Introduction to Poirot Prairie Blog
NOTE: This Blog was suggested for keeping members of the Poirot, Krautmann, Thoma, and Griesemer Clans updated on the status of the Poirot Prairie on Poirot Farms near Golden City, MO. This is a test of this method of communication and is administered by Niece and Cousin Mary. I (Mary) will try to maintain this blog if enough people are interested! I have invited others to be authors and will invite more readers as soon as I am confident I used good grammar, committed minimal misspellings, and employed good sentence structure in my first post!!
Brief, Very Brief Historical Background (1923-1980 or so)
In 1923, Eugene Marcel Poirot and Mary Frances Brady (Gene and May) married in Cullom IL, then settled on a farm near Golden City, MO; a farm originally purchased by Eugene's father, Severin Poirot I. Before Gene and May settled there, previous farming practices left the soil depleted. Yet, the farmers who had abandoned this land "left" about 200 acres of virgin prairie undisturbed. For a farm that had many acres of eroded and nutrient-depleted soil (that could neither grow crops or keep cattle alive), the prairie represented to Gene and May the hope that the cropland and pastures could also be as lush and healthy as the nearby prairie.
Much has been written about Gene rehabilitating the rest of the farm, using lessons he learned, from observing and studying the prairie and its inhabitants ("Our Margin of Life" is the book Gene wrote about his lessons from observing the prairie). Transformation of the farm, from depleted to healthy, supported both grain production and raising livestock. For both May and Gene, the prairie was respected as a natural resource and Missouri treasure to be preserved, a wildlife habitat to be maintained, while also serving as a means to produce high quality food for cattle (thus generating income for the farm). The current stewards of the farm, the children, grandchildren and great grandchildren of May and Eugene (representing 4 generations of Gene's and May's family), share that respect.
More Recent Status of the Poirot Prairie (1980 or so-2015).
As is the case for remnant, relic prairies in the midwest, the Poirot Prairie is surrounded by grain farms, pastures, and roads. It has experienced invasion with exotic species, especially Sericea lespedeza and fescue. Both these plants were introduced, with good intentions, especially by the Missouri Dept. of Conservation (MDC) - primarily to prevent erosion alongside roadsides and right of ways; and by The Army Corps of Engineers -to prevent erosion along flood control structures, especially dams and man-made lakes. Fescue is also a popular cool season lawn grass, and is used as forage for livestock. Lespedeza, a legume, has also been used as a cover crop. Unfortunately, these plants and others compete with and can overgrow native prairie plants.
Severin Poirot III (son of Eugene and May; known to most readers of this blog as Dad or Uncle Severin) continued maintaining the prairie by annual harvesting of hay, allowing cattle to graze (both recognized as good management practices for prairies), and applying fertilizer as needed to promote prairie plant growth. However, fescue and lespedeza invasion persisted and even spread. We all know routine burning is recommended as a critical part of prairie maintenance. Careful timing of burns can control invasive plant spread and stimulate dormant prairie plant seeds to germinate. However, Severin resisted periodic burns for a couple reasons. First, persistent winter and spring winds in that area of Missouri makes accidental burning of nearby-neighbors' property a real concern. Second, Severin really loved box turtles (a story for a future blog post) - previous burns had resulted in killing many of these threatened animals. The injury and loss of so many box turtles after one planned burn soured Severin on prairie burning for the rest of his life.
Most Recent Situation and Maintenance Program for Poirot Prairie (2015-present)
In 2015, management of Poirot Farms was assumed by Ben Poirot, Severin's grandson. Along with his wife Courtney and two daughters, he now lives on the farm. In 2016, Ben teamed-up with prairie specialists from the MDC (see ref 1 below). They set goals of aggressively beating back the fescue and lespedeza in the prairie, and developing a maintenance plan that suppresses these invasive species and promotes diversity of prairie plant species. The plan includes a combination of careful application of specialized herbicides, periodic burnings (in winter so as NOT harm box turtles), rotational harvesting of prairie hay, and periodic cattle grazing. Regular walk-through prairie surveys will be used to determine the success of the current efforts (Phase I), and to plan for Phase 2 (if needed): introduction of missing plants typical of tall grass prairies in SW Missouri.
