Internship Program Reports
Date of this Version
2016
Abstract
Several methods of invasive vegetation removal were tested in a study area in the Michaux Quercetum at the Morris Arboretum as a means of identifying a strategy for large-scale ground cover restoration and vegetation control in the area. This oak grove setting was found to have a heavy infestation of Toxicodendron radicans (Eastern poison ivy) as well as invasive species such as Rosa multiflora, Lonicera japonica, and Microstegium vimineum. Four methods were tested for vegetation removal: a chemical method of an herbicide cocktail, two mechanical methods of digging and repetitive mowing, and a biological method of hard grazing with goats. Re-seeding of the area with a mix of native grasses and forbs followed the sections with completed removal experiments and will follow the remaining methods once completed in the fall. Due to the timing of each method in regards to season, only preliminary results for herbicide and digging are known at the time of this report, but once full results will become known the horticulturist for the Bloomfield Farm section, Louise Clarke, can adopt whichever method (or combination of methods) best serves the needs of the Quercetum plant community.
Disciplines
Horticulture
Date Posted: 29 April 2019
Comments
An independent study project report by The Hay Honey Farm Endowed Natural Lands Intern (2105-2016)