{"id":86597,"date":"2026-01-06T18:00:43","date_gmt":"2026-01-06T18:00:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.noemamag.com"},"modified":"2026-01-13T17:03:17","modified_gmt":"2026-01-13T17:03:17","slug":"where-the-prairie-still-remains","status":"publish","type":"wpm-article","link":"https:\/\/www.noemamag.com\/where-the-prairie-still-remains","title":{"rendered":"Where The Prairie Still Remains"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>ROCHESTER, Iowa \u2014&nbsp;If you take a road trip across Iowa, you\u2019re likely to see fields of corn and soybean crops blanketing the landscape, one after the other across 23 million acres, or some 65% of the state. But turn off a gravel road near the Cedar River in the rural southeast and walk through an ornate rusted arch, and you will find yourself in another world.<\/p><div>\n    <iframe loading=\"lazy\" id=\"noa-web-audio-player\"\n            style=\"border: none\"\n            src=\"https:\/\/embed-player.newsoveraudio.com\/v4?key=n0e13g&#038;id=https:\/\/www.noemamag.com\/where-the-prairie-still-remains&#038;bgColor=F3F3F3&#038;color=6D6D6D&#038;progressBgColor=F7F7F7&#038;progressBorderColor=6D6D6D&#038;playColor=F3F3F3&#038;titleColor=383D3D&#038;timeColor=6D6D6D&#038;speedColor=6D6D6D&#038;noaLinkColor=6D6D6D&#038;noaLinkHighlightColor=039BE5\"\n            width=\"100%\" height=\"110px\"><\/iframe>\n<\/div><p>Rochester Cemetery is not just an active cemetery. It\u2019s a remnant of a once-common sight in Iowa, the place where tallgrass prairie and woodland meet. Faded, crumbling headstones dot its 13 hilly acres. The biggest oaks I\u2019ve seen in my life \u2014 gnarled, centuries-old red, black, burr and white \u2014 tower over them, keeping watch. And otherwise engulfing the stones is a sea of prairie grasses: big bluestem, Indiangrass, switchgrass. On the right spring day, there are more blooming shooting stars here \u2014 with their delicate pink downturned heads nodding in the breeze \u2014 than may exist anywhere else in the state.<\/p><p>The cemetery itself dates to the 1830s, just after the Black Hawk Purchase added Iowa to the Union. But today, Rochester is special because it contains one of the rarest ecosystems in the world: oak savanna. Under a few massive trees, prairie plants sequester carbon, prevent erosion and provide key habitat for endangered wildlife like Monarch butterflies and rusty-patched bumblebees \u2014 ecosystem services desperately needed across the Midwest.<\/p><p>Before European settlement, tallgrass prairie covered 80% of Iowa. What remains serves as critical seed banks and blueprints for future restorations. But the continued existence of remnants like Rochester is tenuous in this land where corn is king, and it depends on the stewardship of individuals with very different ideas about what and who the land is for \u2014 and how it should be managed.<\/p><p>I arrived at the cemetery on a warm Sunday last May. Jacie Thomsen, a Rochester native, greeted me at the gate in a faded U.S. Army T-shirt. A township trustee and the cemetery\u2019s burial manager, Thomsen carried a binder of old documents in one hand and a long metal rod in the other that she periodically used to probe for forgotten, buried gravestones.&nbsp;<\/p><p>\u201cA lot of people tend to say we\u2019re disrespecting our dead,\u201d Thomsen told me. \u201cI always tell people, \u2018Take what you think you know about cemeteries and leave it in your car, because it does not, <em>will not<\/em>, apply here.\u2019\u201d<\/p><p>I think of the postage-stamp perfect square cemetery I grew up visiting on Memorial Day in nearby Wapello, Iowa, with its close-cropped turfgrass, ornamental bushes and stones in lines straight as the corn rows that box them in on all sides. With manicured lawns and trimmed trees as the blueprint for cemeteries, I can see why some less well acquainted with prairie plants \u2014 including other township trustees here \u2014 complain this place looks \u201covergrown\u201d with weeds and in need of a good mow. But at the same time, it strikes me that if one of the pioneers buried here suddenly rose from the dead, these hills are about the only part of the Iowa landscape they\u2019d recognize.<\/p><p>\u201cWhen you walk in these gates, you\u2019re seeing Iowa as they saw it when they arrived after the Black Hawk Purchase,\u201d Thomsen told me, gesturing at the prairie.<\/p><p>Prairie is Iowa\u2019s natural landscape insofar as any landscape is natural. Humans have shaped the American Midwest ever since the glaciers retreated. For some 10,000 years, Iowa was a dynamic place. Indigenous Americans <a href=\"https:\/\/bioone.org\/journals\/natural-areas-journal\/volume-41\/issue-4\/20-5\/Patterns-of-Anthropogenic-Fire-within-the-Midwestern-Tallgrass-Prairie-16731905\/10.3375\/20-5.full\">lit frequent fires<\/a> that kept encroaching woodlands at bay, allowing the grasslands that dominate the Great Plains to migrate east into Iowa and Illinois. Only in the last 200 years did farmers transform these acres into neat cornfields.<\/p><!-- Quote Block Template -->\n\n<figure class=\"quote\">\n\n  <blockquote class=\"quote__container\">\n\n    <div class=\"quote__text\">\n      &#8220;Turn off a gravel road near the Cedar River in the rural southeast and walk through an ornate rusted arch, and you will find yourself in another world.&#8221;    <\/div>\n\n    \n    <div class=\"quote__social-media\">\n      <div\n        class=\"a2a_kit a2a_kit_size_35 a2a_default_style\"\n        data-a2a-url=\"https:\/\/www.noemamag.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/wpm-article\/86597\"\n        data-a2a-title='\"Turn off a gravel road near the Cedar River in the rural southeast and walk through an ornate rusted arch, and you will find yourself in another world.\"'\n      >\n        <a class=\"a2a_button_facebook\"><\/a>\n        <a class=\"a2a_button_twitter\"><\/a>\n        <a class=\"a2a_button_email\"><\/a>\n      <\/div>\n    <\/div>\n  <\/blockquote>\n<\/figure><p>Today, less than a tenth of 1% of Iowa\u2019s original prairie remains. Plows broke the vast majority of prairie down in the 19th and 20th centuries, transforming a biodiverse ecosystem into a crop factory \u2014 what Jack Zinnen, an ecologist for the Prairie Research Institute at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, calls an \u201cagricultural desert.\u201d&nbsp; Set aside before industrial agriculture arrived in Iowa, pioneer cemeteries like this one have become the prairie\u2019s final resting place \u2014 one of the few where the land remembers what it once was. Some of these cemetery prairie remnants tower over the surrounding farm fields, long roots holding the rich, undisturbed soil together as the rest of Iowa <a href=\"https:\/\/agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com\/doi\/epdf\/10.1029\/2021EF002396\">erodes away<\/a> under repetitive plowing, flowing downriver.<\/p><!-- Content Image Block Template -->\n<div class=\"\n  content-image\n  content-image--full_width_alt  \">\n\n  <div class=\"content-image__container\">\n\n    <!-- Main Image -->\n    <div class=\"content-image__main-wrapper\">\n\n              <div class=\"aspect-ratio-wrapper\">\n              <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1982\" src=\"https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/StinonPrairie_Iowa_IsaacLarsen_EDITED-scaled.jpg?fm=pjpg&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;s=74be5183d8d4c7759550510361ed4046\" class=\"attachment-full size-full\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/StinonPrairie_Iowa_IsaacLarsen_EDITED-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=232&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=300&amp;wpsize=medium&amp;s=59506a8a049d585a80db295eb99e9b93 300w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/StinonPrairie_Iowa_IsaacLarsen_EDITED-scaled.jpg?fit=crop&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=512&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=1024&amp;wpsize=noema-social-twitter&amp;s=161bae3be3c5afd6db9dc0341a921bed 1024w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/StinonPrairie_Iowa_IsaacLarsen_EDITED-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=595&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=768&amp;wpsize=medium_large&amp;s=cba15e5dc2b55d3eb37e00db59b4b981 768w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/StinonPrairie_Iowa_IsaacLarsen_EDITED-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=929&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=1200&amp;wpsize=post-thumbnail&amp;s=87ad1c3b52edf2d1378055c24154c4a0 1200w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/StinonPrairie_Iowa_IsaacLarsen_EDITED-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=1189&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=1536&amp;wpsize=1536x1536&amp;s=df2d7a4569eedc22d86937402bb6952a 1536w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/StinonPrairie_Iowa_IsaacLarsen_EDITED-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=1586&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=2048&amp;wpsize=2048x2048&amp;s=c76084d00b20df366e79fe279716729d 2048w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/StinonPrairie_Iowa_IsaacLarsen_EDITED-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=1533&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=1980&amp;wpsize=twentytwenty-fullscreen&amp;s=4bdfbee8759d3a09edef2690c83af621 1980w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/StinonPrairie_Iowa_IsaacLarsen_EDITED-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=465&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=600&amp;wpsize=woocommerce_single&amp;s=e69cf4d68e13eb03e4fbb81f00df58a5 600w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/StinonPrairie_Iowa_IsaacLarsen_EDITED-scaled.jpg?fm=pjpg&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;s=74be5183d8d4c7759550510361ed4046 2560w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\" \/>        <div class=\"content-image__overlay content-image__overlay-0\">\n        <\/div>\n        <\/div>\n      <\/div>\n\n      <\/div>\n\n  <div class=\"content-image__captions\">\n        <div class=\"content-image__main-caption\">\n          \n      <figcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">\n        <div>Isaac Larsen, a geosciences expert at UMass Amherst, stands near a drop-off that separates native remnant prairie from farmland in Iowa. Researchers found that farmed fields were more than a foot lower than the prairie on average. (UMass Amherst)<\/div>\n      <\/figcaption>\n\n        <\/div>\n    \n      <\/div>\n\n\n<\/div><p>Compared to other forms of American wilderness, prairies are hard to love \u2014 they don\u2019t easily fall into the category of the sublime like giant sequoias or Yosemite waterfalls. You have to get really close to appreciate the complex beauty. It\u2019s probably why (along with the black gold underneath the plants) it was so easy to destroy, acre by acre.<\/p><p>\u201cTo the uninitiated, the idea of a walk through a prairie might seem to be no more exciting than crossing a field of wheat, a cow pasture, or an unmowed blue-grass lawn,\u201d wrote Robert Betz, a Northeastern Illinois University biologist and early defender of cemetery prairies. \u201cNothing could be further from the truth.\u201d<\/p><p>Aboveground at Rochester, native prairie grasses and flowers and introduced ornamental plants, such as daisies, hyacinths and showy stonecrops, coexist. Black-eyed Susans, coneflowers, milkweed and prairie clovers grow on graves, alongside the usual decorative plastic varieties. Underground, deep roots entwine with the bodies of long-dead pioneers \u2014&nbsp;who pushed out the Indigenous communities who first stewarded this prairie \u2014 and generations of Rochester citizens.<\/p><!-- Content Image Block Template -->\n<div class=\"\n  content-image\n  content-image--full_width  \">\n\n  <div class=\"content-image__container\">\n\n    <!