In my little town, there’s a 1.5 acre (0.6 hectare) prairie planting, and I’ve been involved with it since the planting day 37 years ago.
Railroads and Iowa Towns
Many small towns in Iowa sprang up when the railroads came through. For Maloy that happened in 1887 with the arrival of the Chicago and Northwestern Railroad. A hundred years later, the railroad track was being dismantled, and the railroad property was divvied up among adjacent landowners. The Catholic Parish in Maloy received a portion, and Sister Bernadine Pieper created a plan to use the land for a prairie planting and a grove of native nut trees. In 1989, Sister Bernadine, John Zeitler, and other volunteers made it happen. Many people helped in maintaining the prairie, but as the years went on, I became the main person doing that work. Thus, when the parish was being closed, I agreed to take over ownership and management of the parcel with the prairie.
Planting Day — May 1989
The former railroad right-of-way had been disced and harrowed ahead of time. On planting day, a mixture of prairie grass seeds was broadcast on the area. The seeds where then packed into the soil by the tires of a large tractor. Finally, wildflower seedlings were planted in mixed species groups. The grouping helped facilitate the continued watering needed to ensure the plants’ survival.
A Few Photos Spanning Many Years
