Iowa Roadside Management

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Iowa Roadside Management The Iowa Roadside Management program at the University of Northern Iowa's Tallgrass Prairie Center p

New England aster (Symphyotrichum novae-angliae) is still blooming in Iowa roadsides. These flowers provide a critical l...
10/03/2026

New England aster (Symphyotrichum novae-angliae) is still blooming in Iowa roadsides. These flowers provide a critical late-season nectar source for bees and migrating monarch butterflies. During winter, the hollow stems provide nesting habitat for solitary bees. New England aster is one of the most common aster species seen in roadsides; the word aster derives from the Greek word for star, referring to the star-like shape of aster flower heads.

Interstate 35 has been called the Monarch Highway because it runs directly through the monarch butterfly's migration rou...
09/11/2026

Interstate 35 has been called the Monarch Highway because it runs directly through the monarch butterfly's migration route in the central United States. Although formal federal efforts initiated ten years ago to plant monarch habitat along I-35 did not take off, state departments of transportation have continued to plant native plants attractive to butterflies. The Iowa DOT's Rachel Harris is among those interviewed for this brief Iowa Public Radio piece about state efforts to help monarchs:

https://www.iowapublicradio.org/harvest-public-media

It's a long drive back to Lake Okoboji from Cedar Falls, Iowa. That must have been on the minds of Dickinson County Cons...
09/08/2026

It's a long drive back to Lake Okoboji from Cedar Falls, Iowa. That must have been on the minds of Dickinson County Conservation Board Roadside Manager Charles Vigdal, and his intrepid assistants, Levi Wittrock and Tim Frostestad. They made the long drive to the Tallgrass Prairie Center to pick up enough native grass and forb seed from Iowa Roadside Management to plant 40 acres along gravel roads this coming year. It was time to go home—but not yet.
We caught them in the hallway admiring our new displays, and they got a grand tour of the facilities, including our climate-controlled seed storage room, Kubota pendulum seeder, seed cleaning lab, and the new prairie root specimens we had just hung up to dry in the greenhouse. Afterwards, despite oppressive heat, they tramped down the hill to take a look at the seed production plots.
The county is very lucky to have Charles, Levi, and Tim looking out for their roadsides. We look forward to seeing Dickinson County roadside managers again next year!

We recently held the annual seed pickup where county and city roadside vegetation managers from around Iowa come to the ...
09/02/2026

We recently held the annual seed pickup where county and city roadside vegetation managers from around Iowa come to the Tallgrass Prairie Center to pick up native prairie seed for their roadsides. This year we had two cities (Council Bluffs and Decorah) and 42 counties pick up enough seed to plant 1,460 acres. Buying in bulk through grants allowed us to provide seed worth $281 to $429 per acre, a cost savings for their city or county.

We saw several monarch butterflies visiting swamp, also known as rose, milkweed (Asclepias incarnata) in today's roadsid...
08/08/2026

We saw several monarch butterflies visiting swamp, also known as rose, milkweed (Asclepias incarnata) in today's roadside milkweed and monarch surveys. Adults feed on the nectar of swamp milkweed and many other flowering plants. It is also one of the milkweed species most preferred by monarchs for egg laying.

Oxeye sunflower (Heliopsis helianthoides) is also known as false sunflower because it is not a true sunflower—both its l...
07/31/2026

Oxeye sunflower (Heliopsis helianthoides) is also known as false sunflower because it is not a true sunflower—both its long petal-like ray florets and the small disk florets in the center produce seed, while in true sunflowers only the disk florets produce seed. We like to include this species in roadside seed mixes because it has a long bloom period from June well into September or October, and it is easy to establish. Painted lady butterflies and many types of bees are among the insects attracted to oxeye sunflower.

Registration is now open for the 2026 roadside conference, which will be October 7-9! The conference will be held in Car...
07/17/2026

Registration is now open for the 2026 roadside conference, which will be October 7-9! The conference will be held in Carroll, Iowa at the Carrollton Inn and co-hosted by Guthrie County roadside manager Tim Masters with Audubon County roadside manager T.J. Jacobsen hosting one of the Thursday afternoon field tour stops.

We have a nice variety of management and program-related talks this year; topics will include:

- Perspectives on changes in the Guthrie County roadside program from the county engineer and conservation board director
- Perspective on roadside departments from a former roadside manager and current member of the Audubon County board of supervisors
- Highlighted successful Living Roadway Trust Fund grant projects
- How plant traits help determine the cost of native species
- An introduction to prescribed fire
- State and county living snow fence programs
- Living Roadway Trust Fund and Iowa Roadside Management program updates

For more information and to register, visit: https://tallgrassprairiecenter.org/2026-roadside-conference

Some red, white, and blue flowers (well, purplish-red/magenta since it's hard to find pure red right now) that are bloom...
07/03/2026

Some red, white, and blue flowers (well, purplish-red/magenta since it's hard to find pure red right now) that are blooming in Iowa prairies and roadsides: purple poppy mallow (Callirhoe involucrata), Virginia mountain mint (Pycnanthemum virginianum), and Ohio spiderwort (Tradescantia ohiensis).

Purple prairie clover (Dalea purpurea) is blooming across Iowa this time of year. This species is typically included in ...
06/26/2026

Purple prairie clover (Dalea purpurea) is blooming across Iowa this time of year. This species is typically included in the roadside seed mixes provided to counties and cities because it is a legume, converting nitrogen from the air into a usable form for plants. It is also highly attractive to many pollinators, including bumblebees and many types of butterflies.

Can you spot the monarch caterpillar on this roadside common milkweed? It's part of the first generation of monarch cate...
06/17/2026

Can you spot the monarch caterpillar on this roadside common milkweed? It's part of the first generation of monarch caterpillars for this year.

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2412 W 27th Street
Cedar Falls, IA
50613

Opening Hours

Monday 8am - 5pm
Tuesday 8am - 5pm
Wednesday 8am - 5pm
Thursday 8am - 5pm
Friday 8am - 5pm

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+13192732813

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