Home

Audubon Advocacy of prairie appreciation and conservation extends back nearly 30 years, and includes development of and spearheading the proposal that led to creation of the 10,984-acre Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve in 1996 as a unit of the National Park Service system of preserves.

Kansas Roadsides Wildflowers of the Week June 14, 2010 - Butterfly Milkweed June 21, 2010 - Sullivant's Milkweed June 21, 2010 - Yellow Sweetclover June 28, 2010 - Lemon Mint June 28, 2010 - Black Eyed Susan July 5, 2010 - Grayhead Prairie Coneflower & Wild Bergamont July 12, 2010 - Hoary Vervain July 19, 2010 - Bush Morning-glory July 26, 2010 - Rosinweed August 2, 2010 - Compass Plant August 9, 2010 - Prairie Blazing Star

Surprisingly, the state's largest landowner and manager of "grasslands" in Kansas is the Department of Transportation (KDOT). With most of our state's residents and virtually all visitors exposed to the 10,000-mile network of state highways, where better to promote appreciation for prairie plant communities than on the 146,000 acres of vegetated roadsides. Audubon advocacy led to establishment of the Aesthetics Task Force by KDOT Secretary Deb Miller. AOK, The Kansas Native Plant Society and representatives of other entities participated in a series of meetings devoted to improvement of this resource.

Future management will include a shift to all-native grasses and wildflowers in new rural plantings, reduced mowing to within 15 feet of the road shoulder except for "mow out" to the boundary fences only once every three or four years. Delayed mowing to late fall will allow prairie wildflowers and grasses to flower and produce seed, further enhancing diversity and abundance. Broad rights-of-way areas provide habitat for butterflies, beneficial pollinating insects, and numerous birds at various times of the year. Standing vegetation holds snow and reduces drifting on roadways, serves as filter strips that help purify water runoff and prvents litter from washing into streams.

Now, we are asking the Kansas Turnpike Authority to implement similar roadside management protocols to showplace our prairie heritage along that roadway. KTA has nearly as much acreage as the Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve, and it is viewed by tens of thousands every day. Managing habitat for its potential, wherever it exists, is vital if we are to retain biodiversity and wildlife resources - from Bobwhite Quail to Fritillary Butterflies.

Past AOK Articles	Roadside Management in the News
A State Budget Cut that Would Benefit Ecological Resources in Kansas - March 2010 Wildflowers Make Kansas Roadsides Spectacular in Mid-September - Sept 2008 Opportunities To Celebrate Prairie Wildflowers & Grasses Along Kansas Roadsides Largely Lost In Kansas- Late 2007	The Emporia Gazette - Beauty By the Mile - September 9, 2010 Wichita Eagle - Kansas Roadsides Getting Back to Nature - Dec. 27, 2009

Other Links of Interest

Executive Summary to the Final Report of the Aesthetics Task Force

Executive Report Findings of the Roadside Aesthetics Task Force

We invite you to participate and contribute to our conservation efforts and keep Audubon of Kansas moving forward. Your tax-deductible contributions and volunteer efforts sustain our 501(c)(3) non-profit organization and are essential to all aspects of our work—from advocacy, legislative liaison, education, and support of wildlife-friendly landowners, to our office staff, publications and website. We need your commitment!