Corlands | About

South Patrol Road

Location: Will County
Size of area affected by MSCSF-funded work: 490 acres
Owner: Midewin National Tallgrass Prairie, U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service
Partners: U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service, USACE, CorLands, Wetlands Initiative, Northeastern Illinois Wetlands Account (TCF, U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service) Illinois Department of Natural Resources, Grand Victoria Foundation, Dr. Scholl Foundation, Donnelley Foundation, McCormick Foundation

Action: Cutting, chipping and removal of trees and brush; removal and grading of a railroad berm; purchase of native seeds and plugs.

Summary: The sheer size of this restoration of former farm fields required more partners and more funding. The Wetlands Initiative took a lead role, and private foundations have provided the initial funding that covered the disabling of the site’s drainage tile and ditches. Funding from the MSCSF paid for the removal of a portion of an old railroad bed, native seed, native plugs, and invasive weed control. To give a sense of the scale of the project, $295,000 of MSCSF money was spent just on acquiring the seed and seedlings; 55,000 seedling plugs were planted. MSCSF dollars were also used for the treatment of reed canary grass, Canada thistle, and woody seedlings.

The plugs and seeding have taken hold already, and the success of seeding will show up in future seasons. There is already sufficient numbers of native species established to provide more than adequate fuel for prescribed burning of the site. This site is a good site to show the drama and impact of a major restoration; while no change from farm field to prairie takes place overnight, in this case the transformation has been huge in size and rapid in its pace.