Strom Family Farm has a history of environmental foresight and leadership. In early 2001, Lee Strom participated with Kane County leadership to develop a method of preserving agricultural land near Chicago. In 2002, we were among the first group of landowners to preserve land in Kane County with the use of agricultural conservation easements and were among the first set of farms preserved in this manner in the entire State of Illinois. What makes our farm at Rt. 47 and Burlington Rd particularly unique is that our easement land is the furthest east in all of Kane County.

What started back in 2007 as a simple idea to reintroduce a few native tallgrass prairie plant species onto Strom Family Farm, has grown into a large scale native prairie reconstruction project. In the spring of 2008, 2 acres of bare agricultural land were planted with prairie seed. A third acre was planted in 2009. In the 2010 fall season, seeds were collected from the 2008 planting, which is now quite mature and established, and were spread over 2 acres of an existing oak savanna.

In addition to the benefits the native prairie provides for soil and water quality on the farm, it also helps to increase ecological diversity by attracting native animals, birds, and insects. A family of Eastern Bluebirds have returned to the farm and have had several successful, consecutive breeding seasons. We hope to expand our restoration project in the future and continue to introduce native prairie plant species around our farm. Ecological diversity is a key component to a healthy agricultural ecosystem.