-- Main Image -->\n    <div class=\"content-image__main-wrapper\">\n\n              <div class=\"aspect-ratio-wrapper\">\n              <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1706\" src=\"https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9887-scaled.jpg?fm=pjpg&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;s=12c56f1f39ec39dc16ef12ec290deb03\" class=\"attachment-full size-full\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9887-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=200&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=300&amp;wpsize=medium&amp;s=74eabfd331288fd1b286683c2070666a 300w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9887-scaled.jpg?fit=crop&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=512&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=1024&amp;wpsize=noema-social-twitter&amp;s=b13ffd0573e13a2fd6b376d45902a62f 1024w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9887-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=512&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=768&amp;wpsize=medium_large&amp;s=1584d6c7002162d17fbc3b904f4923d3 768w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9887-scaled.jpg?fit=crop&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=511&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=767&amp;wpsize=noema-listing-tile&amp;s=4ebb0189426d2a11c9b9b5f5994dc768 767w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9887-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=800&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=1200&amp;wpsize=post-thumbnail&amp;s=0aba9f7eb542c4379356b8a54ed25ca8 1200w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9887-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=1024&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=1536&amp;wpsize=1536x1536&amp;s=72e53d40dfa72f7e90d99d614b436b5c 1536w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9887-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=1365&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=2048&amp;wpsize=2048x2048&amp;s=0780b620c5b0de48979a22848983ba26 2048w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9887-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=1319&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=1980&amp;wpsize=twentytwenty-fullscreen&amp;s=3607f9279542147e56f57db112aaa233 1980w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9887-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=400&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=600&amp;wpsize=woocommerce_single&amp;s=0f33987cc04c6cc256455ece53e933f7 600w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9887-scaled.jpg?fm=pjpg&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;s=12c56f1f39ec39dc16ef12ec290deb03 2560w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\" \/>        <div class=\"content-image__overlay content-image__overlay-0\">\n        <\/div>\n        <\/div>\n      <\/div>\n\n      <\/div>\n\n  <div class=\"content-image__captions\">\n        <div class=\"content-image__main-caption\">\n          \n      <figcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">\n        <div>A massive oak towers over gravestones on a hill in Rochester Cemetery. (Christian Elliott)<\/div>\n      <\/figcaption>\n\n        <\/div>\n    \n      <\/div>\n\n\n<\/div><!-- Content Image Block Template -->\n<div class=\"\n  content-image\n  content-image--double_image  \">\n\n  <div class=\"content-image__container\">\n\n    <!-- Main Image -->\n    <div class=\"content-image__main-wrapper\">\n\n            <div class=\"\">\n              <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1709\" src=\"https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSC_9372-2-copy-scaled.jpg?fm=pjpg&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;s=7fe4bcfb276fce9cc0d91c932b0ce7d0\" class=\"attachment-full size-full\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSC_9372-2-copy-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=200&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=300&amp;wpsize=medium&amp;s=edfa86eec2ad3c19ecd937818a24fbb4 300w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSC_9372-2-copy-scaled.jpg?fit=crop&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=512&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=1024&amp;wpsize=noema-social-twitter&amp;s=e69322baadff5284a97e9643e66155c1 1024w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSC_9372-2-copy-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=513&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=768&amp;wpsize=medium_large&amp;s=965109020cbf2c078e19dcdecf32a3dd 768w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSC_9372-2-copy-scaled.jpg?fit=crop&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=511&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=767&amp;wpsize=noema-listing-tile&amp;s=4ff2e83d3eb3550885554a61ef1481ce 767w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSC_9372-2-copy-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=801&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=1200&amp;wpsize=post-thumbnail&amp;s=d7f6a1a4c83aababd2a1dbb64e976281 1200w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSC_9372-2-copy-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=1025&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=1536&amp;wpsize=1536x1536&amp;s=8d6c1a1cd05bba75132d15efcc2203eb 1536w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSC_9372-2-copy-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=1367&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=2048&amp;wpsize=2048x2048&amp;s=e672a53a07c287d597bb381f35883d41 2048w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSC_9372-2-copy-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=1322&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=1980&amp;wpsize=twentytwenty-fullscreen&amp;s=e562b75172f1e025e99a607774c626f6 1980w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSC_9372-2-copy-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=401&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=600&amp;wpsize=woocommerce_single&amp;s=c19b122617e5a7d411d44f9d7a724986 600w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSC_9372-2-copy-scaled.jpg?fm=pjpg&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;s=7fe4bcfb276fce9cc0d91c932b0ce7d0 2560w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\" \/>        <div class=\"content-image__overlay content-image__overlay-0\">\n        <\/div>\n        <\/div>\n      <\/div>\n\n          <!-- Secondary image. Only for 'Double Image' option -->\n      <div class=\"content-image__secondary-wrapper\">\n\n        <!-- <div class=\"aspect-ratio-wrapper\"> -->\n        <div class=\"\">\n          <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1706\" src=\"https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF0008-scaled.jpg?fm=pjpg&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;s=26a35ab8227d3003415e1bd9d4ef074e\" class=\"attachment-full size-full\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF0008-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=200&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=300&amp;wpsize=medium&amp;s=fdccb29ec93d8e18467a36d6ec270e66 300w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF0008-scaled.jpg?fit=crop&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=512&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=1024&amp;wpsize=noema-social-twitter&amp;s=f46e3d0ae9abd97022623b1497a9b56d 1024w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF0008-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=512&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=768&amp;wpsize=medium_large&amp;s=bdfe7fe808f2277f93c274c2914c55cc 768w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF0008-scaled.jpg?fit=crop&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=511&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=767&amp;wpsize=noema-listing-tile&amp;s=28681394ae62f61f74701de74ebe7cfb 767w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF0008-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=800&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=1200&amp;wpsize=post-thumbnail&amp;s=76b1c767c424ec60bce2a3d137b200ff 1200w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF0008-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=1024&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=1536&amp;wpsize=1536x1536&amp;s=ce764a630c6880f9e079225ab97ca3e1 1536w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF0008-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=1365&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=2048&amp;wpsize=2048x2048&amp;s=ab33b927ff693e18b1db4b88bd1930d1 2048w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF0008-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=1319&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=1980&amp;wpsize=twentytwenty-fullscreen&amp;s=d6c2f1cc1faa8f969cfadaaa4a391800 1980w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF0008-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=400&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=600&amp;wpsize=woocommerce_single&amp;s=521d448d1a49f9eb2d4c1b80ca681b45 600w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF0008-scaled.jpg?fm=pjpg&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;s=26a35ab8227d3003415e1bd9d4ef074e 2560w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\" \/>          <div class=\"content-image__overlay content-image__overlay-0\"><\/div>\n        <\/div>\n\n      <\/div>\n\n      <\/div>\n\n  <div class=\"content-image__captions\">\n        <div class=\"content-image__main-caption\">\n          \n      <figcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">\n        <div>Left: A queen bumblebee pollinating shooting stars in Rochester Cemetery.  On the right spring day, there are more blooming shooting stars here than may exist anywhere else in the state. (Laura Walter) Right: The gates to Rochester Cemetery which covers 13 acres today. (Christian Elliott)<\/div>\n      <\/figcaption>\n\n        <\/div>\n    \n      <\/div>\n\n\n<\/div><h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-the-prairie-s-unmaking\">The Prairie\u2019s Unmaking<\/h2><p>I grew up less than an hour\u2019s drive from Rochester, though I learned of the cemetery\u2019s existence only recently, in a book by the New York landscape photographer Stephen Longmire, who\u2019d stumbled across this place and spent years photographing it with a large format film camera. While he wandered Rochester\u2019s hills in the early 2000s, I was spending my weekends at my grandparents\u2019 farm in Wapello playing in their corn rows behind the barn. Prairie was the setting for Laura Ingalls Wilder\u2019s books, a thing of the past. I had no idea how utterly transformed Iowa was, or how much we\u2019d lost.<\/p><p>It wasn\u2019t until college that I learned the truth. Prairie once stretched from Montana down to Texas and east into Ohio, over a million square miles. Iowa was once the beating heart of the American Central Grassland.<\/p><p>But \u201ctallgrass prairie is, in many respects, a human construct,\u201d Tom Rosburg, a biologist and herbarium curator at Drake University in Iowa, told me.<\/p><p>Prairie relies on annual cleansing fire to transform dead foliage into usable nutrients. Shortgrass prairie in the dry western plains burns easily, the fires often lit by lightning and fueled by constant wind. Tallgrass prairie, on the other hand, \u201cwants to be trees,\u201d Chris Helzer, The Nature Conservancy\u2019s science director in Nebraska, told me. It only grows in places with enough precipitation that woodland should dominate.