The food sources they are planting right now are for wildlife; butterflies, birds, specifically quail and pheasants, as kits have been purchased and distributed by the members of the Hamilton County Pheasants Forever group. Schools that have received kits include St. Thomas and Sunset Heights in Webster City, Northeast Hamilton elementary and Stratford elementary schools.

The sixth grade class at St. Thomas school started the planting project this past week. The seeds will hopefully sprout and get strong enough so they can be used to enhance the habitat in Briggs Woods and other grounds managed by the Hamilton County Conservation office.

The kits were received several weeks ago, but the first step was to put the seeds into cold storage for about 10 days according to Kenzie Glenn, who teaches the sixth grade at St. Thomas school.

“They are planting native wild grasses, swamp milkweed, common milkweed and black eyed Susans,” said Glenn.

Daily Freeman-Journal photo by Kolleen Taylor
Gavin Majewski, after filling the seed cups with dirt and seeds and labeling the contents, puts his first seeds under the grow light in their classroom.

Once all the seed are planted, the students will take turns watering and caring for the sprouting plants. When they have grown enough, they will also be planting them outside.

In addition to the pollinators, they are also planting zinnias with the hopes they will be ready by Mothers’ Day.

On April 22, which is Earth Day, they will start planting the pollinators outside. Some will be planted in Briggs Woods, some will be planted on the St. Thomas property, hoping to attract butterflies and birds to their yard.

This is not just a natural science project, it is a lesson in conservation and the development of habitat for the wildlife of Iowa.

Rusty Grace, who lives in Kamrar and is a member of the Hamilton County Pheasants Forever, said they raise money each year to help with the county conservation program.

Daily Freeman-Journal photo by Kolleen Taylor
Leena Humlecek, left, Everly Olson, right, and Paxton Allen in the back work to fill their seed starter containers with dirt and seeds, prior to putting their projects under the grow light.

“The National Pheasants Forever program began in 1982, in St. Paul,” said Grace, “There was a dramatic loss of habitat and declining number of pheasants. Pheasants Forever was formed to tackle these losses.”

The local Pheasants Forever group is in it’s 38th year. Purchasing the kits for the classrooms in the county is one of the projects they fund. They hope that by engaging children in the process of rebuilding and growing habitats, they will gain an appreciation for wildlife and conservation.

“Our goal is that no child should be left indoors,” quipped Grace.

Pheasants Forever raise a money through their annual banquet, and their magazine/member guide with advertising sales helping further their cause. This coupled with writing grants, has allowed them to purchase land over the years.

“We are trying to establish permanent wildlife areas, that are protected forever,” said Grace, “Gordon’s Marsh was the first in 1988.”

Since then they have added Bauer Slough, Brandrups Timber and a Van Diest property. These are all now considered public grounds, which totals around 940 acres, according to Grace.

“The most recent purchase was the Metcalf property,” said Pheasants Forever treasurer, Tyler Patton, “It’s not normally high producing pieces of ground.”

Some of the ground that is put into conservation programs need to be taken out of production, he explained.

“Pheasants Forever, our local chapter is so helpful,” said Brian Lammers, Hamilton County Conservation Director.

The most recent purchase of property had multiple partners, including the Pheasants Forever group to get the property into the conservation management program.

“People who say, ‘why do we need another public hunting ground, don’t understand.'” said Lammers, “There’s so much more to it. Our entire eco system is impacted, it goes way beyond just having a public hunting area. We are protecting our natural resources.”

“Protecting them is our job, he concluded.

Pheasants Forever sponsors a youth field day each year, usually the first Wednesday after the county fair.

In addition, two scholarships are funded by the organization, each for $500, giving one to a South Hamilton graduate, and one to a Webster City graduate.