For many years, the southern portion of Dell Road has been a narrow, gravel road between Flying Cloud Drive and Crestwood Terrace. With development planned at the site of the former Marshall Farms property, the road will soon be widened and paved.
And that means the native plants in the area will have to be given a new home or be lost.
The area next to the road hosts “a very diverse woodland ecosystem that has not been strongly impacted by agriculture, urban development or invasive species,” according to a news release from the Friends of Eden Prairie Parks (FEPP).
Native plants along the road include Dutchman’s breeches, bloodroot, large-flowered bellwort, Solomon’s seal, jack-in-the-pulpit, native sedges and zigzag goldenrod.
Relocated plants will help conservation area
According to FEPP’s Lynsey Owen, the organization “is working closely with the city to rescue these high-quality native plants that would otherwise be destroyed” during construction. Rescue involves carefully digging up the plants, keeping root systems intact.
The plants will likely be taken to the Richard T. Anderson Conservation Area (RTA), which, Owen said, “has a very similar ecosystem and is located only one mile away.” The RTA is at 18700 Flying Cloud Drive. FEPP and the city plan to relocate the rescued native plants to areas of the RTA that have been affected by unsanctioned trails and erosion.
Owen added that RTA will close trails and do maintenance in the near future to solve issues of erosion, possible slope failure, increasing number of unsanctioned trails and destruction of prairie landscape. The city will mark these areas with “Trail Closed – Restoration in Progress” signs.
Volunteers needed to rescue plants
According to Owen, “FEPP has hosted four plant rescue events and saved hundreds of native plants.” The next plant rescues will be from 10 a.m. to noon July 12 and 19. Volunteers may meet at Crestwood Park, 9780 Dell Road, and will walk south down Dell Road at 10 a.m. They should bring a garden trowel, closed-toe shoes, gloves, bug spray, sunscreen, long pants, long-sleeve shirts and a water bottle.
For more information, go to friendsofepparks.org.
Comments
We offer several ways for our readers to provide feedback. Your comments are welcome on our social media posts (Facebook, X, Instagram, Threads, and LinkedIn). We also encourage Letters to the Editor; submission guidelines can be found on our Contact Us page. If you believe this story has an error or you would like to get in touch with the author, please connect with us.