In the News

Kirsti Harms wrote: “From Sat. May 19 to midday Sun. May 20, Pat Merkord and I will be at the preserve conducting…

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    NPAT is hosting a field trip to Prairie Chapel Ranch and Simpson Prairie near Crawford, TX!  We realize that this is short notice…

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Explore history, art and nature at the century old studio of Elisabet Ney for a summer camp experience filled with learning and fun! Children will…

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Prairie Facts

Texas wild rice (Zizania texana) is the only grass listed as endangered in Texas.

Managing Small Prairie Prescribed Burns

“How hard it is to hide the sparks of nature!” (William Shakespeare Cymbeline, III.III.79)

If you are interested in conducting a prescribed burn on your property, there is an excellent booklet on the subject, entitled

HOW TO MANAGE SMALL PRAIRIE FIRES by Wayne R. Pauly, Dane County Naturalist in Madison, Wisconsin.

Send $3 per booklet to:
Dane County Park Commission
4315 Robertson Road
Madison, WI 53714

Contact your nearest Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) Regional Office or nearest office of the Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS) for assistance in planning your burn.  State law requires you to attend a certification class before conducting your own unsupervised burns.

TPWD uses this burn plan form when burning state property:  http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/publications/pwdforms/media/pwd_0822_p4000_prescribed_burn_plan.doc

Information regarding the Texas burn board, becoming a burn manager (“burn boss”), and other aspects of burning can be found at http://www.agr.state.tx.us/agr/program_render/0,1987,1848_5538_0_0,00.html?channelId=5538 .

Here’s a generic plan:  Sample Burn Plan

 

Photos by J Piercy.  From Feb 2003 burn in Williamson County.