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Native Prairie Appreciation Week

By Paige Straf, AAg, Agri-Environmental Specialist, Prince Albert

May 2024

Saskatchewan is home to many unique ecosystems, from forested areas to grasslands. Native prairie is a grassland ecosystem which houses many different flora and fauna across Saskatchewan. Native grasslands also provide a significant feed resource to ranchers, where these stewards of the land take great care of the ecosystem. Ranchers know that if they take proper care of the land, it will take care of them in return.

Native prairie near Avonlea, SK.
Native prairie near Avonlea

Our province has approximately 17 to 21 per cent of the remaining native prairie remaining in the Prairie Ecozone. Native rangelands provide many benefits to society such as ecosystem diversity, habitat for wildlife, birds and insects, forage for livestock, carbon sequestration, nutrient cycling, water filtration and retention and much more.

Did you know that there is an entire week dedicated to raising awareness of native grasslands in North America? It is called Native Prairie Appreciation Week (NPAW), and it occurs annually on the third week in June. This week was officially declared in 1999 by the Ministry of Agriculture and Ministry of Environment. Many different organizations often help to celebrate NPAW by hosting various training events and workshops for agrologists, naturalist professionals, ranchers and anyone else who might benefit from learning more about these ecosystems.

This year, the Ministry of Agriculture is partnering with the Society for Range Management Prairie Parkland Chapter (SRM-PPC), the Saskatchewan Prairie Conservation Action Plan (PCAP) and the Avonlea Heritage Museum to host an event for NPAW. The theme of the event this year is “Discovering the Badlands: Paleo, Pollinators and Plants” and it will be in the Avonlea Badlands on June 19-20, 2024. Join us at this event to learn more about pollinators, plant ID, bird ID, range management assessments and some local paleontology.

If you are interested in signing up for the event, you can register online. Registration will close on June 10, 2024. For more information on Native Prairie Appreciation Week or this event, feel free to call the Agriculture Knowledge Centre at 1-866-457-2377.

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