Of course restoration and preservation with the assistance of MDC specialists costs money. Because some edges of the prairies have sedges and brush (quail habitat), funds to support this plan have been generously provided by the MDC through their quail habitat restoration program (See ref 2). Funds will also be available for continued remediation work this year.
Why the Poirot Prairie Blog?
Extended family members have asked thoughtful questions, mostly by email, regarding our prairie maintenance efforts. Emails are great for keeping interested family members up to date, but not so great for keeping questions and answers organized, or sharing knowledge between more than two people. It is my hope this blog may be a more efficient means to answer the same questions posed by several members. Perhaps the blog can keep updates/information more organized than my gmail inbox (not a high bar to achieve). Besides, many family members (especially the Krautmann clan) have knowledge to contribute that will help us all appreciate the wonderful, unique inheritance left to us by our parents and grandparents.
So, the primary purpose of this blog is to share information about the Poirot Prairie rehabilitation and maintenance plan in one communal space. Periodically we (hoping this will be a group effort) will provide updates, photos, answer questions, and post articles of interest.
If this blog doesn't work, well, I guess it will die. Which is why this is a test post (as well as a brief introduction).
So, let me know what you think about a blog devoted to the Poirot Prairie!
What would you like to see as a subsequent topic for the next post? Here are some possible choices ((I may be outsourcing these, especially the OTHER category.... :-)
A. Prairie plants observed during a herbarium collection project in 1971
B. Prairie plants identified during a walk through in 2017
C. More details about the herbicide treatment in 2016
D. Life history of Indian paintbrush - and why it is so !$)&*#! hard to cultivate (it's all about the soil microbiome, baby)
E. Other nearby prairies and general info about SW Mo prairies - how do these compare and differ from the Poirot Prairie?
F. Other
Happy Reading!!
Mary
1. https://mdc.mo.gov/conmag/2017-07/show-me-prairie-and-grassland-conservation (for a nice article about MDC's prairie restoration efforts:)
2. https://bringbackbobwhites.org/download/missouri-strategic-guidance-for-northern-bobwhite-recovery-2015-2025/. Download the pdf. Objective 1.2. Because edges of Poirot prairie are near brushy edges, controlling fescue may restore potential bobwhite quail habitat.
Brief, Very Brief Historical Background (1923-1980 or so)
In 1923, Eugene Marcel Poirot and Mary Frances Brady (Gene and May) married in Cullom IL, then settled on a farm near Golden City, MO; a farm originally purchased by Eugene's father, Severin Poirot I. Before Gene and May settled there, previous farming practices left the soil depleted. Yet, the farmers who had abandoned this land "left" about 200 acres of virgin prairie undisturbed. For a farm that had many acres of eroded and nutrient-depleted soil (that could neither grow crops or keep cattle alive), the prairie represented to Gene and May the hope that the cropland and pastures could also be as lush and healthy as the nearby prairie.
Much has been written about Gene rehabilitating the rest of the farm, using lessons he learned, from observing and studying the prairie and its inhabitants ("Our Margin of Life" is the book Gene wrote about his lessons from observing the prairie). Transformation of the farm, from depleted to healthy, supported both grain production and raising livestock. For both May and Gene, the prairie was respected as a natural resource and Missouri treasure to be preserved, a wildlife habitat to be maintained, while also serving as a means to produce high quality food for cattle (thus generating income for the farm). The current stewards of the farm, the children, grandchildren and great grandchildren of May and Eugene (representing 4 generations of Gene's and May's family), share that respect.
More Recent Status of the Poirot Prairie (1980 or so-2015).
As is the case for remnant, relic prairies in the midwest, the Poirot Prairie is surrounded by grain farms, pastures, and roads. It has experienced invasion with exotic species, especially Sericea lespedeza and fescue. Both these plants were introduced, with good intentions, especially by the Missouri Dept. of Conservation (MDC) - primarily to prevent erosion alongside roadsides and right of ways; and by The Army Corps of Engineers -to prevent erosion along flood control structures, especially dams and man-made lakes. Fescue is also a popular cool season lawn grass, and is used as forage for livestock. Lespedeza, a legume, has also been used as a cover crop. Unfortunately, these plants and others compete with and can overgrow native prairie plants.
