Irvine Prairie Tour
We toured the Irvine Prairie, a 292-acre prairie-in-progress 30 minutes south of Cedar Falls in Dysart, Iowa in July, and we were impressed by its size and beauty.
The land was donated to the University of Northern Iowa Foundation to return it to tallgrass prairie, Iowa's original ecosystem. The Tallgrass Prairie Center is responsible for planting it and making it available to the public to enjoy and learn from. They have planted about 30 acres per year so you can see what a newly planted prairie looks like in year one to year 5. It will become one of the largest tracts of restored prairie in eastern Iowa.
https://www.facebook.com/tallgrassprairiecenter
Field day for botany beginners toured the Irvine Prairie and shared species found in a first-year and second-year planting.
A collaboration of Practical Farmers of Iowa and led by Laura Walter and Justin Meissen of Tallgrass Prairie Center https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Sa1hhOZSyQ
“We are at a critical point of losing so many species from local ecosystems that their ability to produce the oxygen, clean water, flood control, pollination, pest control, carbon storage, etc., that is, the ecosystem services that sustain us, will become seriously compromised.”
- Dr. Doug Tallamy, author of Nature's Best Hope