Guess Prairie tour

Frank Norman shows us how to identify a plant
Originally uploaded by Angie Babbit

This morning, Frank Norman gave a tour of the Guess Prairie, which is approximately 11 acres of unplowed prairie near Lawrence, KS. Frank entertained the group with his wry humor and vast knowledge of prairie plants. This remnant of prairie is a wonderful example of the landscape that once covered 98% of Douglas County.
Within the first 150 feet of our walk, we found four milkweed species. By the end of our walk, we had seen several endangered Mead's Milkweeds.

Ecosystems that display the kind of diversity found in an intact native Kansas prairie are highly productive. "Productivity" is another way of saying the prairie makes a lot of biomass. What

does that mean for us? That means the plants are taking carbon dioxide from the air and putting it into their roots, stems and leaves. Unlike a rain forest, the prairie stores much of its biomass under ground in the roots. Prairie soils are deep and rich, and full of complexities that we don't yet fully understand.

So when a prairie is plowed, the soil loses an enormous capacity to store carbon, and carbon is a huge issue in the news today. Carbon dioxide is a "greenhouse gas," which contributes to global warming.

Now if that isn't a good reason to save our remaining prairie remnants, I don't know what is.