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.

There were several questions about whether it was still worth pulling garlic mustard after it has gone to seed, to which there is one simple answer: absolutely! The garlic mustard still has the seed on the plant (they are currently immature but will start maturing soon), so removing the plant and putting it into bags (to prevent seed dispersal) still can make quite an impact in preventing future infestations of this invader.

I am also happy to report that our neighbor, Dr. Wiline Pangle, will be bringing her “Introduction to Ecology” class (EEOB 503 for those interested) to our ravine to look at the effects of invasive plants on native areas, as well as to identify natives. The students will be walking through the ravine, and spending a little time pulling garlic mustard. With 76 students (in smaller groups), every bit of time will help! Also a quick reminder that the recent (and upcoming) rains make it easier to pull out the root.

Thank you for all you do to help our ravine!
–Derek

We had an amazing turn-out as well (35 volunteers!), from our usual crew of neighbors and school partners, as well as volunteers through the Earth Day 2010 (http://update2010.org) and our site sponsor, Malcolm Pirnie. As a reminder, there is an Earth Day celebration in Franklin Park on Thursday, April 22, 3-10pm.

We gathered 7 (30 gal) bags of trash, planted many native plants and removed weeds in the raingarden, planted 95 native trees in the ravine, and pulled out 70 (!) bags of garlic mustard.

There is still much more garlic mustard to be removed, so it you feel inspired on a walk, please take some time to remove some of this aggressive plant. Our mentor, Greg Schneider, pointed out that with only flowers on the plant at this point, if the stem is broken between the flower and the roots, the plants will not go to seed and can just be composted in the ravine or the side of the road.

Thanks for all you do! We are all very blessed to live in such a beautiful area.

–Derek

Volunteers: 68 (60 Metro Martial Arts Families; 8 Adena Brook Community neighbors)
Hours worked: 1
Bags of litter removed: 42
Bags of litter recycled: 3
Other items: a car bumper, pole in concrete, wire rolls. large window shade

Among the items of interest found: car bumper, large window shade, pole in concrete, soccer ball, empty box turtle shell, piece of $100 bill, car keys, 2 rolls of wire and a yard frog to remain with us for our “mascot”.

See you next month, second Saturday, July 11, 9 – 11 AM. Meet at the Adena Brook Rain Garden at High and Overbrook. Look for supplies at the Adena Brook Rain Garden, Overbrook and Canyon, Overbrook and Yaronia!

Judy Robinson
judyrob59@gmail.com

These 20 volunteers worked to weed the rain garden, pull garlic mustard, and cut honeysuckle. Only 1 bag of trash collected!

Jim Roberts: about 10 bags of garlic mustard at High and Overbrook, several piles of honeysuckle, euonymous vine and garlic mustard along Overbrook off High and Overbrook off Indianola.

Derek Hansford and Ann Florentine
Joey James
Martin McCarthy
Kevin Obye
Charlotte Cahill
Natalie Fields
Andy Balmert
Kenn Cahill
Ellen Hoover
Kathy Brunner
Steve and Georgia Blum-Herminghausen
Greg Schneider
Jim Drury
Bill Platt
Phyllis and Jeff Beuter
Karen Snyder
Susan Michael Barrett

Saturday was our 7th Earth Day effort to remove garlic mustard from Overbrook Ravine Park. Last year we removed 2 tons of it and this year we had to look for it! Earth Day is also our annual native tree planting. Our focus was encouraging neighbors to plant native trees in their ravine-adjacent yards. All volunteers were invited to take native trees home to plant on their properties. What a beautiful and successful morning!

EARTH DAY WORK SUMMARY
Number of volunteers: 53
Hours worked: 2
Garlic mustard pulled: 38 bags
Trash: 6
Euonymous removed: 10′ x 5′ x 3′ mound
Honeysuckle cut: 30′ x 5′ x 3′ mound
Native trees planted in Overbrook Ravine Park: 65
Trees distributed to volunteers to be planted in yards: 400

