The MiSTRIPS program is helping Michigan farmers boost soil health, support wildlife, and increase profit by integrating native prairie strips into working farmland, making a meaningful impact and fostering new relationships between land stewards and researchers.
The MiSTRIPS program has supported 11 Michigan farmers in planting more than 50 acres of native prairie and prairie strips, creating meaningful change across agricultural communities and building strong connections between land stewards and scientists.
Farmers from across the state have joined MiSTRIPS over the past five years, with 10 additional farmers taking steps to join the program. For many participants, the program offers a practical way to blend conservation with productive farming. Prairie plantings support ecosystem services such as improved soil structure, water filtration, and habitat for beneficial insects such as pollinators.
Just as importantly, MiSTRIPS provides opportunities for collaboration. Farmers gain direct access to researchers who can provide reports and data to inform farm management, and help guide future research in sustainable agriculture. These relationships create a feedback loop that strengthens both scientific understanding and farming success.
A highlight of the program is the MiSTRIPS field day, which brings farmers, researchers, land managers, and community members together to share experiences, discuss challenges, and learn from one another. These gatherings showcase how partnerships can shape the future of conservation agriculture. The first field day took place in 2021 at Hasenick Brothers Farm in Springport, Michigan. The Hasenick Farm prioritizes soil health and operates 4,800 acres with 100% no-till practices. Their farm also includes more than 450 acres of native prairie established before the MiSTRIPS program began. Their commitment to conservation made them ideal partners for launching the program’s public outreach.
For us, prairie strips provided the best opportunity to meet our goal of enhancing our farms’ ecosystem impact while improving farm profitability at the same time,” – Marc Hasenick, of Hasenick Brothers Farm in Springport, Michigan.
The following year, the field day moved to the Edward Lowe Foundation in Cassopolis, Michigan. This site has over 200 acres of prairie habitat with over 100 species of grasses and forbs adjacent to agricultural fields. The event featured speakers including farmers, Conservation Districts, and soil scientists. Speakers highlighted how conservation practices can be tailored to different farm operations while still supporting soil health and long-term productivity.
The most recent field day, held in July 2025, took place at Shady Side Farm in Holland, Michigan. Owned and operated by Mike and Lona Bronkema, the farm uses a biologically based farming system that includes a 20-year-old prairie strip originally planted in collaboration with MSU. This long-standing prairie provides valuable insight into how strips mature over time and how farmers can integrate them into established management systems.
“I have a diversified farm where I grow heirloom dried beans, hay, corn, cows, sheep and more. I’ve seen the benefits of putting in multiple conservation practices on my farm. I put my first strips in over 20 years ago working with MSU. To see the flowers still reproducing after 20 years is amazing. We’ve added in new pollinator strips 4 years ago now to take over an area that we no longer have to mow. When you go back there to see it, it is alive, it is a place where we find beneficials, insects starting to hang out earlier than what we find in other areas.” – Mike Bronkema, of Shady Side Farm in Holland, Michigan, at Cultivating Resilience event in 2025
Across these experiences, one theme remains clear: the impact of MiSTRIPS extends far beyond the prairie strips themselves. Farmers are gaining knowledge, trying new conservation practices, and sharing what they learn with peers and researchers. Their participation ensures that the program continues to evolve in ways that are grounded, practical, and beneficial to working farms.
Through these collaborations, MiSTRIPS is advancing more sustainable agriculture, supporting stronger scientific research, and building community relationships that benefit both people and the landscapes they depend on.