From Prairie Restorations, Inc. president Ron Bowen ... There are times when I equate our mission and the efforts we make at PRI with fighting a war - not to make it seem negative, unproductive or even hostile, but simply because at times it seems like that is what it is. We have a vision of what needs to be done but need to battle along to get it done. There have been, and probably always will be, many challenges along the road to environmental healthiness.

One of the new battlefronts, and it is a big one, relates to the loss of insect populations. This is happening and it is really serious. Habitat loss and insecticides appear to be the enemies. There have been hundreds of stories and a great deal of research done about the death of honey bee colonies. It should be no surprise that honey bees are just the tip of a huge iceberg. Native bees, other insects, songbirds and the whole food chain are being impacted and the consequences are very scary. One example: The over-wintering population

of monarch butterflies in 2012-13 was estimated at 60 million, an all-time low. This year it has plummeted to an estimated new low of just 3 million, a decrease of some 57 million butterflies. Is the candle in the mine running out of oxygen? This is sad and serious and ignorance is no longer an acceptable excuse. We are in a battle to save these remarkable insects and probably many other aspects of life as we know it. We need to step up to the battle lines. To help with this effort, we will be implementing a new initiative that we hope will add habitat to neighborhoods. We are calling this our "sowing it back together" campaign and we will be introducing it in earnest this coming spring. I think that I mentioned this last year in this same space but we were not organized enough to get it going. This year will be different. We think there is no choice. The goal will be to convert 25% of all the existing traditional horticultural landscapes, usually turf-based, to some kind of native landscape - prairie, savanna, woodland or wetland - over the next ten years. This is a baby step approach. Every square foot will matter, adding slowly together to make thousands of acres of food and habitat for native bees, butterflies, songbirds and people. It can and will help and it must be done. So we ask you to look at your landscape and define 25% of what you now mow as a space that will be converted to native plants. If you own property this is something you can and should do. You will be contributing to this most essential effort. There will be more information available as our "sowing" project becomes a reality. Watch our website, stop at our stores or call. We will need to work together to make this a success and we must succeed!

Ron Bowen President

http://www.prairieresto.com/president.shtml