TPE has set in place new guidelines to enable us to begin holding our important field trips and work parties going forward while protecting our safety during the COVID-19 pandemic. May 2020 field trip at the oak barrens near TPE’s Rattlesnake Ridge preserve in Arena, WI. Photo by Scott Fulton Like all of us, we […]
Hello Prairie Enthusiasts! We are Dan, Diane, Jerry, and Joe, and we are the people working for you and TPE as the Chapter Support staff. As you may have heard, we are taking a big leap forward in 2020, adding significantly to our capacity to address the mission of educating, protecting, and restoring the native […]
Are you, or do you know someone who is interested in restoring or managing native prairie and savanna communities on private land? Would you like to hear the bumblebees busily spreading pollen from flower to flower and see more butterflies dancing among the grasses? Coulee Region Chapter members John and Rita Hoffmann at their property […]
This week the savanna’s purple lupines (Lupinus perennis) and pink wild geraniums (Geranium maculatum) are being replaced by spiderworts (Tradescantia ohiensis). According to past years’ local records, spiderworts are blooming later than normal this year. The cool spring, together with the lack of burning, make this year’s blooming plants on the hillsides appear to be […]
Spring is quickly growing into summer. Here are a few photos that captured our attention this past month. So fun to see what is happening in and around the prairie. One way of looking at these images is called Phenology which is the study of reoccurring life cycles that are driven by the environment. The […]
Please enjoy these beautiful Spring photos contributed by our members! Let go of the last bits of winter and take a virtual walk through Nature and witness the new beginnings of growth on the Prairie. Welcome back sunshine to our land and our lives! Photo by Joe Rising Photo by Christine Larson Photo by […]
Happy May Day 2020! This may be one of the the most important days of the year. Symbolically, this day represents the return of life and fertility to the world. Astrologically, today marks the midpoint of Spring, half way between the Spring Equinox and Summer Solstice. Traditionally, children gather flowers and make May Baskets to […]
The main theme of this series of posts is the sense of nature that gives us strength and healing. The poetry of Wendell Berry often does that. He was in touch with the earth, though often from a more agricultural standpoint. He once wrote a poem about stones, from a farmer’s point of view. They […]
This week more reptiles and amphibians are becoming active. The musical trill of American Toads can now be heard from some ponded wetlands. Toads typically breed when water temperatures are over 60⁰ F but may be heard singing from late April until mid-summer. Bird’s-foot violets are starting to bloom in prairie areas. Bird’s-foot violets can […]
Susan S. Chambers, Many Rivers Chapter member, explores the awe we can discover each and every day, and especially when we are isolated at home. A notable poet, she shows us how the comfort of a poem can touch us spiritually. Aubade poem- An aubade is a morning love song (as opposed to a serenade, which is in […]
