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With funding provided through the Clean Ohio Conservation Fund,
the Mill Creek Restoration Project contracted the Center for
Applied Ecology to provide a detailed assessment and restoration
plan that would help guide future ecosystem management and
restoration activities within the riparian area.
In May 2004, the ecological quality of the forests were assessed
using several criteria, including crown size, forest-type,
forest age, forest structure, amount of human disturbance,
native plant diversity, coverage of invasive-exotic plants,
presence of unique or rare species, size of the area, and
presence and quality of forest buffer. The synthesis of these
three data layers provided the basis for the restoration plan
and the basis for delineating logical restoration units within
the preserve. For each restoration unit, the Center provided a
description of the ecological conditions, management
recommendations for restoration, and prioritization.
Also, in
the 3-acre riparian area of Caldwell Park, the Center for
Applied Ecology, in partnership with the Mill Creek Restoration
Project, coordinated and trained volunteer work crews to clear
dense thickets of invasive plants. Native trees and shrubs were
planted. Based on plant surveys and monitoring conducted in
2006, the forest community in this area once dominated by
invasive exotics (100% in the understory), is now dominated by
native shrubs and herbaceous species. |
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