Habitat Restoration – Thursday May 18 & Sunday May 21

We are looking forward to our next work days in Crooked Branch Ravine Park! There are a variety of things to do; remove plants using a weed wrench, free trees of ivy, remove vines from the ground or remove our current target plants, Dioscorea species.

Dioscorea bulbifera, also known as the air potato, is very aggresive invader of natural areas that has recently appeared in large numbers. We would like to get some control before it is really out of control! A long tool for weeding is best for this kind of work. Learn more about this plant here. Invasive.org Dioscorea bulbifera

We welcome those who have done this before as well as those who may want to learn.

  • Thursday, May 18 from 10 a.m. – noon or any time in between
  • Sunday, May 21 from 2 p.m. – 4 p.m. or anytime in between
  • Map to site
  • Please bring your own work gloves and small hand tools such as a tool for weeding pruners, loppers, or folding hand saw. A flathead screwdriver can be helpful to pry vines away from trees. Limited tools and gloves will be available onsite.
  • We will be working in the woods so dress for the weather, wear sturdy shoes, and bring water and a snack if needed.
  • Please RSVP below if you plan to attend. This will help us plan for the work day and also let you know if there is a change.

Habitat Restoration – Sunday, May 7

We are looking forward to our next work day in Crooked Branch Ravine Park! There are a variety of things to do; remove plants using a weed wrench, free trees of ivy or remove vines from the ground. We welcome those who have done this before as well as those who may want to learn.

Why do we do this? Consider the box turtle. Box turtles live in natural areas with leaf littter. Non native, invasive plants are causing habitat destruction in our parks and the numbers of box turtles are dwindling. Would like to show your kids a box turtle in the woods or see one yourself? If so, please consider coming to help.

https://www.urbanforestdweller.com/healthy-habitat-for-the-amazing-eastern-box-turtle/

  • Sunday, May 7 from 2 – 4 p.m. or anytime in between.
  • Map to site
  • Please bring your own work gloves and small hand tools such as pruners, loppers, or folding hand saw. A flathead screwdriver can be helpful to pry vines away from trees. Limited tools and gloves will be available onsite.
  • We will be working in the woods so dress for the weather, wear sturdy shoes, and bring water and a snack if needed.
  • Please RSVP below if you plan to attend. This will help us plan for the work day and also let you know if there is a change.

Habitat Restoration – Sunday April 30

We are looking forward to our next work day in Crooked Branch Ravine Park! There are a variety of things to do; remove plants using a weed wrench, free trees of ivy or remove vines from the ground. We welcome those who have done this before as well as those who may want to learn.

  • Sunday, April 30 from 2 – 4 p.m. or anytime in between.
  • Map to site
  • Please bring your own work gloves and small hand tools such as pruners, loppers, or folding hand saw. A flathead screwdriver can be helpful to pry vines away from trees. Limited tools and gloves will be available onsite.
  • We will be working in the woods so dress for the weather, wear sturdy shoes, and bring water and a snack if needed.
  • Please RSVP below if you plan to attend. This will help us plan for the work day and also let you know if there is a change.

Our Most Hated Invasive Plants

These and other invasive plants are destroying habitat and elimating food sources for all the creatures living here with us. This demands our attention, both on our own properties and in our parks. Please help us limit and reduce the spread by removing non-native invasive plants on your property. We hope the informaion below will be helpful.

English ivy – Helix hedra

The problem is so bad that some ivy invasions can be seen in aerial photos.

This vine is a terror, a very aggressive invader of natural areas that threatens every plant from the ground up.  It eventually smothers everything in its path, including trees.   In addition, this plant changes soil chemistry and produces chemicals that prevent other plants from sprouting and growing.  Some areas of our parks are becoming ecological wastelands in part due to English ivy and some of the other plants below and this needs our attention.  

As the vine grows it searches for a vertical surface, usually a tree, to climb so that it can mature, forming flowers, fruit and seed.  Birds then eat the berries, fly away to perch somewhere else, and poop the seed where it will sprout and repeat the process.  A large ivy covered tree can produce many thousands of berries.  

IMPORTANT: Keeping ivy off of trees is key to limiting the spread to other places and saving our natural areas.  

More information available on page 133, Plant Invaders of Mid-Atlantic Natural Areas


Wintercreeper Euonymus fortuneii

Creeping into a park near you….