<\/p><p>The Central Grassland\u2019s extension into the Midwest, called the Prairie Peninsula, puzzled scientists for decades \u2014 they wondered why it wasn\u2019t dominated by forest. Eventually, they arrived at an answer. For thousands of years, grass and trees had waged a war of contrition across the hills that are now Rochester Cemetery \u2014 and across much of Iowa and Illinois. But Indigenous peoples sided with the grasses from the beginning, lighting <a href=\"https:\/\/bioone.org\/journals\/natural-areas-journal\/volume-41\/issue-4\/20-5\/Patterns-of-Anthropogenic-Fire-within-the-Midwestern-Tallgrass-Prairie-16731905\/10.3375\/20-5.full\">regular fires<\/a> that rejuvenated the grasses, kept trees at bay and ensured the landscape remained open for easier hunting. Here at Rochester, it was the Meskwaki, who still live nearby on land purchased from the U.S. government after the Black Hawk War.<\/p><p>Most of a prairie plant\u2019s biomass is underground, in the form of deep root systems that allow it to spring back to life after <a href=\"https:\/\/chicago.suntimes.com\/outdoors\/2025\/03\/16\/beauty-comes-with-fire-in-the-prairie\">frequent fires<\/a>. When pioneers arrived in Iowa and Illinois in the early 1800s, they discovered millennia of decomposing roots produced a black, nitrogen-rich, silty loam \u2014 some of the most fertile soil in the world. Thus began the prairie\u2019s destruction. Industrialized farming operations moved in, like my family\u2019s, such that less than a century later, it was nearly all gone, turned into monocultures of corn and soy sustained by artificial nitrogen inputs, herbicides and pesticides, which were irrigated by stick-straight ditches and networks of buried drainage tiles.<\/p><p>\u201cIt was destroyed piece by piece, farmer by farmer,\u201d Rosburg told me, with some bitterness. \u201cIt was the biggest transformation in the history of Earth \u2014 and in less than a person\u2019s lifetime.\u201d<\/p><p>The change is so dramatic, it\u2019s hard to imagine what was once there. You can\u2019t unplow a prairie \u2014 once you tear through those deep, ancient roots, formed over centuries, it\u2019s over. And despite decades of attempts, it\u2019s nearly impossible to create a restoration that perfectly matches the real thing, with its function, structure and sheer number of species, each with its own complex relationships.<\/p><!-- Quote Block Template -->\n\n<figure class=\"quote\">\n\n  <blockquote class=\"quote__container\">\n\n    <div class=\"quote__text\">\n      &#8220;Prairie plants sequester carbon, prevent erosion and provide key habitat for endangered wildlife like Monarch butterflies and rusty-patched bumblebees \u2014 ecosystem services desperately needed across the Midwest.&#8221;    <\/div>\n\n    \n    <div class=\"quote__social-media\">\n      <div\n        class=\"a2a_kit a2a_kit_size_35 a2a_default_style\"\n        data-a2a-url=\"https:\/\/www.noemamag.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/wpm-article\/86597\"\n        data-a2a-title='\"Prairie plants sequester carbon, prevent erosion and provide key habitat for endangered wildlife like Monarch butterflies and rusty-patched bumblebees \u2014 ecosystem services desperately needed across the Midwest.\"'\n      >\n        <a class=\"a2a_button_facebook\"><\/a>\n        <a class=\"a2a_button_twitter\"><\/a>\n        <a class=\"a2a_button_email\"><\/a>\n      <\/div>\n    <\/div>\n  <\/blockquote>\n<\/figure><p>To attempt a restoration at all, you need raw material \u2014 seeds. And for that, you need remnants. Scientists have dedicated their lives to mapping the few places where the prairie still exists, scouring the state on foot and sifting through old records as if panning for gold. Rosburg has found and saved more than 65 forgotten remnants through his organization, Drake Prairie Rescue. Many remnants exist on fragments of land deemed too rocky, sandy or steep to plow. Those remnants were often used as pastures \u2014 planted with a mix of non-native grasses and heavily grazed by cattle. <\/p><p>Examples of still-intact prairies, on rich black carbon soil, are rare \u2014 primarily found in narrow strips along railroad tracks set aside before plowing began and on pioneer cemeteries, where the impediment to plowing was cultural, rather than practical. Those remnants tend to be the last and best records of what\u2019s considered a typical prairie, with its rich, silty, loamy soil.<\/p><p>To date, there are 136 cemetery prairies across the Midwest, according to the Iowa Prairie Network\u2019s list. While an Iowa cornfield\u2019s species diversity can be counted on one hand, some prairie remnants contain as many as 250 species, according to <a href=\"https:\/\/tallgrassprairiecenter.org\/relix-prairie-remnant-database\">data<\/a> published last July by the Prairie Research Institute team in Illinois.<\/p><p>Unlike neighboring Illinois, which has an extensive state system to protect its rare native prairies, wetlands and forests, in Iowa, nearly all the state\u2019s land is privately held. In fact, 60% of Iowa\u2019s public land is made up of roadside rights-of-way, or ditches, as they are more commonly known, according to the University of Northern Iowa\u2019s Tallgrass Prairie Center.<\/p><p>In Iowa, cemeteries with fewer than 12 burials in the past 50 years are officially designated as pioneer cemeteries, which allows counties to relax mowing and restore prairie \u2014 although that doesn\u2019t always happen in practice. Still, these township-owned pioneer cemeteries serve as de facto prairie nature preserves, islands of tenuous conservation for rare insects and plants \u2014&nbsp;as long as townships OK it \u2014&nbsp;in a sea of destruction.<\/p><p>Due to climate change, the wet Midwest is becoming even wetter, which means that prairie remnants are slowly transitioning to woodland in the absence of fire. Absent any management, a prairie can disappear in as little as 30 years, Laura Walter, a University of Northern Iowa biologist, told me. \u201cRescuing\u201d remnants, as Rosburg does, is an active process that involves convincing townships to conduct controlled burns and weed out invasive species in their cemeteries.<\/p><p>And these prairie preserves have come in handy. They\u2019re models for what some scientists call artisanal restorations \u2014 small-scale prairies conjured forth on private land, often with great care and dedication to exactly recreating what\u2019s been lost. But remnants like Rochester are also helping bring back prairie at a larger scale.&nbsp;<\/p><p>In the 1990s, Iowa lawmakers mandated prairie plantings along state highways and provided incentives for counties to do the same to help combat soil erosion and reduce mowing and herbicide use that polluted waterways. But the Tallgrass Prairie Center, which operates the state\u2019s roadside vegetation program, couldn\u2019t find prairie seeds readily available for sale.<\/p><p>So, they had to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.researchgate.net\/publication\/287165576_Source-Identified_Seed_The_Iowa_Roadside_Experience\">start from scratch<\/a>, collecting seeds from cemetery prairies and other remnants, learning to germinate and grow plants in their greenhouse and production plots, and then donating seeds to seed companies while teaching them how to grow them in order to scale up production.&nbsp;<\/p><p>Before they started, prairie blazing star, a common Iowa prairie flower, could only be purchased from the Netherlands, where it was a popular cut flower, said Laura Jackson, the Tallgrass Prairie Center\u2019s director. Now, she told me, it\u2019s one of dozens of regional ecotype seeds that counties can use to restore prairie along their roads. At last May\u2019s annual spring seed pickup at the center\u2019s warehouse in Cedar Falls, Iowa, trucks from 46 Iowa counties hauled away 19,000 pounds of prairie seed \u2014 big bluestem, switchgrass, prairie clover, asters, coneflowers and more \u2014 originally sourced from prairie remnants like Rochester. To date, some 50,000 acres of roadsides have been planted with native grasses and wildflowers.<\/p><p>Restoration is about preparing Iowa for the future rather than trying to revert its landscape to the 1800s, Jackson told me. On a practical level, prairies provide myriad benefits, especially in light of climate change, that are more important than ever, including soil stability, carbon storage, flood mitigation, fire resilience, drought resistance and habitat for pollinators. But because it\u2019s so hard to predict what will survive amid a changing climate, it\u2019s crucial to maximize genetic diversity by sourcing seeds from remnants across the state, Jackson told me.<\/p><!-- Quote Block Template -->\n\n<figure class=\"quote\">\n\n  <blockquote class=\"quote__container\">\n\n    <div class=\"quote__text\">\n      &#8220;Prairie once stretched from Montana down to Texas and east into Ohio, over a million square miles. Iowa was once the beating heart of the American Central Grassland.&#8221;    <\/div>\n\n    \n    <div class=\"quote__social-media\">\n      <div\n        class=\"a2a_kit a2a_kit_size_35 a2a_default_style\"\n        data-a2a-url=\"https:\/\/www.noemamag.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/wpm-article\/86597\"\n        data-a2a-title='\"Prairie once stretched from Montana down to Texas and east into Ohio, over a million square miles. Iowa was once the beating heart of the American Central Grassland.\"'\n      >\n        <a class=\"a2a_button_facebook\"><\/a>\n        <a class=\"a2a_button_twitter\"><\/a>\n        <a class=\"a2a_button_email\"><\/a>\n      <\/div>\n    <\/div>\n  <\/blockquote>\n<\/figure><p>Because Iowa is a relatively young landscape, geologically speaking, only a handful of prairie plants have gone extinct, and most species are still widespread. In parts of the country that haven\u2019t been wiped clean by glaciers as recently, plants have evolved to become highly local, \u201cendemic\u201d to specific niches, Chris Benda, an Illinois botanist who regularly conducts plant surveys, told me.<\/p><p>Even though Iowa\u2019s prairie survives today primarily on scattered fragments, many of its plants once thrived across the state. That means the seeds of Iowa\u2019s great prairie still exist. From pioneer cemeteries, managers can source the original seeds of Iowa\u2019s landscape and use them to grow prairie at scale.<\/p><!-- Content Image Block Template -->\n<div class=\"\n  content-image\n  content-image--full_width  \">\n\n  <div class=\"content-image__container\">\n\n    <!-- Main Image -->\n    <div class=\"content-image__main-wrapper\">\n\n              <div class=\"aspect-ratio-wrapper\">\n              <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1706\" src=\"https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9912-scaled.jpg?fm=pjpg&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;s=bd2a275fac0f68c4ec50ddd6ec7c34dc\" class=\"attachment-full size-full\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9912-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=200&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=300&amp;wpsize=medium&amp;s=7ae8fe303cb6504c2daf48afa369e1c2 300w, 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https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9947-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=512&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=768&amp;wpsize=medium_large&amp;s=4e96a413a27ae4ccf910e64cc95b50eb 768w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9947-scaled.jpg?fit=crop&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=511&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=767&amp;wpsize=noema-listing-tile&amp;s=55e5c64613cf7f5f8299869d786e6772 767w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9947-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=800&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=1200&amp;wpsize=post-thumbnail&amp;s=4888dfc1ef6eebe3e09fa9c1309d2c1d 1200w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9947-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=1024&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=1536&amp;wpsize=1536x1536&amp;s=609a8fde5775d6a3fe3eb864c118c467 1536w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9947-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=1365&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=2048&amp;wpsize=2048x2048&amp;s=64abc4456a62201b50ecf6549f58aecd 2048w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9947-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=1319&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=1980&amp;wpsize=twentytwenty-fullscreen&amp;s=f153db80283449fdd14fcb014e928aae 1980w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9947-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=400&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=600&amp;wpsize=woocommerce_single&amp;s=deb01ad09373b515a481cd4558c99181 600w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9947-scaled.jpg?fm=pjpg&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;s=191a1103146cfb22cb6cf6bd5b994280 2560w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\" \/>        <div class=\"content-image__overlay content-image__overlay-0\">\n        <\/div>\n        <\/div>\n      <\/div>\n\n          <!