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Midewin Tallgrass Prairie Ecological Restoration
The Prairie Creek Area project within the Midewin National Tallgrass Prairie involved soil mapping, soil moisture, meteorlogical groundwater and vegetative monitoring before and after selective removal of woody vegetation in the shrub and tree strata. This vegetation was within a corridor associated with a tributary to Prairie Creek near its confluence with the Kankakee River in Will County, IL. The bulk of the woody vegetation targeted for removal was comprised of invasive plant species.
The goal of the project was to improve diversity of native plant species in the understory and restore nutrient and water cycling that is more balanced to the plant communities. GRAEF provided monitoring of meteorological conditions, vegetation, soil moisture, and hydrological patterns on the site in an adjacent control area as well as in the area where woody vegetation was removed. GRAEF’s role was to map the soil series, monitor for baseline conditions, and document soil moisture and groundwater changes over a two year period following the plant removals.
After two years of monitoring, the various data sets were statistically analyzed to verify if there were differences between the experimental and control areas. Sufficient data was collected to demonstrate if statistically significant changes occurred during the growing season that were not present before and after the growing season.
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LOCATIONWill County, IL |
FACTSServices Provided: Plant Assessment, Wetland Delineation, Hydrological Assessment, Hydrologic Monitoring, Plant and Animal Monitoring, Brush and Tree Removal, Herbiciding, Ecological Restoration, Planning & Research |
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