Want to help Olmsted County parks have more beautiful and diverse prairies?

You can help make it happen.  Some seed can be collected mechanically.  But most plants’ seed must be collected by hand.  So if we want restored prairies with high diversity, we need to hand collect their seed.  And since seed of various species matures at different times, we need to be out there across several months. 

But what a good excuse to spend a few hours outdoors!  Seed collecting is literally a 'walk in the park' – walking in nature, lots of socializing, and a modest amount of light work.

Scheduled collection trips meet at the Chester Woods park contact station, just off US highway 14.  Sessions begin at 1:30 PM on:

August 16  (Sunday)
August 25, (Tuesday)
September 13  (Sunday)
September 27  (Sunday)
October 7 (Wednesday)
October 18  (Sunday)

Dress for walking through prairie vegetation on uneven ground.  For more information call Joel at 269-7064.

Even if you cannot make it on the scheduled collection dates, you can still help!  Chester Woods and Oxbow parks have developed seed collection guide sheets for about 40 species.  Each sheet has pictures of the plant in bloom and in seed, as well as instructions on collection and maps to sites where the species is found in each park.  Some experience collecting prairie plant seed is useful, but not required.  Contact the parks to borrow a sheet or two and collect prairie seed on your own! 

The Nature Conservancy’s Weaver Dunes preserve also has seed collection trips on 2-3 weekends each month.  Weaver Dunes is a large and scenic sand prairie near the Mississippi River between Kellogg and Weaver.  It has some unusual plants and animals, and can be quite an experience to visit.  TNC has acquired an additional 175 acres, and will need considerable seed for restoration.