Wintercreeper is a fast growing, highly invasive landscape vine (juvenile form) or shrub (adult form), that was introduced to the US in the 1900’s as an ornamental ground cover.  An evergreen with glossy, dark green, elliptical leaves it can overtake and kill trees with dense growth that prevents photosynthesis, resulting in the death of the tree. Like English Ivy, wintercreeper spreads in its juvenile form by producing rootlets that sprout new growth when it comes into contact with moist soil. In woodland settings, wintercreeper forms dense mats that crowd out native plants. It can quickly grow up trees to reach the top of the canopy.With more sun at the canopy top, Wintercreeper matures, flowers and produces seeds. The seeds are dispersed by birds and  small animals.  The berries seen in the fall can also be a source of spread.

IMPORTANT: This plant is a very good example of why one should be careful when it comes to disposing of invasive plants. If wintercreeper is discarded in or near a wooded area such as a park, it could easily take root and become established.

Photo credit: Privet chinese James H. Miller & Ted Bodner, Southern Weed Science Society, Bugwood.org

More information available on page 131, Plant Invaders of Mid-Atlantic Natural Areas


Chinese Privet    Ligustrum sinense

Nectar and berries provide very little nutritional value. Birds feeding on the berries become malnourished.

A very common invasive species in our area is Chinese privet. It is an aggressive non-native species that can be found in just about any soil type, in sun to part shade. A semi-evergreen ornamental with small, glossy, elliptical leaves and opposite branching. It blooms from May to June with small, white flowers that have a very distinctive odor.  It has black to blue black fruits that occur in drupes at the tips of the branches, maturing in late August to September.

Brought to the US for use as hedgerows in the 1850s, privet has thrived and can now be found in forests, woodland edges, disturbed areas and your yard. Spreading from the roots privet can form dense,impenetrable thickets that shade out native shrubs and perennials.

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Note: There a several species of Ligustrum that are used in landscaping. None of them are native to the US andsome of them are invasive. Please do not plant.

Photo credit: James H. Miller & Ted Bodner, Southern Weed Science Society, Bugwood.org

More information available on page 96, Plant Invaders of Mid-Atlantic Natural Areas


Japanese stiltgrass – Microstegium vimineum

The plant with hitchhiker seeds.

This annual grass produces many seeds that stick to fur, clothing, shoes, bike tires, almost anything!  It spreads rapidly and displaces native plants in natural areas, becoming a problem in many parks since the seeds area spread so easily. Did you know you can bring some seed home to your yard after visiting a park?   Shallow rooted and easy to pull, removal should be done before seeds form in late summer.   Please look for this plant in your yard this summer and remove it immediately if found. Note the white stripe down the middle of each blade.

Photo credit: Leslie J. Mehrhoff, Bugwood.org

More information available on page 43, Plant Invaders of Mid-Atlantic Natural Areas


Tree of Heaven – Ailanthus altissima …or perhaps a devil of a tree?

Ailanthus altissima is an incredibly adaptable and fast-growing tree originating in Asia. Commonly referred to as “tree-of-heaven”, it is more aptly named “tree-from-hell” by those trying to slow down its spread. A female Ailanthus tree can produce over 300,000 seeds per year
which are dispersed by the wind and the roots and fallen leaves release a chemical which is toxic
to many native plants. As a result, Ailanthus can quickly take over an area.

Trying to eliminate trees by cutting them down only makes matters worse unless herbicide is applied immediately to
the cut stump. This is because a damaged tree will send up multiple new trunks from the roots
and create an impenetrable thicket.

Before attempting to remove Ailanthus, be sure to consult the informative factsheet from Blue Ridge PRISM: https://blueridgeprism.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/Ailanthus-factsheet-Sept-2021.pdf.

Also, please be aware that there are several native plants (black walnut, ash, and sumac) that look similar to Ailanthus due to having large compound leaves with many leaflets. Ailanthus differentiated from other species by looking for the small teeth at the base of each leaflet.

More information available on page 112, Plant Invaders of Mid-Atlantic Natural Are


Tips for Control or Removal of Invasive Species

Additional links for both invasive and native plant information

Plant RVA Natives


Seedlings and small plants are very easy to remove. Don’t let them get bigger!

Clockwise from top left: English ivy, privet, wintercreeper, Ailanthus, Japanese stilt grass.

Photo credits: Ivy: Jan Samanek, Phytosanitary Administration, Bugwood.org Privet : James H. Miller, USDA Forest Service, Bugwood.org. Wintercreeper: Rebekah D. Wallace, University of Georgia, Bugwood.org Ailanthus: Ohio State Weed Lab , The Ohio State University, Bugwood.org Stiltgrass: Wilipedia

March is Richmond Invasive Species Awareness Month

Invasive plant species occur in every city park, along streets and in most alleys, and on private property. They are so numerous in Richmond that they might appear to be normal, but they are far from normal and are causing harm!  Some examples:

Invasive plants / Biological Trash

  • change the soil chemistry and/or produce chemicals that inhibit sprouting or growth of native species.
  • shade other plants preventing their growth.
  • some simply become so prolific that they reproduce faster than our native species.

