For more than eighty-nine years, the Conservation Federation of Missouri (CFM) has served as “The Voice for Missouri Outdoors.” Join in our efforts to secure our stronghold as advocates for our state’s wildlife and natural resources by becoming a dedicated member of our Founders Circle.
Your contribution will play an influential role in preserving Missouri’s rich outdoor legacy.
Each year, earnings from the endowment will be used to support CFM’s education and advocacy efforts. Special recognition will be given to those who reach each level of giving. Additionally, memberships will be recognized at our annual Convention.
Make your contribution today, to preserving our state’s conservation legacy.
Missouri’s Unique Native Grasslands
Welcome to the special native grassland edition of the Conservation Federation magazine! This unique edition culminates the work of many dedicated conservationists across Missouri and beyond. I truly hope you take the time to read all these articles and come away with a greater appreciation of these native grassland ecosystems.
You will find many articles that a wide variety of passionate professionals have composed for you. Whether you are a casual outdoors person, or dealing with advanced grassland systems, I know you will become more knowledgeable after reading any or all of these articles. I can’t tell you how much I learned editing and arranging these articles from the brilliant authors.
Looking back, the idea for a Grassland’s Summit started when Bill White approached me during the CFM Annual Convention back in 2023. Earlier that year, we hosted the Wetland’s Summit, where hundreds of resource professionals gathered over the course of three days. It was such a huge success that he and others wanted to replicate it for the native grassland community. Without any hesitation, I told him, “Let’s do it”, but at the same time, I knew it would be a lot of work.
However, in the Show-Me State, our partners, organizations, businesses, and agencies work together so brilliantly that I knew we could assemble a team that was up to the task. With a target hosting date in April of 2024, we had to act quickly, and we did. After garnering the support of the CFM Board of Directors, we assembled the committee, and it began to come alive.
I cannot begin to thank all the sponsors, committee members, attendees, staff, leaders and professionals who helped pull this together. CFM, Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS) and the Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) took the lead, and many additional organizations, non-profits, and businesses, too numerous to list, all jumped in and stepped up in a big way. You can read more details about the Summit from Bill White on pages 6 and 7.
So where do we go from here? The conversations have not stopped, and many partners continue to meet and work to figure out the next steps. You can go to our webpage and view the agenda, summary, and presentations at confedmo.org/grasslands.
The future path of native grasslands in Missouri will change because of this Summit. Not only can I predict that, but I have also already seen it. It’s happening right now as you read this, because of the many passionate and dedicated conservationists that want to make a difference!
I hope this becomes a special edition that you will want to share with friends and family or hang onto for years to come. If you want me to send you an extra copy, please don’t hesitate to contact our office, and we will send one your way. Or stop by any Bass Pro Shops store in Missouri and get your free copy while they last. Thanks again, and happy reading.
Yours in Conservation,
Tyler Schwartze CFM Executive Director, Editor
Tyler Schwartze stands in a glade he is restoring at his home in Callaway County. Cedar, autumn olive, and other invasives once stood where he was standing, but now common milkweed and other natives have been planted and are thriving. (Photo: Michelle Schwartze)
CONTENTS Features
STAFF
Tyler Schwartze - Executive Director, Editor
Micaela Haymaker - Director of Operations
Michelle Gabelsberger - Membership Manager
Nick Darling - Education and Communications Coordinator
Trisha Ely - Development & Events Coordinator
Joan VanderFeltz - Administrative Assistant
Emma Kessinger - Creative Director
22 BOARD OF DIRECTORS
2024 Missouri Native Grasslands Summit Summary
Native Grasses as Forage: A Profitable & Sustainable Choice for Livestock
Native Grasslands Create a Quail Hunter's Dream
Missouri's Old-Growth Prairies and Savannas
Hometown Heroes
Finding Support: Navigating Technical & Financial Support to Establish
Grassland's Edible Natives are Naturals for Gardens, Farms, and Pollinators
Horizon II: How Restored Prairie Will Contribute to Renewable Energy Production
Native Plants, Healthy Soil & Livestock: A Perfect Match
In the Eye of the Brush Storm
Diversifying Established Native Warm-Season Grass Plantings
Verging on Silence: Insect Declines and Missouri Prairies
Executive Committee:
Bill Kirgan, President
Ginny Wallace, President-Elect
Steve Jones, Vice President
Benjamin Runge, Secretary
Bill Lockwood, Treasurer
Board Members:
Richard Ash
Mossie Schallon
Gary Van De Velde
Dick Wood
Nathan McLeod
Jake Swafford
Emily Tracy-Smith
Jim Low
Ryan Verkamp
Ralph Duren
Katherine Brookshire
Leanne Tippett-Mosby
Adam Sapp
Emily Schrader
Jennifer Battson-Warren
Kyle Carroll
Bill Cooper
Dana Ripper
Zach Morris
Bill McGuire
Lisa Allen
Tom Westhoff
Mike Schallon
Katie Marsh
Governor Jay Nixon
Wes Swee
David Urich
Shirley Wolverson
Susan Wrasmann
Jeff Meshach
Kathie Brennan
Laurie Wilson
William Hall
Michael Meredith
Alexander Scott
Ryan Coovert
April Hoffman
Jean Nock
Eric Rahm
Dave Murphy
Troy Beilsmith
ABOUT THE MAGAZINE
Conservation Federation (ISSN 1082-8591), Copyright 1938, is published 6 times a year in January, March, May, July, September, and November by the Conservation Federation of Missouri (CFM), 728 West Main, Jefferson City, MO 65101. Of each member’s dues, $10 shall be for a year’s subscription to Conservation Federation. Call (573) 634-2322 to become a member. Periodicals Postage paid at Jefferson City, MO.
Send address changes to:
Conservation Federation 728 West Main Jefferson City, MO 65101
FRONT
COVER
Cover Photo courtesy of Missouri Department of Conservation.
Thank you to all of our Business Partners.
Platinum
Gold
Doolittle Trailer
Enbridge, Inc.
G3 Boats
Silver
Forrest Keeling Nursery
Lilley’s Landing Resort & Marina
Missouri Wildflowers Nursery
Bronze
Association of Missouri Electric Coop.
Black Widow Custom Bows, Inc.
Burgers’ Smokehouse
Central Electric Power Cooperative
Drury Hotels
Iron
AJ's Automotive & Air Conditioning
Bass Pro Shops (Independence)
Bee Rock Outdoor Adventures
Big Bear Butcher Shop
Boone Electric Cooperative
Brockmeier Financial Services
Cap America
Central Bank
Community State Bank of Bowling Green
Custom Promotional Branding
Pure Air Natives
Redneck Blinds
Rusty Drewing Chevrolet
Roeslein Alternative Energy, LLC
Mitico Quaker Windows
Starline, Inc.
St. James Winery
HMI Fireplace Shop
Hodgdon Powder Company, Inc.
Missouri Wine & Grape Board
NE Electric Power Cooperative, Inc.
New Florence Wood Products
NW Electric Power Cooperative, Inc.
Ozark Bait and Tackle
Woods Smoked Meats
Dickerson Park Zoo
Farmer’s Co-op Elevator Association
FCS Financial
Gascosage Electric Cooperative
General Printing Service
GREDELL Engineering Resources, Inc.
Heartland Seed of Missouri LLC
Hulett Heating & Air Conditioning
Independent Stave Company
Joe Machens Ford
Lewis County Rural Electric Coop.
Marble Graphics II LLC
Midwest Mailing Services
Missouri Native Seed Association
ModernLitho Jefferson City
Moneta Group
On Time Toner and Supplies LLC
Truman’s Bar & Grill
United Electric Cooperative, Inc.
Your business can benefit by supporting conservation. For all sponsorship opportunities, call (573) 634-2322.
2024 Missouri Native Grasslands Summit Summary
The Inuagural Missouri Native Grasslands Summit was held April 9-11, 2024, at the Capital Plaza Hotel in Jefferson City, Missouri and was co-hosted by the Conservation Federation of Missouri (CFM), the Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) and the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS).
Approximately 330 people from 14 states and a variety of state/federal agencies, non-governmental agencies along with landowners attended the Summit to hear presentations and discussions from a wide variety of experts, professionals, and other interested parties on the state of native grassland conservation in Missouri and the challenges that lie ahead.
The objective for the 2024 Missouri Native Grasslands Summit was to facilitate partners working in unison to bring native grassland conservation to the next level through the protection of remnants and expansion of plantings with a result to take recommendations from the summit to agency/NGO leadership to get commitments to address moving forward.
Participants were able to provide their thoughts, ideas, and opinions for the future of native grasslands in Missouri. Many of the participants, provided ideas and opinions in a pre-Summit survey and during the summit participants could ask questions and provide comments using a QR code.
Additionally, two public input opportunities were well received on the last day. A post-Summit evaluation was sent to all participants to provide their thoughts.
Approximately 43% of participants responded to the post-summit survey, sharing that they were most interested in listening to presentations and liked the topics, followed closely by speakers and networking opportunities. Over 73% of respondents felt their voice was heard with 23% not sure. The top 3 most useful things participants said they learned include: learning about warm season grass forage, native prairies, and creating new partnerships.
All in all, this event was well received by the participants demonstrating a key interest in advancing native grassland conservation and expansion. This event serves as the catalyst for a coalition of partners with a vested interest in Missouri’s grasslands to place increased emphasis and collaboration to protect remaining prairie remnants and expand native plantings on both working and recreational lands.
Results from the Summit to date include:
• A meeting of the leadership of partner organizations that have a vested interest in Missouri’s native grasslands was held October 15 with over 50 staff from partner organizations attending. The recommendations that came from the April Summit were shared and an action plan developed to continue to move grassland conservation in Missouri to the next level.
• This issue of the CFM Magazine will continue the focus on native grassland conservation. Some of the articles will overlap with messages that were shared at the Summit. There are other features and highlights within this issue that provide additional perspectives and areas of grassland work that weren’t touched on by the Summit’s agenda. We hope these articles are viewed as a continuation of the conversation that began with the Summit earlier this year.
• The agenda, PDF’s of presentations given, and comprehensive report can be found on the CFM website at: Grasslands Summit - Conservation Federation of Missouri (confedmo.org)
Other ideas and discussions have likely taken place and are influencing action but fall outside of this special issue of the CFM magazine. Thank you for playing a part and advancing native grassland conservation in Missouri. Enjoy!
Bill White
(Retired MDC), Grassland Conservation Specialist, Natural Resource Conservation Service
Cover - A healthy steer on greener pastures in the heart of a major drought (July 2023) on a diverse native forage mix in Dade County. (Photo: Courtesy of NRCS)
Top - “Over 330 professional and citizen native grassland enthusiasts attended the 2024 Native Grasslands Summit in Jefferson City, April 9-11. (Photo: Quail Forever)
NRCS staff use the rainfall simulator to demonstrate the ability of native grasses to slow rainfall runoff during the Summit. (Photo: NRCS)
President's Message
Reflections
As I write my Presidents message at the end of October, I am aware that you will be reading it in the January/February edition of our magazine. I can only speculate all that will transpire between now and then; an election, fall hunting seasons of all kinds and the return of winter. My crystal ball seems to be out of order, so I’d like to share a couple of positive events in the recent past.
You may recall in the last edition, I shared the intent to provide fishing equipment to kids attending a summer camp for those who have parents who are incarcerated. That promise was recently kept through the generosity of a longtime CFM member, Randy Washburn, owner of Ozark Bait and Tackle in Laurie, MO. On October 25th of last year, 24 new rods and reels were delivered to Joshua Cullom, President of Hope of the Ozarks, (formerly Camp David of the Ozarks), to members John and Wendy Carter, where the kids are invited to fish. Hope of the Ozarks, just south of Rolla, MO, serves approximately 125 kids over 10 weeks in the summer. Their website is www.hopeoftheozarks.org if you would like to reach them. Josh is on the left, and John is pictured on the right with some of the equipment.
Last October, CFM hosted a banquet in St. Louis hosted by Dan and Connie Burkhardt. The Burkhardts are generous supporters of CFM and have had a great hand in establishing, maintaining, and promoting the Katy Trail. Dan’s book, Trail Blazers, is dedicated to “The Free-Spirited and Extraordinary Lives of Ted and Pat Jones“ of Edward Jones and Associates. I found it more than a coincidence that a friend of 40 years, Beverly Bloemke of Owensville, MO posted of her recent trip down the length of the Katy Trail. The pleasure Beverly found in that adventure leaped from her post and spoke more to the benefit of the trail than I ever could. With that in mind and Beverly’s permission, I would like to share that post with you now in her own words.
“280 cyclists, six days, 245 miles, five of us about to turn 65, an 81-year-old with her daughter and SIL, a 78-yearold from Chicago wearing streaks of fairy hair, Randy, Dennis and Steve from DC, 70-year-old RoJean from Nebraska, Darren reciting the interesting sayings and his wife Alice from Arkansas, the two beautiful 70 year olds from Galveston, the groups from Florida, California, New Mexico and so many interesting people from all across the United States who came to Missouri just to ride our Katy Trail. Dan, the author who wrote the beautiful book about it and my two new friends from Springfield. I was worried about going and unsure if I could make it, but my heart kept telling me I needed to and I’m so very glad I listened. I stepped out of my comfort zone and met so many amazing people. It was one of the best and enriching weeks of my life! and I hugged a 400-year-old Burr Oak tree.”
We have so many treasures, like the Katy Trail State Park in Missouri, that we should not take for granted - the rest of the country sure doesn’t.
Bill Kirgan CFM President
24 new rods and reels were recently delivered to Joshua Cullom, President of Hope of the Ozarks, thanks to CFM and Randy Washburn. (Photo: Bill Kirgan)
2025 Events Schedule
50/50 Online Raffle - January - April - July - October
Take your chance at half the pot during our quarterly 50/50 raffles
th
89 Annual Convention - Virtual - Feb. 25-27, March 4-6; In Person - March 7-8
Let your voice be heard at the Annual Convention. The event will include meetings, awards, auctions, and so much more. Held at the Lodge of Four Seasons in Lake Ozark.
Conservation Day at the Capitol - April 2
Join conservationists from across Missouri on the radio for a day of celebrating and supporting conservation and natural resources. The broadcast will air from 6 am to 10 am on 96.7 FM or KCMQ.com.
Conservation Federation Banquet: Springfield - April 10
Join us for a fantastic meal while networking and supporting CFM.
Share The Harvest Golf Tournament - June 9
Tee off for a great cause at our golf tournament at Oak Hills Golf Center in Jefferson City to support Share the Harvest!
CFM Life Member Event - June 28
CFM will be hosting its 4th annual life member only event
Conservation Federation Banquet: Columbia - July 10
Join us for an unforgettable evening at our Columbia banquet at Bass Pro, featuring great food, exciting auctions, and a chance to support CFM!
Mega Raffle - Starts in August - Drawing December 6
Enter our Mega Raffle for a chance to win big prizes and support CFM!
Pull for Conservation: Central - August 9
Take your best shot at the 19th annual Central clay shoot at Prairie Grove Shotgun Sports.