-- Secondary image. Only for 'Double Image' option -->\n      <div class=\"content-image__secondary-wrapper\">\n\n        <!-- <div class=\"aspect-ratio-wrapper\"> -->\n        <div class=\"\">\n          <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1706\" src=\"https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9919-scaled.jpg?fm=pjpg&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;s=f18b3ada443dd436aaf676753d804621\" class=\"attachment-full size-full\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9919-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=200&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=300&amp;wpsize=medium&amp;s=85013b0f7f243797fdf1270d9a94a5ff 300w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9919-scaled.jpg?fit=crop&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=512&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=1024&amp;wpsize=noema-social-twitter&amp;s=d5408c28f7d65f7e0eb32910096d5ec5 1024w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9919-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=512&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=768&amp;wpsize=medium_large&amp;s=750692f021618d3d7b059553e37d8a95 768w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9919-scaled.jpg?fit=crop&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=511&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=767&amp;wpsize=noema-listing-tile&amp;s=8a36564629383cd3fa6bc7976464db8c 767w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9919-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=800&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=1200&amp;wpsize=post-thumbnail&amp;s=c8e7e90d80f1eba8ce0f55975d1e65bb 1200w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9919-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=1024&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=1536&amp;wpsize=1536x1536&amp;s=45e4480d94332f090752db84083083ff 1536w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9919-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=1365&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=2048&amp;wpsize=2048x2048&amp;s=c3756a8ab62548bb3fcbfd0c01ca6e23 2048w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9919-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=1319&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=1980&amp;wpsize=twentytwenty-fullscreen&amp;s=c799c5157b8801fa8ea2d9607054042b 1980w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9919-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=400&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=600&amp;wpsize=woocommerce_single&amp;s=06da1a7a199ac2a6cd2fe600c0e1e910 600w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9919-scaled.jpg?fm=pjpg&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;s=f18b3ada443dd436aaf676753d804621 2560w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\" \/>          <div class=\"content-image__overlay content-image__overlay-0\"><\/div>\n        <\/div>\n\n      <\/div>\n\n      <\/div>\n\n  <div class=\"content-image__captions\">\n        <div class=\"content-image__main-caption\">\n          \n      <figcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">\n        <div>Left: Old gravestones at Rochester Cemetery showing the Howe family plot. The Howe family still lives in Cedar County and let the prairie grow wild around the old settlers\u2019 stones as that\u2019s how the cemetery would have looked when they arrived. (Christian Elliott) Right: The stone visible here is Adam Graham\u2019s who he left money in his 1850 will to purchase the land that is now Rochester Cemetery. (Christian Elliott)\n<\/div>\n      <\/figcaption>\n\n        <\/div>\n    \n      <\/div>\n\n\n<\/div><h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-prairie-or-cemetery\">Prairie Or Cemetery?<\/h2><p>At Rochester Cemetery, others began to arrive for the day\u2019s garlic mustard pull: Dan Sears, an organizer for the nonprofit Iowa Prairie Network; Walter, who runs the prairie plant research program at the Tallgrass Prairie Center; and a dozen locals. Volunteers tucked their jeans into their socks to avoid tick bites, grabbed bags and donned gardening gloves.<\/p><p>Sears explained what garlic mustard \u2014\u00a0the non-native species encroaching on this tiny prairie remnant \u2014 looks like, with toothed leaves and delicate white flowers. However, Sears added that volunteers should also be on the lookout for another non-native plant, showy stonecrop (which he referred to as \u201csedum\u201d), which could compromise the quality of the prairie remnant.\u00a0<\/p><p>I noticed Thomsen tense beside me as she piped up: \u201cI need to investigate first before you pull sedum!\u201d The cemetery\u2019s prairie is speckled with sedum and other long-naturalized \u201cinvasives,\u201d from lilacs to day lilies, that were planted over centuries to honor loved ones. Thomsen relies on those plants to find unmarked graves in a cemetery without formal records, she told me. She even planted a peony bush to help her find her own family\u2019s graves amid the tallgrass. &#8220;Just because you don\u2019t see a headstone does not mean there\u2019s not somebody there!\u201d<\/p><p>Sears held up his hands to Thomsen in surrender: \u201cHer word is law today.\u201d<\/p><p>Their interaction was the first hint at a conflict that has come up time and again here \u2014 between what\u2019s considered natural or local, and invasive or foreign, among both plants and people. Rochester draws outsiders to an unusual degree for a rural Iowa town. For years, prairie enthusiasts like Longmire, environmentalists, AmeriCorps volunteers and university scientists have taken the Rochester exit off Interstate 80 to visit this cemetery.&nbsp;\n          <div class=\"eos-subscribe-push\">\n            \n            <a target=\"https:\/\/shop.noemamag.com\/?utm_source=MiddleCTA&utm_medium=website\" href=\"https:\/\/shop.noemamag.com\/?utm_source=MiddleCTA&utm_medium=website\" data-wpel-link=\"internal\">Read Noema in print.<\/a>\n            \n          <\/div>\n        <\/p><p>At times, visitors have collected seeds or even plants without permission. The late Diana Horton, who long ran the University of Iowa herbarium and created the most complete list of Rochester\u2019s some 400 species, once cut down several of the prairie\u2019s red cedars, much to Thomsen\u2019s chagrin. The trees are native to the area (\u201cIt\u2019s called the Cedar River,\u201d she quipped), but not to oak savannas. Some locals, who come to the cemetery simply to mourn their loved ones, see the outsiders themselves as the invasive species. Of course, it\u2019s a matter of perspective \u2014 descendants of pioneers here can trace their ownership back to the original land stolen from the area\u2019s Indigenous peoples.<\/p><p>But the biggest point of conflict, here as at prairie cemeteries across Iowa and Illinois, comes from locals with varying ideas of what a cemetery should be. Rochester Township owns the cemetery, and its trustees manage it, along with most of the town\u2019s affairs. Most of Iowa\u2019s cemetery prairies are no longer active, working cemeteries. That makes it easier for conservationists like Rosburg to make the case to trustees for controlled burns and other active management strategies \u2014 the prairie is part of the pioneer history of those cemeteries, something to be preserved. But Rochester still has burials every year, which heightens tensions.<\/p><p>The Nature Conservancy recognized Rochester as a high-quality site for prairie plants back in the 1980s and got permission to do a controlled burn then. But its proposal to cease burials there to prevent damage to prairie plants was \u201cincendiary\u201d to locals, Longmire told me. Since then, fierce debates have arisen repeatedly over proposals to mow more frequently \u2014 Thomsen told me that one of her aunts tried to oust an incumbent trustee solely over the need for increased mowing during the 2006 election.<\/p><p>But infrequent mowing is what preserved the prairie. Rochester was hayed for livestock under pioneer ownership and, more recently, due to limited staff time and township funding, mowed annually in the fall so mourners could find their family stones. That cadence mimics the fires and grazing by bison and livestock that historically rejuvenated prairie, keeping woody plants at bay.<\/p><!-- Quote Block Template -->\n\n<figure class=\"quote\">\n\n  <blockquote class=\"quote__container\">\n\n    <div class=\"quote__text\">\n      &#8220;Compared to other forms of American wilderness, prairies are hard to love \u2014 they don\u2019t easily fall into the category of the sublime like giant sequoias or Yosemite waterfalls. You have to get really close to appreciate the complex beauty.&#8221;    <\/div>\n\n    \n    <div class=\"quote__social-media\">\n      <div\n        class=\"a2a_kit a2a_kit_size_35 a2a_default_style\"\n        data-a2a-url=\"https:\/\/www.noemamag.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/wpm-article\/86597\"\n        data-a2a-title='\"Compared to other forms of American wilderness, prairies are hard to love \u2014 they don\u2019t easily fall into the category of the sublime like giant sequoias or Yosemite waterfalls. You have to get really close to appreciate the complex beauty.\"'\n      >\n        <a class=\"a2a_button_facebook\"><\/a>\n        <a class=\"a2a_button_twitter\"><\/a>\n        <a class=\"a2a_button_email\"><\/a>\n      <\/div>\n    <\/div>\n  <\/blockquote>\n<\/figure><p>There are always residents who want this cemetery to resemble the familiar urban variety, Sarah Subbert, Cedar County\u2019s naturalist, told me. \u201cWell, that\u2019s not what Iowa was \u2026 If you mowed it every week, you wouldn\u2019t have that diversity out there at all.\u201d<\/p><p>Some residents take mowing around their family stones into their own hands, having been officially permitted to do so by management rules enacted in 2016. This has resulted in a more traditional-looking patch of close-cropped grass at the center of the cemetery surrounding the most recent burials, encircled by prairie on all sides \u2014 a sort of compromise visible on the landscape.<\/p><!-- Content Image Block Template -->\n<div class=\"\n  content-image\n  content-image--fit_content  \">\n\n  <div class=\"content-image__container\">\n\n    <!