2013 Annual Report – The Stewardship Network

 

Have you heard someone ask the question “What does The Stewardship Network do?” or “What is a Cluster and what do they do?” (Or maybe you ask yourself these questions.) Our 2013 Annual Report may help to answer some of those questions. In the report, we celebrate all our collective efforts to care for the land and water in our communities. Specifically, the Raisin Cluster celebrated 3 major accomplishments, all while hosting 12 educational workshops and getting great work done on the ground!

Click below to read about our National Award, New England expansion, local leadership development, new Clusters, webcasts, on-the-ground projects (check out page 13), and much, much more:

 

Download the 2013 Annual Report

 

 

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Water & The AIS Current

One of many ponds in the area

We’re fortunate to live in the Great Lakes, where water is prevalent. Water is everywhere – in the clouds, in the air, pooling in lakes, and traveling in streams. Many of us live, work, or play near a lake or a stream. Sometimes we might take water for granted, but a meeting last week with the Michigan Department of Natural Resources gave me a reality check – Water is precious and worth protecting.

“A Picture is Worth A Thousand Words”

Somebody once said, “A picture is worth a thousand words.” If that’s the case, then this post is a strong testament to the amazing people of the Raisin Cluster and great work we’re all doing.

Great Spangled Fritillary at YMCA Storer Camps

Working Together, Pulling Garlic Mustard, Saving Birds, Learning

Manchester’s Kiwanis, Key, and Builder’s Clubs and a local Girl Scout Troop after a successful day pulling garlic mustard at the Leonard Preserve (Washtenaw County Parks and Recreation Preserve in Manchester, MI)

The ways in which we work together never cease to amaze me… Let me take a moment to share a snapshot into great work we’re all doing!

Garlic Mustard Challenge

The Raisin Cluster has stormed out to a strong lead in the Lightweight Division of the Garlic Mustard Challenge! Reports are coming in from all over the area – The Nature Conservancy, Michigan Nature Association, Michigan DNR, YMCA Storer Camps, Iron Creek Properties, The Dahlem Conservancy, Washtenaw County Parks and Recreation, Hidden Lakes Gardens, and the backyards and farms of many, many people (I hope I didn’t miss anyone…). Here’s a graph of showing how much Garlic Mustard we’ve pulled. It’s amazing to see how our seemingly separate actions do add up to an incredible impact! Report your bags here!

Collaborative Conservation to Support Priority Bird Species – Project Update

The Dahlem Conservancy, Iron Creek Properties, and YMCA Storer Camps have worked hard over the last 8 months to restore habitat for priority bird species in the Raisin Cluster. Funded by a Joint Venture grant, their collective work has progressed dramatically since the last update. Collectively, these three groups have had a phenomenal impact! Here’s a snapshot:

Spring: A Season of Change and Opportunity

Spring: A Season of Change and Opportunity

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This article was originally published in The Brooklyn Exponent. The Exponent is an excellent local publication that has served the area since 1881. Please consider a subscription to the weekly newspaper today!

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by Spencer Kellum

Ah, spring… The time of the year when the snow melts, birds embark on their annual migrations, and the dormant green world comes alive again. Spring is a season of change – warmer temperatures, longer days, blooming flowers, and running sap. We humans change too. The long, gray days of winter are behind us, and we begin to lean into the warm summer days ahead. But right now, in this spring moment, we start thinking about getting outside. We start thinking about tuning up our lawn mowers or raking up the leaves that have been hiding under the snow since last fall. We start thinking about putting air into our bicycle tires or lacing up our shoes to visit a local hiking trail. Or we start thinking about simply being outside – sitting at a park bench or on our front porch. Spring evokes a sense of re-birth and rejuvenation, and our human spirit can’t help but prod us to get outside and rejoice in the arrival of a new season.

During spring forays out into your local community, you may notice your fellow humans doing some seemingly peculiar things. Spring is the season when people begin prescribed burning in parks, backyards, fields, and fencerows. Historically, fires burned regularly across much of our area, and our native prairies, woodlands, and wetlands thrived as a result. Often set by Native Americans, fire would burn the previous year’s dead grasses, flowers, and leaves, thus clearing the ground for new growth and the rejuvenation of the species native to our land. Today, fire professionals or other well-trained people use fire for many reasons. Sometimes fire is used to improve the health of forests, prairies, and wetlands by promoting fire-adapted native plant species and controlling invasive species. Other times fire is used to clear overgrown fencerows and ditches and prepare agricultural fields for planting. No matter the purpose, fire is a key indicator that spring has arrived, and that it’s time to get outside and actively care for our land.

