Warren County Conservation is hosting their annual Evening Prairie Burn in April, providing an educational opportunity for residents to learn more about the role of fire in the ecosystem. Naturalist Kelsey Longnecker tells KNIA News that for thousands of years, wildfires kept trees out of Iowa’s tall grass prairies, releasing nutrients that fed a lush, new growth of grasses and flowers.

Iowa’s native tall grass prairies and plant communities developed under fiery conditions and are part of a fire-dependent landscape. By reintroducing fire in a safe, planned manner, we recreate a process that maintains Iowa’s fertile soils in grasses and wildflowers.

The Evening Prairie Burn will be April 13th from 7:30 to 8:30pm. This program is dependent on weather conditions.