| A Garden Tour |
 |
1) DEMONSTRATION GARDEN (photos)
This small garden near the parking area gives a close look at some plants found on the prairie plantings. It'a a naturally changing seasonal display--from the short spring forbs (flowers) such as prairie violets and shooting stars to the taller summer goldenrod and sunflowers. You can also see native grasses such as little bluestem, prairie dropseed and sideoats grama. A new planting that slopes away to the west is in progress (the fescue was just killed in the spring/summer of 2000). It will be seeded with little bluestem and a variety of forbs. (See Planting Records)
2) SOUTH PRAIRIE (photo)
A path lead through the center of this area, which was one of the first patches converted from fescue. More than 28 types of forbs and four grasses have been added since 1986. Some of the more noticeable plants include gray-headed coneflower (June+), blazing star (July+), rattlesnake master (July+) and stiff goldenrod (August+). Switchgrass and little bluestem are two of the most visible grasses. (See Planting Records)
This was one of the areas planted after the south prairie. It was disked a few times and planted with scattered seeds mainly in January 1990. (See Planting Records)
3) "TALLGRASS" PRAIRIE (photo)
In the early 1800s, about a third of Missouri was prairie. Depending on the soil and moisture of each site, prairie grasses varied form short buffalo grass and little bluestem to the taller indiangrass and big bluestem. All these were planted here in 1986. They're warm-season grasses, which means grow mostly in the warm summer months--unllike fescue and kentucky bluegrass which grow mostly in the spring and fall or cool seasons. (See Planting Records)
Savannas are grasslands with scattered trees. They form a transition between prairies and forests. Historically, Missouri was about a third savannah. Fire and drought played a part in maintaining them as they did also for prairies. The area here is one of fairly shallow soil with scattered oaks and hickories. (See Planting Records)
Gardening is always tricky. And creating a garden with prairie plants is trickier still. That's true for all the plantings here, but especially for this one. It was seeded with two grasses: sand and tall dropseed. However, we've never seen either of them growing here. On the other hand, several forbs took hold: prairie phlox (May+), butterfly weeed (June), poppy mallow (June) and gumweeed (August). (See Planting Records)
This forest shows how managing your woods can create an attractive place to walk, wood to harvest, and food for wildlife. In the 1940s this area was clearcut; that is, most of the larger trees were cut and removed.
As you can tell (when you're on site) from the similar size and age of many of the oaks now standing, the sprouts in the 1940s responded to all the sunlight the clearcut created by growing and thriving. Maples, which can grow in the shade, are now popping up all over. This is the natural change from one species to another occurring here (shade-tolerant species invading light-loving species).
In1988, timber-stand improvement (TSI) was done here. That entailed killing some selected trees (you can see a few dead ones still standing with the double bands of cuts at their bases). TSI thins the forest, just as you'd thin plants in a garden to help some grow. This forest is especially beautiful in the spring when the dogwoods and serviceberry trees bloom, and in the fall when the maples, dogwoods and oaks are ablaze with color.
7) SWAYING CYLINDERS(photo)
The aluminum tubes in this clearing were created by a student of the Kansas City Art Institute. They're especially pleasing to look at from the other end of the field towards the house as they sway in the breeze and catch the changing light. Several of the original tubes have fallen since they were first placed so we're in the process of having them hung again.
8) AMERICAN LOTUS POND (photo)
This pond is filled with Nelumbo lutea, or American lotus. They bloom from late June to September. Given the right habitat (shallow, still water and muddy bottoms), they grow rapidly by rootlike runners into extensive colonies which can get out of hand in small ponds. Native Americans ate the starchy roots and young shoots. Ducks eat the seeds, and beaver and muskrat eat the roots. As you walk around the pond, you might see wood ducks, kingfishers and other birds such as the prothonotary warbler.
9) WATER LILY PONDS (photo)
Near the lotus planting, another pair of ponds contain a variety of water plants. Pickerel weed sends up a spike of blue flowers throughout the summer. The flowers themselves open in the morning and close in the afternoon, just as the flowers of the water lily do. Beaver, muskrat and deer eat their leaves and roots, waterfowl eat their seeds, and bluegills enjoy the shelter they provide. You can also see arrowhead, which carries lance-shaped leaves and 3-petaled, white flowers. The roots provided another starchy Native American food. Now in China and Japan it's planted along the edges of rice paddies for the same purpose. Irises bloom along the shore in late May and June. The southern blue flag is the most common native iris here.
A trail leading north
of the lily
ponds pass through a group of ash trees.
They seem to thrive in this particular area,
but are only scattered among the oaks
and hickories elsewhere.
 |
Further northeast of the ponds and east of the homeplace is an area that was scraped to build a dam for the pond below more than 25 years ago. In spite of the heavy clay, several flowers and grasses successfully grew from later plantings there. Most noticeable are the liatris, or blazing star, and purple coneflower.The blazing star send up single stalks with purple/pink flowers running up and down the stems in July. There are about 20 species of liatris in North America. The slender leaves help them conserve water. (See Planting Records) |
12)
WET LOWLANDS NEAR THE LAKE AND AREA RISING NE OF LAKE
The low area on the northeast corner of the lake gives a chance to see several plants which are typical of low, wet prairies, such as ripgut or cordgrass and eastern gama grass. Compass plant and cup plant are two related species just to the north of the path which bloom in July and August. At the time these were planted, some other seeding was done nearby on small strips of land rising to the north and the east of the lake (See Planting Records)
In 1993, we killed about five acres of terraced fescue in hopes of seeding to a more diverse, native mix of grasses and forbs. That was the year of the floods, however, so a cover crop was put on and the actual planting with a no-till drill didn't take place until 1995. Like most prairie plantings, it took several years for the natives to take hold and flourish. In the summer of 2000, the little bluestem, prairie larkspur, grey-headed coneflower, liatris and others finally appeared. So instead of an annual weed patch, it's slowly becoming a diverse prairie-like place. On one of the late April birdwalks in 1997, a Henslow's sparrow was spotted (and hadn't been seen here before). (See Planting Records)
14) NORTH PRAIRIE (photo)
This area north of the homeplace was planted with more than tweny types of flowers and a few grasses. Indian paintbrush, which is an annual, blooms in the spring. Butterfly weed and grey-headed coneflower bloom in June. In late summer, sunflowers put on a show. (See Planting Records)
Downloadable tour of PGT in pdf format
| A Garden Tour | Spring Birds | Planting Records | Friends of PGT | Other websites | Home |