About this prairie

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Dieken is approximately 15 acres of Upland Prairie just southwest of Unadilla with a nice view out over the Little Nemaha River. It has Junegrass and Porcupine grass early in the season, as well as Prairie Violets, then Prairie dropseed, Little and Big Bluestem and Indian grass later in the Summer. With good stands of New Jersey Tea, Leadplant, phlox, butterfly milkweed, compass plants, pale purple coneflower, black eyed Susan, white and purple prairie clover and two types of Liatris it is a good site for wildflowers. Birds include bluebirds, meadow larks, dickcissels and bobolinks. There are Bluebird boxes and even a Kestrel box on the site. The Education Committee uses this site for Fourth Grade Field Days. Regal fritillaries have been seen here.

 

Good wildflower displays are seen throughout the year. Visit in late May to Mid June for prairie phlox and narrow flowered scurf pea. Mid June to early July is best for New Jersey tea, Black-eyed Susan, and Leadplant. Rough gayfeather is outstanding in August. Downy gentian are seen in good numbers in September and October.

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Restoration/Management Work:

Our main concern is invasion from bromegrass and reed canary grass in the wet draw.  Shrubs like dogwood and Plums and volunteer trees encroach from the field borders, but we leave some for bird habitat. We burned it last spring and are hoping that we have set back the brome. We only hay half of the Prairie each year and let the other half mature.

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Type of habitat:

 Remnant Upland Tallgrass Prairie

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Location:

Otoe County, southwest of Unadilla, NE

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Size (Acres):

15 Acres

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Wildlife and Plant Species Found Here:

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Flora: prairie phlox, narrow flowered scurf pea, New Jersey tea, black-eyed susan, leadplant, wild strawberry, rough gayfeather, downy gentian whorled milkweed, butterfly milkweed, common milkweed, rosinweed, plains phlox, porcupine grass, purple prairie clover, white prairie clover, prairie rose, bur-reed sedge, mead's sedge, prairie wedgegrass, fetid marigold, wolly sedge, long-bract spiderwort, little blustem, prairie dropseed, sideoat grama.

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Fauna: bluebird, american kestrel, bobolink, meadowlark, dickcissel, badger, brown thrasher.

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