Fall Online Auction - September 8-19
Enjoy a fun and interactive online auction with many great trips and prizes.
Affiliate Summit - September 10
CFM affiliate organizations are invited to network and learn at the Tiger Hotel in Columbia.
90th Anniversary Celebration - September 10
Join us at the historic Tiger Hotel, the birthplace of the CFM, as we commemorate this significant milestone. Enjoy special events and activities that honor our rich legacy and look forward to a bright future
Holiday Online Auction - December 1-12
Bid on many exciting items just in the time for the holidays
Event dates are subject to change. Please visit www.confedmo.org or follow us on social media for the most up to date schedule.
CFM MISSION:
To ensure conservation of Missouri's wildlife and natural resources, and preservation of our state's rich outdoor legacy through advocacy, education and partnerships.
Why I Became a Life Member: David and Janice Reynolds
We became Conservation Federation of Missouri (CFM) Life Members to support this very important organization. CFM played an instrumental role in forming the Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC), and was the catalyst for the 1/10 of 1% sales tax.
We feel strongly about protecting the fish, forest and wildlife for future generations, which is why we spearheaded the effort to purchase and donate around 500 acres at Cedar Gap to the MDC. This land is important because it contains the headwaters of the Bryant Creek.
As a lifetime fisherman, hunter, and outdoorsman, I (David) have long enjoyed all that Missouri has to offer. We have shown and taught our grandson to also appreciate the outdoors. He is becoming a fine fly fisherman!
Being lifetime members gives us the opportunity to associate with likeminded conservationists that help protect Missouri’s natural resources.
In Memory & Honor
Cindy James Jim Low
Terri Woodward
Mr. and Mrs. Bill Kirgan
LIFE MEMBERS OF CFM
Charles Abele
* R. Philip Acuff
* Duane Addleman
* Nancy Addleman
Tom Addleman
Nancy Addleman
* Michael Duane Addleman
James Agnew
Carol Albenesius
Craig Alderman
* Allan Appell
Victor Arnold
Bernie Arnold
Richard Ash
Judy Kay Ash
Carolyn Auckley
Doug Audiffred
Ken Babcock
Bernie Bahr
Michael Baker
* James Baker
Dane Balsman
Timothy Barksdale
Lynn Barnickol
Jamie Barton
Michael Bass
Robert Bass
Don Bedell
Thomas Bell
David F. Bender
Rodger Benson
Leonard Berkel
Barbi Berrong
Jim Blair
John Blankenbeker
Andy Blunt
Jeff Blystone
Kim Blystone
Glenn Boettcher
Arthur Booth
* Dale Linda Bourg
Stephen Bradford
Marilynn Bradford
Robin Brandenburg
Mark Brandly
Kathie Brennan
Robert Brinkmann
Katherine Brookshire
* Scott Brundage
Bill Bryan
Alan Buchanan
Connie Burkhardt
Dan Burkhardt
Charles Burwick
Brandon Butler
Randy Campbell
Brian Canaday
Dale Carpentier
Joe Cater
* Glenn Chambers
Bryan Chilcutt
Ed Clausen
* Edward Clayton
* Ron Coleman
Denny Coleman
Rhonda Coleman
Liz Cook
Bill Cooper
Elizabeth Copeland
Mark Corio
* Bill Crawford
Andy Dalton
DeeCee Darrow
Ryan Diener
Joe Dillard
Randy Doman
Tim Donnelly
Cheryl Donnelly
Ron Douglas
Chuck Drury
* Charlie Drury
Tom Drury
Ethan Duke
Mike Dunning
William Eddleman
John Enderle
Theresa Enderle
Joe Engeln
Marlin Fiola
* Mary Louise Fisher
Howard Fisher
Andrew Fleming
Matt Fleming
Howard Fleming
Sara Fleming
Lori Fleming
Paula Fleming
* Charles Fleming
Bob Fry
Manley Fuller
David Galat
Gene Gardner
Matt Gaunt
Jason Gibbs
Timothy Gordon
Blake Gornick
David Graber
Tim Grace
Jody Graff
Richard & Sally Graham
* Joseph Gray
Tyler Green
Jason Green
Gery Gremmelsbacher
Debbie Gremmelsbacher
Jason Gremmelsbacher
Bernie Grice Jr.
Mark & Kathy Haas
Tom & Margaret Hall
Christopher Hamon
* Deanna Hamon
J. Jeff Hancock
Herman Hanley
Keith Hannaman
Elizabeth Hannaman
Lonnie Hansen
John Harmon
* Milt Harper
Jack Harris
David Haubein
Jessica Hayes
* Susan Hazelwood
Mickey Heitmeyer
Loring Helfrich
* LeRoy Heman
* Randy Herzog
Todd Higgins
Bill Hilgeman
Jim Hill
April Hoffman
Mike Holley
Rick Holton
CW Hook
* Allan Hoover
John Hoskins
Todd Houf
* Mike Huffman
Wilson Hughes
Larry Hummel
* Patricia Hurster
Kyna Iman
Jason Isabelle
Jim Jacobi
Aaron Jeffries
Robert Jernigan
Jerry Jerome
Roger & Debbie Johnson
* Don Johnson
* Malcolm Johnson
* Pat Jones
Steve Jones
John Karel
Thomas Karl
Jim Keeven
* Duane Kelly
Cosette Kelly
Junior Kerns
Todd Keske
Robert Kilo
* Martin King
Bill Kirgan
* Judd Kirkham
* Ed Kissinger
Sarah Knight
TJ Kohler
Jeff Kolb
Chris Kossmeyer
Chris Koster
Dan Kreher
Carl Kurz
* Ann Kutscher
Larry Lackamp
Kyle Lairmore
* Jay Law
Michael Leach
* Gerald Lee
Debra Lee
Mark Lee
Randy Leible
Wade Leible
* Joel LeMaster
* Norman Leppo
* John Lewis
Bill Lockwood
Leroy Logan
Christine Logan - Hollis
Bob Lorance
Ike Lovan
Wayne Lovelace
Kimberley Lovelace-
Hainsfurther
Jim Low
Mark Loyd
Emily Lute-Wilbers
Martin MacDonald
Michael Mansell
Steve Maritz
Danny Marshall
Edward Martin
John Mauzey
Bill McCully
Chip McGeehan
Teresa McGeehan
Justin McGuire
Nathan "Shags" McLeod
Jon McRoberts
Richard Mendenhall
Tom Mendenhall
Donna Menown
John "Mitch" Mertens
Cynthia Metcalfe
Walter Metcalfe
Larry Meyer
Stephanie Michels
Brooks Miller
Mitchell Mills
Joshua Millspaugh
Davis Minton
Lowell Mohler
John Moore, Jr.
Gary Moreau
Johnny Morris
Mary Morris
Zachary Morris
John Mort
Leanne Mosby
Steve Mowry
Diana Mulick
David Murphy
* Dean Murphy
Richard Mygatt
* Steve Nagle
Rehan Nana
Robert Naumann
J. Roger Nelson
Jeremiah (Jay) Nixon
Gary Novinger
Frank & Judy Oberle
Larry O'Reilly
Charlie & Mary O’Reilly
Beth O'Reilly
Anya O'Reilly
Jeff Owens
Austin Owens
Sara Parker Pauley
Scott Pauley
Randy Persons
Edward Petersheim
Albert Phillips
Jan Phillips
Glenn & Ilayana Pickett
Jessica Plaggenberg
Becky Plattner
Zach Pollock
Jerry Presley
Albert Price
Nick Prough
Kirk Rahm
Kurtis Reeg
John Rehagen
David & Janice Reynolds
Carey Riley
Kevin Riley
Mike Riley
Dana Ripper John Risberg
Mary Risberg
Ann Ritter
Charles Rock
Derrick Roeslein
Rudy Roeslein
Charles Rogers
Kayla Rosen
Gerald Ross Pete Rucker
Benjamin Runge Tyler Ruoff William Ruppert Tom Russell Jacob Sampsell Bruce Sassmann Jan Sassmann Frederick Saylor Michael Schallon Mossie Schallon * Evelyn Schallon Thomas Schlafly Pamela Schnebelen Don Schultehenich Deb Schultehenrich Tyler Schwartze * Ronald Schwartzmeyer Timothy Schwent Travis W. Scott George Seek Arlene Segal * E. Sy Seidler * Sara Seidler Joshua Shadwick Anita Siegmund Emily Sinnott Douglas Smentkowski Gary & Susanna Smith Zachary Smith * M.W. Sorenson * Ed Stegner Jeff Stegner Everett Stokes William Stork Jr. Winifred Stribling Norm Stucky Mary Stuppy * Mark Sullivan Jacob Swafford Jim Talbert Norman Tanner Travis Taylor Richard Thom Don Thomas Tim Thompson * Jeff Tillman Robert Tompson Mike Torres Matt Tucker
David Urich
Jennifer Urich Alex Uskokovich Gary Van De Velde Barbara vanBenschoten Lee Vogel Albert Vogt Frank Wagner Ray Wagner * Julius Wall Ginny Wallace Mervin Wallace Randy Washburn Mary Waters * Henry Waters, III. Daniel Weinrich Michael Weir Robert Werges Evelyn Werges Bennish Tom Westhoff Gary Wheeler Georganne Wheeler Nixon
Rayburn Whitener
Mark Williams
Dennis Williams
Dr. Jane Williams Stephen Wilson Michael Wilson
Laurie Wilson
Jonathan Wingo Jon R. Wingo Michael Wiseman Daniel Witter
Brenda Witter
* Addie Witter
Owen Witter
Dick Wood Howard Wood
Joyce Wood Nicole Wood
Charles M. Wormek Brad Wright Evan Wright Suzanne Wright David Young Judy Young Dan Zekor Daniel Zerr
Jim Zieger Robert Ziehmer Emily Ziehmer Lauren Ziehmer Colton Zirkle Ethan Zuck Guy Zuck
Mark Zurbrick *Deceased
Burgers’ Smokehouse
Our story goes all the way back to 1927, deep in the heart of the Missouri Ozarks. Our founder, E.M. Burger learned the craft of curing meat from his mother, Hulda. To this day, we still use her method of hand-preparing and slow-curing meat. Burgers' Smokehouse remains owned and operated by the third and fourth generations of the Burger family. We still do things the old-fashioned way, taking patience and time to produce the best tasting hams, bacon, sausage and more. All made in small batches for the added flavor - using a natural wood smoked process. We have made ordering easy online at; Smokehouse.com. Order today for all of your comfort foods!
Truman's
Truman's is owned and operated by a staff of avid hunters, fishers, and outdoor enthusiasts. We are proud to support CFM and their mission to protect and preserve the Missouri outdoors for future generations.
Columbia's favorite neighborhood sports bar & grill for 20 years! Breakfast all day, amazing specialty burgers, and 13 award-winning house-made BBQ sauces; Full bar featuring 20 beers on tap with rotating seasonal features, huge selection of 50+ bottled beers, seasonal cocktail menus, and a curated Top Shelf Bourbon list; 50+ TVs, including 11 giant 90" projection screens, make every seat the best in the house; 4 billiards tables, darts, pinball, pop-a-shot, & more! Tacos every Tuesday and Breakfast Buffet every Saturday and Sunday till 2pm.
Missouri Prairie Foundation: Lighting a Fire for Prairie Since 1966
Prior to Euro-American settlement in Missouri, native grasslands were the defining landscape of the region. Spacious open prairies, along with other native grasslands including rocky glades and savannas with open-grown oaks, stretched across large areas of the state.
In what was once the homeland of the Osage Nation, their ancestors, and other native nations—whose firetending practices were a major factor in expanding and sustaining open landscapes—these 8,000-year-old grassland communities supported a staggering array of plant and animal species and carried out many ecological functions.
Today, less than 1/2 of 1% of native prairies remain in Missouri. Prairie once covered at least 15 million acres in the state up until statehood in 1821. Today, according to the Missouri Natural Heritage Database, fewer than 45,000 scattered acres of unplowed prairie remain. Tallgrass prairie is one of the planet’s rarest habitat types.
The mission of the Missouri Prairie Foundation (MPF), a 58-year-old, nationally accredited land trust, is to protect and restore prairie and other native grassland communities through land acquisition, stewardship, education, and research; to promote the use of native plants through its 24-year-old Grow Native! native plant marketing and education program; and to support the control of invasive plants through administration of the Missouri Invasive Plant Council.
Founded in 1966, MPF currently owns and stewards 35 properties totaling nearly 5,000 acres, all of which are open to the public to enjoy on foot. Collectively, MPF’s prairies provide habitat for more than 70 plant and animal species of concern, hundreds of plant species, many species of grassland birds, hundreds of species of pollinating insects, and some of the rarest prairie communities in the state. MPF continually seeks additional prairies to protect while they still exist to save. In 2025, MPF will begin holding conservation easements on prairie remnants as well.
In addition to its on-the-ground conservation work, MPF produces the Missouri Prairie Journal, organizes bi-weekly, online educational programming serving thousands of viewers annually, conducts plant and animal surveys of its properties, supports and shares prairie research, works with partners to conserve additional land, and much more.
With only seven staff members working in the field and from home offices, MPF is lean and efficient. A dedicated board of directors oversees the organization, and technical advisors and other volunteers provide muchvalued insight and assistance. To learn more about MPF’s work and how you can support its prairie conservation work, visit moprairie.org
Carol Davit Executive Director, Missouri Prairie Foundation
A young participant at an MPF Annual Prairie BioBlitz sets a trap to help survey small mammals at MPF’s Golden Prairie in Barton County, a National Natural Landmark. (Photo: MDC/Noppadol Paothong)
Affiliate Organizations
Anglers of Missouri
Association of Missouri Electric Cooperatives
Bass Slammer Tackle
Burroughs Audubon
Society of Greater Kansas City
Capital City Fly Fishers
Chesterfield Citizens Committee for the Environment
Columbia Audubon Society
Conservation Foundation of Missouri Charitable Trust
Dark Sky Missouri
Deer Creek Sportsman Club
Duckhorn Outdoors Adventures
Festus-Crystal City Conservation Club
Forest and Woodland Association of Missouri
Forest Releaf of Missouri
Friends of Rock Bridge Memorial State Park
Greater Ozarks Audubon Society
Greenbelt Land Trust of Mid-Missouri
Greenway Network, Inc.
James River Basin Partnership
L-A-D Foundation
Lake of the Ozarks Watershed Alliance
Land Learning Foundation
Legends of Conservation
Magnificent Missouri
Mid Mo Prescribed Burn Assn.
