The Tall Grass Prairie Projects of Manitoba

Preserving a Disappearing Ecosystem for Future Generations

Oct 22, 2009

Tall grass prairie, which once covered large portions of Manitoba, is still preserved in the southern part of the province, as well as a garden in the heart of Winnipeg.

If people could travel back in time, they would find that many things had changed, including the landscape. In central areas of North America like southern Manitoba and Kansas, for example, tall grass prairie was once the predominant feature, covering thousands of hectares of land. Although agriculture and other human activities have largely destroyed the tall grass ecosystem, people are now working to preserve this quickly-disappearing land.

According to the Government of Manitoba’s conservation website, less than one percent of the tall grass prairie that once existed in Manitoba now remains. The conversion of the rich soil where tall grass prairie grew to agricultural uses is one of the main reasons for the disappearance of tall grass prairie, but some has remained on lands too hilly or rocky to cultivate. At its height, tall grass prairie is one of the most vibrant ecosystems in North America, with a wide variety of plant and animal species, including lilies, crocuses, frogs, butterflies, voles, and even moose and deer, as well as many different birds such as sandhill cranes and smaller species.

With such a rich variety of life at stake, tall grass prairie is an essential part of the North American ecosystem, well worth trying to preserve. In 1987, scientists began to search the southern part of Manitoba for any remaining sites and found one in the Pembina Valley around Tolstoi and Gardenton. Two years later, the Critical Wildlife Habitat Program had managed to secure over 2000 hectares of land in the area, setting it aside as a nature preserve. Now, over 150 species of plants live there, including many endangered varieties such as the western prairie fringed orchid and the small white lady’s slipper. These flowers are thriving in the preserve, along with the many grasses and other rare plants.

Naturally-occurring areas of tall grass prairie like the one near Tolstoi are not the only remnants of the disappearing ecosystem. In Manitoba’s capital city, Winnipeg, the Nature Conservancy of Canada and several other organizations have created the Forks Prairie Garden Project at the junction of the Red and Assiniboine Rivers. In the midst of a shopping area is a small plot of land where tall grass prairie is growing, carefully tended by gardeners trying to recapture a small part of the rich ecosystem that once covered a massive area of Manitoba. The project’s website describes a half-acre garden bordered by a stone wall, with harebells, bergamot, switchgrass, and more.

Tending Tall Grass Prairie Sites

Preserving an ecosystem is more difficult than it may seem. Without the natural cycle of fires to burn off old growth and the grazing of animals to keep plants from becoming overgrown, the prairie can easily die. However, careful tending helps keep the tall grass prairie sites healthy and vibrant.

The vast expanses of tall grass prairie may be gone, but by maintaining the few remaining sites, people are helping to preserve a piece of ecological history.

The copyright of the article The Tall Grass Prairie Projects of Manitoba in Plant Ecology is owned by Susan Huebert. Permission to republish The Tall Grass Prairie Projects of Manitoba in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.