As spring continues, you may also notice swarms of volunteers convening on a local park or preserve. Or you might notice your neighbor stooped over pulling weeds from his or her wooded backyard. With spring comes garlic mustard. Garlic mustard is a tall, spindly, bright green plant that you can find growing along roads, easements, and within woodlands this time of year. It’s an invasive plant, which means it’s not from our region, and it aggressively out-competes our native wildflowers and tree seedlings. Because garlic mustard evolved on different a continent, our native animals and insects cannot digest garlic mustard and therefore do not eat it. People – volunteers, neighbors, and professionals alike – join together each spring to pull garlic mustard and help keep this invasive plant in check. Pulling garlic mustard is a simple, meditative exercise that offers you an opportunity to re-discover the woods of your youth or to explore a nearby park – all while enjoying the changing beauty of spring.

Spring is a season of change, a season to celebrate, and a season to be outside. What you do while you’re out there is up to you – some burn, while others pull garlic mustard. Whatever your inclination – to learn, to enjoy, to save, to care, or to explore – spring comes and invites us yet again to go outside and enjoy the changes!

Community Events

The Stewardship Network connects, equips, and mobilizes people and organizations to care for land and water in their communities. The Raisin Cluster of The Stewardship Network encourages you to get involved in the 2014 Garlic Mustard Challenge. This friendly competition targets an invasive plant that can rapidly move into a natural area and out-compete the native plants. The Raisin Cluster will kick off the Challenge season on April 26^th at Hayes State Park, followed on May 10^th by the ”Great Garlic Pull” at The Dahlem Conservancy. The leader of each pull will explain what Garlic Mustard is, why, where and how to pull it and proper disposal. For more information, please visit the Raisin Cluster’s website at www.stewardshipnetwork.org/rc

Looking for other ways to get outside and enjoy the natural and cultural history in the community? Oh These Irish Hills! and the Friends of Walker Tavern are hosting the Fifth Annual History Palooza on Memorial Weekend, May 24 and 25 at Walker Tavern Historic Site located on the corner of M-50 and US-12. The event will be an opportunity for Irish Hills’ friends and neighbors to show their historical memorabilia and collectable displays, to listen to guest speakers that will share their memories of the past or their visions for the future of the Irish Hills area and for all to learn more about this area.

Visit The Stewardship Network’s Searchable Events Calendar for a listing of many other outdoor events in the area: www.StewardshipNetworkOnline.org

2014 Garlic Mustard Challenge

The Garlic Mustard Challenge is an annual event held by The Stewardship Network. It is a national effort to remove this invasive plant from our natural areas, and to show the tremendous impact we can have by working together. This year, The Stewardship Network is challenging it’s supporters to pull 300,000 pounds of this plant and report it through our website. Garlic mustard can be pulled by hand with relative ease, and anyone from kindergartners to seniors can get involved. To learn more about the Challenge, and how to identify and remove garlic mustard, visit www.StewardshipNetwork.org/2014Challenge. For more information on the 2104 Garlic Mustard Challenge, please contact Grace Lambert at garlicmustard@stewardshipnetwork.org

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Spencer Kellum is a Conservation Specialist with The Stewardship Network, where he supports people and organizations by facilitating conservation planning and on-the-ground improvements to land and water in the community. He can be reached at skellum@stewardshipnetwork.org

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DNR advises caution to prevent spread of oak wilt disease

As spring fully arrives, the Michigan Department of Natural Resources again urges caution when cutting oak trees this time of year. Compared to last year, several new cases of oak wilt have been documented (including one more in Jackson County). Here’s the press release from the DNR…

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 15, 2014

Contact: Robert Heyd, 906-228-6561, ext. 3023 or Ed Golder, 517-284-5815

 

For most people, April 15 is the annual tax-filing deadline. For people like Robert Heyd – and other forest health professionals – April 15 also marks the beginning of the yearly window when oak wilt can be transmitted from diseased to healthy red oak trees.

According to Heyd, forest health management program manager for the Department of Natural Resources’ Forest Resources Division, oak wilt is a serious disease of oak trees. It mainly affects red oaks, including northern red oak, black oak and pin oak. Red oaks often die within a few weeks after becoming infected. White oaks are more resistant; therefore, the disease progresses more slowly.