Mid-Missouri Outdoor Dream
Mid-Missouri Trout Unlimited
Midwest Diving Council
Mississippi Valley Duck Hunters Association
Missouri Association of Meat Processors
Missouri Atlatl Association
Missouri B.A.S.S. Nation
Missouri Bird Conservation Initiative
Missouri Birding Society
Missouri Bluebird Society
Missouri Bow Hunters Association
Missouri Caves & Karst Conservancy
Missouri Chapter of the American Fisheries Society
Missouri Chapter of the Wildlife Society
Missouri Coalition for the Environment
Missouri Conservation Corps
Missouri Conservation Heritage Foundation
Missouri Conservation Pioneers
Missouri Consulting Foresters Association
Missouri Disabled Sportsmen
Missouri Ducks Unlimited- State Council
Missouri Environmental Education Association
Missouri Environmental Education Projects
Missouri Forest Products Association
Missouri Grouse Chapter of QUWF
Missouri Hunting Heritage Federation
Missouri Master Naturalist
- Great Rivers Chapter
Missouri Master Naturalist
- Hi Lonesome Chapter
Missouri Master Naturalist
- Meramec Hills Chapter
Missouri Master Naturalist
- Osage Trails Chapter
Missouri Master Naturalist
- Springfield Plateau Chapter
Missouri National Wild Turkey Federation
Missouri Native Seed Association
Missouri Outdoor Communicators
Missouri Park & Recreation Association
Missouri Parks Association
Missouri Prairie Foundation
Missouri River Bird Observatory
Missouri River Relief
Missouri Rock Island Trail, Inc.
Missouri Rural Water Association
Missouri Smallmouth Alliance
Missouri Society of American Foresters
Missouri Soil & Water Conservation Society-Show-Me Chapter
Missouri Sport Shooting Association
Missouri State Campers Association
Missouri State Parks Foundation
Missouri Taxidermist Association
Missouri Trappers Association
Missouri Trout Fishermen's Association
Northside Conservation Federation
Open Space Council of the St. Louis Region
Outdoor Skills of America, Inc.
Ozark Chinquapin Foundation
Ozark Fly Fishers, Inc.
Ozark Land Trust
Ozark Riverways Foundation
Ozark Trail Association
Ozark Wilderness Waterways Club
Perry County Sportsman Club
Pomme De Terre Chapter Muskies
Quail & Upland Wildlife Federation, Inc.
Quail Forever & Pheasants Forever
Renew Missouri
River Access Coalition
River Bluffs Audubon Society
River City Foundation
Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation
Scenic Rivers Invasive Species Partnership (SRISP)
South Side Division CFM
Southwest Missouri Fly Fishers
St. Louis Audubon Society
Stream Teams United
Student Air Rifle Program
Tipton Farmers & Sportsman's Club
Tri-Lakes Fly Fishers
Turtle Conservation Group
United Bowhunters of Missouri
Wild Bird Rehabilitation
Wild Souls Wildlife Rescue Rehabilitation
WildHERness
Wonders of Wildlife
World Bird Sanctuary
Young Outdoorsmen United
Native Grasses as Forage: A Profitable & Sustainable Choice for Livestock
Forage management plays a crucial role in optimizing profitability and sustainability in livestock production. For many producers, fescue has long been a staple forage due to its resilience and growth patterns. However, emerging evidence increasingly highlights the advantages of incorporating native warm-season grasses into the forage system rather than a system reliant solely on fescue and other cool-season pasture grasses.
Native warm-season grasses, such as big bluestem, indiangrass, switchgrass, eastern gamagrass, and little bluestem, are well-adapted to their native climates and soil types, offering substantial benefits for cattle operations, and small ruminants like sheep and goats. These benefits lead to reductions in inputs and increased profits for producers that have incorporated native forages into their systems.
Understanding Native Warm-Season Grasses
Native warm-season grasses and forbs are well-adapted to the climatic conditions and soil types of the regions where they naturally occur. These grasses grow most actively during the warmer months of the year, from late spring through summer, providing high-quality forage during a time when fescue’s growth tends to slow down or stop completely depending on the year.
Economic Advantages
• Reduced Input Costs: Native warm-season grasses are typically low-maintenance compared to fescue. They require fewer fertilizer and pesticide inputs, which can significantly lower operational costs.
• Enhanced Forage Quality: Warm-season grasses often provide superior forage quality during their peak growing season. This translates to better livestock performance in terms of weight gain and overall health. Higher-quality forage means that animals can achieve their nutritional needs more effectively, reducing the need for additional feed supplements.
• Extended Grazing Seasons: By incorporating native warm-season grasses into grazing systems, producers can extend the grazing season into the warmer months when fescue is less productive. It also allows fescue pastures to rest and stockpile for fall and winter forage. This helps in optimizing the use of pastures and minimizing the need for expensive supplemental feeds.
• Improved Soil Health and Carbon Sequestration: The deep root systems of native warm-season grasses contribute to better soil health by enhancing soil structure and increasing organic matter. They also play a role in carbon sequestration, which can offer additional benefits through potential carbon credits or incentives.
Environmental and Management Benefits
• Drought Resistance: Native warm-season grasses are adapted to survive and thrive in our climate, including periods of drought. Their deep roots allow them to access moisture that other forages might not, reducing the risk of pasture degradation during dry spells.
• Biodiversity and Ecosystem Health: Planting and maintaining native grasses can enhance biodiversity on the farm. They provide habitat and food sources for a variety of wildlife, contributing to a healthier and more resilient ecosystem.
• Reduced Toxicity Risks: Fescue, particularly when infected with endophyte fungi, can produce alkaloids that cause fescue toxicosis in livestock. Native warm-season grasses do not carry these risks, leading to better animal health, increased conception rates, and fewer veterinary costs.
Diversification of Livestock Production to Increase Potential Revenue Streams
Native forages offer substantial benefits to production systems on livestock operations. Missouri is well known for its cow/calf cattle operations. Native grasses have been shown to increase weaning weights and conception rates in cow herds when used as summer forage in place of endophyte infected fescue. Weaning weights can average 50-60 pounds heavier for operations with native grass summer forage. More calves hitting the ground and weaning at heavier weights directly increase income on those operations. Pair that with the reduction in winter feed costs when fescue can be stockpiled and grazed through the winter after getting summer rest and you have a great recipe for increased margins on a cow/calf operation. The benefits can go beyond this and allow producers to enter new revenue streams and markets that have been previously hard to justify for most operators. With increased summer forage and the potential for impressive weight gains, producers can consider backgrounding more of their own stock to increase the profit margin on each animal, and even look at doing some grass-finished beef to get premium prices if they have access to the right markets.
For stocker cattle operations, native warm-season grasses provide high-quality forage during late spring and summer, when their nutritional value peaks. Research conducted in Missouri and Kentucky reveals that steers grazing on native warm-season grasses achieve an average daily gain (ADG) of 2.0 to 3.0 pounds, compared to 1.0 to 1.5 pounds on fescue (University of Missouri Extension; University of Kentucky Forage Extension Program). This improvement in ADG reflects the superior nutritional quality and growth potential of these grasses during the warm parts of the growing season.
In grass-finished beef operations, native warm-season grasses are particularly valuable for producing highquality beef. These grasses align with the focus on sustainability and cost control, as they require fewer inputs and are more drought-tolerant compared to other forages. Studies from Kentucky have shown that beef cattle finished on native warm-season grasses can achieve carcass quality scores comparable to those finished on traditional grain-based diets, while also benefiting from improved environmental sustainability (Kansas State University Extension; USDA Agricultural Research Service, ARS).
Furthermore, the improved land management practices associated with these grasses, including soil conservation and erosion control, support the long-term health and productivity of the pastures. The extended grazing season offered by these grasses reduces the reliance on stored feeds and supplements, optimizing pasture use and minimizing winter feed costs. Their deep root systems also improve soil health and forage quality, contributing to a more resilient grazing system. For small ruminants such as sheep and goats, native warm-season grasses offer excellent forage quality and a reliable food source during the warmer months. These grasses meet the nutritional needs of small ruminants when they are most active, supporting better growth and reproductive performance. Data from Missouri indicates that sheep and goats grazing on native warm-season grasses exhibit improved weight gains and overall health compared to those on less suitable forages (University of Missouri Extension). Integrating native warm-season grasses into a year-long grazing system enhances nutritional balance by complementing cool-season forages, reducing the need for supplemental feeding, and promoting a more stable and sustainable grazing system.
The improved soil health and reduced erosion from native grasses further ensure the long-term productivity and health of the pastures, benefiting small ruminants across all seasons (Texas A&M AgriLife Extension; Northeast Regional Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education, SARE). Diversification into sheep and/or goats has positive economic returns for producers. Often ran as a leader/follower system with cattle, incorporating small ruminants can increase the per acre production of marketable animals from your operation.
Strong sheep markets paired with an average of 1.5 lambs per ewe increases revenues from pasture systems.
Native Warm-Season Grasses for Hay Production
Native warm-season grasses are increasingly recognized for their potential in hay production due to their resilience and productivity. These grasses typically yield between 3.0 to 6.0 tons of dry matter per acre annually (USDA Agricultural Research Service, ARS; Northeast Regional Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education, SARE). This production level can provide a substantial return on investment, with potential income ranging from $150 to $400 per acre, depending on local market prices and management practices (University of Missouri Extension; Kansas State University Extension).
The adaptability of these grasses to varied climatic conditions, along with their lower input requirements compared to traditional forages, makes them a valuable option for producers looking to enhance their hay production while maintaining environmental sustainability. For detailed figures and more precise local data, consulting regional extension services and research publications can provide tailored insights into the economic viability of native warm-season grasses for hay.
In conclusion, native warm-season grasses provide numerous advantages for various livestock operations. They enhance profitability through reduced input costs, improved forage quality, and extended grazing seasons. Additionally, they offer significant environmental benefits, including better soil health and reduced erosion. By adopting native warm-season grasses, producers can achieve more efficient, sustainable, and profitable operations while supporting the overall health and productivity of their livestock and local ecosystem.
Ryan Diener Grazing and Grasslands Program Manager, Ducks Unlimited
Cover - Cows and calves grazing highly nutritious big bluestem and indian grass at the end of May. (Photo: Ryan Diener)
Top - Cattle going through the third rotation in a native pasture system at the end of July. (Photo: Ryan Diener)
Outdoor News
Eat Steak and Support Conservation
In the book, “Steak: One Man’s Search for the World’s Tastiest Piece of Beef,” Mark Schatzker travels the globe, consuming 100s of steaks from cattle grown in various beef production systems. After all the travels he states that “the best and worst steak that I have ever eaten were both grassfed beef.” With the term “grassfed” we are talking about cattle that have had nothing but grass, hay, and forages their entire life.
People eat grassfed beef for many reasons. Studies show the top reasons are 1) human health benefits 2) animal welfare benefits and 3) environmental benefits. Due to the increasing concerns by Americans for all three of these topics, the demand for grassfed beef has risen dramatically in the last 20 years and continues to increase today.
In Missouri there is a group of grassfed beef producers that are utilizing the strengths and advantages of native warm season grasses to produce excellent grassfed beef. These grass-finishers realize the enormous benefits that native warm season grasses can bring to the production and economics of a grassfed beef operation.
Not only can native forages produce excellent weight gains, they also require little to no fertilizers, and utilize precious summer rains far more efficiently than cool season plants. The extremely deep and expansive root systems of native grasses also bring a wide array of minerals and water up from deep in the soil profile. These and other attributes of native warm season grasses add resilience and drought tolerance to farms that grow them. In just 100 days of grazing native grasses during the late spring and summer, producers can often put more weight onto calves than they can put on during six months of grazing cool season grasses.
Many cattle producers also enjoy the side benefit of creating habitat for grassland wildlife species. Producers are converting to native warm season grasses such as Big Bluestem, Indian grass, and Little Bluestem, getting rid of acres of fescue and other cool season grasses which provide little to no wildlife value. Some producers are going a step further and establishing native forbs and wildflowers into their native warm season grass pastures. Believe it or not, some of these forbs have nutrients that rival that of the best introduced, non-native species.
While grassfed beef is increasing in demand due to human health, animal welfare, and environmental concerns, Americans are increasingly using their consumer dollars to support the changes that they want to see in society and in the world.
Question: If we are going to buy meat anyway, why not give grassfed beef a try? If we are going to give grassfed beef a try, why not support a farmer who utilizes native warm season grasses and places a high value on wildlife habitat and water quality on their farm?
The following is a list of producers in Missouri that I have worked with who utilize native warm season grasses to produce grassfed beef. There may be other producers in addition to these, but hopefully you will take the opportunity to search for tasty local beef here in our great state of Missouri. You might just find beef that gives you an amazing, tasty, juicy, and tender eating experience while positively contributing to the environment and helping to provide quality habitat to our state’s grassland wildlife species.
• Coleman Farms: Callao, MO - colemangrassfed.com
• Cope Grass Farms: Truxton, MO – copegrassfarm.com
• Israel Farms & Diamond I Cattle: Crane, MO – find on Facebook
• Good Life Grass Farms: Pierce City, MOgoodlifegrassfarms.com
• Graybill Grass Ranch: Purdy, MO - graybillgrassranch.com
• Horstmann Cattle Company: Owensville, MO –horstmanncattleco.com
• Oaklee Rose Farm: Luebbering, MO - oakleerosefarms. com
• Wigfield Farms: Chillicothe, MO – find on Facebook
• Karr Family Farms: Monroe City, MO – find on Instagram
Adam Boman Marketing Coordinator, Regenerative Grazing Practices Missouri Forage and Grassland Council
Heavy steers being finished on diverse native pastures in Central Missouri. (Photo: Adam Bowman)
COMMITTED TO COMMUNITY AND CONSERVATION
O w n e d b y t h e m e m b e r s t h e y s e r v e , M i s s o u r i ’ s e l e c t r i c c o o p e r a t i v e s d o m o r e t h a n p r o v i d e r e l i a b l e a n d a f f o r d a b l e e l e c t r i c i t y . T h e y a r e a c t i v e i n t h e i r c o m m u n i t i e s , c o n c e r n e d f o r t h e w e l l - b e i n g o f t h e i r n e i g h b o r s a n d d e v o t e d t o t h e r u r a l w a y o f l i f e t h a t m a k e s t h e S h o w - M e S t a t e a s p e c i a l p l a c e t o l i v e , w o r k a n d p l a y . M i s s o u r i ’ s e l e c t r i c c o o p e r a t i v e s a r e d e d i c a t e d t o p r o t e c t i n g t h e l a n d , a i r a n d w a t e r r e s o u r c e s i m p o r t a n t t o y o u a n d y o u r q u a l i t y o f l i f e
L e a r n m o r e a t w w w . a m e c . c o o p
Native Grasslands Create a Quail Hunter’s Dream
It was New Year’s Eve, 2012, in northwest Missouri, amid intermittent snow flurries. We had just busted a covey of quail in a native grass field and two other coveys flushed further down the field when we shot. All three coveys settled back down on the same hillside. Coming up on that hillside, all three dogs went on point, all on a different single bird. As I walked up to where my dog was, I saw movement at my feet and here was a bird running and then another. My dog never broke point, but she gave the running birds a side look. If my mouth had not been hanging open, I likely could have kicked both the birds that I saw running. My sons, Andrew and Tony were also seeing birds running around their feet at the same time. My dog retrieved the bird I shot, I put the bird in my vest and she then immediately went back on point on another bird.
