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Give-A-Day for the Bay: Duette Preserve
Over 80 people volunteered to plant 17,200 wiregrass plugs in Duette Preserve!
Manatee County had an ambitious plan: get rid of the non-native plants that had taken over the entrance to Duette Preserve. To prepare, staff conducted a prescribed burn and harvested a native seed mix from elsewhere on the property. Then, volunteers installed the wiregrass plugs to reestablish native ground cover. With regular summer storms giving the plants a good drink, the wiregrasses we planted should lay down roots in a matter of weeks!
Not only does this project beautify the entrance to Duette Preserve, it also provides habitat for local wildlife. Bobwhite quail and Osceola turkeys will make nests in the grass. Kestrels will feed on insects attracted by the rich food source. Gopher tortoises will create burrows. Wiregrass also helps carry fire across the landscape, which is essential to this ecosystem. These beneficial fires remove debris and non-native species, return nutrients to the landscape, and encourage native wildflowers to produce seeds.
A huge thank you to everyone (special shout out to Oyster River Ecology) that came out to help with this planting! Projects like this one are important to restore healthy ecosystems and provide biodiversity. Stay tuned for future updates.
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