MountainTrue's public lands ecologist to host guide invasive plant walk
The Friends of the Oklawaha Greenway invite the public to join them for an invasive plant walk along the Oklawaha Greenway on Wednesday, July 13, from 9:30-11:30 a.m. A rain date is scheduled for July 20.
MountainTrue Botanist/Ecologist Bob Gale will lead the walk. Gale will stop along the way to point out unwanted invasive plants so participants can learn how to identify them. He will give tips on maintenance and removal and explain why these non-native plants are a nuisance to the natural environment, as well as the home landscape, according to a news release from MountainTrue.
The walk is limited to 20 people.
Participants will gather near the round gazebo at Patton Park, 1730 Asheville Highway in Hendersonville. The cost is $10, which includes MountainTrue's new publication, Native Plants - Southern Blue Ridge Planting Guide.
Registration is available at https://bit.ly/3x6Ye6Y.
The slow amble will feature stops along the way to look at a recent live-staking project, part of a streambank restoration in Patton Park. Gale will stop at a non-native invasive plant removal site, to see the progress, and walk the newly-reinforced boardwalk into the swamp, a favorite spot for birdwatching. A short distance away, at the red kiosk on the greenway, the group will stop to admire the new native plant garden, established in memory of Wes Burlingame.
Gale is the Ecologist and Public Lands Director for MountainTrue, where he has worked since 1998 providing scientific input on issues related to environmental protection of Southern Appalachian mountain forest communities. His work involves national forests and national parks, air and water quality, and rural lands protection. He heads MountainTrue’s non-native invasive species program.
To learn more about MountainTrue, go to mountaintrue.org. For more information about Friends of the Oklawaha Greenway, visit www.friendsofoklawaha.org.
This article originally appeared on Hendersonville Times-News: MountainTrue's public lands ecologist to host guide invasive plant walk
