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The Prairie The Bennett-Johnson Prairie, established in 1965, was established to present plants which existed on the tall grass prairies of central Minnesota before the days of settlement. Indian grass and big and little bluestem are the dominant grasses of the prairie, which is sprinkled with blooms from spring to late fall. A south-facing slope contains many plants including goldenrod, heliopsis, asters and golden Alexander. A marshy section contains red-osier dogwood, cattails and phragmites, a tall stately grass. Pasque flowers, prairie smoke and downy gentian bloom in a mesic area. To accomplish what natural prairie fires did years ago, the prairie is periodically control-burned in the spring to prevent the growth of large trees, shrubs and unwanted weeds. In the prairie, one can sense the majesty of the land's natural beauty. Spring Peeper Meadow Spring Peeper Meadow is a model wetland restoration project. It is home to more than a dozen species of sedges and many native wetland grasses and wildflowers. The meadow is accessible from the main building via walking paths or visitors may use a parking lot adjacent to the meadow on County Road 41 and 82nd Street. More... The Bog Area Green Heron Pond is one of the southern most glacial ‘potholes' - an area where a large chunk of glacial ice remained (probably under the ground surface for many years) before it finally melted. A portion of the pond contains a small bog. The unusual aspect of this particular bog (a bog is a wetland type that accumulates acidic peat, a deposit of dead plant material) is that it still harbors living (peat) moss. Sphagnum needs a low pH to grow and the pH of soils on the Arboretum grounds is 7.5-8.0 (sphagnum needs 5.0 or under). How it has survived for thousands of years is one of life's perplexing questions! Take a self-guided walk around Green Heron Pond with the 1-Hour Tour brochure.
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