What I'm Reading

     I went to New Bo Books today and picked up a copy of Restoring the Tallgrass Prairie by Shirley Shirley (University of Iowa Press, 1994). A little old, but as far as I can tell, it has great information. It begins with something of a historical perspective on prairies and their former extent. Then there is a chapter about choosing and analyzing a site. The big take-away here is that when planting native plants, one must match the type of soil with the species that thrive in that type of soil. Makes good sense. Our sandy site, then, needs plants that like sandy soil. The second half of the book has drawings that the author has done, as well as information on the plants's size, soil and sun preferences, and so on. 

     Another interesting point concerning soil: Shirley recommends testing the pH level of the soil. It might be interesting to analyze the soil to see if there are any unexpected chemicals or compounds in it. Sounds like a good project for some chemistry students. 

     That said, they may need to wait until the ground thaws. It got very cold last night and started to snow this morning. All winter, I've been wondering if the compost and critters in it are warm enough. The top layer of wood chips is still well in place, so hopefully it is still nice and warm down there and little things are eating the old grass and cardboard and making nice soil for the spring. 

Peter