Restoration Volunteer Events
The Advisory Committee will post details on this website about volunteer opportunities taking place in the Como Woodland. Below are a few stories about such events that took place in the woodland. Restoration volunteer events are sometims organized by the Advisory Committee, and oftentimes initiated by the City of Saint Paul Parks and Recreation Department.
The City of Saint Paul Parks & Recreation Dept maintains their own website with details about volunteer events at parks throughout the city. To learn more about those opportunities (some of which take place in the Como Woodland) visit https://www.stpaul.gov/departments/parks-recreation/natural-resources/volunteer-resources/volunteer-events-calendar at the City of Saint Paul website.
EcoStewards Take on Invasive Plants in the Como Woodland In the first year (2015) ten EcoStewards put in an impressive 135 hours of volunteer time working on invasive plant control and removal in Como Woods. While there they also saw and heard birds and someone even found a puff ball mushroom as big as a football. In 2019 we are up to 14 active EcoStewards volunteering in the CWOC, but we could always use more help. For more information about how to become an EcoSteward go to: http://www.stpaul.gov/index.aspx?NID=5296
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The First City Nature Challenge at CWOC Back in 2018 we co-hosted an iNaturalist app training session April 14 at the Streetcar Station and had volunteers at the Como Woodland to introduce visitors to an exciting event: The City Nature Challenge April 28. The Como Woodland Advisory Committee plans on taking part in the City Nature Challenge again in the coming year, so we hope to see you next April.
Thinning of Trees in Como Woodland For many of you who regularly walk through the Como Woodland the sight of trees being cut down back in the Fall of 2017 provoked curiosity in some and alarm in others. While the removal of any native tree from Como Woodland is unfortunate, it is, however, a necessary activity for maintaining the health of the woodland and for the safety of the public who visit the woodland. Many non-native trees and shrubs were also removed, but emerald ash borer (EAB) infected ash trees were the primary native trees removed along with dead and dying oaks. Four Saint Paul City forestry specialists as well as a Como Woodland Advisor (also a professional forester) evaluated the trees for health and hazard. Saint Paul Parks & Recreation’s Environmental Coordinator, Adam Robbins, explained “We identified approximately two dozen trees that needed to come down right away. . . we took advantage of having the [specialized] equipment available and removed a handful of hanging limbs on other large trees as well. As all of the ash trees removed were infested with EAB, and dead green ash tend to drop branches quickly, we only left a small number of wildlife snags . . .”
The good news is that some replacement plantings were done – native bareroot trees were purchased with a small donation from Como Woodland Advisory Committee and some of those trees have already been planted. With a little help from nature and us those empty spaces in the woodland are filling in with the growth of healthy native trees and shrubs.
The City of Saint Paul Parks & Recreation Dept maintains their own website with details about volunteer events at parks throughout the city. To learn more about those opportunities (some of which take place in the Como Woodland) visit https://www.stpaul.gov/departments/parks-recreation/natural-resources/volunteer-resources/volunteer-events-calendar at the City of Saint Paul website.
EcoStewards Take on Invasive Plants in the Como Woodland In the first year (2015) ten EcoStewards put in an impressive 135 hours of volunteer time working on invasive plant control and removal in Como Woods. While there they also saw and heard birds and someone even found a puff ball mushroom as big as a football. In 2019 we are up to 14 active EcoStewards volunteering in the CWOC, but we could always use more help. For more information about how to become an EcoSteward go to: http://www.stpaul.gov/index.aspx?NID=5296
READ MORE...
The First City Nature Challenge at CWOC Back in 2018 we co-hosted an iNaturalist app training session April 14 at the Streetcar Station and had volunteers at the Como Woodland to introduce visitors to an exciting event: The City Nature Challenge April 28. The Como Woodland Advisory Committee plans on taking part in the City Nature Challenge again in the coming year, so we hope to see you next April.
Thinning of Trees in Como Woodland For many of you who regularly walk through the Como Woodland the sight of trees being cut down back in the Fall of 2017 provoked curiosity in some and alarm in others. While the removal of any native tree from Como Woodland is unfortunate, it is, however, a necessary activity for maintaining the health of the woodland and for the safety of the public who visit the woodland. Many non-native trees and shrubs were also removed, but emerald ash borer (EAB) infected ash trees were the primary native trees removed along with dead and dying oaks. Four Saint Paul City forestry specialists as well as a Como Woodland Advisor (also a professional forester) evaluated the trees for health and hazard. Saint Paul Parks & Recreation’s Environmental Coordinator, Adam Robbins, explained “We identified approximately two dozen trees that needed to come down right away. . . we took advantage of having the [specialized] equipment available and removed a handful of hanging limbs on other large trees as well. As all of the ash trees removed were infested with EAB, and dead green ash tend to drop branches quickly, we only left a small number of wildlife snags . . .”
The good news is that some replacement plantings were done – native bareroot trees were purchased with a small donation from Como Woodland Advisory Committee and some of those trees have already been planted. With a little help from nature and us those empty spaces in the woodland are filling in with the growth of healthy native trees and shrubs.
Great River Montessori students help with buckthorn brush removal
While a lot of buckthorn was removed from Como Woods around 2009-2010, some has grown back and Ecostewards working in the woodland the summer of 2015 noticed that these smaller plants were getting big enough to produce seeds. At the same time burdock was being removed, opening up space, and there you good a perfect spot for buckthorn to get going again. So they had to go. St. Paul Parks and Recreation staff went in and cut down the small buckthorn in September and in early October 2015 Great River Montesorri students helped removed it from the woodland where it was piled up and removed. They also removed burdock seed heads while there.
While a lot of buckthorn was removed from Como Woods around 2009-2010, some has grown back and Ecostewards working in the woodland the summer of 2015 noticed that these smaller plants were getting big enough to produce seeds. At the same time burdock was being removed, opening up space, and there you good a perfect spot for buckthorn to get going again. So they had to go. St. Paul Parks and Recreation staff went in and cut down the small buckthorn in September and in early October 2015 Great River Montesorri students helped removed it from the woodland where it was piled up and removed. They also removed burdock seed heads while there.
Como Park High School Students Have a Field Day
Read the full story by Deb Robinson: PDF 82k
Removing piles of invasive buckthorn shrubs from the woods is hard, but satisfying work.On October 27, over 165 volunteers came to Como Park to do just that, and most of the volunteers were teenagers.Como Park High School students are turning out to be the real local heroes of Como Park’s woodland restoration efforts, but they are putting in more than one day a year for the benefit of the park’s woodlands. The students have embarked on a long-term ecological research project to measure changes in the Como Woodland during the restoration process.
Read the full story by Deb Robinson: PDF 82k
Removing piles of invasive buckthorn shrubs from the woods is hard, but satisfying work.On October 27, over 165 volunteers came to Como Park to do just that, and most of the volunteers were teenagers.Como Park High School students are turning out to be the real local heroes of Como Park’s woodland restoration efforts, but they are putting in more than one day a year for the benefit of the park’s woodlands. The students have embarked on a long-term ecological research project to measure changes in the Como Woodland during the restoration process.
