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The INPAWS Small Grants and Awards Committee reviewed six proposals submitted by the February 1, 2007 deadline and made the following four awards, totalling $1500:

1- $315 to Elizabeth Middleton, PhD candidate at IU Bloomington, to purchase one pound of Baptisia leucantha (White Wild Indigo) seed for her research project "From row crop to prairie: using the prairie soil community to enhance prairie restoration efforts" which will take place at the Kankakee Sands Restoration in Newton County, Indiana, and run from May 2007 to August 2009.

This scientific study into the use of the prairie soil community to increase the abundance of late successional prairie plants in restorations will contribute to our understanding of the role of prairie soil mutualists in the establishment of such plants. The research results might prove to be very significant not only for prairie restoration efforts, but also for the successful establishment of native prairie plantings in residential and other settings.

The committee is happy to be able to support studies related to conserving Indiana's native prairie plant diversity!

2- $500 to Monroe County Parks and Recreation Department, Cathy Meyer, Naturalist, to purchase prairie seed mix for 1-1/4 acres for their project "Naturalization at Karst Farm Park" in Monroe County, Indiana.

This project involves replacing mowed areas with native plantings in a public park, and in doing so will provide habitat, educational opportunities, and beauty.

The committee applauds this effort to create natural areas among the many recreational areas in the park. These natural areas will give park visitors a chance to appreciate and become aware of the benefits of landscaping with native plants and will provide a place for park programs on butterflies, bird study, and plant identification--adding to the public's knowledge about the value of native plants not only to people but also to local wildlife.

3- $500 to Binford Redevelopment & Growth (BRAG), Inc., Jane M. Lommel, to purchase a mix of native Indiana perennials and grasses to cover 800 square feet in the public right of way at the northeast intersection of Binford Boulevard and Rucker Road for their project "Binford Boulevard Native Prairie Habitat Project" in Marion County, Indiana.

In addition to beautifying an urban area, these plantings at a prominent intersection will give visibility to Indiana native plants and, with the involvement of so many volunteers, will hopefully inspire greater use of native plants in public as well as private landscaping projects.

The committee is delighted with this group's efforts to complement the native plantings already completed on 1.5 miles of Binford Boulevard and to provide the public with a native plant alternative to mowed grass in public right of ways!

PLEASE NOTE: Jane Lommel invites INPAWS members to join other volunteers to help with the planting in this project area on Saturday, April 28th at 8 am. "Join us at the northeast corner of Binford Boulevard and Rucker Road (at the flashing lights) to help in the transformation!"

4- $185 to Friends of Turkey Run and Shades State Parks, Nancy Mattson, to pay for permanent, reusable laminated educational brochures describing the plants in the butterfly garden at Turkey Run State Park Nature Center in Parke County, Indiana--part of their project "Native Plants in the Butterfly Garden."

The Friends Group is going to restore and enhance the nature center's native plant butterfly garden, and is then going to use it as an educational tool to teach visitors about the native plants in the garden. They will accomplish this by supplementing tours and programs with these laminated plant ID sheets as well as make them available for the park's many visitors to use while visiting the nature center's butterfly garden.

The committee is very supportive of the group's efforts to restore the native plant butterfly garden and of their educational goal: to teach people about native plants and undo the public perception of native plants as being weedy!