Our Summer 2017 Stewardship Interns have been hard at work! Led by volunteers Marc Imlay and Mike Ellis, our wonderful field interns have ventured into many local forests to remove invasive plant species and save our native wildlife. Invasive species are a major threat to our local environment because they can take over an entire ecosystem, with no natural predators to regulate their growth. Visit our Invasive Species Corner to learn more about this topic! We are always looking for more volunteers to join us in our fight against non-native plants!
Our Stewardship Field Intern, Alex Reardon, shares about his summer experience:
“My experience interning with the Sierra Club this summer was exceptional and one that will benefit me for a lifetime. My knowledge, understanding of, and ability to identify native and invasive plants also improved over the summer and I’m now able to walk outside and recognize the plants around me. Working outside also gave me the opportunity to gain hands on experience and to burn off some excess energy while days in the office allowed me to update the outings record and plan more outings and invasive plant removals. Overall one of my favorite parts of this internship was the relationships I formed with the other interns -- particularly when we were all working in the field. These new friendships are what helped to make this summer an amazing experience and I’m glad to have had the opportunity grow through the Sierra Club.”
Some of the particularly threatening invasives that have been removed this summer include:
- Bradford pear
- Mugwort
- Porcelain berry
- English ivy
- Bush honey suckle
- Japanese wisteria
- Siberian elm
- Multiflora rose
- Tree of heaven
- Japanese stiltgrass
- Garlic mustard
- Oriental bittersweet
- Wavyleaf basketgrass
- Norway maple