The Prairie State

The Prairie State. . ,

"I was in the midst of a prairie! A world of grass and flowers stretched around me, rising and falling in gentle undulations... What a new and wondrous world of beauty! What a magnificent sight!... How shall I convey to you the idea of a prairie?"

, When Eliza Steele wrote these words in 1840, Illinois had approximately 22,000,000 acres of prairie. Today, fewer than 2,500 acres of high quality prairie remain., Grasses and wildflowers dominate prairies. Trees are absent or scarce. Topography and soil differentiate the prairie types in Illinois, black soil, hill, shrub, dolomite, sand, and gravel. Most Illinois prairies are "tallgrass" prairies in which the types of plants vary with the amount of available moisture., The Illinois Department of Natural Resources, with the help of other groups around the state, is working to preserve, maintain, and restore Illinois' prairie environments. Prairie management includes periodic burning to keep trees from taking over. Prairie plants are adapted to grow back after a fire., Common Prairie Plants, Prairie Blazing Star , Liatris pycnostachya , This colorful plant flowers in August and September. It is widely distributed in Illinois prairies., Big Bluestem , Andropogon gerardii , Named for its purplish-blue stem and its height (to 8 feet), it is the tallest and most widely distributed prairie grass in Illinois., Black-Eyed Susan , Rudbeckia hirta , Common on hill prairies, it blooms from mid-spring through fall. The flowers yield a yellow dye., Pale Purple Coneflower , Echinacea pallida , Often found on hill prairie sites, its flowers begin to appear in June and bloom through July. Its roots were used in a wide range of herbal medicines., Eastern Prickly Pear , Opuntia humifusa , This cactus is common in sandy prairie soils. Its fruit and pads are favorite foods of the eastern box turtle., Rattlesnake Master , Eryngium yuccifolium , This adaptable plant occurs in most prairies. Native Americans used it in medicine to induce vomiting and as an antidote for snake bites., Exhibit produced by the Illinois State Museum.