Severin Poirot III (son of Eugene and May; known to most readers of this blog as Dad or Uncle Severin) continued maintaining the prairie by annual harvesting of hay, allowing cattle to graze (both recognized as good management practices for prairies), and applying fertilizer as needed to promote prairie plant growth. However, fescue and lespedeza invasion persisted and even spread. We all know routine burning is recommended as a critical part of prairie maintenance. Careful timing of burns can control invasive plant spread and stimulate dormant prairie plant seeds to germinate. However, Severin resisted periodic burns for a couple reasons. First, persistent winter and spring winds in that area of Missouri makes accidental burning of nearby-neighbors' property a real concern. Second, Severin really loved box turtles (a story for a future blog post) - previous burns had resulted in killing many of these threatened animals. The injury and loss of so many box turtles after one planned burn soured Severin on prairie burning for the rest of his life.
Most Recent Situation and Maintenance Program for Poirot Prairie (2015-present)
In 2015, management of Poirot Farms was assumed by Ben Poirot, Severin's grandson. Along with his wife Courtney and two daughters, he now lives on the farm. In 2016, Ben teamed-up with prairie specialists from the MDC (see ref 1 below). They set goals of aggressively beating back the fescue and lespedeza in the prairie, and developing a maintenance plan that suppresses these invasive species and promotes diversity of prairie plant species. The plan includes a combination of careful application of specialized herbicides, periodic burnings (in winter so as NOT harm box turtles), rotational harvesting of prairie hay, and periodic cattle grazing. Regular walk-through prairie surveys will be used to determine the success of the current efforts (Phase I), and to plan for Phase 2 (if needed): introduction of missing plants typical of tall grass prairies in SW Missouri.
Of course restoration and preservation with the assistance of MDC specialists costs money. Because some edges of the prairies have sedges and brush (quail habitat), funds to support this plan have been generously provided by the MDC through their quail habitat restoration program (See ref 2). Funds will also be available for continued remediation work this year.
Why the Poirot Prairie Blog?
Extended family members have asked thoughtful questions, mostly by email, regarding our prairie maintenance efforts. Emails are great for keeping interested family members up to date, but not so great for keeping questions and answers organized, or sharing knowledge between more than two people. It is my hope this blog may be a more efficient means to answer the same questions posed by several members. Perhaps the blog can keep updates/information more organized than my gmail inbox (not a high bar to achieve). Besides, many family members (especially the Krautmann clan) have knowledge to contribute that will help us all appreciate the wonderful, unique inheritance left to us by our parents and grandparents.
So, the primary purpose of this blog is to share information about the Poirot Prairie rehabilitation and maintenance plan in one communal space. Periodically we (hoping this will be a group effort) will provide updates, photos, answer questions, and post articles of interest.
If this blog doesn't work, well, I guess it will die. Which is why this is a test post (as well as a brief introduction).
So, let me know what you think about a blog devoted to the Poirot Prairie!
What would you like to see as a subsequent topic for the next post? Here are some possible choices ((I may be outsourcing these, especially the OTHER category.... :-)
A. Prairie plants observed during a herbarium collection project in 1971
B. Prairie plants identified during a walk through in 2017
C. More details about the herbicide treatment in 2016
D. Life history of Indian paintbrush - and why it is so !$)&*#! hard to cultivate (it's all about the soil microbiome, baby)
E. Other nearby prairies and general info about SW Mo prairies - how do these compare and differ from the Poirot Prairie?
F. Other
Happy Reading!!
Mary
1. https://mdc.mo.gov/conmag/2017-07/show-me-prairie-and-grassland-conservation (for a nice article about MDC's prairie restoration efforts:)
2. https://bringbackbobwhites.org/download/missouri-strategic-guidance-for-northern-bobwhite-recovery-2015-2025/. Download the pdf. Objective 1.2. Because edges of Poirot prairie are near brushy edges, controlling fescue may restore potential bobwhite quail habitat.
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