Yatsevitch Forest - Buckthorn Battle Royale

The Michael and Claudia Yatsevitch Forest in Cornish and Plainfield is unique in that it has the greatest plant diversity of any Forest Society reservation.  The reason for this lies in the rich soils of the Connecticut River valley - moist soils rich in mineral nutrients and organic matter that support a great variety of plants, particularly herbaceous plants on the forest floor.  There are many unique types of plants that are found in this Rich Mesic Forest natural community, but unfortunately invasive exotic weeds also grow here perfectly well too!  In order to protect this exceptional example of a Rich Mesic Forest, the Forest Society has been battling non-native invasive plants on the Yatsevitch Forest for a many years now, using both professional labor and volunteer/staff efforts.

Volunteers tackling a large forest of Common Buckthorn 

On a recent workday, a group of 12 volunteers and Forest Society staff  met to tackle a large concentration of Common and Glossy Buckthorn shrubs (Rhamnus, spp) that were identified on the property.  Buckthorn was introduced to the United States in the 1800s, probably as an ornamental shrub, but it quickly expanded beyond the bounds of residential gardens and invaded other habitats.  Like many invasive plants, buckthorn is a generalist, meaning it wills survive (and thrive!) in a variety of different soil types, moisture conditions, and light levels.  It spreads by seed, eaten and dispersed by birds and small mammals, and can rapidly spread in a forest habitat once plants have reached fruiting maturity.  On the Yatsevitch Forest, a large and very established area of Common Buckthorn shrubs (really small trees, many almost 25' tall!) were waiting to be dispatched by volunteers.  Most of the plants were so large that we decided to girdle them (cut through the bark all the way around the tree) as a means of treatment.  Smaller plants were cut or hand-pulled.  Forest Society staff and land stewards will be back to check on this area in the Fall and early Spring next year.  If significant stump sprouting occurs, we'll have to treat that as well.  As with most invasive species treatment, keeping the threat of invasive plants at bay on the Yatsevitch Forest will be an ongoing battle, and one that I know we will need land steward help with for many years to come!

Land Steward Bob Lyon (Foss Forest, Gilmanton) girdles a large buckthorn.

Girdling process- two cuts through the bark cambium, all the way around the tree

Wendy did get to cut a few trees down :)

Happy "Birthday" to Lost River

Lost River is the Forest Society's oldest forest reservation, protected in 1912.  That makes this year the 100th anniversary of Lost River's protection, which is (of course) cause for celebration!   The Forest Society, along with White Mountain Attractions, which operates and maintains the gorge boardwalk and facilities, have some great events planned this summer to honor Lost River's milestone.  (If you're interested, you can find a listing of these events on Lost River's website here).

New steward Elaine Bernier and friend  prepare sign mountings at Lost River

In preparation for a busy summer, we recently held a land steward "spring cleaning" workday at Lost River.  The spring cleaning workday is something we do every year at Lost River, but this year we had some special tasks to accomplish.  One of these was to install a new set of 30 interpretive signs around the Lost River Native Plant Garden, a series of short boardwalk loops that start just outside the visitor center.  We also cleared and re-marked two popular hiking trails on the property, the Kinsman Notch Ecology Trail and the more strenuous Dilly Cliffs Trail which heads up talus slope to an overlook on the cliffs above the gorge.  Landscaping and view clearing were two other significant task areas this spring as well.  It was a busy day but sunny and breezy enough to be bug-free, so I didn't hear any complaints!  White Mountain Attractions provided a delicious BBQ lunch, and in the late afternoon many stewards and volunteers decided to take a walk through the gorge and boulder caves to cap off the day.  I hope you can all get up to Lost River sometime during this centennial season to celebrate a bit of the Forest Society's (and New Hampshire's) history while enjoying a spectacular natural wonder!

Landscaping volunteers!

Mulching flower beds

New interpretive signage will make it easier to identify and learn about many of the region's native plants

The crew enjoying a barbecue lunch on Lost River's deck

Welcome Land Steward Class of 2012!

Land Steward Class of 2012 (photo: W. Weisiger)

Earlier this month we held the annual Land Steward Core Training at the Barbara C. Harris Conference Center in Greenfield, NH.  Twenty-eight new land stewards went through the two day in-residence training to become full fledged Forest Society land stewards.  This year's training went very smoothly, from the excellent facilities at B.C. Harris Center to our field trip exploration of the nearby Tom Rush Fores in Deering.  New stewards learn about the Forest Society's history, mission and goals, management of SPNHF properties, trail maintenance, boundary monitoring, map and compass navigation, recreation management and sustainable timber harvesting.  It's a very full two days!  As you run into members of the "Class of 2012" at different workdays, workshops, and Forest Society events, be sure to welcome them and share your experiences stewarding a SPNHF forest reservation.  For our part, we're very appreciative that all of you (both new and veteran stewards) are out there helping us steward NH's forests!

Carrie giving some trail maintenance pointers (photo: J.Bigl)

The class walks a recent harvest site at the Tom Rush Forest in Deering (photo: J.Bigl)