Root River Current

SOUTHEAST MINNESOTA—There’s more to Minnesota state parks and trails than meets the eye. Look a little closer and you’ll find stories written in stone – including Southeast Minnesota’s underground caves and towering bluffs. The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (MN DNR) has been digging into the geology that shaped some of Minnesota’s most distinctive landscapes and parks, a couple of which make for great family destinations this fall.

For more than 175 years, native plant communities across North America diminished as agriculture, cities and industry expanded. Prairie remnants survived in railroad rights-of-way, ditches and on land that wasn’t farmed, but some species became rare or even lost. In the 1980s a few visionary Minnesotans began collecting, growing and selling native seed to help restore Midwest native landscapes.

PRESTON, Minn. — Residents, business owners, community leaders, and anyone with an interest in the future of southeastern Minnesota’s Historic Bluff Country National Scenic Byway are invited to share their ideas at a Community Open House on Wednesday, September 23 in Preston. The meeting is part of an effort to update the Historic Bluff Country Scenic Byway Corridor Management Plan, which will help guide the future of the Byway along Highway 16 from Dexter to La Crescent.

For more than 175 years, native plant communities across North America diminished as agriculture, cities and industry expanded. Prairie remnants survived in railroad rights-of-way, ditches and on land that wasn’t farmed, but some species became rare, or even lost. In the 1980s a few visionary Minnesotans began collecting, growing and selling native seed to help restore Midwest native landscapes.

SOUTHEAST MINN.—A few months ago, I sent the following text to my family’s group chat: “Hey, if anyone has old t-shirts you were going to throw away or donate, can you save them for me? I want them for an art project.” This isn’t the first time my family has received a cryptic text from me asking for miscellaneous garbage. Each arrives with no explanation beyond: “I want it for an art project.” The things I’m asking for, however, are far from traditional art materials.

LANESBORO—“I was always an artsy person, a pretty creative kid always doing something with my hands,” artist Laura Korynta revealed. “But I never saw art as a viable career path.” Instead of pursuing art, she became a teacher and taught ESL (English-as-a-Second Language) off and on for ten years. “Our school had a sign that read ‘If you weren’t afraid, what would you do?’ One day a puppeteer came into the classroom, and my first thought was to quit my job,” Laura said.

SOUTHEAST MINNESOTA—The Fillmore County Master Gardeners hosted a tour of local prairies this past summer. The tour included two larger “rural” prairies and six in-town sites ranging in size from less than 100 sq ft to 3 acres in size. Not surprisingly, comments overhead during that day were that people admire those who have larger prairies – but most are looking to start with smaller residential-sized pocket prairies(opens in new tab) and expand from there.

SOUTHEAST MINNESOTA — From babies to getting ready for fall and winter, the critters were busy in our region these past few months. Our photographers, Craig Johnson and Renee Bergstrom, captured a few moments in their own backyards and throughout Southeast Minnesota. A bald eagle rests in a tree near the Root River Trail. (Photo by Renee Bergstrom) A Pine Squirrel resting for a moment on a branch. (Photo by Craig Johnson) A doe and her two spotted fawns wander through a pasture.

This is the first installment of a four-part series covering Southeast Minnesota’s native plantings and the diverse flora and fauna they support. CUMMINGSVILLE—Out of deep woods, dark with early-morning shade, the trail suddenly opened into a large sun-favored prairie alive with flowers, grasses, dragonflies, butterflies, bees and birds. A feast for my eyes, a joy to my ears.

SPRING VALLEY—Hundreds of people streamed into the event room of Bluff Brothers Brewing Saturday, Aug. 8, to check out local goods such as natural lip balm, homemade jewelry, dirty sodas and baked goods during a business fair in Spring Valley. Some of the entrepreneurs had custom T-shirts, while many of the booths had professionally looking signs with their own logos, information on electronic payments, including QR codes, and neatly arranged displays of their products.