The Larry R. Yoder Prairie Learning Laboratory is situated at The Ohio State University at Marion, in the north-central portion of the state. This is within a region that once included substantial areas of natural grasslands with scattered trees,  a region called the “Sandusky Plains.” In 1976, recognizing that only a few remnants of this ecosystem type were remaining in the area and that the OSU students and community members would benefit from there being a living laboratory for study and relaxation, an Ohio State Marion faculty member in the Department of Botany, Dr. Larry R. Yoder, together with his students, established a prairie on campus using locally collected seeds and plants.

Fast forward nearly a half-century and we have a beautiful 12-acre prairie enhanced by a small (approx 0.1 acre) pond and an open-air shelter house used for OSU classes and as a relaxing spot for students and community members to meet and socialize. The grounds are maintained by the science laboratory support staff operating out of the Science and Engineering Building.

A visit to the Prairie Learning Lab can be just what you make it. With a variety of different opportunities, each experience can be totally new or tried-and-true.

Planning Your Visit

Which season is best?

When you choose to visit the Prairie Learning Lab depends on what you’d like to see and the type of visit you’d like to have. If you’re curious about what wildflowers will be in bloom during your visit, take a look at the PRAIRIE FORBS page at www.u.osu.edu/marionprairie/forbs/.

Activities for your visit:

Hiking

We encourage you to explore the prairie from every angle by taking a hike on our trail system. Don’t worry about getting lost out there because all trails connect back to the shelter house near the parking lot.

Self-Guided Opportunities

Self-guided tour opportunities are currently being developed.  Once the planning is complete additional information will be added to our website

Wildlife viewing & bird watching

The Prairie Nature Center is an important habitat for a variety of flora and fauna (aka plants and animals). With native plants and animals throughout the center, you will experience some of Ohio’s nature at its finest. We encourage you to be a naturalist, and enjoy and observe! The nature center is home to a wide array of birds, including waterfowl like mallards and song birds like Red Winged Blackbirds and Barn Swallows. You can help us monitor our bird population and their activity by completing a Birder’s Checklist. You can print a checklist from here. Fill it out during your visit, and share the results with us after your visit. A great reference for bird watching can be found at The Cornell Lab of Ornithology All About Birds.

Prairie Nature Center Guidelines

For your safety, preservation of our natural resources, and consideration for other visitors, please observe the following guidelines:

1.  Please no bikes or motorized vehicles on the trails

2.  If you choose to bring food or drinks with you during your visit, we ask that you take the remaining trash out with you. Do not litter because food remains and trash can be harmful to animals.

3.  No smoking at the Prairie Nature Center. The Ohio State University campuses are tobacco-free areas. 

The Prairie Nature Center is animal-friendly! You are welcome to bring friendly dogs on leashes and enjoy the trails in the park.

Operating hours & seasons

The Learning Laboratory grounds are open daily from dawn to dusk. Entrance is free. If you want a guided tour, or to reserve the Prairie Shelter for use by your nature study group or for some other special event, please contact Katie Rask ([email protected]).

Research on the Prairie

The Ohio State University at Marion welcomes researchers from all disciplines to conduct short- or long-term research at the Larry R. Yoder tall grass prairie. Recent research projects include:

  • An investigation on the effect of the age of prairie patches on soil organic carbon, recalcitrant carbon (chemically resistant materials and organic remnants), and coal carbon (due to the prairie burning process).
  • Research characterizing the biogeochemical evolution of dissolved organic matter in the prairie pond under different climate regimes.
  • Measuring the effect of water supplementation on honeybee hive productivity.
  • Contributing seeds to the Project Baseline seed bank project at the University of Minnesota at Duluth.

If you are interested in conducting research on the Larry R. Yoder prairie, please contact Susan Gershman ([email protected])