Background:

Karen Popp, a long-time resident of Dalrymple, had always felt that her ranch was special, a feeling that was confirmed by field researchers working for the Conservancy in the mid-1990s. Beyond the hay fields along the road, an access trail leads through bands of hardwood and conifer forests to emerge on good-quality grassland alvar with a rich mix of specialized plants and wildlife.

In 2005, Karen approached the Couchiching Conservancy and negotiated a part-donation part-purchase agreement for the 274 hectare property, which became known as Prairie Smoke. The Nature Conservancy of Canada  (NCC) holds title to this property, and it is managed by a partnership with The NCC and the Carden Field Naturalists.

Landscape and Species:

• grassland, shrubland and pavement alvar communities on this property support a rich array of typical alvar species such as Bluets, Scarlet Painted-cup, Shrubby Cinquefoil, and Prairie Smoke
• several bands of wetland cross the property, providing habitat for a number of species
• the conifer forest of White Spruce and other species that occurs along the edge of the alvar is rich in mosses and lichens on the shallow limestone bedrock
• a low limestone scarp separates the conifer and deciduous forests, with many crevices and moss-covered rocks; an occurrence of Walking Fern has been located here, one of only two known on the Carden Plain
• hay fields near the entrance of the property are being managed to support grassland breeding birds such as Bobolinks and Eastern Meadowlarks, and also provide grazing for several dozen White-tailed Deer in early spring