It was about this time that the snow flurries turned to a steady snowfall, on the brink of a blizzard, and so we began walking toward the road, getting points on singles as we went. It was one of those hunts that will be forever etched in my mind, even though I am at a point in life where I can’t remember why I walked out to the garage. This was one of the better private land spots I was hunting and used it a few times each year to help my sons and their new bird dogs get into quail hunting.
While the 1960s and 70s were the best-of-times for most quail hunters, I think the best hunts I have ever experienced have been in modern times, where focused management of natives, especially native plantings that included native wildflowers, along with the restoration of shrubby cover was being practiced.
This farm was a perfect example, the landowner used prescribed fire on portions of the fields each year, he had edge feathered to restore shrubby cover and planted food plots of forage sorghum and bobwhite trailing soybeans. It was a bird hunters paradise, and we routinely would get into 5-6 coveys in a typical morning hunt.
I have experienced ten covey-a-day hunts and lots of five or six covey half-day hunts that, at least in part, involved a native grass planting or prairie. I didn’t matter if public land or private ground. The key was the natives and the management or restoration of the shrubby cover. If the use of prescribed fire had lapsed or the shrubby cover had been invaded by smooth brome, the bird numbers drastically declined.
Shrubby cover has been documented for almost 100 years as being critical to bobwhite quail. First called covey headquarters, because they were such a critical component of daily quail habitat. If adequate food and brood habitat is nearby, you can support a covey of quail!
I grew up in row crop country in the 1960s and 70s when quail were in every hunter’s game bag and deer and turkey were rare. We hunted hedgerows, plus a couple of old USDA cropland reserve properties that were completely engulfed in smooth brome, save for a patch of weeds in a swale at the bottom of a hill. I had little idea about the potential of native grasses and forbs for bobwhite quail then, because we just didn’t have those on that landscape anymore. There was a 5-acre remnant hay prairie within a mile of our farm and the new state park near us boasted some remnant loess hill prairies. Crops, brome and hedgerows was about all I knew and hunted.
That changed with my career choice in conservation, I was literally thrust into the prescribed fire world with managing tens of thousands of acres of native grasses and prairies in my first job, fresh out of college. And it was then that I saw the potential of managed native grasses for bobwhite quail and other wildlife.
As the quail and pheasant populations plummeted after the excessive rains throughout the mid-1990s, no longer were the highways filled with pickups toting dog boxes. Everyone was blaming the predators and turkeys. I decided to put what I had learned at work on a small farm I owned in northwest Missouri, because I still had a covey or two on this small farm and I had found evidence of about every predator in the country and had turkey nesting in the woods. With help from Andrew, we converted the crop fields to native grass through the USDA’s Conservation Reserve Program. We picked a little bluestem and wildflower mix and made sure we had plenty of food plots which we also used as firebreaks, then applied edge feathering to restore the surrounding shrubby cover. We burned small portions of each field each year during the dormant season to encourage bare ground and forbs.
A summer shot on one of the farms hunted by the authors. A diversity of native plants is key to quail abundance! (Photo: Bill White)
Shrubs are a key component of bobwhite quail habitat, and one way to restore shrubby cover is by edge feathering, a process of cutting larger trees and leaving them in loose piles. It can be done on a fencerow or along the edge of the woods. (Photo: courtesy of MDC)
Feature Story
Within four years we had a covey on every 5-10 acres of the property. One rainy spring, I sent Andrew out to disk up ½ of each food plot so we could plant milo. It was late May and the food plots were covered in ragweed. I could hear Andrew on the tractor from the yard. Pretty soon, I hear the tractor shut off and then he is back at the house. “What happened?” I asked worried the tractor or disk broke down. “I never even made one pass on the food plot and saw two broods of quail and a brood of pheasants….I don’t think I should be disking.” he said as he showed me a pheasant chick he brough back to the house! We took the chick back to the place he found it, unhooked the disk and brought the tractor back to the house. We both learned a powerful lesson that day in the power of the bare ground component of quail habitat that was present in those food plots.
“There are still management guidebooks for quail out there that have photos of my pre-teen, tiny self, modeling various habitat types in the field”, says Andrew. “From that time and through my career, the answer has always been natives. In working with the community: plant natives. In working with private landowners: plant natives. The wildlife species we hold dear evolved to thrive in native landscapes over millennia."
"Our goal in providing these recommendations is to recreate what was once here prior to settlement. Landscapes full of native grasses and wildflowers, with a smattering of native shrub thickets. Pair with that, active management on rotation, and soon others can experience what my dad and I have. This is what is going to further the success of quail across the state. Conservation belongs on every farm and property, whether you are a recreational landowner, cattle producer, live in town, or a row crop farmer, there is something we can all do to bring natives back and with it, quail and all their wildlife friends,” Andrew continued.
I attended some of the first Missouri Department of Conservation staff training on how to conduct fall covey call counts and thought, “Wow, I can do this from my back yard!” One frosty October morning I set up in a lawn chair in the back yard before sunrise, had my map and pen ready…the hillside had so many quail calling that I could not pinpoint any single covey! So, the next morning, I moved to the hillside to conduct the count, which worked out so much better. There is nothing like waking up to a cacophony of quail and pheasant calls coming through the open windows on the house. A memory from my childhood, I was able to bring back once again.
Andrew says, “Little did I know that having experiences like the broods on the tractor, early morning bird counts, and growing up on a farm managed for quail at a young age would impact me as much as it has, even into adulthood. Hunting aside, the key to more robust populations of not only quail and pheasants, but all upland wildlife, is appropriate habitat. The bobwhite quail is known as a keystone species and if you are managing for them, you are managing for critters from deer and turkey to neotropical migrant species, and everything in between that call the uplands home.”
After the drought of 2023, I was expecting a good quail season as it seems quail do better when the nesting season is dry. I was NOT wrong!
My son, Andrew, and I hit a northwest Missouri Conservation Area on opening morning. We got there early enough to listen to the covey calls before sunrise and knew the general direction to head. It seemed that the birds had likely roosted in or next to a strip of standing soybeans on a ridgetop, not unusual for early fall.
Prescribed fire is a necessity of bobwhite quail, otherwise known as the firebird. Without it the accumulation of plant litter will dissuade quail use. (Photo: Courtesy of MDC)
Each of us took a side of the bean field and within 5 minutes we had our first point. The birds were running, the dogs would point, then move, point, then move again. Which meant this old guy had to step up the pace to keep up. The dogs locked up solid and within seconds the birds started flushing in groups of 2-3 as we moved down the strip of soybeans. Soon we ran into another full covey that flushed at the edge of the strip and then while looking for these singles, we ran into another covey at the edge of the native grass. This all happened in the first thirty minutes of the hunt. This soybean strip was in a sea of native grassland and shrubs.
On a shrubby north Missouri prairie the next day, I flushed 5 coveys in one hour, as we circled the prairie with the intent to come back and hunt the singles after they had the time to leave some scent on a very warm, dry day. My English Pointer, Penny, does an awesome job of quartering when she is in grass cover, and she does a thorough job of hunting the route we take through a field. Our first covey flushed 25 yards from the pickup when I shut the tailgate. Penny found the next covey which had to run over 50 yards only to flush on the other side of a plum thicket. The hunt continued like this with running birds and then covey flushes from a nearby plum thicket. I didn’t end up with a lot of birds in the bag that morning, but it was a fun hunt and Penny got her nose into 90-100 birds, plus a handful of pheasants. I will never forget one covey she had wind of that was moving ahead of us and flushed on the opposite side of a shrubby thicket. She looked me directly in the eye with a “did you hear that” look on her face! Maybe it was more of a “did you get one” look.
My 2023 season in Missouri resulted in an average of 2 covey flushes per hour, primarily on public lands. This is the best I had experienced since 2012, but I did switch my hunting focus out-of-state starting in mid-December.
Looking back, Andrew says, “I owe a majority of the conservationist I am today to my dad and grandpa. Because of them instilling natural resource and wildlife conservation practices in me at a young age, I know what should be there, what shouldn’t and what the landscape should look like. As it pertains to hunting, this conservationist state of mind has served me well. From scouting conservation areas and letting my German Shorthaired Pointer, Dug, loose for a hunt, we know what is going to produce birds and our focus is natives. Success means something different for everyone you ask. However, for me, the success lies in seeing the absolute beauty and diversity in our native landscapes, serene early morning sunrises watching the world wake up, and following the dogs in the field. A bird in the vest or meat in the freezer is just the bonus.”
The hunts 10-15 years ago, when my sons were still in high school or college, have led to family bird hunts around the country. We have been in multiple other states in the Midwest for pheasant and bobwhites. We have made multiple trips to Arizona the past few years for grand slam hunting of the three quail species found there. It didn’t matter what state we were in; it was native plants that made those memories possible.
Bill White (retired MDC), Grassland Conservation Specialist, Natural Resoures Conservation Service Andrew White Missouri State Coordinator, Pheasants Forever, Inc. and Quail Forever.
Cover - New Year’s Eve, 2012. Sons, Andrew on the left and Tony on the right, getting out of the wind for a photo opportunity after a memorable hunt. Dogs include Chief on the left, Trapper, and Jake. (Photo: Bill White)
Top - The author and three of his sons and their dogs in pursuit of a grand slam Arizona quail hunt. (Photo: Bill White)
Road trip. We didn’t choose the perfect playlist. Or program the GPS. But we did fuel the car that made you realize there are no wrong turns, only new adventures. When the energy you invest in life meets the energy we fuel it with, amazing journeys happen.
Missouri’s Old-Growth Prairies and Savannas
Prior to Euro-American settlement in Missouri, native grasslands were a defining landscape of the region.
Spacious open prairies along with other native grasslands, including rocky glades, savannas with opengrown oaks, and open woodlands with a ground layer of native grasses, sedges, and wildflowers, stretched across large areas of the state. In what was once the homeland of the Osage Nation and their ancestors and other native nations—whose fire-tending practices were a major factor in expanding and sustaining open landscapes— these 8,000-year-old grassland communities supported a staggering array of plant and animal species and carried out many ecological functions.
Old-growth prairie has been nearly obliterated in Missouri, but it is the underpinning of our entire agricultural economy. Rich, deep prairie soils made the region into an agribusiness powerhouse, directly or indirectly defining the careers and livelihoods of generations of Missourians. The value of agricultural commodities ebbs and flows, and the nature of farming has changed dramatically, but there is no denying that the land—once prairie land—is the backbone of agriculture in central North America.
Thanks to the landmark work of University of Missouri Emeritus Professor Dr. Walter Schroeder, who mapped Missouri’s presettlement prairie that existed before Euro-American settlement, we know that the state once had 15 million acres of prairie. Millions of additional acres across the state were open woodlands, savannas, and glades.
The mining of prairie soil for agriculture took its toll, however, and the price paid for conversion of prairie for agriculture and other forms of development in Missouri has resulted in less than one-half of one percent of original prairie remaining—less than 45,000 scattered acres. In addition to outright loss of grassland communities and their associated species, breaking prairie sod has led to many other consequences for land and water, including soil erosion, degraded water quality, and the release of carbon to the atmosphere, once locked in prairie roots and soil.
As we grapple with the sobering facts of what we have lost when prairie was plowed, we also marvel at all that prairie has given us, how biologically rich old-growth remnants have survived the odds, and how we may harness the power of prairie to address many challenges facing us today:
Seed Reservoirs: When managed well, old-growth prairie remnants sustain sources of seeds that can be sustainably harvested to establish prairie plantings and native pastures.
Water Quality: It’s possible for as many as seven inches of rain from one storm to be absorbed by prairie with no runoff. With complex and deep roots, prairie and prairie plantings are like sponges that help reduce flooding and keep soil on the land and out of waterways. Agricultural practices like Prairie Strips (CP-43 in the USDA’s CRP program) can reduce soil leaving crop fields by 95%.
Soil Health: Soil scientists have determined that prairie soil hosts the most diverse communities of microorganisms of any terrestrial ecosystem on earth. Understanding how these micro-biota interact with soil and plants may help improve how agricultural land is managed—and perhaps with fewer chemical inputs.
Carbon Storage: The carbon capture of trees and other woody species is praised in much scientific literature and in the popular press. In many cases trees are not the best choice to plant for atmospheric carbon mitigation— depending on soil types, rainfall, and other factors—but prairie plants often are the best choice.
Protection in Drought: Prairie plants are adapted to drought. Cattle producers have found that their livestock gain weight faster, and are healthier, when they eat prairie forage rather than non-native grasses— and prairie plants remain green and palatable in dry summers.
Sustained Habitat for Native Plants & Wildlife:
• Missouri’s prairie remnants provide habitat for a stunning diversity of native plant species—far greater than grasslands of the Great Plains. A well stewarded 100-acre old-growth prairie in Missouri may harbor 300 or more native plant species. The Missouri Prairie Foundation’s Penn-Sylvania broke a world record in 2018 for number of plant species at a fine scale: an astonishing 46 native plant species in a 20 by 20 inch plot.
• No other ecosystem in Missouri hosts more native pollinating insect species than prairie: more than 250 native bees along with at least 200 total beetle, fly, butterfly, and moth species that also play a role in pollination live on our prairies.
• Prairie remnants provide habitat for grassland birds including Northern bobwhite, Henslow’s sparrows, and upland sandpipers, as well as many amphibian, reptile, fish, mammal, and other species.
Beauty & Spirit: Prairie is at once open “Big Sky Country,” and also replete with infinite detail—hundreds of plant species, jewel-like spider webs, complex calls of insects and birds. This aesthetic contrast is rejuvenating to the soul and exhilarating to the senses.
Learn more about Missouri’s old-growth prairies, savannas, and other native grasslands at prairie.org and mdc.mo.gov. Find publicly accessible old-growth prairie by consulting the online Public Prairies of Missouri Story map.
Carol Davit Executive Director, Missouri Prairie Foundation
Cover - Of Missouri’s 15 million acres of prairie until statehood in 1821, fewer than 45,000 scattered, unplowed acres remain. While the dramatic loss of prairie is sobering, each dot on the map of remnants represents beautiful, biologically diverse prairies, like the Missouri Prairie Foundation’s Coyne Prairie pictured here. (Photo: Bruce Schuette) Top - The map above, compiled by Dr. Walter Schroeder, depicts Missouri’s 15 million acres of prairie until statehood in 1821. Today fewer than 45,000 scattered, unplowed acres remain. While the dramatic loss of prairie is sobering, intact, oldgrowth remnants, like the Missouri Prairie Foundation’s Coyne Prairie, pictured on the facing page, are pricesless elements of Missouri's natural heritage. (Photo: Bruce Schuette).
Hometown Heroes
Each of us has a place that we call home. Hometowns often evoke memories of childhood adventures, friends and family. Now imagine your hometown with cleaner air, cooler streets, and flourishing wildlife. These aren’t often the images that we associate with urban environments, but that reality is not as remote as we might think. Native plants hold the key to unlocking these treasures and bringing our communities closer to harmony with the natural world. Native plantings in urban areas offer a range of environmental, economic, and aesthetic benefits that make them a crucial component of sustainable urban development.