“The normal time-tested advice is to prevent oak wilt by not pruning or otherwise ‘injuring’ oaks from April 15 to July 15,” Heyd said.

He added that the spread of oak wilt occurs during this time of year, as beetles move spores from fungal fruiting structures on the trees killed last year by oak wilt to wounds on healthy oaks. As warmer weather melts away snow and ice, the beetles that move oak wilt become active.

“Unfortunately, many learn not to prune or otherwise wound trees from mid-April to mid-July only after they lose their oaks to oak wilt,” he said.

A common question the DNR is hearing this year is, “Can we push the April 15 day back a week or two because of the cold winter?”

Heyd says that isn’t an option.

“It doesn’t matter how cold it was this winter,” he said. “It only takes a few 50-degree or warmer days for both the beetles and fungus to become active. We have already had warmer weather in many parts of the state.”

Oak wilt has been detected in Alcona, Allegan, Alpena, Antrim, Barry, Benzie, Berrien, Calhoun, Cass, Cheboygan, Clinton, Crawford, Dickinson, Genesee, Gladwin, Grand Traverse, Iron, Kalamazoo, Kalkaska, Kent, Lenawee, Livingston, Macomb, Manistee, Menominee, Midland, Missaukee, Monroe, Montcalm, Montmorency, Muskegon, Newaygo, Oakland, Ogemaw, Oscoda, Ottawa, Roscommon, Saginaw, Shiawassee, St. Joseph, Van Buren, Washtenaw, Wayne and Wexford counties.

Although oak wilt hasn’t been detected in every Michigan county, Heyd said the need for vigilance is present statewide.

Spring is a popular time for people to move firewood to vacation properties and other locations. During this April-to-July period, Heyd said that it’s vital not to move wood from oak wilt-killed trees. These trees are often cut into firewood and moved, sometimes many miles from their original locations. Any wounding of oaks in this new location can result in new oak wilt infections as beetles move spores from the diseased firewood to fresh wounds on otherwise healthy trees.

“With the transport of firewood and other tree-related activities, you have to assume the risk is present, whether you live in metro Detroit or in the Upper Peninsula,” Heyd said.

The DNR recommends that anyone who suspects they have oak wilt-tainted firewood should cover it with a plastic tarp all the way to the ground, leaving no openings. This keeps the beetles away and generates heat inside the tarp, helping to destroy the fungus. Once the bark loosens on the firewood, the disease can no longer be spread.

New oak wilt sites have been traced to spring and early summer wounding from tree-climbing spikes, rights-of-way pruning, nailing signs on trees and accidental tree-barking (a wound created when bark is removed via impact from equipment, falling trees and other causes). If an oak is wounded during this critical time, the DNR advises residents to cover the wound immediately with either a tree-wound paint or a latex paint to help keep beetles away.

Once an oak is infected, the fungus moves to neighboring red oaks through root grafts. Oaks within approximately 100 feet of each other – depending on the size of the trees – have connected or grafted root systems. Left untreated, oak wilt will continue to move from tree to tree, progressively killing more red oak over an increasingly larger area.

As more trees die from oak wilt, more spores are produced which contribute to the overland spread of oak wilt.

To get more information on the background, symptoms and prevention of oak wilt, visit http://michigansaf.org/ForestInfo/Health/E3169-OakWilt.pdf.

To report a suspected oak wilt site, email DNR-FRD-Forest-Health@michigan.gov or call 517-284-5895.

To learn more about other forest health issues in Michigan, go to www.michigan.gov/foresthealth.

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The Michigan Department of Natural Resources is committed to the conservation, protection, management, use and enjoyment of the state’s natural and cultural resources for current and future generations. For more information, go to www.michigan.gov/dnr.

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The Raisin Cluster – Established in 2003, the Raisin Cluster (RC) works in the communities of Hillsdale, Jackson, Lenawee, and Washtenaw Counties to protect the natural areas that grace the Upper Raisin and Grand watersheds. The Raisin Cluster supports strategic networking opportunities among stewards and encourages community members to build lasting connections to natural areas. 2014 brings invigorated leadership to the Cluster, which holds regular business meetings on the second Wednesday of every month. Networking opportunities follow. Please see below for details on time/location, and feel free to join us- no matter your level of interest or experience.

