A 10 foot tall section of white PVC has been installed near the entrance to the prairie. The PVC has foot and ½ foot markings so you can see just how tall the plants are growing. I know it can be hard to estimate how tall the plants are so I think this extra large measuring stick will be helpful.
A newly mowed path has been established at the Prairie. The new throughway explores the oldest portion of the prairie and ventures through areas that weren’t easily accessible prior to the path. The trail goes through a low lying area that often fills with water and is frequented by water loving species like cord grass and swamp milkweed. I hope you enjoy exploring this area of the prairie on the newly developed path.
Here is a short video of the beginning of the trail just to give you a taste of the area. Enjoy!
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mDBxEk_LWuE]
I’m in the process of redesigning the sign and information center at the Prairie and I’d like to announce one of the new additions. The area is called Have Your Say and it will provide an area for our visitors to share their thoughts. The posting (seen on the left) on the sign encourages visitors to contact me via email or phone with comments, questions or concerns. I’ve already received one comment and I hope to have more come in from our visitors soon. I plan to share visitor comments and my response on the small cork board that’s been added to the redesigned sign.
Work is continuing on redesigning the rest of the sign and I hope to have it all wrapped up by the end of the month.
Something amazing happens on the trails at the prairie during this time of year. The grasses have finally emerged and are reaching towards the sky as they continue to grow taller. The breeze and their height have begun to put a soft bend in the grass stems and they gently lean off to one side or another. The beautiful formation that has made its appearance is the Tunnel of Grass. Yes, I’ve named the fleeting structure created by the presence of tall grasses near the trails edge. There is something about being enveloped by the grasses as they sway in the breeze that makes me so happy. I strongly encourage you to come and experience the feeling for yourself.
For those of you who can’t make it out to the prairie, here are two videos of the walk I took Friday morning. It was fairly windy and the grasses just danced as the breeze moved through them. Stunning.
Part 1:
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=79nQb45glEA]
Part 2:
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e96X3lrRmrU]
We’ve finally got a significant amount of rain. Yesterday we got over half an inch of rain and while I write this entry I can hear the sky rumbling outside as another storm rolls into Marion. I’m so thankful for the rain and hope it sticks around for a bit longer!
Here's a great picture of rain soaked Big Bluestem from 2003. Photo courtesy of Bob Klips. Click the picture to check out his awesome website!
I’ve been hoping for a bit of rain for the past week or so. I check the weather forecast often and we’ve had rain predicted several times that just never seems to materialize. I’ve just checked the weather outlook for this week and again found that there is a chance of rain each day this week. As much as I hope some precipitation actually occurs, it seems the track record would indicate otherwise. Here’s what this week looks like:
I’ve added the first video to the blog! This video was taken about 2 weeks ago while riding around the prairie on the back of the tractor. I thought it would give readers a new view of the prairie. The camera is a little shaky on the back of the tractor so be sure to take some Dramamine if motion sickness is a problem for you! Enjoy!
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b1IowZaVzCM]
The worst part of my job involves the side effects of working outside. Don’t get me wrong, I love working outdoors! By the time it’s warm enough to be outside, I’ve been dying to get out for months and have been counting down until my body can survive a few hours outside.
But there are certain downsides to working outside for hours on end. One of the unpleasant side effects is itching. Yes, I get poison ivy and when I react, I react very very badly. Last year I got poison ivy all over- I had it on my arms, my legs, my face. I was a wreck! I actually had to end up going to the hospital because my face was so swollen my eyes were almost shutting. It was quite an experience! Look at these two pictures if you don’t believe me. The one on the left is my face with poison ivy. Yikes!
Believe it or not, poison ivy is not my most feared side effect of outdoor work. My least favorite thing is TICKS! These creepy crawly blood suckers really freak me out. After a few hours working outside all I can do is search for ticks. My entire body feels like its crawling and the urge to keep looking is hard to combat. Ideally, I like to find ticks before they actually attach and start sucking my blood.
Last week I found two ticks on me in one day. The first one I found during my lunch break. Finding a tick on you does not lend itself to enjoying your lunch. The second tick I found while I was sleeping that night. I woke up to the feeling of something crawling on my leg. I touched it and new immediately what it was. I could barely sleep afterward. I just kept scratching and searching for more ticks. That was not a restful sleep!
So although I’ve been enjoying a summer outdoors, clearing brush, mowing or removing weeds, I could really do without all the ticks!
What a nice time to visit. There are so many different flowers in bloom right now. Although the grasses haven’t reached their peak yet, the flowers really are putting on a show!
Last Monday I was outside clearing brush from the prairie. I attached our new cart to the tractor to collect all the brush. At one point I stepped off the tractor and had a really nice surprise. Just a few feet in front of me was Royal Catchfly- in full bloom. I gasped and smiled at this bright red beauty. I spotted lots of Royal Catchfly in bloom around the prairie.
For some reason the blooms look a little orangish in these photos- but be assured, they are very red in person!