Roots are the Foundation to Resilience

by Susan Spears

With Thanksgiving coming up and the holiday season not far behind, this is the time of year when I find myself really thinking about roots. But roots aren’t just important to people, prairie plantings also rely heavily on putting down roots and developing a root system that holds significantly more biomass than the biomass above ground.

Why is this important?

Because native prairies experience natural fire events as well as extremes in moisture and temperature. Strong root systems give the native prairie the resilience to withstand this hostile environment and also give the native prairie plants an edge over plants that – in a less hostile environment – would take over the system.

I’m learning first hand how these prairie plants grow and flourish as I have a small area between my backyard and the alley that was originally planted as prairie. When we first moved in a couple years ago, this planting was completely overgrown with weeds and woody plants and I decided to start the prairie over. As I was preparing the soil for planting, I had two experts in native planting come by and give recommendations on how to encourage the planting – and both stressed the importance of roots. It’s now been a few years since that first replanting, and this summer my prairie was vibrant and hearty.

What I continue to see is that the key to resilience comes back to roots. Develop your own root system to encourage resilience in your own life – and support prairie efforts that encourage environmental resilience! Bur Oak Land Trust’s root system through the community continues to grow and support the health of our community and we are especially grateful this Thanksgiving for the ability to partner with our supporters as we grow.