From an environmental perspective, native plants pack quite a punch bolstering biodiversity and ecosystem resilience. Native plants provide essential food and shelter for local wildlife, fostering biodiversity in spaces that are often lacking in green, natural habitats. Pollinators, such as bees, butterflies, and birds, are particularly drawn to native plants, which are adapted to meet their needs, thereby supporting the delicate balance of urban ecosystems. Additionally, native plants are accustomed to local weather and rainfall patterns, reducing the need for irrigation and conserving water. Because they are suited to local soil conditions, they help improve soil health by reducing erosion and minimizing the need for chemical inputs.
Traditional turf grass lawns do none of these things and rely on significant inputs of water and chemicals to continue to perform at acceptable levels. Shallow roots lead lawn areas to become compacted over time, reducing infiltration and contributing to stormwater management issues.
Incorporating native plants into urban landscapes also brings significant economic and practical benefits. One of the most appealing aspects is the reduction in maintenance costs. Since native plants are adapted to the local climate, they require less reliance on fertilizers, pesticides, and frequent watering, leading to longterm savings. Moreover, native trees and shrubs help mitigate the urban heat island effect by providing shade and releasing moisture through evapotranspiration, reducing the need for energy-intensive cooling in nearby buildings. Another practical advantage is stormwater management. Native plants, with their deep roots, improve water infiltration and reduce runoff, easing the burden on urban drainage systems and helping to prevent flooding and water pollution.
Beyond the environmental and economic perks, native plantings also contribute to creating vibrant and culturally relevant urban spaces. Native plants enhance local identity by reflecting the natural environment and cultural heritage of the area. They create green spaces that are not only sustainable but also visually appealing, countering the misconception that native landscapes are less attractive or messy. Moreover, access to green spaces has been linked to improved mental well-being, and native plantings ensure these spaces remain resilient and ecologically sound. These projects also foster community engagement, as native plant gardens offer educational opportunities for residents to learn about local ecology and conservation efforts.
Consider places in your hometown where native plants could have an impact. Parks and residential areas are common places where expansive use of turf grass can be reimagined into high performance native landscapes. Municipal and residential maintenance programs are often built around weekly mowing supported by large numbers of labor hours and fleets of machinery. Properly designed native landscapes require less maintenance than traditional turfgrass lawns freeing up labor and budgets to tackle other projects and priorities.
Despite these numerous benefits, there are still challenges and misconceptions that hinder the widespread adoption of native plantings in urban areas. One common concern is that native plants are less attractive or more difficult to manage than nonnative alternatives. However, with thoughtful design, native landscapes outperform non-native landscapes both aesthetically and functionally. Messy ecosystems, Orderly Frames – Joan Iverson Nassauer, is a great book illustrating the importance of framing landscapes to make gardens feel purposeful and well kept. Another challenge is the high initial cost, but it’s important to emphasize that these upfront investments lead to long-term savings through reduced maintenance and water use. Some municipalities offer incentives for implementing native landscapes to help offset initial investment costs, further supporting the use of native plants and overcoming economic barriers.
Native plantings are a critical component of creating sustainable, resilient, and beautiful urban spaces. As cities continue to grow, prioritizing native plants in landscaping offers a path to greener, healthier, and more vibrant environments. By embracing these plantings, urban areas can become spaces where nature and people coexist harmoniously, creating a future rooted in sustainability. Incorporating native plants into urban planning is not just a trend but a necessary step toward building cities that thrive ecologically and economically while supporting the well-being of their residents.
Chris Sanders Senior Associate, Lamar Johnson Collaborative
Preservation of existing tree canopy and the integration of native plantings across the campus minimize the impact of development at this Mercy Healthcare Facility in Chesterfield, MO. (Photo: Matt McFarland) Native plants used in formal arrangements and natural matrices anchor the site around the new parking garage and Penn State Hershey Campus. (Photo: Sam Fentress)
Finding Support: Navigating Technical and Financial Support to Establish Native Grasses
Whether you are hoping to reconstruct a native prairie or convert your existing pastures to native grasses, it can be a daunting experience. Having someone to help guide you through the process, especially your first conversion project, is a plus. Missouri has been building technical assistance provider capacity for producers and landowners looking to convert their forage base to native grasses or restore grassland habitat for over a decade.
These technical providers are made up of staff from state and federal agencies such as the Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC), the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), and the Department of Natural Resources’ (DNR) Soil and Water Conservation Districts (SWCD). Other technical expertise can be provided by Missouri University-Extension, MFA, Missouri Forage and Grassland Council, Quail Forever, and Ducks Unlimited.
These are the go-to folks when you have questions that need answered and are looking for help with planning your project. Topics include, but are not limited to, describing the advantages of native warm-season grasses (NWSG), the benefits of diverse prairie plantings for wildlife and pollinators, how to kill existing vegetation before planting, how to plant NWSG and wildflowers, setting up grazing systems, and how to best harvest the crop whether through grazing or haying.
If you are interested in converting a portion of your property over to NWSG I would recommend contacting your local Private Land Conservationist with the Missouri Department of Conservation (www.mdc. mo.gov/contact-engage/local-mdc-contacts) or contact your local USDA-Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) office in your county (www.nrcs.usda.gov/contact/ find-a-service-center).
One of the benefits to great partnerships is that at most county USDA Service Centers there are NRCS, MDC, Soil and Water Conservation District, and non-governmental organization (NGO) staff, such as Quail Forever, stationed at these locations. Once contacted, these technical providers can provide on-site visits to your property to talk through your objectives and goals for the project. If you are still interested in receiving assistance, the visits are then followed up with conservation plans, at no cost to you, to help guide you in your decision making. Recommendations on potential financial assistance programs to support your project are also discussed.
Just like with anything these days, the cost of setting up a grazing system with fencing and watering facilities or just the cost of the native grass and forb seed can be expensive. However, there are financial opportunities to assist with the conversion or restoration process. I will briefly discuss some of the programs that can assist with grassland management but understand that I am going to keep the program policies brief as they are subject to change. When trying to find the perfect program for your situation it is best that you work with your technical provider as they can help guide you into the best program based on your objectives.
Many who have utilized cost-share programs understand there is quite a bit of information to gather and retain. For context, a cost-share program provides an incentive to a landowner or producer to offset the cost to implement a practice. For example, cost-share for establishing native grass may provide either a flat rate reimbursement or a percentage of the cost reimbursement following the planting of the native grass seed.
At the state level, the MDC has the Landowner and Community Assistance Program (LCAP). The LCAP provides cost-share assistance for numerous habitat management practices such as prescribed burning, disking, pollinator plot establishment, as well as agricultural practices such as native grass establishment for forage, fencing, alternative watering systems, and reinforced stream crossings. Depending on the practice, LCAP provides both flat rate and percentage reimbursement. The LCAP program begins on July 1 of each year and practices should be completed by June 15th the following year. For more information, please contact your local Private Land Conservationist (https:// mdc.mo.gov/contact-engage/local-mdc-contacts).
Zebra swallowtail on a pollinator planting. (Photo: MDC)
Another state level program is the Soil and Water Conservation Program (SWCP) that is administered by the Missouri DNR and delivered by the SWCD located within each county. This program has numerous practices that are targeted at reducing soil loss. Practices include fencing, native grass establishment or enhancement, well drilling for livestock drinkers, pest management and many more. The cost-share rates are a percentage of the statewide average for that practice component. Some practices may require producers to attend additional training such as grazing school before qualifying for cost-share assistance.
The sign-ups can change from year to year, so it is best that you consult with your local USDA-NRCS office often to know when the programs will begin. For more information you can contact your local NRCS office (nrcs. usda.gov/contact/find-a-service-center)
The program opens on July 1 for applications and practices should be completed before the end of the state fiscal year in June the following year. MDC currently provides additional financial incentives to encourage the use of NWSG when establishing SWCP practices. For more information on the SWCP, please contact your local Soil and Water Conservation District (mosoilandwater. land).
At the federal level, the USDA-NRCS puts forth numerous programs such as the Environmental Quality Incentive Program (EQIP), the Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP), and the Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP). Occasionally, NRCS will launch special initiatives to address high priority resource concerns. Most recently, Missouri NRCS released the Native Forage Initiative (NFI) which focuses solely on establishing NWSG pastures. These programs provide flat rate cost share and other financial incentives to cooperators for a broad suite of establishment and management practices.
All the programs mentioned provide financial assistance for wildlife related grassland establishment and management as well as practices focused on livestock production such as the establishment of native grasses for forage, setting up grazing systems, livestock waterers, and pest management.
Another federal program that has enrolled more grassland acres than any of the other programs is the USDA-Farm Service Agency (FSA) led Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) and CRP-Grassland Program. The CRP looks to retire highly erodible cropland acres and reestablish them as grassland acres in return for an annual rental payment to the landowner. The program reimburses the cooperator a flat rate based on a dollar value assigned to each soil type under the land that is offered up for conversion to grass. Grassland CRP is focused on helping to keep existing grassland acres on the landscape by providing rental payments to participants to support maintaining grazing operations and protecting other grassland acres under threat of conversion.
These programs have signup dates that can change from year to year, so it is best that you stay in constant contact with the FSA to ensure that you are aware of upcoming signups. For more information please contact your local Farm Service Agency (fsa.usda.gov/contact-us) or your local USDA-NRCS office (nrcs.usda.gov/contact/find-aservice-center). To stay connected with email updates from both FSA and NRCS, visit farmers.gov/working-withus/stay-connected.
Top - Cost-share for planting can include herbicide applications to eliminate brome and fescue prior to the seeding as well as during the establishment year. (Photo: MDC) Seth Barrioz Landowner Services Manager, Missouri Department of Conservation
Cover - Technical assistance is available through various organizations to help you navigate the different program opportunities for planting native grasses. (Photo: MDC)
End of an Era for Non-Functional Turfgrass Lawns
Once upon a time, an open expanse of green lawn was the ideal setting for American homes, businesses, and civic institutions. Read on to discover why this is no longer the case.
Home Gardening
Park systems integrate green space throughout cities, but there is something very appealing about the idea of connecting with nature in our own backyard. An upswell of interest in home gardening has led to native plants being purposefully selected for the ecosystem services they provide as host plants and food sources for insects, birds, and other wildlife.
Webinars, garden templates, and other free online resources offered by the Missouri Department of Conservation and the Missouri Prairie Foundation’s Grow Native! program are frequently accessed by those who are ready to reduce their lawns and landscape for wildlife.
Habitat Stewardship
Awareness of the decline in the population of monarch butterflies has led to the planting of many habitat gardens for their benefit. Similarly, when a natural resource inventory is conducted in a city, knowledge of endemic and migratory wildlife can result in the adoption of urban planning tools that will protect their habitats.
For example, ordinances meant to protect aquatic habitat often require buffers of unmowed native warm season grasses that can filter sediment and other suspended solids from stormwater runoff before it enters surface or groundwater resources. In many cases, these buffers are established on land next to streams or around sinkholes that was previously kept mowed.
Feature Story
Certification Programs
Buildings, neighborhoods, cities, and even transportation infrastructure all have associated green certification programs that promote resource conservation and stewardship. Each program evaluates project elements and ranks them according to a scoring system.
Turfgrass earns little to no points whereas native plants used for landscaping and green infrastructure purposes earn points in both the initial design phase of a project and in the long-term stewardship phase, which is referred to as post-construction. Two cities in Missouri have created certification programs for residential and commercial sites to promote biodiversity, build resilience to climate change, beautify yards, conserve water, create habitat and more. The Yard Ethic program can be found in Springfield and CoMo Wild Yards is available in Columbia.
Green Infrastructure
Working lands across cityscapes are referred to as green infrastructure. Across the multitude of jobs performed by these lands, the common factor is that they rely on native plants to function properly. As cities supplement aging gray infrastructure with green infrastructure systems, the public has gained a deeper appreciation of the roles native plants play in our communities.
There has also been a corresponding shift in aesthetic preferences for landscaping as the beauty of native plants is discovered, making conventional non-native landscape plants seem outdated and the ground occupied by non-functional turfgrass seem like a wasted opportunity for something better.
Yard Equity
Some community members struggle to comply with city codes that require turfgrass to be maintained under a designated height. Yards dominated by non-functional turfgrass set people up for failure who have health and financial issues that make mowing difficult. The problem here is not the people; it is the grass, and a solution is to replace it with cultivated landscapes of native plants designed to meet the maintenance capabilities of those who are responsible for them.
Burnett
Community Conservation Planner, Missouri Department of Conservation
Cover - Non-functional turfgrass outside the zone of play at Twin Oaks Country Club golf course in Greene County, Missouri was converted to a prairiescape as part of an effort to stabilize the streambank of nearby Ward Branch. (Photo: Ronda Burnett, MDC)
Top - A private residence in Cole County, Missouri welcomes visitors with a harmonious blend of well-placed native plants and warm-toned hardscaping. (Photo: Ronda Burnett, MDC)
Bottom - Green infrastructure to manage stormwater runoff replaced a non-functional turfgrass median in Government Plaza outside of the Springfield, Missouri, City Hall. (Photo: Ronda Burnett, MDC)
Missouri is a prairie state. Prairie once comprised an estimated 15 million acres of Missouri’s landscape (approximately 1/3 of the state). Due to changes in land use, only approximately 47,000 acres of original, unplowed remnant prairie remain. To put this in perspective, Missouri currently has approximately 15 million acres of forest and woodlands. Imagine Missouri’s landscape if the amount of forestland were reduced to fewer than 50,000 acres. I’m confident there would be a public outcry demanding action similar to the 1930s when the Conservation Commission was created. Prairies are much less conspicuous than forested landscapes and don’t receive the same attention. Though less conspicuous, they are no less important!
Of the remnant prairie that remains, approximately 25,000 acres are either held in public trust or by private conservation non-governmental organizations (NGOs) focused on the protection and management of those tracts.
Over the past decade we have lost over 2,200 acres of remnant tallgrass prairie tracked in the Missouri Natural Heritage Database on private lands. That’s a decline of 1% per year. That’s a big deal considering only about 22,000 acres of privately owned remnant prairie remains in Missouri today. If that rate of loss is sustained, we could see most private remnant prairie gone within less than 15 years.
Prairie remnants occurring on private land are typically too rocky or on slopes too steep to be plowed and many are currently being utilized for forage production as pasture or hayfields. Threats include increasing commodity prices, urban and suburban sprawl, conversion to non-native cool season grasses, invasive species, overgrazing and/or haying, and energy infrastructure development (e.g., solar, wind, powerlines, pipelines, etc.).
Original, unplowed prairie is one of the rarest ecosystems in Missouri and temperate grasslands (like Missouri prairies) are considered the most imperiled ecosystem on Earth. There are ecological processes that occur in prairies that we still don’t know or understand. Prairies provide incredible ecosystem functions and services, including providing healthy soils, storing carbon, reducing stormwater runoff that improves water quality, sequestering carbon, supporting rich biodiversity including pollinating insects, and providing native seed sources for restoration and reconstruction projects, and much more. Time and money are spent trying to reconstruct prairies. Planting prairie plants, while very important, does not recreate prairie. Prairie plantings or reconstructions cannot replicate every ecological component and function of original prairie, especially complex soil and fungal interactions. For these reasons, we should do everything we can to protect the limited amount of remnant prairie that still exists—it is irreplaceable.
