Arboretum’s burn gives its prairie the natural look

The Wildflowers Meadows, the largest prairie in The Arboretum State Botanical Garden of Kentucky and part of their Walk Across Kentucky, went up in smoke today as staff and volunteers conducted a prescribed burn. Arboretum staff member Michael Patton said the annual burn is designed to mimic the natural burn cycles of native prairies across the United States. The purpose was to burn the thatch to allow perennials to come up as well as to recycle some of the nutrients and put nitrogen back into the soil, according to Patton. Arboretum staff and volunteers with the Thursday Morning Native Plants group took part in the burn. The walking trail around the Arboretum remained open during the burn.

This story was originally published February 23, 2017 at 4:46 PM with the headline "Arboretum’s burn gives its prairie the natural look."