Revisiting the early days of The Prairie Enthusiasts

On Saturday, Feb 27, 2010 the Annual Banquet of the Prairie Enthusiasts (TPE) was held in Monroe, WI, hosted by the Prairie Bluff Chapter. Members of this chapter were part of the founders of TPE and conducted the first burns on prairie remnants.

As part of the program, several of these pioneers talked about the history of the first burn, on what is now called Muralt Prairie, in Green County. In the photo above are three of these early "burners", (from R to L) John Ochsner, Jonathan Wilde, and Gary Eldred, reviewing the history of this burn. The others on the burn are shown in the photo below, which was taken at the end of that burn on April 13, 1975 (35 years ago). (The photo below was taken by John Ochsner.)

These early prairie people had been good friends since their high school days, and had been aware, from work at the U.W. Arboretum, that prairie fires were beneficial. They decided to give fire a "try" at Muralt. They had a lone drip torch, a few shovels and rakes, but no water. The day was windy with fairly low humidity, perfect conditions for an "escape", and this is what happened. Eventually the fire department arrived, but by then the fire had put itself out.

The exciting thing was what happened later. The prairie flourished, and in August there was a huge population of rough blazing star (Liatris aspera). The Green County Board of Supervisors were so impressed that they purchased Muralt Prairie to protect it in perpetuity.

From this modest beginning, the Prairie Enthusiasts eventually rose, and is now a three-state organization with over 1000 members and nine chapters.