Protecting and managing the remnant prairies that remain in the state should be the highest priority. Our next highest priority however should be restoring native grassland landscapes. Restoring native grassland landscapes helps to reconnect a network of both remnant and reconstructed prairie that is critically important to the state’s wildlife. Bird populations throughout the U.S. have declined dramatically. Grassland bird species have seen the greatest declines, estimated at 50% loss. This should not be a surprise considering we now have less than half of one percent of the original prairie remaining. Species that rely on those native grassland landscapes cannot survive with a patchwork of small, remnant prairie that are many miles apart. There has to be connectivity between prairie remnants to support the many species that rely on these native grassland communities.
The strategy of reconnecting grassland landscapes must be a multifaceted approach. The first step in the process is identifying where we have the best chance of success. Fortunately for our grassland wildlife, Missouri has already undergone an extensive prioritization process encompassed within the tiered approach to natural community/ habitat management. The tiered approach is just one tool developed in accordance with the principles of the Missouri Comprehensive Conservation Strategy (CCS) and prioritizes implementation of landscape-scale conservation across Missouri.
Top - This landscape has the start of a well-protected core, but more grassland management needs to be done to add scattered grassland tracts to provide connectivity and increase resiliency Bottom - This landscape shows a good core and well distributed grasslands throughout the 10,000-acre landscape (Photos: Philip Hanberry, University of Missouri)
Cover - Missouri Prairie Foundation's Linden's Prairie, a 171-acre oldgrowth, unplowed prairie remnant in Lawrence County. (Photo: R.S. Kinerson)
These priorities inform decision-making regarding the greatest opportunities for regenerative and sustainable conservation of Missouri’s natural resources.
Building back landscape-scale levels of grasslands is key to reestablishing the critical ecosystem functions grasslands provide. Many native grassland obligate species (can only survive on native grasslands) are scale sensitive, meaning having habitat at a large scale is important for their persistence. Certain species of butterflies, bees, grassland birds, and other flora and fauna must have grasslands at large scales to find sufficient resources, maintain genetic diversity, and to mitigate density-dependance issues (population carrying capacity). For instance, small blocks of grassland only have enough resources to support a certain number of individuals, so newly arriving individuals must branch out to seek these resources. If quality grasslands are absent within dispersal distances those individuals will have a hard time finding suitable food resources or sites for reproduction. This is the primary reason greater prairie chickens have largely disappeared from the state – they require larger home ranges for their life needs, necessitating a large patchwork of native grasslands.
One goal of the Missouri Department of Conservation’s Grassland Strategic Initiative is to restore landscapes of native grasslands at a scale meaningful enough to provide room and resources for our large scale-dependent grassland species, which will, by default, account for the needs of species that can survive on smaller patches. The goal is to create 10,000-acre grassland complexes in each of Missouri’s Grassland Priority Geographies (focal landscapes). These complexes consist of a core protected native grassland of at least 2,000 acres surrounded by another 2,000 acres of native grasslands scattered throughout the 10,000-acre complex. The core must be large enough to maintain source populations of most grassland species, while the surrounding grasslands will be places for species to disperse to and recolonize. These “string of pearls” will decrease fragmentation and facilitate genetic interchange between species and serve as stopover sites as species move between grassland blocks, including migratory species.
Creating these landscapes is a lofty goal. However, we must think big if we want to make a real difference for native grasslands and associated grassland species in Missouri. In many places we are well on our way to achieving these acreage goals. For instance, in the Grand River Grasslands and Upper Osage Grasslands Priority Geographies (of northwest and west-central Missouri, respectively) we already have protected grassland cores of 2,000 acres and are close in others.
Completing the cores and filling in the remaining 2,000 acres of grasslands within the 10,000-acre complex will require a variety of strategies.
One strategy is fee-title acquisition where a conservation organization purchases and permanently protects and manages remnant prairie acres or buys lands with the purpose of reconstructing native grasslands. Another promising strategy is acquisition of permanent easements on privately-owned remnant native prairies. These easements ensure that prairie is permanently protected from development or conversion but remain in the hands of private landowners. Certain accommodations can be negotiated into the easement where the landowner can still recreate on and derive some income for the land, such as hay production, but the conservation of the remnant is secure. Easements are truly a win-win for landowners and conservation.
A third strategy, and one we are aggressively pursuing, is reconstruction of native grassland on cropland or improved pasture sites in partnership with private landowners. The Missouri Department of Conservation and a wide host of partners are working with landowners across Priority Geographies to provide cost-share and technical assistance to landowners interested in converting a portion of their operation to native grasslands. While the conservation benefits of native grassland restoration are clear, producers can also realize economic benefits of restoring native grasslands including better cattle performance, less reliance on hay, and potential ecotourism opportunities.
Restoring native grassland landscapes is a complex issue. Identifying, protecting, and managing our remnant prairies is the first step. The second, is reconstructing prairie to re-establish connectivity within key grassland landscapes. These goals cannot be achieved by any single individual or organization. Fortunately, Missouri has very strong partnerships that include government agencies, conservation NGOs, production agriculture partners, and private landowners that are all working together to overcome these challenges. Individually, reconstruction of Missouri’s native grassland landscapes would be impossible. Collectively, we can increase the conservation footprint in Missouri and achieve success.
Jason Jensen Community and Private Land Conservation Branch Chief, Missouri Deparment of Conservation
Frank Loncarich Grasslands Systems Manager, Missouri Department of Conservation
GOOD FOR LAND. GOOD FOR LIFE.
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Grassland's Edible Natives are Naturals for Gardens, Farms, and Pollinators
Native edible plants can be found as part of all plant communities, such as woodlands, grasslands and wetlands. Many of these plants are mentioned in books about native edibles, but usually only a few of them are still consumed regularly. In Missouri, one can find a variety of native plants that can be consumed as greens, teas, in stews or for flavoring, the way American Indians did before the arrival of the Europeans. Settlers adopted many of them in their diet, and these foods continued to be used commonly until recently in our history.
Although there are more than 2000 native species in the state, this article will only discuss a few native edibles found in grasslands, including prairies and savannas, that can be grown in gardens, are commercially available and have been tested in recipes by the Specialty Crops Program at Lincoln University.
Because grasslands are so diverse, species discussed include herbaceous and woody plants that have a wide range of adaptation, which makes them more resilient in these times of climate change. A list of native edible species found in grasslands can be seen in Table 1, and some will be discussed in more detail below.
Left - Leadplant flowers at the Native Plant Outdoor Lab at Lincoln University in Jefferson City, MO.
Right - Wild plum with fruits in late summer at the Second Christian Church in Jefferson City, MO.
Most of these plants are available commercially and could be grown in gardens or used to create living edible hedgerows or windbreaks in urban or rural lands. At Lincoln University we have established combinations of these plants at the Finca EcoFarm where visitors can see firsthand a well-established plantings.
Woody plants
• Leadplant (Amorpha canescens) is a multi-branched shrub, much shorter than its cousin A. fruticosa or false wild indigo. Leadplant can reach up to 3 ft tall in gardens but can be shorter in open prairies. It is a good plant for urban gardens due to its compact size, beauty and love for sunny and dry sites. The leaves can be used to prepare a mild-flavored hot or cold tea. Leaves should be collected before flower production in late spring and can be dehydrated for later use. Native bees visit the flowers of this shrub. This plant should be established in sunny sites with good drainage. It is a nitrogen fixing legume and will help enrich the soil.
• Smooth sumac (Rhus glabra) and winged sumac (R. copallinum) are two shrubs that form thickets. The bright red berries should be harvested immediately after ripening in the fall and can be used to prepare ‘sumacade’, a refreshing drink, plus syrups or jams. If you are in doubt, all edible sumacs have red berries. Poison sumac has green berries and is extremely rare in Missouri.
• Wild plums (Prunus americana, P. angustifolia, P. hortulana, P. munsoniana). All these native plums can be found in prairies or open sites as small trees or forming thickets. Mexican plum or P. Mexicana is also a native tree that tends to form one stem and has larger fruits than the other wild plums. The bright orange to red fruits of all these species mature in late summer. Plums can be harvested from the tree before they are fully matured and set aside on a counter at room temperature to fully mature. Once mature, the flavor varies from very tart to sweet. Jellies and marmalades made from them have excellent flavor! They can also be used in savory dishes like chutneys and to make wild plum wine. Wild plums are susceptible to brown rot fungus that damages the fruit or plum pocket. To reduce the incidence of these diseases, the trees can be pruned in early spring to allow better air circulation and maintain one to two main stems.
• New Jersey tea (Ceanothus americanus) The main stem is woody and small branches die off during winter. It is a shrublike plant that reaches up to 3 ft. and is naturally found in prairies, savannas and open woods. The leaves can be used dry or fresh to prepare a tea-like drink. The pure white flowers are beautiful and very attractive for pollinators. This plant can be established in a variety of sites. In gardens, it can tolerate full sun to moderate shade.
Native mints
• Bee balm (Monarda fistulosa) is another member of the mint family that blooms from June to September and can reach up to 5 ft. in height. Leaves and flowers are very fragrant and can be used for tea and to scent soaps. It establishes well in poor soil in dry to moist conditions. Butterflies love them!
• Slender mountain mint (Pycnanthemum tenuifolius) and hairy mountain mint (P. pilosum) are two aromatic herbs that we use extensively in our programs at Lincoln. We prepare a cold tea by stepping leaves overnight or by added hot water to fresh or dry leaves. We have developed recipes for ice cream and a cheesecake that, according to evaluators, are wonderful! These two species are great for pollinators. To maintain a fresh supply of leaves for tea. Plants can be pruned regularly.
Other herbaceous species
• Ground cherry (Physalis spp.). There are 13 species of ground cherries recorded in Missouri; however, 4 are introduced including P. philadelphica or the commercial tomatillo. All Physalis spp. share the characteristic of a papery husk around the cherry-like fruit which is the reason they are also called husked tomatoes. The native species turn yellowish green when mature and sometimes have purple speckles. One of the most common ones is P. longifolia that produces sweet and tasty fruits at maturity. It is critical to know that leaves and stems are poisonous like other members of the Solanaceae family and immature fruits consumed in large amounts can cause stomach distress.
• Glade or prairie onion (Allium stellatum). A relative of the common onion and garlic, glade onion grows naturally in glades and prairies, and it is very tolerant to dry and sunny conditions. It is a great plant to grow in pots and grows well in regular raised beds. Bumble bees and other native bees feed on the nectar of the flowers. The flowers have a delicate purple color and can be added as a garnish in salads.
Several books were written about native edible plants in Missouri and across the country. Two of my favorite ones are Jan Phillips’ book, Wild Edibles of Missouri, published in 1979. It is out of print but is available in the Missouri Department of Conservation for download. The second one is Kelly Kindscher’s ‘Edible Wild Plants of the Prairie’, published in 1987, among many others. My recommendation is to collect as many references as you can if you are into native edibles and look for plants outdoors. If you are interested in trying some recipes with native edibles check the Grow Native! Website (grownative. org/learn/natives-for-gardening/native-edibles/).
You can have your own little supermarket by planting some of these natives right in your own backyard and beautify your surrounding by creating butterfly corridors. Remember the plants suggested above are just to get you started! One word of caution is that before you start consuming these plants, be sure you know how to identify them! Several of these plants are host plants for butterfly larva, which means that while we prepare our own hot tea, a butterfly nursery is in the making in our own yard. They can be embraced by people in any community in the state and will help to create butterfly corridors. There are many reasons to grow and consume native edible plants. Most, if not all, also offer benefits for pollinators, butterflies and other wildlife, so one can adopt those that offer the most rewards and create your own native edible habitat!
Dr. Nadia Navarrete-Tindall State Extension Specialist, Lincoln University Cooperative Extension
Horizon II: How Restored Prairie Will Contribute to Renewable Energy Production
Restoring 30 million acres of prairie in 30 years is an ambitious goal, but if there is one person who can realize that vision, it's Rudi Roeslein. Rudi founded Roeslein Alternative Energy (RAE) in 2012 after spending more than 30 years building a global engineering, manufacturing, and modular construction company. Energy consumption, reliance on fossil fuels, and the associated environmental impacts deeply concern Rudi, prompting him to invest $57 million of his own money to develop a solution.
Rudi prides himself on finding solutions where others see problems. When he purchased a farm in northern Missouri, it reflected the toll that decades of farming marginal land can take on the landscape. As an avid outdoorsman and conservationist, his goal was to improve wildlife habitat while maintaining a farming operation. Rudi’s farm, along with many others across the Grand River basin —once a thriving grassland ecosystem—had been stripped of its biodiversity. Erosion had taken its toll, and soil quality had degraded from years of traditional row-cropping practices.
Opportunities for Land, Wildlife, and Renewable Energy
To be clear, we do not view farming as the problem. We strongly support our farmers and the essential role they play in feeding and fueling our country. Our aim is to help restore balance to native ecosystems while creating additional revenue streams for farmers and landowners. Current practices are not sustainable. However, we can improve soil, water, and air quality while introducing new financial incentives to landowners. There is an opportunity to develop solutions that restore native ecosystems, benefit wildlife, and produce renewable energy. Rudi’s northern Missouri farm is now a shining example of what is possible.
In September 2023, Roeslein Alternative Energy was awarded an $80 million grant from the USDA’s Partnerships for Climate-Smart Commodities program. The funding will support a five-year pilot project called Horizon II (H2), which will take place in Iowa and Missouri. The goal of H2 is to demonstrate a “Climate-Smart Future for Corn, Soybean, Livestock, and Renewable Natural Gas Production.” Eleven partner organizations are contributing to the program: Iowa State University, University of Missouri, Missouri Prairie Foundation, The Nature Conservancy, Conservation Districts of Iowa, Iowa Agriculture Water Alliance, Iowa Soybean Association, Sievers Family Farms, Soil and Water Outcomes Fund, Smithfield Foods, and Veterans in Agriculture.
With this funding, we can begin realizing the pathway to restoring native grasslands while helping support our country's energy needs. The grant award is a significant step toward advancing RAE’s core mission: developing a market-based solution that uses sustainably harvested biomass to create renewable natural gas while assigning economic value to restored native grasses, prairie plants, and winter-hardy cover crops.
“Since founding RAE, our overarching goal has been to provide farmers an alternative way to use land, especially highly erodible acres, in ways that will benefit the environment, wildlife, and their livelihood,” said Rudi Roeslein, RAE founder and chairman.
Restoring Native Grasslands and Supporting Energy Needs
The grant will compensate farmers and landowners for biomass production, greenhouse gas reductions, and carbon sequestration in the soil through an outcomes-based program promoting cover cropping and prairie restoration practices. The program will focus on restoring marginal, low-performing acres to prairie. Program partners will collaborate with farmers, landowners, and other stakeholders, including historically underserved producers, to ensure equitable access to the opportunities offered by low-carbon agriculture. RAE and its partners will supply native seeds and assist with the prairie planting. The resulting sustainably harvested biomass will be added to anaerobic digestors to create renewable natural gas.
