Written and Submitted by Lydia Davis
Recently, the Rensselaer Plateau Alliance and the Village of East Nassau's Climate Smart Committee co-hosted a work session to remove invasive plant species from the Village's Albert Family Community Forest, a peaceful 353-acre preserve established six years ago and extending over parts of East Nassau and Stephentown. After a land acknowledgment led by RPA's Volunteer Coordinator Kim Murdick, volunteers watched closely as Stewardship Manager and invasive plants expert Andrew Schwitzgebel showed us how to identify by leaf shape, growth pattern, and texture three of the worst: Japanese Barberry, Japanese Honeysuckle, and Multiflora Rose. These invasive plants, all imported to the U.S. at different times for then-laudable reasons—screening, erosion control, horticultural assets—have spread aggressively in our native woods to crowd out more beneficial native plants.
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