Honeysuckle Sweep at Olin Nature Preserve a Success

About this event

Partnership Takes on Invasive Honeysuckle - Success

Environmental stewardship is a pillar of The Nature Institute’s mission . The Olin Nature Preserve, part of the institute, is a mosaic of habita ts, including upland forest-savanna, and unfortunately is home to invasi ve species as well. On Nov. 15, the preserve was the recipient of extra a ttention and community service to combat non-native plants.

“I’m ex cited to announce that we participated in the Fall 2019 Honeysuckle Sweep Initiative organized by the Missouri Botanical Garden,” TNI Stewardship Director Eric Wright said. “This was our fourth time participating in the initiative and results continue to grow when measured by numbers of v olunteers, hours worked, and acres cleared. With the help of some great local groups and volunteers, I expected to see amazing results and I was not disappointed. We had 58 participants and cleared 3.5 acres.”

Volu nteers from Missouri Botanical Garden, Lewis and Clark Restoration Ecolog y Program, NGRREC Habitat Strike Team, YouthBuild-AmeriCorps, Alton Hig h School field ecology class, Illinois Department of Natural Resources, and community members participated in the honeysuckle sweep.

Allison Br own, restoration outreach coordinator for Missouri Botanical Garden, des cribed the initiative as “an effort to energize the greater St. Louis re gion around improving habitat for our native plants and animals, and Biod iverseCity St. Louis Network partners join together to spotlight the harmf ul impact bush honeysuckle can have on our natural areas. Since the campai gn began in 2016, organizations have held over 130 events, bringing over 2,500 volunteers to clear over 100 acres of land.”

Invasive species are destructive to native ecosystems and a top priority of land managemen t at the institute.

“Amur honeysuckle forms a dominant, constrictive shrub layer in our forest habitats that decreases biodiversity and reduce s habitat function,” said J. Scott Moss, assistant professor and coor dinator of restoration ecology at Lewis and Clark Community College. “It creates dense conditions, reduces light on the forest floor, and preven ts native trees and woodland wildflowers that our local wildlife depend on to maintain stable populations. As a general rule, removing it is an ini tial step in any good management initiative for our local forests.”

N ational Great Rivers Research and Education Center is home to the Habitat Strike Team, a group trained in ecosystem restoration that helped TNI. A recent Illinois Department of Natural Resources Habitat Fund award gave th e team an opportunity to form new partnerships.

“The NGRREC Habitat S trike Team is excited to form a closer relationship with The Nature Instit ute and assist them during their honeysuckle sweep events and additional r estoration efforts,” said Justin Shew, conservation program manager a t the research center.

“We are proud to have the opportunity to partn er with The Nature Institute\; we hope to continue to assist TNI with thes e amazing restoration events that also engage the local community,” sai d Cody Berry, the strike team’s habitat project coordinator.

Also j oining in the sweep were Lewis and Clark Community College YouthBuild-Amer iCorps members, ages 16-24, who perform 450 service hours each year.

“We have been working on projects with TNI for the last four to five yea rs, and we sincerely value relationships with organizations that care abo ut education and the environment,” said Sabrina Davis, director of ad ult education at L&\;C.

During the school year, AHS field ecology t eacher Dan Pettus often brings his classes to the institute to learn and explore.

“Alton High School’s field ecology course gives senior st udents an opportunity to learn about local ecosystems including streams, prairies, and forest communities,” Pettus said. “Invasive species ar e threatening the biodiversity of these habitats and the ability to identi fy and remove them is a valuable skill for work in ecological fields. Gett ing students involved in the identification and removal of honeysuckle fro m The Nature Institute’s property gives them a chance to truly understan d the issue and be ambassadors for educating others.”

The assistance of local organizations to remove invasive species helps the institute main tain and restore the private nature preserve that serves as an outdoor com munity classroom to appreciate the natural world.

- by Rebecca Steiner\ n Please direct any questions to info@thenatureinstitute.org

For a lin k to the press release, please visit the Advantage News