Story of a small prairie parcel

When we started restoration about 15 years ago, the parcel under discussion here consisted of a small clone of quaking aspen, about 0.2 acres. The trees were girdled in 1998 and the dead logs were removed 2 years later. Two medium-sized Hill's oaks were left standing and are thriving.

 Because this small area was an orphan trapped between our gravel service road and a small CRP parcel (the Ridge Prairie), we more or less ignored it. Although we don't have any specific records, we may have planted it once or twice with a dry-mesic seed mix. However, beginning about 2007 or 2008 it had become mostly a solid patch of Canada goldenrod (Solidago canadensis). In mid-summer 2008 the whole patch was mowed with a brush cutter to try to get a handle on the goldenrod. After that, all we have done is burn it when we burn the adjacent Ridge Prairie. It has been burned annually since then (7 or 8 burns) and otherwise it has been ignored.

I never paid any attention to it since I assumed that it was still predominantly Canada goldenrod. Last week I looked more carefully and realized that most of the Canada goldenrod had been replaced with a surprising diversity of forbs and graminoids, including some relatively uncommon species.

The photo shows one part of this parcel, with the Ridge Prairie in the background. (The nearest tree is probably a Hill's oak.)

The table below shows the results of my quick survey.

Latin name	Common name
Aster ericoides	Heath aster
Aster lateriflorus	Calico aster
Aster novae-angliae	New England aster
Aster pilosus	Hairy aster
Aster sagittifolius	Arrow-leaved aster
Baptisia alba	White wild indigo
Carex pensylvanica	Pennsylvania sedge
Cirsium discolor	Pasture thistle
Corylus americana	American hazelnut
Desmodium canadense	Showy tick-trefoil
Desmodium illinoense	Illinois tick-trefoil
Elymus riparius	Woodland wild rye
Eupatorium perfoliatum	Common boneset
Gentianella quinquefolia	Stiff gentian
Monarda fistulosa	Wild bergamot
Prenanthes alba	Lion's foot
Ratibida pinnata	Yellow coneflower
Rudbeckia hirta	Black-eyed Susan
Silphium integrifolium	Rosinweed
Silphium perfoliatum	Cup plant
Smilacina racemosa	False Solomon's seal
Solidago canadensis	Common goldenrod
Solidago nemoralis	Gray goldenrod
Solidago rigida	Stiff goldenrod
Solidago speciosa	Showy goldenrod
Sorghastrum nutans	Indian grass

Some of these species probably moved in on their own, since it is unlikely we would have had them in a seed mix. Noteworthy are Lion's foot and stiff gentian, which are hardly "weedy" species.

I'm convinced that the frequent (annual) burns played an important role in transforming this parcel from a monoculture to a diverse prairie.

It is encouraging to see what burns and patience can bring!