THANK YOU SO MUCH TO THESE VOLUNTEERS (listed on sign up sheet)!
Bob and Judy Robinson
Stephanie and Ryan Phillips
Nancy Jesser
Derek Hansford and Ann Florentine
Becky Camfield
Justin Lutz
Ken Burkhard
Jim Dury
Agnes Dury
Will Reiss
Lucas Jordan
Susan Meyer
Leslie Partridge
Lorraine and Eric Cathala
Bill and Nan Platt
Walter Reins
Diana Webster
Keith and Molly Fisher
Ellen Hoover
Chas Krider
Scott Pearson
Bob Shingledecker
Karen Chernesky
Tyler Steele
Garet Miller
Phil McCutcheon
Kathy Brunner
Chad Kettlewell
Cindy Jacobsen
Georgia Blum
Steve Herminghausen
David Leppert
Kurt Monnier
Kathy Steinman (and 5 young children)
Mark and Carina Carter
Sandy and Carlos Ricardo
Kenn Cahill
Karen Snyder
Bruce and Cathy Walker
Susan Michael Barrett

THANK YOU JIM ROBERTS, WATERSHED ORGANIC LAWN CARE
Jim donates his business services to maintain the grass around the Adena Brook Rain Garden at High and Overbrook. This is the second year of his service! His contact number: 774-0532.

THANK YOU WALTER REINS, REINS TREE AND LANDSCAPE SERVICES
Walter volunteers on our second Saturday clean ups! Thank you for your expertise about the native trees we planted and for sharing other information about tree maintenance and preservation. His contact number: 778-4949.

THANK YOU ADENA BROOK NEIGHBOR GEORGE DAVIS
George hauled the concrete pieces, fence pieces we found in the ravine. For hazardous waste hauling (for a small fee), call George at 634-8713.

It was such fun seeing old friends and meeting new neighbors. These neighbors volunteered (I may have missed a few):

Georgia and Steve Blum-Herminghausen
Ellen Hoover
Jennifer Hauenstein and her daughters
Susan Meyer
Bill Platt – thank you for taking photos
Greg Schneider – offered to guide us on a plant walk this spring!
Diana Stacey
Diana Webster
Susan Michael Barrett

Plus:

Thank you Robert Seed, Keep Columbus Beautiful, for trash bag supplies for the season!

Denise Brenner – 1 bag
“Thanks for the incentive to get me out to pick up litter on my portion of Cooke Rd! I’ve been meaning to do so for a few weeks. I worked for about 40 minutes and threw a very full bag of litter in my bin.”

Ken Burkhard and Bob Shingledecker – 4 bags
“Bob and I picked up trash along Overbrook between Cooke and High Street. We tried to do this at least once a month this winter. We have had an inordinate amount of trash along our property bordering Cooke and Overbrooke and we think possibly it comes from the garbage trucks as they empty trash east of us on Cooke Road. I don’t know if some folks do not use garbage bags in their cans or not, but if they don’t that would explain all the excess garbage blowing down the hill. We have noticed the overload appears around pickup day or the day after.

Kenn Cahill- 5 bags
Kenn worked on Cooke Road. In one place he found a lot of lottery tickets and wished he had dollars instead of tickets. Then he found $2 which he donated to Adena Brook with a wish for a great season!

Mark and Carina Carter – 10 bags
Mark and Carina Carter committed to another year of maintenance work at the corner of Indianola and Overbrook Drive. They mow, edge, and pick up litter beginning now and work regularly through fall. Mark and Carina, can you hear us giving you a grateful ovation? Many, many thanks.

Derek Hansford and Ann Florentine – 4 bags
“Ann and I picked up trash from 9-11 this morning on Overbrook around Yaronia (from a little past the new bridge to the old bridge near the housing development). We got 4 full bags of trash.”

Walter Reins – Walter Reins Tree and Landscape Services, LLC
Thank you Walter for volunteering this month to pick up litter! He will volunteer next month also. Walter has stickers ready for purchase to place on your lawn debris bags for weekly pick up. Call him at 614-778-4949.

Will Reiss – Thank you Will, Bishop Watterson educator and his students, Martin McCarthy, Kaela Becker, and Rob Bolone, who continue to volunteer every month! Barbara Sauter, administrator at Bishop Watterson, asked students to pick up litter around the school this week.

Judy and Bob Robinson – 4 bags
“Bob and I worked with Carina at the Indianola/Overbrook intersection. We also cleaned up the Chiropractor’s property up against the fence and around the dumpsters where there is a lot of honeysuckle. I picked up litter near Keith’s Sunoco and the Professional Building.”

Karen Snyder – I picked up a thousand butts along Indianola, trash, etc. 1 bag of butts — small, but many stoop overs.