Native Grassland Demonstration at Kirkwood Preserve

Kirkwood Preserve is the site of a Native Grassland Demonstration Area which showcases different native grasses in a meadow setting. Keep checking this page as the seasons and years progress to watch the grassland develop. Seeded in November 2008, It is expected that it will take two to three years for the grasslands to fully develop.

Native grasslands, with their ecologically unique plant and animal communities, were an important component of the landscape in Pennsylvania’s Piedmont range prior to pre-Columbian settlement.  Following European settlement, conversion of these grasslands for agricultural use, including hayfields and pastures, was compatible with the needs of many of the wildlife species dependent on grasslands.  However, more intensive agriculture practices along with an overall decrease in grassland habitat due to urbanization and unchecked succession of these grasslands into mixed-deciduous forests have resulted in drastic declines in eastern grassland bird populations.  Even hayfields that can still provide marginal habitat are regularly mowed earlier in the season than they were 50 years ago and are mowed several times per season, often before the first broods of birds can fledge. (Rodenhouse et al. 1995, Vickery 1996)

As part of our stewardship initiatives, the Willistown Conservation Trust recognizes the importance of native grasslands and their important role as habitat for many wildlife species, including native and migratory birds, mammals, reptiles, amphibians, insects, and invertebrates.  Although it is not possible to completely replicate the native grasslands that once existed in southeastern Pennsylvania, the Trust has identified fundamental strategies for restoring sites to resemble native grassland plant communities.  To demonstrate these strategies, we have selected Kirkwood Preserve as the site of a native grassland demonstration area. 

Our hope is that visitors to the preserve will begin to understand the composition and dynamics of this special landscape and that nearby landowners will be inspired to convert their existing pastures to a community of native warm season grasses.  Since Kirkwood Preserve was previously used as a cattle pasture primarily comprised of cool season grasses for hay, it provides a large, contiguous expanse of open space that can be managed as habitat for native grass species.

In a quarter-acre portion of Kirkwood Preserve, we have take the initial steps toward creating the native warm season grassland demonstration area by planting five 10’ x 100’ strips of native grasses that thrive in southeastern Pennsylvania.  Each row consists of a single species, and the juxtaposition of the rows will allow visitors to visually and tangibly compare the five species selected for the demonstration area.  The large oval-shaped area located just beyond the beginning of the primary path into the preserve has been planted with a composite mix of all five grass species which will provide an opportunity to observe how these grasses actually appear and co-exist.  The demonstration area will ultimately emulate the structure, function, diversity and dynamics of the existing grasslands found in other locations in the northeastern United States.  This project will intentionally alter the site by naturally controlling invasive (and undesired) plants while providing a natural seed source for the broader colonization of these species throughout the preserve.

We are thankful to several key partners for providing our organization with valuable hands-on experience and grassland restoration knowledge:  Natural Lands Trust, Brian O’Neill from Weeds, Inc., and Greg Nichols of Greeneaver Landscapes.  Thank you!

November 2008 - A large swath along Grubbs Mill road has been seeded with a blend of several native warm season grasses to demonstrate to landowners the beauty of a native meadow, and the process by which such a meadow can be created.

November 2008 - Three separate swaths have been seeded, each with a different grass variety to showcase and contrast the different plants.

November 2008 - A tractor equipped with a seed drill was used to seed the planting areas.

November 2008 - another view of the three swaths that are planted with different varieties of grasses.

November 2008 - Close up view of the furrow and seeds inserted by the seed drill.