The Wildflower Center and Hillwood, a Dallas-based development company, celebrated the grand opening of Bluestem Park in Fort Worth, Texas, in May 2016.

The park began the transformation from degraded field to revitalized native plant and wildlife habitat in 2014 when Wildflower Center ecologists performed site assessment and analysis. From there, they gave recommendations for the prairie restoration — including soil modification, suites of different prairie grass and wildflower assemblages — and instructed the installation and establishment of all plant materials. They have also performed periodic maintenance inspections.

Now this 14-acre prairie is lush with namesake grasses such as bushy bluestem (Andropogon glomeratus), as well as native wildflowers and milkweeds, all of which will help support birds, butterflies and bees.

The park also features a stream that was carefully planned and reestablished to match its meandering predecessor — a vast aesthetic and ecological improvement on the area’s last water-feature, a manmade stock pond.

Bluestem Park realizes the Center’s mission of conserving landscapes through the application of native plants and serves as an excellent example of design and development aligning with stewardship and sustainability.

DIG DEEPER

Developers Design With the Environment in Mind
Forging a Prairie Alliance