Impacts are

  • loss of tree canopy allows polluted water to enter our streams and neighborhoods are warmer, with some areas becoming urban heat islands. 
  • loss of native plant species that provide food and shelter for native fauna, decreasing populations and sometimes even threatening extinction.
  • threats to human health.

In Richmond, there are several volunteer groups working to remove invasive species from our parks, but did you know that some of these plants may have come from your yard?  Birds and other critters eat the berries and then spread seed to other locations; other seeds are dispersed by wind or other means.  This month we will be posting information about the most common invasive plants in the area with some resources about how to control them.  

Let’s try to stop the spread.  Look around your property for a plant that you should remove and perhaps volunteer for work in a park.  Both Reedy Creek Coalition and our sponsor, Friends of Forest Hill Park, have regular workdays.  Stay tuned for more information about specific plants as we work together to…

*Note that the term invasive refers to those species not native to an area.  The term aggressive is used for plants that are native, but can become numerous in some situations. Therefore, when we say “invasive” this refers only to non-native species.   

I Love Trees – Tree Walk

Our tree walk planned for Feb 12 was rescheduled due to the weather. Please see the new date below.

Crooked Branch Ravine Park is a wooded area with many beautiful, interesting plants and we would like to share some these with our neighborhood friends. We will do a little winter tree ID, talk about the benefits of the plants we visit, look for some lichen and fungi, and perhaps even delve into the leaf litter!

  • Sunday, February 19 at 2 p.m.
  • Duration 60 – 90 minutes
  • Crooked Branch Ravine Park
  • Map to meeting site
  • Limited to 15 participants. Sign up at this link. Comment: TREE WALK. You will receive an e-mail within one day confirming your space.
  • Please also use the link above if you have questions.

The Sheep Are Done, Habitat Restoration Begins

Reedy Creek Coalition will have our first work day at the Northrop Street entrance to Crooked Branch Ravine Park on Sunday, October 16 from 1-3 p.m. and we are looking for volunteers to help us return this area to a more natural state. We will be

  • collecting trash that was hidden by the ivy.
  • moving some of the debris – bricks, pieces of concrete, etc.
  • removing forsythia using a weed wrench.
  • removing ivy vines from the ground.  Much easier to do now.  

Please bring your own tools for removing ivy vines, gloves, and water.  Though we have not noticed poison in this area dress accordingly just in case.  Please contact us if you have questions.  https://reedycreekcoalition.org/contact-us/

Map to the site

Many thanks to RVA Goats and Honey for getting us off to a great start,   

See Sheep Eating Baaaaad Plants

The entrance to Crooked Bransh Ravine Park at the end of Northrop Street has been overtaken by a variety of invasive, non-native plants.   This happened quickly, is now more that we can manage and so we have called for HELP!  This week-end a small herd of sheep from RVA Goats and Honey will be chomping away at that aweful jungle so that we can begin to get some control of the area and let the native plants grow.  

The sheep will arrive late Friday morning and leave early Sunday morning,   

RCC members will be there from 11 a.m. – 2 p.m. on Saturday, October 8 and we hope you will drop by.

  • See the sheep at work.

  • Get help with invasive plant ID.  Have a question about something in your yard?  Bring a sample or snap a picture.  

  • A short, guided walk through the woods and down to the creek. 

  • Plus the opportunity to see our lending libary and perhaps go home with a good book.

Map to the site

There really is no such thing as a bad plant.  These plants (English ivy, privet, Japanese honeysuckle and others) just do not belong here!

 

 

 

Another good book…This one is about BEAVERS!

Eager – The Surprising, Secret Life of Beavers and Why They Matter

This is what one of our readers has to say about the book…

“Eager Beaver is a book that was recommended by a Reedy Creek Coalition member at the invasive ivy removal workday in January. She was right, the book reads more like a story than an academic study of the ecological importance of the habit building effects of beaver dams and poses the dilemma of how to effectively balance that benefit with the often times destructive effect on human creations like culverts and bridges/roads. The kind of book you’d likely never come across if not recommended…I’m glad it was.”  

To borrow a book enter the name of the book at this link. https://reedycreekcoalition.org/contact-us/ Please allow a day or two for a response which will come to your e-mail.