Stop the Stilt - PM Volunteer Session

57 Mountain Ave,Princeton NJ 08540

14 August, 2021

Description

Volunteers Needed to Stop the Stilt! We need your help! Stilt grass (Microstegium vimineum) is an invasive annual grass that outcompetes native plant species and forms monocultures across the forest floor. During this session, volunteers will learn to identify stilt grass and help to remove it from target areas of the restoration site. Our work will allow for recently planted native trees, shrubs, and wildflowers to thrive, such as the young hickory tree featured below. Meeting Location: We meet at the Mountain Lake House Parking lot, 57 Mountain Ave, Princeton NJ, and then walk over to the project site as a group. Be sure to drive down the long paved entryway to the Billy Johnson Mountain Lakes Nature Preserve, marked by a series of white mail boxes, the gravel parking lot is on your left about a 1/2 mile down the paved driveway. BYO: If you are not yet vaccinated for COVID-19, please bring a mask. Be sure to BYO water bottle and work gloves to the stewardship sessions. For work days we recommend wearing long sleeves, long pants, and good work boots--it may be muddy out there. We will follow social distancing practices by wearing a mask and maintaining a 6ft distance from others. We ask that if you are feeling sick, have traveled, or have potentially been exposed to the COVID-19 virus, to please stay home and join us at another time. Friends of Princeton Open Space (FOPOS), founded in 1969, is a non-profit, tax-exempt organization devoted to acquiring open space in Princeton for preservation, protecting natural resources, maintaining accessibility to trails, and providing environmental education. Throughout the Princeton region, FOPOS works with groups to support efforts to preserve and protect open space and the environment. In 2019, FOPOS will celebrate it's 50th year.  Since its founding, FOPOS has helped to establish over 1,000 acres of parkland and a network of trails that nearly encircles Princeton.  Through grants and the contributions of hundreds of people in the community, FOPOS has helped to raise over $5 million for the purchase of land and acquisition of easements on properties that might have been bulldozed for development.  In addition to land preservation, FOPOS also leads in stewardship, from creating and maintaining hiking trails, boardwalks and footbridges, to the removal of invasive species and the replanting of native varieties.  FOPOS also sponsors community programs and activities, such as nature walks and educational workshops, and advocates for governmental actions that protect our water, land, animals and plant communities. If you have an interest in spending time outdoors, enjoying nature and making a difference in the community, please contact us at [email protected] to get involved in trail-building and ecological restoration.