Prairie Revival Ecological

If you're wondering what the 'beautiful' purple flowers are in the ditch this time of year, it is actually the invasive Purple Loosestrife. Unlike our native loosestrifes, this species is highly damaging to wetland ecosystems and degrades habitat for wildlife.

We need your help in finding purple loosestrife! The middle of August is peak-flowering time for this plant which makes it easy to identify. Purple flowers attached to the stem in a tall spike = purple loosestrife. Help us find this plant by sending the GPS point of purple loosestrife plants in your area! https://fwwa.org/2019/08/28/ais-spotlight-purple-loosestrife/

Non-Native Plant of the Week: Great Mullein (Verbascum thapsus)

Native to Eurasia, this hardy biennial loves dry, disturbed soil and can shoot up flowering stalks over 6 feet tall. Though often considered naturalized, this species can become problematic in new native plantings or after a disturbance. When w**ding your plantings, look for its soft, fuzzy leaves on first year plants and tall yellow blooms during the second year.

Think you missed the window for planting native species? Think again! 🌾🌸

It’s not too late to start your prairie restoration project or plant native grasses and perennials. Late summer and fall are actually ideal times for planting:

🌱 Cooler Temps, Less Stress: Lower heat levels give roots a better environment to establish without suffering from summer scorching.
🌱 Better Moisture Retention: Fall rains help keep the soil damp while root systems grow underground before winter dormancy.
🌱 Spring Head-Start: Fall-planted natives hit the ground running with strong root systems as soon as the ground warms up next spring.

Whether you're looking to convert a section of turf, enhance a native shoreline, or begin a full-scale ecological restoration, the team at Prairie Revival Ecological is ready to help.

📲 Contact Prairie Revival Ecological today to discuss your late-season planting plan!

Have you ever noticed those big, flat clusters of delicate white flowers lining our roadsides and fields?

That’s probably Queen Anne’s lace, a plant brought to North America by European settlers who used its taproot and seeds for food and medicine. Folklore says it is named after Queen Anne of England, who pricked her finger with a needle while making lace, leaving a tiny dark purple dot in the middle of the flower representing a drop of her blood.

While this wild ancestor of our modern carrot looks pretty, it is a tough, aggressive species. A single plant can produce thousands of seeds that crowd out and steal resources from our fragile native plants.

To remove it, wear gloves to avoid skin irritating sap and pull the plants straight up by the root right after a good rain when the soil is soft. Alternatively, you can mow the flower heads off right before they go to seed to stop the life cycle.

Just make sure to double check its identity first, as it looks dangerously similar to poison hemlock, which has a smooth, purple stem instead of a hairy one!

Looking for something to do this rainy Saturday morning? Come visit us down at Prairiefest at the UW Oshkosh-Fond du Lac campus from 8-12pm today.

🌲 Storm Recovery Assistance: Menasha, WI
Prairie Revival Ecological is coordinating a volunteer sawyer and cleanup crew to help our Menasha neighbors clear storm-damaged trees.

🪓 Want to Volunteer?
We need hands on the ground! Whether you have a chainsaw and gear or just a willing pair of hands and a rake, all skill levels and equipment are welcome and appreciated.

🪵 Need Help with Tree Damage?
If you or someone you know has storm-related tree damage, please reach out to us.

A Note on Prioritization: To keep everyone safe and help where it’s needed most, our volunteer crew will be prioritizing urgent safety hazards and assisting elderly, disabled, or vulnerable community members first.

💚 Here for the Immediate Cleanup & the Long Haul
Our immediate focus right now is emergency volunteer response to make sure our neighbors are safe and properties are secured. As the initial emergency phase winds down, Prairie Revival Ecological will also be available for ongoing, professional tree cleanup and ecological restoration to help our community fully recover.

How to Reach Us
Direct Message us here!

Call/Text: 920-241-6491

Email: [email protected]

🌳 ANDY’S PICK OF THE WEEK 🌳

This week, Andy is moving from the ground up to the canopy to talk about one of the absolute best all-season landscape choices for your yard: the Serviceberry (Amelanchier)! 🍒✨

Whether you know it as Juneberry, Shadbush, or Saskatoon, this native small tree/large shrub does it all. If you want a plant that looks stunning in every single season, this is your winner.

Why It’s a Great Wisconsin Plant 🧀
Serviceberries are tough-as-nails Wisconsin natives that shrug off our freezing winters and thrive in our local soils. They are incredibly versatile, happy to grow in full sun to part shade.

They also hold a sweet spot in history—legend says they got the name "Serviceberry" in New England because they bloom right when the spring ground finally thaws out enough for mountain roads to open and Sunday church services to resume!

📐 THE ART OF THE PERFECT PAIR: Garden Design 101 🏡

Ever planted a gorgeous native perennial, only for it to get completely swallowed up by its neighbors a year later? Or maybe you ended up with a patch of dirt that looks stunning in May but completely empty by July?

That is where proper design and plant pairings come into play! Designing a garden isn't just about picking pretty plants—it’s about creating a functional community where plants actually help each other thrive.

💜 ANDY’S PICK OF THE WEEK 💜

Hold onto your gardening gloves, because this week Andy is picking a plant that might just be growing in your lawn right now: the Common Blue Violet (Viola sororia)! 🌿✨

Often misunderstood as "just a w**d," this fierce little beauty is actually the Official State Flower of Wisconsin! It’s time to stop fighting it and start celebrating it.

Why It’s a Great Wisconsin Plant 🧀
Well, you can’t get much more Wisconsin than our actual state flower! Chosen by school children across the state back in 1909, the Common Violet is tough as nails. It thrives in sun, shade, clay, or rich soil, and easily survives our brutal winters. It is a native powerhouse that embraces the "No Mow May" movement perfectly, providing a beautiful splash of purple to our spring lawns.