. In other words, this was a good introduction to several people who I can have further discussions with to consider the possibilities.

All in all it was a very good day. I brought some sandwiches and food, and a good time was had by all. We saw the best of the restoration, we went to a couple problem areas, we looked at my new restoration and I was very impressed with the quality of the conversation. Everyone there seemed to think it was time well spent and contributed thoughts and ideas. I think that it will be the start of several valuable and enjoyable relationships and many good discussions. In the end I think that what I am doing is a good thing, but I am not pretending to present any grand model for conservation on a working farm, so I need to have fun with it too. Mission accomplished.

Postscript: About a month after this gathering one of the participants, Josh Lefers, who works for Audubon Dakota emailed to ask permission to come out with two coworkers to see the restoration. I happily invited them and had a great time showing off my work, with some very interesting discussion. The visit was made even sweeter because one of the participants, Juli Bosmoe, had just stood up for my daughter Diane at her wedding. Already progress on goal number four listed above, and a fun morning. Life is pretty sweet some days.