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Click here to join the Raisin Cluster in person at our next event!

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Guest Post: Saving Nature at Ives Road Fen

Cutleaf Toothwort Dentaria laciniata (Chuck Pearson)

If you sometimes wrestle with questions like “Can we save Nature?” or “Why bother?”, I hope you’ll take a moment to read Tom Cook’s post where he explores his answers to these questions and more while working at Ives Road Fen.

Read Tom’s Post Here

While you’re at it, I hope you’ll join the Raisin Cluster at our next event.

Click here to join the Raisin Cluster in person at our next event!

 

 

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The Raisin Cluster – Established in 2003, the Raisin Cluster (RC) works in the communities of Hillsdale, Jackson, Lenawee, and Washtenaw Counties to protect the natural areas that grace the Upper Raisin and Grand watersheds. The Raisin Cluster supports strategic networking opportunities among stewards and encourages community members to build lasting connections to natural areas. 2014 brings invigorated leadership to the Cluster, which holds regular business meetings on the second Wednesday of every month. Networking opportunities follow. Please see below for details on time/location, and feel free to join us- no matter your level of interest or experience.

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NEW MSU MUSEUM EXHIBIT LOOKS AT A TOUGHER AND TOUGHER LIFE FOR TURTLES

Participants at a Raisin Cluster workshop learning about wetland habitats, which are important to turtle survival. Photo by Sybil Kolon

NEW MSU MUSEUM EXHIBIT LOOKS AT A TOUGHER AND TOUGHER LIFE FOR TURTLES

Turtles survived the great extinction that ended the reign of the dinosaurs 65 million years ago, and they withstood the ice ages that ended just a few thousand years ago. Today though, life is tough for turtles, and that is the subject of a new exhibit, “Turtles in Trouble,” opening March 29 at the MSU Museum, the science and culture museum at Michigan State University.

“Now turtles are in serious trouble,” observes MSU Museum naturalist Jim Harding, who also teaches in the Department of Zoology. “At least two-thirds of turtle species worldwide are declining and threatened with extinction, and several species have become extinct in the wild over just the last few years.”

As Harding tells his herpetology students: the most important thing to remember about turtles is not that they CAN live long lives — it’s that they MUST live long lives!

“Turtles in Trouble” features turtles commonly seen in Michigan – Snapping, Softshell, Box, Wood, Painted, Slider and others. Also shown are examples from Asia and the “turtle trade,” where turtle species went from “common” to “endangered” or even “extinct in the wild” (bred only in captivity) within a very few years: Yellow-headed Box, South Asian Box, Indochinese Box, Keeled Box and more.

In addition to select MSU Museum collections, life-like turtle sculptures were created by artist and environmental columnist Mark Muhich, of Jackson, Mich. (MSU 1972). Artists have created turtle images since Paleolithic times and this exhibit shares another artistic homage to turtles.  Learn more here: http://museum.msu.edu/index.php?q=node/1150

“Turtles in Trouble” at the MSU Museum is produced in coordination with the MSU Science Festival, April 1–6, a free, multi-day celebration of science, fueled by some of the basic elements essential to scientific inquiry: curiosity, wonder, and discovery. There will be events for the whole family to enjoy, on topics ranging from the ordinary to the extraordinary. And it’s all free!

In 2013 MSU joined the ranks of MIT’s Cambridge Science Festival, the Philadelphia Science Festival, NYC’s World Science Festival, Washington DC’s USA Science and Engineering Festival, the Cambridge Science Festival (UK) and others in the development of an event that highlights the wonders of science.

Event formats include demonstrations, lectures, discussion panels, hands-on activities, exhibits, and guided tours. Sites will include a mock archaeological dig, tours of the MSU Herbarium, a virtual field trip to the CERN particle accelerator in Switzerland, and many more.

Check out MSU Museum programs here (some require pre-registration):   http://sciencefestival.msu.edu/event/schedule

 

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The Raisin Cluster – Established in 2003, the Raisin Cluster (RC) works in the communities of Hillsdale, Jackson, Lenawee, and Washtenaw Counties to protect the natural areas that grace the Upper Raisin and Grand watersheds. The Raisin Cluster supports strategic networking opportunities among stewards and encourages community members to build lasting connections to natural areas. 2014 brings invigorated leadership to the Cluster, which holds regular business meetings on the second Wednesday of every month. Networking opportunities follow. Please see below for details on time/location, and feel free to join us- no matter your level of interest or experience.

