Ecological Restoration

The Landscape we see around us today in the driftless region looks very different from the one that greeted the first European setters to arrive in Wisconsin. They were greeted by a landscape largely dominated by a diverse array of fire adapted plant communities. The prairie dominated bluffs of the driftless region were described as resembling giant haystacks. While the open understories of the oak savannahs and oak hickory dominated woodlands of the driftless were described as having “park like” conditions. These unique fire adapted plant communities were maintained by the frequent and widespread use of fire by native Americans. This pre-European settlement burning maintained open, high light environments which favored sun loving plants. Unfortunately, these sun loving plant’s ability to create dark, rich and productive soil has led to their near global extinction. Most of these plant communities have been lost to the plow and converted into highly productive agricultural land that we use to feed the nation. The small, isolated remnants that survived conversion have been decimated by the ongoing practice of 20th century fire suppression tactics and the introduction of aggressive non-native species. The areas not pastured quickly underwent forest succession and transitioned into closed canopy forests. This drastic shift in fire regimes has resulted in numerous unforeseen ecological consequences. It caused a cascade of compositional and structural changes to plant communities across the entire driftless region. Without the rejuvenating effects of frequent fire, environmental conditions in the driftless region have shifted incrementally over the last century to favor fire-sensitive, shade-tolerant competitors. Larger plant species such as trees and shrubs gained a distinct advantage over grasses and forbs. And the prolific, fast growing, fire sensitive trees began rapidly expanding from their moist, fire sheltered North and East facing slopes. These invaders quickly established themselves on South and Western facing slopes outcompeting and smothering the sun loving oak dominated ecosystems and hill prairies. The escalation of these mesic microenvironmental conditions creates a vicious feedback loop which is amplified by time. Their continued spread brings the ever-diminishing prospects for fire and the heliophytic species that fuel them. By altering environmental conditions, shade tolerant species deter fire through dense shading that creates moist cool microclimates and by the production of fuels that are not conducive to carrying fire. Not only have these changes devastated sun loving plant communities. They have also created the perfect habitats for ticks to thrive. It’s no coincidence that the drastic increase in tick populations and the number of people infected with tick born diseases in Wisconsin coincided with the drastic expansion of these mesic environmental conditions. Land-use changes and fire suppression have been so complete that tall grass prairies and oak savannas are now some of the rarest ecosystems in the world. Of the 5.5 million acres of oak savanna that covered southern Wisconsin before European settlement, less than 0.01% remains intact. Tallgrass prairies fared slightly better with 0.1% of the original 2.1 million acres remaining intact. Open Oaks Land Services LLC helps landowners identify these productive, endangered, and uniquely midwestern ecosystems on their property. We develop a plan based on the best available practices to break the feedback loop of mesic conversion and restore the land to its natural state. These ecosystems are incredibly resilient. They are capable of healing even after decades of neglect if the resources are invested into them. Despite this resiliency after a century of neglect restorative opportunities are rapidly waning. Fire adapted plant communities continue to be progressively lost to shading and competition. And old growth seed bearing oak and hickory trees are succumbing to old age while the existing seed bank slowly loses viability. The time to act is now! Reach out to us for a consultation today by calling 608-400-2432 or emailing us at openoakslandservices@gmail.com. We’ll help you identify, restore, and care for these unique and globally rare ecosystems. We will teach you how restore your property so you can take pride in your slice of Wisconsin’s driftless region.