Burials On The Prairie: Dickson Mounds
April 9, 2022 2:05 am Leave your thoughtsMany years ago, I think it was 1972, I visited a unique place in central Illinois called Dickson Mounds. The story... Read More →
Author Archives for Lon Drake
About Lon Drake
This old guy's favorite large-scale conservation projects include integrating soils, water, plants, and animals, especially native species. I still bike through my South Sycamore stormwater management system from 2001.
Our Rare Butterfly Plantation, Part II: The Pipevine Swallowtail
November 25, 2021 7:06 pm Leave your thoughtsThe pipevine swallowtail is another quite rare butterfly in Iowa. Its caterpillars only eat the leaves of some of the... Read More →
Update on our Rare Butterfly Plantation, Part I: The Zebra Swallowtail
November 18, 2021 6:55 pm Leave your thoughtsYou perhaps already know that back in 2010, I began planting about four acres of uncommon native shrubs, vines and... Read More →
The Osage Orange
November 11, 2021 6:42 pm Leave your thoughtsIn early autumn, the Osage orange trees in our area become quite conspicuous, with their large and pale green fruits... Read More →
The English Oak
October 28, 2021 5:19 pm Leave your thoughtsThe English oak is native to Europe and formerly played an especially important role in the economy and livelihoods of... Read More →
Future-Proofing Conservation
October 21, 2021 9:38 pm Leave your thoughtsIn engineering circles, the concept of safety factors has been evolving for a couple millennia. A rock pyramid, whether in... Read More →
Tree of Disappointment: Colorado Blue Spruce
October 14, 2021 3:29 pm Leave your thoughtsIn pots or balled and burlapped in an Iowa nursery, Colorado blue spruce is an exquisite color. Depending upon the... Read More →
Walter Rothschild’s Museum Legacy
June 25, 2021 5:22 pm Leave your thoughtsNo sketch about museums and species would be complete without including Walter Rothschild. Born into the extremely wealthy banking family... Read More →
Cabinets of Curiosities Become Collections
June 18, 2021 5:06 pm Leave your thoughtsThe cabinets of curiosities of the 1600s and 1700s, scattered across Europe, raised some good questions about the life and... Read More →
An Ocean Disaster and Recovery
June 11, 2021 6:36 pm Leave your thoughtsOnce upon a time, some 80 million years ago, the center of the continent we now call North America was... Read More →