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Click here to join the Raisin Cluster in person at our next event!

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Spring Membership Drive – Donate today and check it off your to-do list!

SPRING MEMBERSHIP DRIVE
Show your support of The Stewardship Network, and help us raise $20,000 by April 21st!
Start or renew your membership today!

If you’ve tuned into our webcasts, attended a Cluster workshops or our annual conference, reported bags during the Garlic Mustard Challenge, or used The Stewardship Network to connect with fellow stewards near and far, we hope you’ll show your support for our work by becoming a member today! Membership starts with a donation of $35 or more, and lasts for one year.

New perks of this year’s Spring Membership Drive:

• Drawings for great prizes: Books, art prints, and free registration to our 2015 Conference! Check our website for more details on the member levels associated with each drawing.
• Free subscription to Conservation Magazine: Members starting or renewing at the $100 level and above will receive a free, one year subscription to Conservation Magazine.
• Shorter time frame: We want to spend less of our time (and yours!) on this drive, so we’re cutting it from six weeks to four. Donate today and check it off your to-do list!

Thank you for supporting The Stewardship Network! All my best,

Lisa

Lisa Brush
Executive Director
The Stewardship Network
416 Longshore Drive
Ann Arbor, MI 48105
(734) 996-3190
www.stewardshipnetwork.org
staff@stewardshipnetwork.org

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How to Be Ready to Burn When Spring Finally Gets Here (And Why to Even Bother)

Are you ready for spring?

As the birds start singing and the snow melts, I want you to have the best prescribed burning information available right at your fingertips. I want you be prepared in advance so you can be ready to burn right when the weather is right!

You may be asking yourself, “Self, what the heck does he mean? Prescribed burning? What is that and why would I even want to mess with fire?” To which I would share many fun and exciting personal stories if we were together in person… but I’ll let the professionals make the case with this free resource from the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources: Benefits of Prescribed Burning.

Maybe you already know a thing or two about prescribed fire… so you’re ready for a more in-depth, detailed look at burning. (By the way, did you make it to the Raisin Cluster’s free Prescribed Fire on the Landscape workshop held two weekends ago? Dave Borneman, burn professional extraordinaire, led a great workshop. Don’t worry though if you missed out, keep reading… ). If you’d like a more in-depth look, how about you have a look at the Lake States Fire Consortium’s 5 Step Process to Select Your Burn Day.

And lastly, as your support staff, we’re always looking for ways to help bring you the best information, so we went to great lengths to bring together the best of the best to talk with you about prescribed fire. We brought together Dave Borneman (City of Ann Arbor’s Natural Area Preservation Manager, Michigan Prescribed Fire Council Board Member, etc…) and Robert Ziel (Lake States Fire Consortium, qualified nationally as a burn boss and fire behavior analyst, having worked on fires in 21 states over 20 years) last spring and recorded the webinar. It’s yours to view for a one time cost of $10. It’s packed with great tips on how to get started, excellent questions from folks like you, and what you need to do BEFORE you light the drip torch!

Click to watch “Prescribed Burning Planning 101”

with fire experts Dave Borneman and Robert Ziel

I hope you’re as pumped for spring as I am. Here’s to another (or helping you with your first) successful burn season!

As always, contact Network staff (staff@stewardshipnetwork.org) or Cluster Coordinators (raisin@stewardshipnetwork.org) if you have questions.

-Spencer

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The Raisin Cluster – Established in 2003, the Raisin Cluster (RC) works in the communities of Hillsdale, Jackson, Lenawee, and Washtenaw Counties to protect the natural areas that grace the Upper Raisin and Grand watersheds. The Raisin Cluster supports strategic networking opportunities among stewards and encourages community members to build lasting connections to natural areas. 2014 brings invigorated leadership to the Cluster, which holds regular business meetings on the second Wednesday of every month. Networking opportunities follow. Please see below for details on time/location, and feel free to join us- no matter your level of interest or experience.

– – – –

Click here to join the Raisin Cluster in person at our next event!

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PLEASE DISREGARD THE ADVERTISEMENT THAT MAY OR MAY NOT BE BELOW. It is inserted without our consent by WordPress.com. We are working to transition the hosting of this blog away from WordPress and into a new system. Please bear with us as we transition.