-- Main Image -->\n    <div class=\"content-image__main-wrapper\">\n\n              <div class=\"\">\n              <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2100\" height=\"1495\" src=\"https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/LONGMIRE67.jpg?fm=pjpg&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;s=b90c47bdf3d408a0ca350da3fb89ec5c\" class=\"attachment-full size-full\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/LONGMIRE67.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=214&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=300&amp;wpsize=medium&amp;s=589488a88bd24c5997c77e4cca542299 300w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/LONGMIRE67.jpg?fit=crop&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=512&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=1024&amp;wpsize=noema-social-twitter&amp;s=ca5c1e1395ce278b0761e3662400bf7f 1024w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/LONGMIRE67.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=547&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=768&amp;wpsize=medium_large&amp;s=7d7937383d3612e546b275d2a45ae773 768w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/LONGMIRE67.jpg?fm=pjpg&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;s=b90c47bdf3d408a0ca350da3fb89ec5c 2100w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/LONGMIRE67.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=854&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=1200&amp;wpsize=post-thumbnail&amp;s=dd09eb783cdf97e9442d643c8d8fa5be 1200w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/LONGMIRE67.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=1093&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=1536&amp;wpsize=1536x1536&amp;s=7771e0be1c91f0d2a3a4f75737536c4b 1536w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/LONGMIRE67.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=1458&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=2048&amp;wpsize=2048x2048&amp;s=72c02659272aeff27a5a0a58faa4fdd3 2048w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/LONGMIRE67.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=1410&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=1980&amp;wpsize=twentytwenty-fullscreen&amp;s=5163b9cbf9428ae9397018456d9fada7 1980w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/LONGMIRE67.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=427&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=600&amp;wpsize=woocommerce_single&amp;s=0cca443a2487714ecc53fe81c44ecf0f 600w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2100px) 100vw, 2100px\" \/>        <div class=\"content-image__overlay content-image__overlay-0\">\n        <\/div>\n        <\/div>\n      <\/div>\n\n      <\/div>\n\n  <div class=\"content-image__captions\">\n        <div class=\"content-image__main-caption\">\n          \n      <figcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">\n        <div>Pedee Cemetery, an example of a typical country cemetery in eastern Iowa. Photo by Stephen Longmire from his book, &#8220;Life and Death on the Prairie&#8221; (George F. Thompson Publishing, 2011).<\/div>\n      <\/figcaption>\n\n        <\/div>\n    \n      <\/div>\n\n\n<\/div><!-- Content Image Block Template -->\n<div class=\"\n  content-image\n  content-image--double_image  \">\n\n  <div class=\"content-image__container\">\n\n    <!-- Main Image -->\n    <div class=\"content-image__main-wrapper\">\n\n            <div class=\"\">\n              <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"723\" height=\"516\" src=\"https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2025\/12\/Stephen_Longmire_1.jpg?fm=pjpg&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;s=0b011f5cc5c88d543bf384bcf04d3478\" class=\"attachment-full size-full\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2025\/12\/Stephen_Longmire_1.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=214&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=300&amp;wpsize=medium&amp;s=4d659617a6cef8bab4c6e7461da9963e 300w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2025\/12\/Stephen_Longmire_1.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=731&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=1024&amp;wpsize=large&amp;s=2e0ab1d6c2df16c093f7a02a5e59bf28 1024w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2025\/12\/Stephen_Longmire_1.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=428&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=600&amp;wpsize=woocommerce_single&amp;s=b0fe3e901975bdee54dc0d8786b3c519 600w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2025\/12\/Stephen_Longmire_1.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=856&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=1200&amp;wpsize=post-thumbnail&amp;s=c81056ab8722e5066b2f2be9dc84ff4a 1200w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2025\/12\/Stephen_Longmire_1.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=1096&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=1536&amp;wpsize=1536x1536&amp;s=6032792f4353b43a466e23be800481a0 1536w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2025\/12\/Stephen_Longmire_1.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=1462&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=2048&amp;wpsize=2048x2048&amp;s=30940e2b232fb70d9deca4a499427f40 2048w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2025\/12\/Stephen_Longmire_1.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=1413&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=1980&amp;wpsize=twentytwenty-fullscreen&amp;s=13c3b797349326dab48d3e77915d625d 1980w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2025\/12\/Stephen_Longmire_1.jpg?fm=pjpg&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;s=0b011f5cc5c88d543bf384bcf04d3478 723w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 723px) 100vw, 723px\" \/>        <div class=\"content-image__overlay content-image__overlay-0\">\n        <\/div>\n        <\/div>\n      <\/div>\n\n          <!-- Secondary image. Only for 'Double Image' option -->\n      <div class=\"content-image__secondary-wrapper\">\n\n        <!-- <div class=\"aspect-ratio-wrapper\"> -->\n        <div class=\"\">\n          <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2100\" height=\"1494\" src=\"https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/LONGMIRE8.jpg?fm=pjpg&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;s=ef642780e7a1799527f87df9428f7be5\" class=\"attachment-full size-full\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/LONGMIRE8.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=213&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=300&amp;wpsize=medium&amp;s=39fe356a309ad5beae2d7f85be757a76 300w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/LONGMIRE8.jpg?fit=crop&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=512&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=1024&amp;wpsize=noema-social-twitter&amp;s=abe863051ab6b76d8783b0703eec164d 1024w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/LONGMIRE8.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=546&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=768&amp;wpsize=medium_large&amp;s=492b7c38457bfda1402e8c3d69a6e7c0 768w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/LONGMIRE8.jpg?fm=pjpg&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;s=ef642780e7a1799527f87df9428f7be5 2100w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/LONGMIRE8.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=854&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=1200&amp;wpsize=post-thumbnail&amp;s=0f640e77948dc156e8867d6fcedc7cfc 1200w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/LONGMIRE8.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=1093&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=1536&amp;wpsize=1536x1536&amp;s=fdcb2b92084c0f952dcc36e6cdeec9d9 1536w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/LONGMIRE8.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=1457&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=2048&amp;wpsize=2048x2048&amp;s=5c9c3ec3265c994c56eb4508769d850f 2048w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/LONGMIRE8.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=1409&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=1980&amp;wpsize=twentytwenty-fullscreen&amp;s=a1006e1279fc0eca200fe4945693854f 1980w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/LONGMIRE8.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=427&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=600&amp;wpsize=woocommerce_single&amp;s=b839db23683167e066994ea9fea3463d 600w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2100px) 100vw, 2100px\" \/>          <div class=\"content-image__overlay content-image__overlay-0\"><\/div>\n        <\/div>\n\n      <\/div>\n\n      <\/div>\n\n  <div class=\"content-image__captions\">\n        <div class=\"content-image__main-caption\">\n          \n      <figcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">\n        <div>Left: A hillside in Rochester Cemetery with black-eyed Susans and black oak. (Stephen Longmire\/&#8221;Life and Death on the Prairie&#8221;) Right: A farm near Rochester, Iowa. (Stephen Longmire\/&#8221;Life and Death on the Prairie&#8221;)<\/div>\n      <\/figcaption>\n\n        <\/div>\n    \n      <\/div>\n\n\n<\/div><h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-on-nature-amp-culture\">On Nature &amp; Culture<\/h2><p>I fell in love with tallgrass prairie as an undergrad at Augustana College in Rock Island, Illinois. Not with the plants, as many of my botany peers did, but with the idea of prairie as a human construct. If you try to fence off a prairie and preserve it \u2014 freeze it in time \u2014&nbsp;it\u2019ll disappear as woody plants and trees slowly encroach. That was a point of fierce debate in the 1980s and \u201890s, when conservationists like Betz, the early discoverer of cemetery prairies, and Steve Packard in Chicago advocated for controlled burns and more active management of prairie remnants and restorations.<\/p><p>Critics saw restoration as gardening or meddling with nature. I thought of the vast western nature preserves that William Cronon described in \u201cThe Trouble with Wilderness,\u201d and the irony of the government ousting the area\u2019s Indigenous peoples \u2014&nbsp;who had been stewarding the land \u2014 from their homes to create national parks to preserve now government-recognized wilderness. Nature has always been a part of the human realm. But prairie especially so.<\/p><p>\u201cThe whole \u2018let nature take its course\u2019 thing, or wilderness as a place without people, all those things break down very quickly in the tallgrass prairie,\u201d Helzer, who manages thousands of acres of prairie in Nebraska, told me.<\/p><p>So I started seeking out prairies and other native ecosystems in Iowa and Illinois as a restoration volunteer. I pulled and cut invasives like buckthorn and multiflora rose and helped prepare for burns. When Rock Island decided to reintroduce prairie in a historic, Victorian-style, manicured park near my college, I dedicated my senior thesis to assessing how community members felt about the effort.<\/p><p>What I learned really surprised me \u2014 residents used words like \u201cabandoned,\u201d \u201cunkempt,\u201d \u201ctrashy\u201d and \u201cunwelcoming\u201d to describe the unmowed areas. Several told me they felt like the \u201cwild\u201d had \u201cinvaded\u201d the park and worried about this inviting \u201cvandalism and crime\u201d or \u201cundesirable\u201d people. That\u2019s a conflation \u2014 famously made in New York City\u2019s broken windows policing initiative \u2014 that some anthropologists have deemed \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/www.jstor.org\/stable\/26979905?seq=1\">trash talk<\/a>.