Field Notes

I did something a little different out in the Roxana meadow this year. Because it was a renovation year, rather than re-planting the same diverse mix of native and novel grasses, perennials and annuals, I opted for a gap year in sunflowers. I know that's a monocrop with a deferred bloom time, but it turned out to be the perfect refueling station for southbound Monarchs in a drought year when many plants bloomed early to conserve their energy.

I chose sunflowers because they have deep roots, which helps keep water in the fields and out of the bays. I picked a short, heavy-pollen variety that makes a good seed head to feed birds, and the thick hollow stems make great winter housing for our native bees. The flowers were early this year and the butterflies were late, which created a great opportunity for our native bees, especially the bumble bees. All the stalks will winter over to keep the soil covered and provide winter habitat. I won't mow it off until late spring, after the bees have emerged.

Ideally I'd have liked to do a prescribed burn in this field, but when I reached out to the local VFD they didn't feel they had the knowledge to help with such a thing. I feel it would be a fantastic opportunity to push back weed pressure and open up more opportunity for succession plants. Already, in my work, I've seen the emergence of blue toadflax in my field and the surrounding ground, where once there was only henbit.