Sunday, May 19, was a good day for a bunch of prairie enthusiasts at Barsness Park as a controlled burn crew was able to conduct a burn on about half of a native prairie parcel in the park. Previous efforts had been thwarted because of high wind conditions.

The parcel of the burn has been impacted by invasive species such as buckthorn, smooth broom grass, Kentucky blue grass, tartarian honeysuckle, and sumac among other species. Fire is known to be one management tool that is used to help prairie species rejuvenate and recover to what virgin  prairie is supposed to look like. The Nature Conservancy is an example of an organization that uses controlled burns, most commonly at a property known as Ordway Prairie in Lake Johanna Township.

The Barsness Park prairie is found on about 40 acres of the 250 acre park. A Prairie Planning Team has been working since last fall to develop a management plan for future care and management of the prairie.  Native prairies in Minnesota have been reduced by human encroachment to about 1% of original size. Their significance today is most often remarked to be important because of diversity of plant and animal species. A Planning Team member has identified over 100 different plant species in the Barsness Park prairie.

Prairie vegetation is known to have extensive and deep root systems (as deep as 30 feet) and because of that they do well under fire management. The Barsness Park controlled burn crew is expected to conduct additional burns in the future. Most burns occur in spring or fall under optimal conditions that are difficult to find due to changing weather.

The local group participating in the burn included Wayne Zimmerman, Claire Fletcher, Ivan Fossen, David Jungst and Mike Howe. Others who supported pre-burn preparation were Jan Philipson and Ralph Hanson.

Persons that may be interested in joining the prairie group as a volunteer or other supporter should contact Mike Howe at 320-334-1646.