Our nation has a massive 2.3 million miles of natural gas pipeline capable of supporting renewable energy growth. Renewable natural gas created from manure and prairie biomass has the same molecular composition as traditional natural gas and can be fed directly into the national grid. This offers a new pathway for creating renewable energy in the heartland. While not the only solution for improving energy production, it is one that can help reduce reliance on fossil fuels and provide additional income to local farmers and landowners—a win for rural farming and for restoring native grasslands.
From a communications standpoint, our primary goal is to educate landowners and the public on the opportunities available and the improvements we are making. We developed a media platform, Prairie Prophets, to showcase this work. It can be accessed at PrairieProphets.com and across all social media channels. Through this platform, we will share stories highlighting the work being done throughout the grant, as well as the people and places involved. We hope to inspire not only landowners but also the children and grandchildren of current landowners. These themes are further explored in a new book, Prairie Power: How Prairies Can Heal the Planet, written by Kathy Love, with a foreword by Rudi Roeslein. Prairie Power traces the history of settlement and the transformation of the landscape. It describes the immense natural value of native plants and animals who depend on them. It also offers hope to rural communities and their residents who want to make a living on the land.
Inspiration and Collaboration
We’re all inspired by someone— Rudi Roeslein inspired me with his vision and the way a successful private company can not only maintain a solid bottom line but also revolutionize renewable energy production while supporting conservation efforts. Rudi himself was inspired by others. Dr. Peter Raven, one of the world’s leading ecologists, was an early supporter of Rudi’s vision of combining prairie restoration with renewable energy. At every obstacle that seemed insurmountable, Dr. Raven offered encouragement. Ecologist Dr. David
Tilman also played a significant role. Dr. Tilman’s research suggests that “growing mixed prairie grasses on the world's degraded land could produce enough bioenergy to replace 13 percent of global petroleum consumption and 19 percent of global electricity consumption. Fuels made from prairie biomass are ‘carbon negative,’ which means that producing and using them actually reduces the amount of carbon dioxide (a greenhouse gas) in the atmosphere. Prairie plants store more carbon in their roots and soil than is released by the fossil fuels needed to grow and convert them into biofuels.” Dr. Lisa Schulte Moore’s development of the STRIPS program (Science-based Trials of Row crops Integrated with Prairie Strips) has shown incredible improvements in soil and water quality when implemented alongside row-crop production. Her research at Iowa State University finds the following: “By strategically adding 10% prairie strips to a no-till corn or soybean field, they found a 95% reduction in soil loss, 37% reduction in water runoff, 77% reduction in Phosphorus runoff, 70% reduction in Nitrogen runoff, and a 70% reduction in nitrous oxide emissions.
The work of Dr. Raven, Dr. Tilman, and Dr. Schulte Moore is inspiring. Along with other efforts— such as Dr. Tom Richard's C-Change group and the Grass2Gas project—they are leading the way in bridging the gap between biodiversity, cover crops, prairie restoration, and renewable energy. It takes visionaries like Rudi Roeslein to bring these people and practices together. With private and public support, we can achieve a balance between restoring the natural landscape and producing renewable energy.
As conservationist Doug Duren states, “It's not ours; it's just our turn.” We all benefit from inspiring the next generation by doing our part to leave the land a little better than how we found it.
Adam Voight
Global marketing manager for Roeslein and Associates and the Communications Director for the Horizon II Climate-Smart Commodities Grant Program.
Top - Horizon II RNG anerobic digesters. (Photo: Roeslein Alternative Energy)
Cover - Cover crop harvesting for RNG production. (Photo: Roeslein Alternative Energy)
Taking the First Step
As a Conservation Grazing Specialist for MFA Incorporated, it can be challenging to work with cattle producers when your first suggestion to help them alleviate their forage shortages is to eradicate a portion of their current forage base and transition those acres to native grass. It is a tough pill for livestock producers to swallow when they know if they transition to a native grass, that they will be with out forage on those acres for a minimum of one year.
Fortunately, there have been improvements in herbicides, management and seeding rates to expedite from the once thought of “You can’t graze this native grass planting for three years” to, “You will be grazing this the second growing season.”
Ben Buckner, who runs a cow calf operation in Polk County Missouri, understands the benefits that native grass provides to wildlife. Before retirement Ben worked for the Missouri Department of Conservation managing the states public land and was aware of the importance to wildlife and the ecological benefits that native plants provide.
He was able to see those benefits firsthand on a daily basis while working for MDC. Knowing that these grasses are good for wildlife and especially whitetail deer, it made sense to plant these grasses on a portion of his farm to improve deer populations and increase hunting opportunities. With financial assistance in the state to promote these grasses, Ben was ready to take that first step to establish native grasses on his farm.
Ben chose a spot on the edge of a hay field that was not convenient to cut for hay and by putting this “finger” into native grass for wildlife, it would make the rest of the field easier to cut for hay and make it squarer. “Even though it is connected to my fescue hayfield, my intention was planting this native grass for only hunting deer.” Ben chose to use NRCS cost share to offset the initial investment to establish these grasses and after a tough year from mother nature, Ben reached out to myself for assistance in getting his stand established.
After an initial site visit and creating a plan to follow for the spring of 2024, we were both in agreement on the path to take to ensure success. This spring, with good growing conditions, Ben’s native grass stand is an excellent example of what a stand should look like. “I’ve got one of the best native grass stands I’ve ever seen.” Ben said.
The drought of 2022 and 2023 for ranchers in Southwest Missouri is still on the forefront of producers’ mind. Seeing the amount of grass that Ben's small native deer hunting field has produced on the first year, he is now starting to take the appropriate steps to plant more, but this time for his cattle. Ben is in the process of planning for his second field and when asked what made him convert more acres, he said, “It’s great for wildlife and If it can produce that much forage in the hottest part of the year, when I need grass the most, why would I not plant it for my cattle as well?”
Ben Buckner, a Polk County cattle producer, with his stand of native grass planted in 2024. (Photo: Landry Jones)
Landry Jones
Conservation Grazing Specialist at MFA, Inc.
Native Plants, Healthy Soil & Livestock: A Perfect Match
Adiverse native mixture of plants can improve the function of soil and introduce more plant biomass utilizing less water than any mixture of introduced cool season grasses. It also provides incredible nutrient dense forage for livestock all at the same time.
Soil has many functions but regulating the water cycle is at the top of the list. Water can’t go through a solid. Water only enters the soil through the pore spaces in it. These voids in the soil are created when plant roots and soil organisms like fungi push their way through the soil creating channels. These channels are held in place by root exudates and biological glues from the soil organisms.
These secretions hold those channels in place and open so it makes it easier for other roots and organisms to follow those same channels. It is those fortified channels that allows for our prairie soils to have the tremendous infiltration capabilities that they have.
Most native grasses have a significantly larger root system than the introduced cool season grasses. This larger root system creates more soil aggregation, pore space and infiltration than the introduced cool season grasses. Stan Bolz with the NRCS in South Dakota has a great example from a study he did a few years ago.
In Figure 1 you can see that the season long low (SLL) stocking rate has better infiltration than the season long moderate (SLM) and the season long high (SLH) but it is still significantly lower than either of the high stock density (HISD) diverse native grass mixtures.
Once we have the water going into the soil, now we need the plants growing there to be as efficient as they can be with that water. A few years ago, I ran across a really old study that looked at how many pounds of water various plants used to make a pound of forage. Take a look at Figure 2 for the details. Big bluestem takes less than half of the moisture that Kentucky bluegrass takes to make a pound of forage.
In that study in 1941 they didn’t evaluate smooth brome, tall fescue or orchard grass, but I would have to think they are very similar to the Kentucky bluegrass. Something else from that study that caught my eye was that the native cool season western wheatgrass produced a pound of forage on only 63% as much water as it took the Kentucky bluegrass to grow it. So, that tells me that not all cool season plants are not the same.
Plants that are best adapted to the Midwest are the ones that developed here. When it comes to moisture efficiency, both native cool and warm season grasses and plants are the hands down winners over the introduced cool season grasses.
I have had conversations with many folks about the nutritional benefits of native warm season grasses over introduced cool season grasses. Most will readily admit that they believe that the natives are better during the summer but do not feel they are higher quality in the fall, winter or spring.
The natives are generally more digestible during the summer growing season than cool season introduced grasses because they developed under our hot sunny summer conditions. Most cool season introduced grasses came from a much cooler wetter climate without the intense sun that the Midwest has. As soon as the days get longer, and the sun beats down those introduced grasses get very lignified and that lignin is very hard for the rumen biology to digest.
What many producers don’t understand is that the lush, green, early spring grass is not only watery and low in dry matter, but also high in protein. Depending on whether they are lactating, or not mature beef cattle only need 8-12 percent protein. Lush green cool season grass in the spring or fall can be 28% protein.
That much protein without adequate digestible energy to go along with it can cause a lot of health issues in the cattle. Think about the human Atkins diet. If you eat a lot of protein, you lose weight. Why does eating protein cause you to lose weight? Every cell in your body, or a cow for that matter, needs a specific amount of protein (nitrogen) and carbohydrate (carbon).
Generally, a human or cow have an average whole-body C:N ratio of about 10:1. That means to just stay even at their current weight they need to eat 10 times as much carbohydrate as protein. If you eat more protein than all the cells in the body need, the body can't just excrete it without any other problems.
Cover - Steers do well during the July 2023 drought in Southwest Missouri on a diverse native grass and forb mixture that requires less water than introduced grass forage. (Photo: Natural Resources Conservation Service) Top - Diverse native grass mixtures allow better water infiltration than less diverse mixes. (Credit: Sam Bolz, South Dakota USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service)
Figure 1
There are two things that can happen to that extra protein.
1. If a body (cow or human are the same) has some stored fat it can mobilize some stored carbohydrates (carbon) and combine them with the nitrogen (protein). The body does this via gut bacteria. After the combination they are then used by the body if needed or excreted as waste.
2. If there is not any fat to mobilize then that extra protein builds up in the blood stream as urea. The liver acts as a filter removing the urea. Eventually all filters plug up. When this happens, you end up with blood urea nitrogen. BUN (blood urea nitrogen) is one of the first things they check humans for when you go to the doctor, and they draw blood. It is always the first thing dairymen check when they have health issues with dairy cows. Dairymen test the MUN (milk urea nitrogen) every day to watch performance. How many beef guys test their cows for nutrition levels and performance every day?
There are many research papers and articles about MUN in dairy cattle causing problems with virtually every health issue out there, including a big one that beef guys should pay attention to, fertility. Native grasses do not have as high of a protein level as cool season grasses, so they are less likely to have an out of balance C:N ratio while grazing natives.
The big complaint many producers have is “I can’t graze the warm season grasses in the fall, winter or spring. Diversifying with both cool and warm season forages, provide livestock the mix they need throughout all seasons and can result in an almost perfect mixture of protein and carbs for the livestock.
I think the case is pretty clear that diverse native mixtures are the best plants we can have to improve our soils, make the best use what rainfall we receive and with good management provide high quality nutritional forage for our livestock all year long.
Doug Peterson Director of Standards and Protocol, Regenified
Non-native grasses like Kentucky Bluegrass takes more water to produce forage than native grasses. (Photo: University of Nebraska)
Figure 2
2024 CLC Fall Workshop
In September 2024 the Conservation Leadership Corps (CLC) met at Camp Clover Point at Lake of the Ozarks State Park for their annual fall workshop. The event allows students to gather in person to brainstorm and begin writing resolutions to be presented at the Conservation Federation of Missouri annual spring convention.
Each year students will either participate in a stewardship activity, have a guest speaker come to camp and speak or a CFM affiliate group will come and teach a new skill. This year for their stewardship activity they helped Lake of the Ozarks State Park by touching up paint on the buildings and benches at Camp Clover Point. Fall workshop is a great way for students to meet professionals in areas they are interested in as well as bond with one another through team building exercises and evening volleyball games.
New students are given a copy of A Sand County Almanac. Students also pick a unique silver compass quote, a quote from famous naturalists that will help guide them and their decisions throughout their CLC journeys.
The start of the resolution process can be a daunting task for newer students and returning students. The Youth Conservation Action Committee (YCA Committee) is made up of professionals within the conservation world. The student body can lean on the aid and guidance of the YCA Committee and CLC officers to help generate ideas with one another to make the resolution writing process streamlined and effective.
Students start by brainstorming ideas with one another of what topics should be written about this year, they then assign leaders, and students sign up for which resolutions they would like to collaborate on. A large portion of the fall workshop is spent researching and starting to draft whereas statements.
On the final morning of fall workshop each resolution group presents a rough draft and is able to receive feedback form their peers. But the process doesn't stop after fall workshop, virtually students will connect from all over the state to perfect their resolutions and have large group meetings with all CLC members to present and see everyone's progress.
Students gather for their group photo at Fall Workshop. (Photo: Nick Darling)
Kaley Brittain, Jared Lami, Jackson Byrd CLC Students
"The Voice for Missouri Outdoors"
Mission: To ensure conservation of Missouri’s wildlife and natural resources, and preservation of our state’s rich outdoor legacy through advocacy, education and partnerships.
In 1935, conservationists from all over Missouri came together to form the Conservation Federation of Missouri (CFM) with the purpose to take politics out of conservation. The efforts of our founders resulted in the creation of Missouri's non-partisan Conservation Commission and the Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC). Since then, CFM has been the leading advocate for the outdoors in Missouri.
Partnerships
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Ways You Can Support CFM
Support our efforts to promote and protect conservation and natural resources in our state. Members will receive our magazine six times a year, event information, our bi-weekly enewsletter, and the opportunity to grow our voice.
Membership
CFM provides the platform for a diverse group of organizations to have their conservation voices be heard. Affiliates have the opportunity to apply for grants, receive educational training and promote the mission of their organization.
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CFM provides scholarships to graduates and undergraduates. We also provide grant funds to youth education programs and to affiliate projects. Contributing will help future generations initiate boots on the ground projects.
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Become a life member for $1,000. Life memberships are placed in an endowment fund that allows us to continue our work in perpetuity.
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Business partners will enjoy recognition in each magazine issue along with opportunities to reach and engage with our active membership. Ask us about our different Business Partnership levels.
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All of our events have raffles with both silent and live auctions. The contributions of in-kind products and services not only assists in raising funds for conservation, but also promote the businesses that support CFM.
Diversifying Established Native Warm-Season Grass Plantings
It doesn’t matter whether you are interested in a planting of natives for wildlife, for soil and water conservation or for livestock, the diversification of native warm-season grass (NWSG) with wildflowers (or forbs) and cool-season native grasses makes everything better!
I really didn’t understand the importance of diversifying our native plantings when I first started my career in conservation over 45 years ago. I thought with plantings of only switchgrass or only big bluestem I had the world by the tail. As I started managing some prairie remnants on public land in Nebraska, my eyes opened up to at least some of the benefits from a wildlife perspective. At that time soil health, livestock gains, and pollinators were not even part of my thought process.
