Jackson Hole Students & The Nature Conservancy - Restoring Public Lands

Plants in Action Series

The Wyoming Chapter of The Nature Conservancy teamed up with a handful of public schools in Jackson Hole, WY in the fall of 2024 to assist with the land management of a land plot known as High School Butte. 

This area of land is owned by the local middle and high schools in Teton County; and students, teachers, staff from The Nature Conservancy, and Teton County Weed & Pest District have come together to remove invasive, noxious plants such as knapweed and replant with native perennials. The schools involved in this project include Jackson Hole Middle School, Summit Innovations School, and Jackson Hole High School. 

High School Butte, known by many if not all Jackson residents, is home to a winding trail bordered by native shrubs and wildflowers, but has been overrun by invasive annuals such as knapweed. In order to promote native plant ecosystems and reduce soil erosion, students have planted over 750 native plugs grown by Great Bear Native Plants. 

The project goal is and continues to be to suppress the spread of invasive species and successfully recolonize those areas with native species. While this project began in 2023, it will be a multi-year project covering about a decade - teaching the next generation about land stewardship and appreciation for our natural spaces.

 You can read more about the project, in the students’ own words by following this link. 

Species Highlights:

• Pearly Everlasting (Anaphalis margaritacea)  

• Mountain Big Sagebrush (Artemisia tridentata var. vaseyana)  

• Yellow Rabbitbrush (Chrysothamnus viscidiflorus)  

• Bottlebrush Squirreltail (Elymus elymoides)  

• Woolly Sunflower (Eriophyllum lanatum)  

• Prairie Junegrass (Koeleria macrantha)   

• Small-Flowered Penstemon (Penstemon procerus)  

• Bluebunch Wheatgrass (Pseudoroegneria spicata)  

• Woods Rose (Rosa woodsii)  

• Silverleaf Buffaloberry (Shepherdia argentea)