Champoeg Prairie Restoration Annual Report

The Institute for Applied Ecology (IAE) has been involved in restoration of Champoeg Prairie, a 45-acre former agricultural field at Champoeg State Heritage Area, since 2013. In 2014, IAE developed and began implementation of the Champoeg Prairie Restoration Plan (IAE 2014) for Oregon Parks and Recreation Department (OPRD). The goal of restoration at Champoeg Prairie is to create upland and wet prairie habitats with diverse plant communities that attract pollinators, birds and other wildlife. Restoration objectives include controlling high priority invasive species, improving forb diversity, increasing abundance of culturally significant species, and implementing periodic prescribed burns. This report summarizes prairie conditions and restoration actions in 2019. Weed management included mowing, hand weeding, and broadcast and spot spray herbicide applications. Some of the treated or disturbed areas of the prairie were planted with native trees, shrub, and forbs. In particular, a 2.8-acre area in the central part of the prairie that has been difficult to establish natives from seed was planted with shrubs and trees in winter 2019. Native prairie species, including culturally important food plants, were planted in a portion of Champoeg Prairie for a second consecutive year. It is hoped that this portion of Champoeg Prairie will be a place for tribal members to harvest traditional food and fiber plants in the future. The planting was completed through the combined efforts of IAE, OPRD, and Confederated Tribes of the Grand Ronde (CTGR) Natural Resources Department employees, students and teachers from Newberg High School, and other dedicated volunteers.