Since 2022, Mississippi Valley Conservancy has been deeply grateful to partner with Friends of the Blufflands on the ongoing restoration of Juniper Partners Prairie, a high-quality remnant bluff prairie overlooking south La Crosse. This site has long been recognized for its ecological significance, and the renewed stewardship taking place today reflects the power of collaboration in caring for our region’s most special landscapes.
This work builds on earlier conservation efforts by the Conservancy and others, including a prescribed burn conducted in 2009, and has been made possible through the valued support of grants from La Crosse County, the La Crosse Park and Recreation Department, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, whose contributions included both funding and hands-on management assistance.
(Views of the restoration work in progress at Juniper Partners Prairie. Photo above by Cody Micheel, and below by Jon Rigdin.)
Together, these partners have helped give Juniper Partners Prairie a much-needed facelift. Much of the restoration work completed since 2022 has been carried out by contractors hired by Friends of the Blufflands, including Micheel Forestry and Morchella, with additional support from dedicated volunteers who generously contributed their time and energy.
Restoration activities have focused on clearing brush and encroaching trees from the central prairie while thoughtfully opening adjacent woodland areas to the south along the bluff and to the west below the existing prairie. These newly restored areas expand the prairie’s footprint and create space for it to grow and thrive. Already seeded with locally collected prairie seed from the site itself, this expansion sets the stage for a healthier, more resilient ecosystem.
Friends of the Blufflands will continue to host volunteer workdays at this site in the coming years and anticipate conducting prescribed burns in the fall or winter of 2026 and 2027. We are thankful for their leadership and commitment and encourage anyone interested in helping care for this remarkable prairie—or other remnant prairies in the La Crosse area—to get involved. As Friends like to say, it’s not volunteer work—it’s volunteer fun.