A Slow Burn in Roseville

That smoke rising Thursday morning from the campus grounds at Roseville City Hall---was planned.

It was time for a controlled burn at the city's Prairie Restoration Area, about a total one-acre parcel of land dedicated to native wildflowers including asters, ox-eyes, bergamots and blazing stars along with bluestem, wild rye, switch grass and other prairie grasses.

Besides serving as a potential magnet for wildlife, the Prairie Restoration Area also helps improve storm drainage in the area, said Pat Dolan, fleet and faciliities supervisor for the Roseville Public Works Department. "Prairie grasses have a deeper root system than turf which will stabilize the slope in front of City Hall," the city said.

Thursday's controlled burn will help foster the germination of prairie seeds, Dolan said.

The city hired Minnesota Native Landscapes to conduct the controlled burn. The last one occurred at the Roseville City Hall campus in 2009.