(12/06/24) LACASSINE, La. — A six-acre plot of land in Cameron Parish sat empty, shelly and unused. It is surrounded by the Mermentau River and contains the same fertile soil that supports rice farms surrounding the area. But on this bare plot of land at the Lacassine National Wildlife Refuge, Louisiana 4-H members have begun the process to transform it into the Cajun prairie land it once was.

“It really is amazing to have this opportunity to share with everybody because, it's something that not many people here in southwest Louisiana know about,” Steven Nevitt of the Louisiana Native Seed Company said. “It's super awesome to have these kids out here, because the more people that take interest in it, that's how we're going to keep spreading the word about the prairie.”

On Dec. 2, at the National Wildlife Refuge in Cameron Parish, 4-H’ers from the Central region came together to repopulate native plants that have mostly disappeared from the area. The plants were once part of the Cajun prairie ecosystem that has mostly been lost in Louisiana because it has almost completely been turned into agricultural land.

This project began in the spring, when Rapides Parish 4-H agent Allison Elnaggar brought some students to the University of Louisiana Lafayette Ecology Center. There, the students saw a native plant bed and watched the process for harvesting and planting the seeds. Then, in the summer, the students had a day camp where they planted some of those seeds in sale trays, which they then planted on Dec. 2.

In total, the 4-H'ers helped plant nearly 300 native species in a seed mix from the Louisiana Native Seed Company. The students planted both native wildflowers as well as a few non-native flowers to support the plants being repopulated in the area.

“One will work as sort of a nursery for the native plants. Those grow a little bit slower, so it takes them a while to reach maturity and propagate,” Elnaggar said. “The non-native plants are going to provide for them a nursery of sorts.”

Part of the group of students working at the wildlife refuge were a handful of Wetland Ambassadors. These students acted as leaders for the rest of the 4-H’ers as they helped seed and plant the area.

One of those ambassadors was Hayden Broussard, who said he was excited to be able to both work on something he is enthusiastic about but also share those experiences with others his age.

“I like to see everything get back up and grow and see the work that I've done,” Broussard said. “And also see how we can protect our coasts and protect ourselves from disasters, like hurricanes and stuff like that.”

For Elnaggar, this pride in their work is exactly what she wanted for the students. She hopes in years to come they will visit the refuge and check out what their hard work has produced.

“I'm a nature lover. Being out in nature, smelling the grass, seeing the blue skies and everything is what brings me peace,” Elnaggar said. “What I'm hoping for is that they will develop a love of stewardship. I want them to visit this site in a few years or maybe years down the road with their families, and they can say ‘this is what I did whenever I was in 4-H. Mama planted some of these plants.’”

4-H'ers listen as organizers explain the history of Cajun prairies and how the students will go about planting the seeds at the Lacassine National Wildlife Refuge. Photo by Anthony Bailey/AgCenter

A 4-H'er walks along spreading seeds for native and non-native plants at the Lacassine National Wildlife Refuge. Photo by Anthony Bailey/AgCenter

A 4-H’er looks at one of the plants that will be put into the ground on a workday at the Lacassine National Wildlife Refuge. Photo by Anthony Bailey/AgCenter

A 4-H'er digs a hole into the dirt to plant one of the variety of plants that were being repopulated on Dec. 2 as part of a prairie restoration at the Lacassine National Wildlife Refuge. Photo by Anthony Bailey/AgCenter