So, imagine the shock and awe over the last 15 years seeing how a native planting can come alive with pollinators when you just add some forb diversity, seeing how soil health specialists have embraced natives or hearing from a cattle producer about weight gains and conception rates on diverse native forages!
Critical to meeting your objectives is the mix that you will plant. Most cost-share programs will have certain parameters to meet depending on your objectives. For example, pollinator plantings are required to have at least 20 species of native forbs, while typical wildlife or forage plantings requires at least 9 forbs. There is lots of help through various organizations in Missouri to help you design a planting mix that meets your objective and program requirements.
Planting Into an Existing Stand of Native Warmseason Grasses
Even if you already have a solid stand of just native warm-season grasses, you can still take steps to diversify it with native wildflowers and native cool-season grasses. But you need to start the process in the summer prior to diversifying.
Step 1. The first step is to set back the existing native grasses. You can do that by taking the vegetation to the ground by haying, mowing or grazing in August or early September prior to the seeding.
This is done to set back the native warm-season grasses to give the forbs a chance to establish themselves in that first growing season. Especially, if the original planting was done for wildlife, you could use herbicides to set back the grasses even further but be cautious if the planting is still under contract in a cost-share program. Make sure the herbicide application is acceptable under program rules!
Step 2. If fescue or brome has invaded the planting, it will need to be eradicated, even in and around fence lines or around trees to prevent reinfestation. Apply herbicide in the late fall, while the daytime temperature is above 55 degrees.
Step 3. If a considerable amount of plant litter remains on the soil surface it will be ideal to burn this off during the dormant season further setting back the native grasses and ensuring adequate seed to soil contact with the planting. If you cannot burn, make sure to use a notill drill to cut through the plant litter.
Step 4. Seed during the winter. Most native forb seeds require a wet/cold stratification in order to germinate. Plant prior to March! Planting should be done with a notill drill. Broadcasting can be done if you have removed plant litter, however broadcasting seed through a costshare program will require that you apply 50% more seed in your planting which can drive up costs significantly.
Step 5. Depending on native warm-season grass growth during the summer after the forb and cool-season grass are planted, the existing NWSG may have to be clipped high enough that the clipping does not affect the new native forb seedlings. Mowing at a height of 10 to 12 inches above the ground is highly recommended. This will need to be done to prevent the existing NWSG from shading out the new seedlings.
Some precautions to consider include the control of noxious weeds and brush before they impact the planting. This will require annual monitoring! You must address these invasives before they take over a planting.
Native forbs can be maintained in a grass stand with periodic burning. Summer, fall and winter burns tend to favor the wildflowers, while April burns tend to favor the NWSG. The timing of your burns will depend on your objectives for the planting.
Native Cool-Season Grasses (NCSG)
There are several NCSG species that can be added to a planting to further improve the forage quality, soil health or wildlife benefits of a planting. These include several wild rye species and others such as prairie wedgegrass and beakgrain. Some do well in partial shade, while others would do well with scattered shade from trees in a pasture or woodland setting. Some NCSG do well in wetter conditions in a floodplain when compared to some of the native warm-season grasses. These grasses do best when planted during the winter or early spring months.
Special management considerations should be made before adding NCSG to a planting. To keep them in a mixed stand, you will need to vary the time of year you burn each time. For example, burning in April to favor the NWSG will suppress the NCSG, while burning during the fall and winter months will favor the NCSG. The same is true with grazing operations, you cannot graze the same pasture at the same time every year and keep all the planted species in the stand.
Re-invasion by fescue is a concern in plantings that contain NCSG and the planting will need to be monitored annually to eliminate spread of fescue, smooth brome and other non-native grasses.
If diversifying your existing native grass planting is of interest, technical service providers can be reached through the Missouri Department of Conservation, USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service, Quail Forever, Ducks Unlimited, University Extension, the Missouri Forage and Grassland Council and the Missouri Cattlemen’s Association. Their staff can develop a management plan and connect you to the right costshare programs, seed suppliers and equipment to get the job done.
Bill White (Retired MDC), Grassland Conservation Specialist, Natural Resoures Conservation Service
Native forbs and native cool-season grasses can improve soil quality and livestock performance. (Photo: Bill White)
In the Eye of the Brush Storm
There is a storm bearing down upon us, and the waters are very turbulent for public and private grassland managers across the Midwest. This ‘storm’ is aggressive woody plant encroachment (undesirable shrubs and trees) on grasslands. Woody encroachment has been identified as an ever-growing threat to our native and reconstructed grassland acres. Managers, which include private landowners, are asking the question why this is occurring and what can be done to mitigate its impact and ride out the storm?
Why the change?
There are a couple of main issues that can fall into the ‘why’ category. One reason is a change in the way grassland acres are managed. Prior to widespread European immigration to America, grasslands saw more consistent, higher intensity fires from year to year than are seen now. After European
immigration and influence, a lot of native grassland acres were plowed for farming. This created more patchy grassland habitats and kept fire intensities lower, allowing many native grasslands to get taken over by trees, never to be seen again.
Feature Story
Another reason that has been linked to this issue is that in the last 20 years, the Midwest has recorded some of the wettest rainy seasons in modern history. Extra rainfall during the growing season fuels woody species by allowing them to outcompete and overpower their grass and forb competitors.
Strategy
There are many different aggressive woody species that show themselves on a continuous basis. For example, Smooth Sumac (Rhus glabra) is one that has particularly become more and more prevalent on grasslands across the Midwest. There are several management strategies that can be utilized to control species like Smooth Sumac, including prescribed fire, mowing, diligent use of herbicide, and more. Strategies can and do vary depending on what resources a manager has available to them.
Prescribed Fire
As previously stated, the reduction, or in some areas, complete lack of fire over the past two centuries has created a lot of the issues that we are experiencing today. Prescribed burning is one method that can be used for woody encroachment control. Prescribed fire has many benefits to grassland habitat, if done right. When using it as a tool for woody control, the time of the year burning is done is key. The maximum damage to woody plants occurs during the time when sap is still flowing through the tree or shrub, and not in a stage of dormancy. It has been shown that optimal fire severity for woody species occurs from August through the month of November.
Firing technique also has an impact on the effectiveness. The best results generally occur when a backing fire (a fire that burns into the wind or down a slope) is used, compared to a traditional ring head fire. The backing fire has a much lower rate of spread than a head fire and improves control on woody plant species, as it allows for a longer duration of direct heat on the root collar of the tree or shrub.
Timing intervals between fires is also an important factor when used to control woody species. This is where adaptative management comes into play and a manager needs to focus on the needs of each area in question. Managers need to be careful to not get caught up in the cookie cutter approach of management (i.e., treating every area the same) and to implement management based on current conditions and specific site objectives.
Mowing
Mowing is another strategy that can be used to help control woody encroachment on grasslands. Many private grasslands to this day are annually hayed and have a very low stem count of woody species as a result. Most of the mowing is done with a disc mower used for cutting down hay. A brush hog is also another popular way of brush management that is readily available to managers. Mowing alone is not a cure, and some would consider it a last resort option. Mowing during the growing season can be detrimental to several other species. If one is to utilize mowing as a strategy, the middle of August to the middle of September is an optimal time frame to do it.
As with burning, this timeframe is likely to cause the most harm to woody plants as they are stressed due to hot, dry weather. Dormant mowing can be done during the winter months if one is concerned about affecting off-target species (e.g. native flowering forbs for pollinators) or that is the only option you have. While mowing might not be the best management technique, any management is better than no management when it comes to managing undesirable trees and shrubs on grasslands.
Herbicide Application
Herbicide application is also an option for managers to utilize for woody plant control. There are multiple different application techniques that can be utilized. Foliar application spot treatment is one of the more popular options to choose from. This option can cause collateral damage if there is any overspray onto offtarget plants in the vicinity. While spot treatment is less likely to result in overspray, it is always a concern when using herbicide. There are many herbicides that can be used for this application. Triclopyr is one of the most popular options and is generally a go to for spot spray treatment.
Basal bark treatment can be utilized as an effective strategy against brush control. Basal bark treatment can be a time-consuming strategy to use, but it allows the manager to be very specific on the species that are being treated. The most popular herbicide mix for this treatment type is Triclopyr paired with a basal oil at the recommended label rate.
Wicking is another application method available for managers to use. If you are trying to treat large acres of Smooth Sumac, rope wicking has proven to be one of the most effective options of control. Rope wicking application allows a manager to brush herbicide on the basal area of the stem, minimizing collateral damage to off-target species.
Picloram and Glyphosate are the two herbicides that are labeled for this application method on a wide variety of species. To increase effectiveness, some managers have utilized a fall fire following rope wicking put more stress on the woody species that were treated.
Conclusion
As the world is continually evolving, managers must remain flexible and think outside the box to face new challenges. Adaptive management is one the greatest tools that managers of natural resources have, and we must be able to adapt and overcome issues as problems arise.
Managers, whether public or private, must work together and be open to sharing information on successes and failures. It will take everyone working together to help solve the problems of today and tomorrow.
Cover - Wick applicator used for application at Paintbrush Prairie. (Photo: Joe Coy)
Top - Photo was taken at Paintbrush Prairie before wicking of Smooth Sumac occurred. (Photo: Joe Coy)
Bottom - Photo was taken at Paintbrush Prairie one month after wicking of Smooth Sumac had occurred. (Photo: Joe Coy)
Joe Coy
Wildlife Biologist, Missouri Department of Conservation
Verging on Silence: Insect Declines and Missouri Prairies
Once the largest continuous ecosystem in North America, the decline of prairies exceeds that of any single major ecosystem on the continent. In Missouri, conversion of prairies for agricultural production has left less than 1% of these original grasslands intact. While it is easy to visualize historic, flower-studded prairie landscapes teeming with bison, imagining the deafening buzz of insect life pulsing within these once-rich grasslands is more difficult, as the loss of prairies throughout the Midwest has reduced this cacophony to a low hum verging on complete silence.
In recent decades, increased efforts to conserve what remains of native prairie biodiversity have targeted charismatic megafauna. However, growing concern for the impact disappearing prairies have on insects has brought to light the integral role invertebrates play in supporting healthy grasslands.
From pollination to seed dispersal to nutrient cycling, insects are essential to prairie ecosystems. Bees, butterflies, and other pollinating insects contribute to the reproduction of nearly 90% of prairie plants. Underground ant nests functionally alter grassland soil structure. Dung beetles prevent scat accumulation and burying beetles reduce the prevalence of decaying animal carcasses. Furthermore, insects are an irreplaceable component of the diets of many invertebrates, birds, small mammals, and reptiles.
Unfortunately, recent studies indicate that prairie insects are declining at an alarming rate. For many species, the primary cause of these declines is habitat loss and fragmentation due to agricultural intensification. Because of their small size, many invertebrate species are restricted to tiny islands of native grassland or prairie plantings surrounded by cropland. The effects of Habitat loss are compounded by the stressors like climate change and exposure to lethal pesticides, including neonicotinoids. The following Species of Conservation Concern illustrate the challenges and complexity of working with prairie-dependent insects.
Cover - A queen Southern Plains bumblebee visits black-eyed Susan flowers on a Missouri sand prairie. (Photo by Josh Klosterman)
Regal Fritillary:
Regal fritillary (Speyeria idalia) is an iconic butterfly that once was widespread on the 13 million acres of tallgrass prairie across Northern and Western Missouri. Today, it is restricted to prairie remnants in SW Missouri and scattered sites north of the Missouri River. The reason why the regal fritillary is strictly dependent on prairie is unknown but may have to do with a narrow host plant range, as larvae can only consume a handful of violet (Viola) species prior to overwintering as a millimeterlong caterpillars under a canopy of prairie grasses.
Given their largely subterranean lifestyle, prairie mole crickets have been historically overlooked and were even thought to be extinct until the 1980’s. While research and conservation efforts have since located prairie mole cricket populations in Missouri, Oklahoma, Kansas, and Arkansas, this species is expected is to be vulnerable or threatened throughout their range. Restricted primarily to high-quality tallgrass prairies, habitat loss is likely the primary threat to prairie mole cricket conservation. Managing prairies for prairie mole cricket conservation is informed through research, which has shown that males preferentially choose to form mating leks on recently burned sites, where aboveground vegetation is less likely to interfere with mating call projection.
In 2024, regal fritillaries were proposed by the US Fish and Wildlife Service to be listed as federally threatened. Recent surveys of the regal fritillary began in 2015, when the species was petitioned for listing under the Endangered Species Act. Through these surveys, this butterfly was found to be still widespread in Missouri. Partnerships with Missouri State University developed captive rearing protocols, and in 2022, caterpillars were reintroduced on formerly occupied sites. Current research aims to determine the effects of fire, grazing, and other management on regal fritillary populations. The persistence of this species on our prairies suggests regals are compatible with current management regimes, but maintaining this part of our natural heritage will require more research and innovation.
Prairie Mole Cricket: One of the most vocal tallgrass prairiedependent insects also happens to be one of the most rarely seen. Prairie mole crickets (Gryllotalpa major) are the largest crickets in North America and spend most of their lives underground, emerging for only a brief period in the spring to mate. During this time, males dig burrows acoustically designed to amplify their distinctive mating calls. Working together, leks of calling males attract flying females.
Southern Plains Bumblebee: The Southern Plains bumblebee (Bombus fraternus) is one of many declining Midwestern bumblebee species. Once found in grassland and savanna habitats throughout much of the Great Plains, researchers estimate this bumblebee has been extirpated from nearly 25% of its historical range. While the full extent of these losses is unknown, many factors likely contribute to declines. Habitat conversion for agriculture, woody encroachment, and competition with the non-native, introduced European honeybee (Apis mellifera) leads to decreased floral food resources. Additionally, exposure to pathogens and parasites transmitted by commercially reared pollinators negatively impacts bumblebee health.
Widespread concerns for declining bumblebees have spurred a call to action in Missouri, including from citizen scientists through the Missouri Bumblebee Atlas. When compared with historic records, recently collected Atlas data provides evidence for Southern Plains bumblebee declines in Missouri. In conjunction with the Atlas, University of Missouri researchers are working to determine how USDA conservation plantings in north-central Missouri support bumblebee populations. In 2023, Southern Plains bumblebees were found on nearly one-third of research sites and accounted for approximately 5% of all bumblebees observed, suggesting these plantings may serve as bumblebee refugia. Prairie insect declines have cascading effects, and these losses reverberate throughout grassland ecosystems. The impact prairie loss has on species at every trophic level is a sobering reminder of the profound effect humans can have on the natural world. It is thus our challenge and responsibility to turn the tide through conservation, restoration, and education. By taking action to protect and restore grasslands, we hope to preserve the precious biodiversity that comprises the complex symphony of the prairie.
Alex Morphew, Pollinator Ecologist, MDC
Steve Buback, Natural History Biologist, MDC
Jared Brabant, Student, University of Missouri
Top - Regal fritillary butterflies nectar on a butterfly milkweed plant at MDC’s Paintbrush Prairie Conservation Area (Photo: Courtesy
of MDC) Bottom - A rare siting of a male prairie mole cricket during spring mating season (Photo: Courtesy of MDC)
