Lisa Fosco writes:

…this is the BEST time to trim down any of the trees or limbs that are obvious issues.  We already have at least one pair of Great Horned Owls nesting in the ravine and the (eastern gray) squirrels are preparing their nests now, as many of their litters will be arriving in the next 2 weeks.  If larger limbs are trimmed now, then there should be many less casualties than if it is done in the next 6 months.  Hope this helps!

Lisa

Lisa Fosco
Director of Animal Care

Ohio Wildlife Center

2661 Billingsley Rd.

Columbus OH 43235

OhioWildlifeCenter.org

 

Our usual work schedule is to meet from 9-11 on the 2nd Saturday from March through November. Our focus in the coming months is as follows.

• March we will be working on cleaning up the Rain Garden and picking up litter.
• April will find us part of Green Columbus again, planting more trees to reforest the many trees that have fallen this past year.
• May will be our attack of the Garlic Mustard.
• June has us cutting the honeysuckle with the assistance of the City of Columbus chipper and trucks.
• And, everytime, ridding the ravine area of litter.

To help out, meet, sign in, and get supplies at the Rain Garden (Overbrook & High); Overbrook & Canyon (we are working on the 3rd recent removal of the tagging on the bridge there); Overbrook & Yaronia; Overbrook & Indianola.

I am excited about Spring and the beauty that comes to the ravine, thanks to our Adena Brook Community’s 10 years of caring & work! (Susan Michael Barrett gathered a few of us in 2002 for our very first clean up of the streams.)

Spring is coming which means the awakening of the ravine and its need for care. (No long winter nap this year!)

The Lead Team met and planned our agenda, goals for the year, among them getting more of our community actively involved in our pursuit of cleaner streams and ravines by taking “ownership of a small area near your home/office” . This would allow you to work at your convenience and help us immensely in our community goals.

The Carters are a great example of that with their caretaking of the corner of Indianola and Cooke Rd, mowing and keeping the litter picked up for which we are very thankful. Many of you live near the stream or when you are out walking, pick up the litter that is in that area…please don’t just walk by it.

Those of us that can work on the 2nd Saturday of each month, not only help the health of our ravine, but do enjoy the friendships and getting to know our neighbors, so we encourage you to join us and bring a neighbor with you, even if for an hour. We and your neighborhood do appreciate every bit of work that’s done to keep the ravine clean and safe.

Posted on the Adena Brook Facebook page this past Saturday:

Just saw a solitary 10 point buck grazing off Overbrook by Indianola. Amazing!

 

This will be the last clean up of 2011, putting the ravine to rest for the winter. Plan to join us to remove litter+ before all being covered by a blanket of snow. Join us at Overbrook and High, Overbrook and Canyon, Overbrook and Indianola, and Overbrook and Yaronia where you will find supplies and sign in sheets. We thank you for supporting the health of our community , ravines and streams for another season.

Earlier today (9/27) water supplies were out in the Glenmont/Canyon area. Water has been restored, but there is sediment in the lines. The division of water says there is not a boil alert and that sediment will work its way out of the pipes as people use more water. They recommend running cold water in your bath tubs as a way to flush out the system without clogging aerators or water heaters.

Dear Neighbors,

It is time for our September Clean Up for which we will have the support of Karl Hoessle of Columbus Parks in removing the Honeysuckle and Tree of Heaven at the corner of Cooke Rd. and Overbrook Dr.  He will have city trucks, shredders there to remove the debris.  We need to support with manpower.  Parking will be an issue, so I will be at Overbrook and High and can transport anybody that can help with this project to that location.  The rest of us will focus on the litter along the road and stream beds at our usual destinations.  This is big to have the City support in this endeavor.  Please mark your calendar to join us!

- Toni Stahl,  Habitat Ambassador volunteer  www.backyardhabitat.info  and editor of the monthy Nature Scoop newsletter provides the following list of things to do in September.

 

“Backyards for Wildlife: Digging for Gold!” – Scroll down to page 7 in the Columbus Audubon Song Sparrow.

Now is a good time to clean bird feeders for winter.  Dip them in a 10% Clorox 90% water solution, and spray with water until all the bleach is gone.  Tom Sheley, Wild Birds Unlimited-Riverside, says to completely air dry them to get rid of the chlorine that would change the taste of the seed.  Clean again later in the season if gunk builds up. Here are some tips for Ohio Fall Yard Care.  When doing cleanup, keep in mind that most native butterflies, like other helpful, native insects, stay here in the winter and need cover.

Organic lawn Care – Apply corn gluten mid-August to mid-Sept as a pre-emergent weed control and natural fertilizer. Preen is using 100% corn gluten meal as the 100% active ingredient only in its Preen Organic Vegetable Garden product.  Approximately 4 weeks afterward, you can over-seed any bare or weedy areas.  Read details in the Columbus Dispatch.

We depend on bees to pollinate our foods, and they are disappearing. Think organic is safe?  Some organics are toxic to bees. Go to the table on page 2 of the Factsheet – notice that corn gluten I use on my lawn is in the green!

+ Nature “Stuff”
-  Register 9/2, Thurs, 9/22, 8:30-4, SE Ohio Tree Care Conference, ODNR, Athens
-  9/1-mid Sept, M-Sat 10-4, Sun noon-5, Native Butterfly House in Alliance, $2, Beech Creek Botanical Gardens
-  Fri, 9/2, 7:15pm, A Swift Night Out Galena, Darlene Sillick & Columbus Audubon
-  Fri, 9/9, 7pm, A Swift Night Out Dublin, Darlene Sillick & Columbus Audubon
-  Sat, 9/10, 10am-4pm, Monarch Day Celebration, Blendon Woods Metro Park Nature Center map, Westerville
-  Sat, 9/10, 9am-4pm EDT, Monarch Watch online live open house (scroll down)
-  Sat, 9/10, 10am, Cedar Bog Nature Preserve Tour, south of Urbana, scroll down at Wild Ones
-  Jim McCormac wrote an informational blog about his childhood front yard landscaping
-  Thurs-Sun, 9/15-18, Midwest Birding Symposium (Sat, 9/17, 2pm, Birders Going Beyond Birds by Jim McCormac), Lakeside
-  Fri-Sun, 9/9-9/11, Sunset Swift Night Out, by a large chimney tower where you have seen Swifts roost
-  See sunset times for Ohio, choose location, click on make calendar

Thanks to everyone who helped out this past weekend. We replanted trees and shrubs (which are now enjoying cooler, wetter conditions as they get re-established), weeded the rain garden area, pulled garlic mustard, and cleaned off storm drains. 

Please keep an eye out for garlic mustard.  This is a critical time for it.  Any seeding we can prevent this year will dramatically help us in coming years.

An unfortunate logistical and communication problem resulted in the removal of many trees and bushes that were planted as part of our Earth Day efforts to restore vegetation along High and Overbrook where the sidewalk was replaced.  We were unaware that the sidewalk project was not finished. 

Fortunately a supervisor on the project noticed the newly planted seedlings, removed them, and temporarily heeled them into some dirt, saving them from getting destroyed as the sidewalk project continued.  The seedlings have been moved to the Robinson’s vegetable garden until the project can be completed.  At that point we’ll need to replant.  It’ll be like having Earth Day twice this Spring.