Author Archives: Grassland Restoration Network blog

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About Grassland Restoration Network blog

Bill Kleiman, Julianne Mason, and Mike Saxton publish this blog. Bill's daytime job is director of Nachusa Grasslands with The Nature Conservancy. Julianne works for the Forest Preserve District of Will County. Mike Saxton works for the Friends of Nachusa Grasslands. We are looking for guest authors on various topics of grassland habitat restoration. Contact us with your ideas.

Make repeat visits to reduce weed occurrences

Posted on July 23, 2026 by Grassland Restoration Network blog

By Bill Kleiman How many visits does it take to get an invasive weed occurrence to zero? For years I have stated this answer of how many visits do we need to make to a weed occurrence as thus: Visit … Continue reading →

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Nachusa Grasslands Invasive Plant Monitoring Technician

Posted on July 9, 2026 by Grassland Restoration Network blog

By Clara Barton Hello, my name is Clara Barton, I am the new Invasive Plant Monitoring Technician for Nachusa Grasslands. I recently received my master’s degree in ecology with a dissertation focused on studying the spatial biodiversity of grasslands. I … Continue reading →

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Pest shields for ticks, chiggers and such

Posted on July 6, 2026 by Grassland Restoration Network blog

By Bill Kleiman The black flies of the Simuliidea emerged this week and congregate in the woods, especially areas with low wind. They will be a nuisance for a few weeks. And ticks are occasional. Mosquitos will be here soon. … Continue reading →

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Carpet Roller Wick to attempt to control brush

Posted on June 25, 2026 by Grassland Restoration Network blog

By Bill Kleiman, Nachusa Grasslands Director w The Nature Conservancy Above, 17 days after a carpet roller herbicide wick drove over cottonwood saplings. This is a Grassworks 22 foot wide carpet wick. A carpet on a long spool is soaked … Continue reading →

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Shrub encroachment and fire

Posted on June 18, 2026 by Grassland Restoration Network blog

By Bill Kleiman We recently heard from Emily Wedel who worked on her doctorate at Konza Biological Station, looking at shrub encroachment in seldom and frequently burned units. Konza has been studying and pondering the shrubs which have established on … Continue reading →

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A list of weeds and strategies

Posted on June 11, 2026 by Grassland Restoration Network blog

By Bill Kleiman This is a list of most of the weeds we manage against at Nachusa Grasslands. I give brief descriptions of our management strategies. This blogsite has a search bar where you can quickly find other posts with … Continue reading →

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Annual Workshop Success – Shaw Nature Reserve

Posted on June 4, 2026 by Grassland Restoration Network blog

Mike Saxton – Executive Director – Friends of Nachusa Grasslands Since its inception in 2003, the Grassland Restoration Network has focused on sharing lessons learned, connecting practitioners from across the region, and supporting a community of doers who believe in … Continue reading →

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Testing shows confounding results. Late spring applications of clethodim on Reed Canary Grass.

Posted on May 21, 2026 by Grassland Restoration Network blog

By Bill Kleiman This is a continuing update on an original post. At the end I post several links to related articles on controlling reed canary. It is good to do simple monitoring or testing to see if a weed … Continue reading →

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Nachusa Grasslands Prescribed Fire Summary Report April 2026

Posted on April 30, 2026 by Grassland Restoration Network blog

By Bill Kleiman April 9 IL DNR Franklin Creek Natural Area, 21-acres. These very modest flames do some good if they can just keep going. March 27: Yellow House Prairie burn 140– acres The bottom line: March 30: Kaleb Baker … Continue reading →

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Wild parsnip (Pastinaca sativa) control

Posted on April 16, 2026 by Grassland Restoration Network blog

By Don Osmond, volunteer steward Wild parsnip is a monocarpic perennial, usually taking 2-3 years to flower.  I chose a 4 acre area in southwestern Wisconsin to evaluate my control efforts over time.  Habitats ranged from dry degraded prairie to … Continue reading →

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