\u201d<\/p><p>To be fair, the initial restorations were of low quality. The parks department, perhaps unfamiliar with the history of prairie management, which requires careful selection and seeding of native species and controlled burns, took a laissez-faire approach. Later, the city acknowledged the \u201cnaturalized\u201d areas weren\u2019t exactly beautiful at first and began to plant more prairie grasses and flowers. But the negative attitudes stuck with me, long after I graduated. The nature-culture divide, established over two centuries of American civilization, is a challenge to bridge in the city.<\/p><p>Parks and graveyards are both \u201cmemorial landscapes,\u201d Longmire writes in his photography book about Rochester, \u201cLife and Death on the Prairie,\u201d places where nature is manipulated to human ends. But cemeteries are culturally sacred places. That\u2019s why I had to see Rochester\u2019s cemetery prairie for myself. What way forward \u2014&nbsp;if any \u2014&nbsp;had its managers figured out to help with the coexistence of not just plants but also culture?<\/p><!-- Content Image Block Template -->\n<div class=\"\n  content-image\n  content-image--full_width  \">\n\n  <div class=\"content-image__container\">\n\n    <!-- Main Image -->\n    <div class=\"content-image__main-wrapper\">\n\n              <div class=\"aspect-ratio-wrapper\">\n              <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1706\" src=\"https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9928-scaled.jpg?fm=pjpg&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;s=b6d9856480430166e91ed1313e07c0e2\" class=\"attachment-full size-full\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9928-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=200&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=300&amp;wpsize=medium&amp;s=0e5c24a511d12431abc7e542d00c7256 300w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9928-scaled.jpg?fit=crop&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=512&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=1024&amp;wpsize=noema-social-twitter&amp;s=2e2344bf69ef127a7bfae80d0f469f5e 1024w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9928-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=512&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=768&amp;wpsize=medium_large&amp;s=a7d63be461b04673ff1ee715c8f09ae5 768w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9928-scaled.jpg?fit=crop&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=511&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=767&amp;wpsize=noema-listing-tile&amp;s=739a1cd935ffe6ea40133d25897a5c11 767w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9928-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=800&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=1200&amp;wpsize=post-thumbnail&amp;s=ea8c388b43bc74ff935666bc5d7f4175 1200w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9928-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=1024&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=1536&amp;wpsize=1536x1536&amp;s=0cfa9c510d886835ab3fcc885d0ebe8d 1536w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9928-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=1365&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=2048&amp;wpsize=2048x2048&amp;s=8b9ea63c0be4e67a47331af0b0ef698a 2048w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9928-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=1319&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=1980&amp;wpsize=twentytwenty-fullscreen&amp;s=fa5c429384cf7d3aeaed5c00f7ca97c1 1980w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9928-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=400&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=600&amp;wpsize=woocommerce_single&amp;s=8b9dca4af876517969347a4b6b13b4e5 600w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9928-scaled.jpg?fm=pjpg&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;s=b6d9856480430166e91ed1313e07c0e2 2560w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\" \/>        <div class=\"content-image__overlay content-image__overlay-0\">\n        <\/div>\n        <\/div>\n      <\/div>\n\n      <\/div>\n\n  <div class=\"content-image__captions\">\n        <div class=\"content-image__main-caption\">\n          \n      <figcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">\n        <div>Volunteers at the garlic mustard pull organized by the Iowa Prairie Network fill buckets with uprooted invasive plants. (Christian Elliott)<\/div>\n      <\/figcaption>\n\n        <\/div>\n    \n      <\/div>\n\n\n<\/div><!-- Content Image Block Template -->\n<div class=\"\n  content-image\n  content-image--double_image  \">\n\n  <div class=\"content-image__container\">\n\n    <!-- Main Image -->\n    <div class=\"content-image__main-wrapper\">\n\n            <div class=\"\">\n              <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1706\" src=\"https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9932-scaled.jpg?fm=pjpg&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;s=862525c0a89caa8c071c90d977e3861a\" class=\"attachment-full size-full\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9932-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=200&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=300&amp;wpsize=medium&amp;s=1d4a8eb9bd532102b546e20c31a1616c 300w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9932-scaled.jpg?fit=crop&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=512&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=1024&amp;wpsize=noema-social-twitter&amp;s=8ce4004eb87ff2a75307b0e30606a882 1024w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9932-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=512&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=768&amp;wpsize=medium_large&amp;s=c5386df7ff6ca375be275fff67848a35 768w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9932-scaled.jpg?fit=crop&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=511&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=767&amp;wpsize=noema-listing-tile&amp;s=1f5b4f78080a8bad1b1ffe39ee5197f7 767w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9932-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=800&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=1200&amp;wpsize=post-thumbnail&amp;s=bd97edc2fb195ce17ea2a51f0581e13f 1200w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9932-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=1024&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=1536&amp;wpsize=1536x1536&amp;s=a150d40913a9ab1bc6cb1c29098398e0 1536w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9932-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=1365&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=2048&amp;wpsize=2048x2048&amp;s=d4f580fd7651d9836d3de8f8c57de936 2048w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9932-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=1319&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=1980&amp;wpsize=twentytwenty-fullscreen&amp;s=2775b146cfccefe3d918b8602c134bbd 1980w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9932-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=400&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=600&amp;wpsize=woocommerce_single&amp;s=ba18333e24b3ac092169191144b7568b 600w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9932-scaled.jpg?fm=pjpg&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;s=862525c0a89caa8c071c90d977e3861a 2560w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\" \/>        <div class=\"content-image__overlay content-image__overlay-0\">\n        <\/div>\n        <\/div>\n      <\/div>\n\n          <!-- Secondary image. Only for 'Double Image' option -->\n      <div class=\"content-image__secondary-wrapper\">\n\n        <!-- <div class=\"aspect-ratio-wrapper\"> -->\n        <div class=\"\">\n          <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1706\" src=\"https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9895-scaled.jpg?fm=pjpg&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;s=7d9a26aa1dfcf6a1e5d2028141868058\" class=\"attachment-full size-full\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9895-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=200&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=300&amp;wpsize=medium&amp;s=3f390bf6d16d745b1551ae069177000b 300w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9895-scaled.jpg?fit=crop&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=512&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=1024&amp;wpsize=noema-social-twitter&amp;s=1b0f4d20551c3de3d8c4e3fa9dc03989 1024w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9895-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=512&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=768&amp;wpsize=medium_large&amp;s=48649ecc73e29517d2efb7745271e94c 768w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9895-scaled.jpg?fit=crop&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=511&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=767&amp;wpsize=noema-listing-tile&amp;s=6aecc1616940b4669c87af4edd23fb23 767w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9895-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=800&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=1200&amp;wpsize=post-thumbnail&amp;s=875919f3fd34b96555b462c25b70c561 1200w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9895-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=1024&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=1536&amp;wpsize=1536x1536&amp;s=813ae091fc80f34ec8f331fe996393c9 1536w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9895-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=1365&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=2048&amp;wpsize=2048x2048&amp;s=c443689e51b7dad354023cc747790fb9 2048w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9895-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=1319&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=1980&amp;wpsize=twentytwenty-fullscreen&amp;s=2cd5fcfd094ca521a6e0648b944faa8c 1980w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9895-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=400&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=600&amp;wpsize=woocommerce_single&amp;s=b9f382cd9ac91c3652bc0f9fb16bb5c4 600w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9895-scaled.jpg?fm=pjpg&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;s=7d9a26aa1dfcf6a1e5d2028141868058 2560w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\" \/>          <div class=\"content-image__overlay content-image__overlay-0\"><\/div>\n        <\/div>\n\n      <\/div>\n\n      <\/div>\n\n  <div class=\"content-image__captions\">\n        <div class=\"content-image__main-caption\">\n          \n      <figcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">\n        <div>Left: Volunteers search the prairie for garlic mustard and other invasive plants encroaching from the woods on all sides. (Christian Elliott) Right: Jacie Thomsen, the cemetery\u2019s burial manager, in a quiet moment leaning against the prod she uses to find lost, buried markers. (Christian Elliott)<\/div>\n      <\/figcaption>\n\n        <\/div>\n    \n      <\/div>\n\n\n<\/div><h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-people-of-the-prairie\">People Of The Prairie<\/h2><p>Back at Rochester, Thomsen led me away from the garlic mustard pull to show me her favorite part of the cemetery. She grew up just to the north and spent her summers here with her best friend, who once eerily foretold that Thomsen would someday become the cemetery\u2019s guardian.&nbsp;<\/p><p>In 2011, the township asked her to become a trustee and the burial manager.<\/p><p>Even setting aside its sprangly prairie vegetation, Rochester is a chaotic sort of cemetery. A resident can pick a plot, but that doesn\u2019t guarantee it will be available. (\u201cSomebody might already be there,\u201d Thomsen told me.) On a metal park bench under an oak, Thomsen unrolled a copy of a survey from the 1980s with graves marked with little Xs: \u201cIt\u2019s accurate to a degree,\u201d she said.<\/p><!-- Quote Block Template -->\n\n<figure class=\"quote\">\n\n  <blockquote class=\"quote__container\">\n\n    <div class=\"quote__text\">\n      &#8220;Most of a prairie plant\u2019s biomass is underground, in the form of deep root systems that allow it to spring back to life after frequent fires.&#8221;    <\/div>\n\n    \n    <div class=\"quote__social-media\">\n      <div\n        class=\"a2a_kit a2a_kit_size_35 a2a_default_style\"\n        data-a2a-url=\"https:\/\/www.noemamag.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/wpm-article\/86597\"\n        data-a2a-title='\"Most of a prairie plant\u2019s biomass is underground, in the form of deep root systems that allow it to spring back to life after frequent fires.\"'\n      >\n        <a class=\"a2a_button_facebook\"><\/a>\n        <a class=\"a2a_button_twitter\"><\/a>\n        <a class=\"a2a_button_email\"><\/a>\n      <\/div>\n    <\/div>\n  <\/blockquote>\n<\/figure><p>Thomsen\u2019s found hundreds of unmarked graves with her trusty prod and dug up and restored many broken and long-forgotten stones \u2014 as of December 2025, she was up to 1,061. And after 15 years, she knows where all her \u201cresidents\u201d are \u2014 and all their stories. She\u2019s met their descendants and walked with them to their long-lost relatives. She\u2019s dug through newspaper archives for obituaries and uploaded records to FindAGrave.com. Growing up, she wanted to be an archaeologist.<\/p><p>Surefooted in the tall grass, Thomsen led the way uphill to a spot near the cemetery\u2019s boundary fence, far from the mustard-pulling crew. Here we visited Rebecca Green, who died on Sept. 25, 1838, at the age of seven months. This made her grave the cemetery\u2019s oldest, Thomsen told me. Green is surrounded by pink prairie phlox and purple columbine, as she would have been when her parents, Eliza and William Green, buried her here next to where they\u2019d eventually be laid to rest. Thomsen wondered aloud if they\u2019d picked this place for its colorful flowers. The Greens arrived in Rochester in 1837, just a year after its founding, from Kentucky and Maryland, respectively. Their home served as a hotel for travelers and a stop on the underground railroad.&nbsp;<\/p><p>\u201cWhen you come here, you\u2019re looking at what they saw and what made them stay,\u201d Thomsen told me. \u201cThis is the pioneer\u2019s gift that they left for us. We are respecting that, even if everybody doesn\u2019t get it, when they\u2019re so used to manicured, <em>boring.<\/em>\u201d She\u2019s protective of this place, and her job isn\u2019t easy. Sometimes trustees make decisions without her, mowing too early last year, for example, which prevented a controlled burn she was planning. She\u2019s used to having to fight to be heard. She yanks poison ivy off a newer stone that reads \u201cCaptain Andrew Walker\u201d \u2014 a Mexican and Civil War veteran buried in \u201ca pauper\u2019s grave\u201d after he died at the Mt. Pleasant Asylum for the Insane. Thomsen tracked down his pension file and honored him with a stone on his family\u2019s plot at Rochester.<\/p><p>I asked Thomsen whether she knew where she wanted to be buried. And of course, she did. She\u2019s known since she was a child. The highest hill along the back fence, under an oak \u2014 a spot that\u2019s always called to her. Thomsen gets goosebumps thinking about it. \u201cThere\u2019s energy to the land, and we all leave our little imprint somehow.\u201d The cemetery remembers the prairie, and the prairie remembers the people buried within it. Like the Greens, Thomsen\u2019s family is mostly here, \u201cfour rows of kin\u201d \u2014 her grandma and grandpa, her aunt, three uncles, her sister-in-law, two of those lost just last year. Her own staked-out spot is some distance away from the family plot \u2014 \u201cSometimes you can be a little too close to family, even in death.\u201d<\/p><p>When Longmire spent his years in Rochester, he lamented that there was a \u201cdearth of people who could see both sides of the coin,\u201d he told me \u2014 to appreciate Rochester as both a natural and cultural wonder. But just as he left, Thomsen arrived on the scene. In her big binder, she keeps a pamphlet from his book talk. She knows all the stones, but she also knows the prairie \u2014 the common names (and some she\u2019s made up) for each of the plants and the spots they come up every year, including the secret place the lady slipper orchid grows. She knows each of the towering oaks by name \u2014 the bear tree (a burr oak with a burr that resembles a cub climbing one side); the guardian, which stood tallest on the hill before a derecho felled it. She cried and mourned its death.<\/p><p>I had expected conflict at Rochester. But instead, I found someone who cared enough to shepherd compromise. If it can be done here, on hallowed ground, maybe it can be done anywhere.<\/p><!-- Content Image Block Template -->\n<div class=\"\n  content-image\n  content-image--full_width  \">\n\n  <div class=\"content-image__container\">\n\n    <!-- Main Image -->\n    <div class=\"content-image__main-wrapper\">\n\n              <div class=\"aspect-ratio-wrapper\">\n              <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1706\" src=\"https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9922-scaled.jpg?fm=pjpg&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;s=1f11852db22714f38c57d076c2f144d6\" class=\"attachment-full size-full\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9922-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=200&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=300&amp;wpsize=medium&amp;s=79a4644d08999d5e7cd169e6f80f915d 300w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9922-scaled.jpg?fit=crop&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=512&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=1024&amp;wpsize=noema-social-twitter&amp;s=8e76610ff88fc5ef3c4a55912ffad951 1024w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9922-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=512&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=768&amp;wpsize=medium_large&amp;s=f8cd5435a58795fdfcd11c882d2ebb64 768w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9922-scaled.jpg?fit=crop&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=511&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=767&amp;wpsize=noema-listing-tile&amp;s=6d09c76324222c912d2b0800f44f594f 767w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9922-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=800&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=1200&amp;wpsize=post-thumbnail&amp;s=89403f90fdedc0fc1bd5b8b9e004926c 1200w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9922-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=1024&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=1536&amp;wpsize=1536x1536&amp;s=01410e0256e683f740a70c48f9db98f2 1536w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9922-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=1365&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=2048&amp;wpsize=2048x2048&amp;s=140fbc0444dbc145374518fe5459d0b0 2048w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9922-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=1319&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=1980&amp;wpsize=twentytwenty-fullscreen&amp;s=8b982f5af77dcb2e781c72e5f325841d 1980w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9922-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=400&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=600&amp;wpsize=woocommerce_single&amp;s=44a99c5886fd751934f1f124f68fbd5f 600w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9922-scaled.jpg?fm=pjpg&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;s=1f11852db22714f38c57d076c2f144d6 2560w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\" \/>        <div class=\"content-image__overlay content-image__overlay-0\">\n        <\/div>\n        <\/div>\n      <\/div>\n\n      <\/div>\n\n  <div class=\"content-image__captions\">\n        <div class=\"content-image__main-caption\">\n          \n      <figcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">\n        <div>A hill of blooming shooting stars, native to North America and one of the species being actively protected by restoration efforts, in the heart of Rochester Cemetery. (Christian Elliott)<\/div>\n      <\/figcaption>\n\n        <\/div>\n    \n      <\/div>\n\n\n<\/div><h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-life-persists\">Life Persists<\/h2><p>Lost in thought, I realized Thomsen had taken off down the hill. I waded after her. She wanted to point out a new plant she\u2019d spotted to Sears, the mustard pull organizer. Each little stalk was ringed with a spiraling firework of yellow blossoms.<\/p><p>\u201cOh, that\u2019s lousewort!\u201d he told her, \u201cLaura would be really excited to see that!\u201d<\/p><p>Thomsen cupped her hands around her mouth and shouted for Laura Walter.<\/p><!-- Quote Block Template -->\n\n<figure class=\"quote\">\n\n  <blockquote class=\"quote__container\">\n\n    <div class=\"quote__text\">\n      &#8220;The cemetery remembers the prairie, and the prairie remembers the people buried within it.&#8221;    <\/div>\n\n    \n    <div class=\"quote__social-media\">\n      <div\n        class=\"a2a_kit a2a_kit_size_35 a2a_default_style\"\n        data-a2a-url=\"https:\/\/www.noemamag.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/wpm-article\/86597\"\n        data-a2a-title='\"The cemetery remembers the prairie, and the prairie remembers the people buried within it.\"'\n      >\n        <a class=\"a2a_button_facebook\"><\/a>\n        <a class=\"a2a_button_twitter\"><\/a>\n        <a class=\"a2a_button_email\"><\/a>\n      <\/div>\n    <\/div>\n  <\/blockquote>\n<\/figure><p>Walter, the scientist, wandered over, a bag overflowing with uprooted garlic mustard invaders tied around her waist. She excitedly knelt to examine the tiny plant, lifting her wide-brimmed hat. Finding lousewort usually means you\u2019re dealing with high-quality remnant prairie, she told me, a \u201choly grail.\u201d It\u2019s partially parasitic, with roots that penetrate those of other plants underground to pirate water and mineral nutrients. In doing so, it suppresses its victim\u2019s growth and keeps the prairie more open, promoting diversity. That kind of complex relationship is hard to recreate when doing restoration work. The plants nearby did look a little droopy. Had it already raided their nutrients and left a warning sign for others? I asked.<\/p><p>\u201cIt\u2019s tantalizing to think about,\u201d Walter laughed. She took a geolocated photo, and later, with the township\u2019s permission, returned to collect its seeds.&nbsp;<\/p><p>Walter then pointed excitedly at a blooming shooting star a few feet away. As we watched, a large bumblebee hovered upside down under its blossom and landed. In the spring, new bumblebee queens fly great distances to start new colonies, she told me. They depend on a few early blooming prairie flower species, like the shooting star, which have co-evolved to release pollen at specific bumblebee buzz frequencies.<\/p><p>\u201cIt\u2019s funny, this is a cemetery, it\u2019s where you honor the dead,\u201d she mused. \u201cBut here you can also come and honor an abundance of life.\u201d<\/p><p>Walter has collected shooting star seeds from remnants across the state, but they\u2019re tricky to propagate. In the first growing season, a plant produces tiny seed leaves, a centimeter across. The following year, it gains a tiny tuft of true leaves. It can take five years to flower and produce seeds. Prairie restoration managers typically favor vigorous, fast-growing species that can outcompete invasive species and establish quickly.<\/p><p>Sitting in a prairie, you come to appreciate its beauty. The sheer complexity surrounding us was overwhelming. And it continued, invisibly, beneath the soil \u2014 every remnant prairie has a fungal and microorganism community unique to the soil type and plant community.<\/p><p>\u201cThink about all the things that we don\u2019t know, and that don\u2019t come back on their own,\u201d Walter said. \u201cWe have to preserve those relationships in the places where they exist until we understand them.\u201d<\/p><!-- Content Image Block Template -->\n<div class=\"\n  content-image\n  content-image--full_width  \">\n\n  <div class=\"content-image__container\">\n\n    <!-- Main Image -->\n    <div class=\"content-image__main-wrapper\">\n\n              <div class=\"aspect-ratio-wrapper\">\n              <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1706\" src=\"https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9921-scaled.jpg?fm=pjpg&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;s=0508c73424cdb40f04e27368989b1d62\" class=\"attachment-full size-full\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9921-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=200&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=300&amp;wpsize=medium&amp;s=4e3c17dd86ebc56b70264ec351fade8d 300w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9921-scaled.jpg?fit=crop&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=512&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=1024&amp;wpsize=noema-social-twitter&amp;s=b0655df504ae9d2f796ed737e5516a48 1024w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9921-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=512&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=768&amp;wpsize=medium_large&amp;s=ac997cfbde8bf88358b90c71ed77a76d 768w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9921-scaled.jpg?fit=crop&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=511&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=767&amp;wpsize=noema-listing-tile&amp;s=638a008f2e8ee7f9153a188ff4fb576b 767w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9921-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=800&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=1200&amp;wpsize=post-thumbnail&amp;s=eb7ad05ca5ad76da72a66659386a0b3e 1200w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9921-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=1024&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=1536&amp;wpsize=1536x1536&amp;s=de14d8866559811f640a85bb9afa11c2 1536w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9921-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=1365&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=2048&amp;wpsize=2048x2048&amp;s=36210ccf7fb1fccf5ba25e5d3380d0db 2048w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9921-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=1319&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=1980&amp;wpsize=twentytwenty-fullscreen&amp;s=f4d9927e76502475fa6ebe0825411848 1980w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9921-scaled.jpg?fit=scale&amp;fm=pjpg&amp;h=400&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;w=600&amp;wpsize=woocommerce_single&amp;s=f7106a55c7a2925a77cb0c12fc170093 600w, https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9921-scaled.jpg?fm=pjpg&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;s=0508c73424cdb40f04e27368989b1d62 2560w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\" \/>        <div class=\"content-image__overlay content-image__overlay-0\">\n        <\/div>\n        <\/div>\n      <\/div>\n\n      <\/div>\n\n  <div class=\"content-image__captions\">\n        <div class=\"content-image__main-caption\">\n          \n      <figcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">\n        <div>Rochester Cemetery is a model of what scientists call artisanal restorations \u2014 small-scale prairies conjured forth on private land and are helping bring back prairie at a larger scale. (Christian Elliott)<\/div>\n      <\/figcaption>\n\n        <\/div>\n    \n      <\/div>\n\n\n<\/div><h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-fate-of-the-prairie\">Fate Of The Prairie<\/h2><p>The future of tallgrass prairie remains uncertain. The Midwestern states are speckled with more and higher-quality restorations today than when efforts began in the 1980s; however, Iowa\u2019s unique roadside vegetation program depends on county and state-level support, which is at a low point under the current administration.<\/p><p>The Burr Oak Land Trust, an Iowa conservation group that for years sent AmeriCorps volunteers to Rochester and other remnant prairies to pull invasive species and conduct prescribed burns, <a href=\"https:\/\/iowacapitaldispatch.com\/2025\/08\/20\/iowa-conservation-group-joins-suit-for-frozen-americorps-funding\/\">lost its funding<\/a> due to Department of Government Efficiency cuts this year. The Prairie Research Institute in Illinois lost <a href=\"https:\/\/dailyillini.com\/news-stories\/science-technology\/2025\/10\/14\/dept-of-energy-cuts-funding-prairie-research-institute\/\">$21 million in federal funding<\/a> last fall. And opt-in programs, like the Conservation Reserve Program, where the federal government pays farmers to take marginal land out of crop production and return it to prairie or wetland, depend on the whims of the market, Jonathan Dahlem, an Iowa State University sociologist who studies farming conservation practices, told me. When corn and soybean prices rise, like they have over the past two decades, farmers are eager to plow up restorations to seed row crops even if yields aren\u2019t expected to be high.&nbsp;<\/p><p>Rosburg said he finds hope in the increasing number of remnants discovered each year on forgotten pastures, along roads and in cemeteries. Universities like to talk about the \u201coutsized impact\u201d of small restorations, Jackson told me. But in reality, \u201cevery little bit helps a little bit,\u201d she said.<\/p><p>I find my own hope in this place and in these people. At the end of the day, after the garlic mustard pull was over, Thomsen and Walter walked together up the hills, sharing their intimate and yet very different knowledge of the place.<\/p><p>Longmire calls Rochester Cemetery a <em>memento mori <\/em>\u2014 a reminder for living visitors of both their inevitable fate and of what Iowa lost. Funerals, gravestones and cemeteries are for the living \u2014 and this is a place that is alive, with plants and humans. Rochester is a time capsule of the past and a key to the future.<\/p><p>As I left, a truck and trailer pulled into the prairie to unload a riding lawn mower. The roar of the engine drowned out the buzz of insects as its operator carefully mowed around their family stone. It\u2019s not a sight you\u2019d see in a typical prairie. But here, it\u2019s what compromise looks \u2013 and sounds \u2014 like.&nbsp;<\/p><p>I later learned that the man who had mowed around the gravestones of many Rochester families for years as a public service had passed away that same day. The sea of tallgrass grew unchecked in the following months, surging against the gravestones like waves \u2014 a constant reminder that he was gone. Concerned families have started asking Thomsen how the cemetery will be maintained going forward \u2014 how nature will be held at bay. A similar series of events sparked the big fight over mowing back in 2006. I worry a little about the prairie\u2019s future and Thomsen\u2019s hold over the fragile balance here.<\/p><p>\u201cBut isn\u2019t it wonderful,\u201d Longmire asked me, \u201cto have a place that people take so seriously to fight about how it\u2019s managed?\u201d<\/p>\n          <div class=\"eos-subscribe-push\">\n          \n            <a target=\"https:\/\/shop.noemamag.com\/?utm_source=BottomCTA&utm_medium=website\" href=\"https:\/\/shop.noemamag.com\/?utm_source=BottomCTA&utm_medium=website\" data-wpel-link=\"internal\">Enjoy the read? Subscribe to get the best of Noema.<\/a>\n            \n          <\/div>\n        ","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":7185,"featured_media":86603,"template":"","wpm-article-type":[4],"wpm-article-topic":[22,23],"wpm-article-tag":[],"class_list":["post-86597","wpm-article","type-wpm-article","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","wpm-article-type-feature","wpm-article-topic-climate-crisis","wpm-article-topic-philosophy-culture"],"acf":[],"apple_news_notices":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v25.0 (Yoast SEO v25.0) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Where The Prairie Still Remains<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Are pioneer cemeteries key to the Iowa prairie\u2019s revival, or its final resting place?\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.noemamag.com\/where-the-prairie-still-remains\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Where The Prairie Still Remains\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Are pioneer cemeteries key to the Iowa prairie\u2019s revival, or its final resting place?\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.noemamag.com\/where-the-prairie-still-remains\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"NOEMA\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/NoemaMag\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-01-13T17:03:17+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9969-copy-scaled.jpg?fm=pjpg&ixlib=php-3.3.1&s=d94799dbb548e0e0f8c34b6bc0a509f3\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"2560\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1706\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:image\" content=\"https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/Noema-Twitter-Card-Vertical-Template-2026-01-06T105816.092.png?fm=png&ixlib=php-3.3.1&s=818823e40d1e5a3bf74b2662e0556806\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@NoemaMag\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"24 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.noemamag.com\/where-the-prairie-still-remains\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.noemamag.com\/where-the-prairie-still-remains\/\",\"name\":\"Where The Prairie Still Remains\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.noemamag.com\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.noemamag.com\/where-the-prairie-still-remains\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.noemamag.com\/where-the-prairie-still-remains\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9969-copy-scaled.jpg?fm=pjpg&ixlib=php-3.3.1&s=d94799dbb548e0e0f8c34b6bc0a509f3\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-01-06T18:00:43+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-01-13T17:03:17+00:00\",\"description\":\"Are pioneer cemeteries key to the Iowa prairie\u2019s revival, or its final resting place?\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.noemamag.com\/where-the-prairie-still-remains\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.noemamag.com\/where-the-prairie-still-remains\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.noemamag.com\/where-the-prairie-still-remains\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9969-copy-scaled.jpg?fm=pjpg&ixlib=php-3.3.1&s=d94799dbb548e0e0f8c34b6bc0a509f3\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/noemamag.imgix.net\/2026\/01\/DSCF9969-copy-scaled.jpg?fm=pjpg&ixlib=php-3.3.1&s=d94799dbb548e0e0f8c34b6bc0a509f3\",\"width\":2560,\"height\":1706,\"caption\":\"Headstones from the 1800s on a corner hill of Rochester Cemetery, home to not just an active cemetery but also a remnant of a once-common sight in Iowa, the place where tallgrass prairie and woodland meet. 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