PRLC Projects

Contents

The Armstrong House

Isaacson Fen

Woodlands Health Management Program

The Armstrong House

A bold new project of the PRLC to renovate this 1912 residential structure to be a land steward's residence and a "green" off-the-grid prototype for our community.

Isaacson Fen

Download December 2008 Report

The Phragmites Study began in Spring of 2006, Dr. Ellen Kearns continues a volunteer research project for the Pound Ridge Land Conservancy focusing on controlling an invasive reed, Phragmites australis, which has taken over in several of the fen areas of the Isaacson Preserve. The research project is based on previous work cited by The Nature Conservancy and is designed to take advantage of the natural plant physiology and carbon metabolism of the reeds to weaken them and allow native fen plants to hold their own. High school and college students interested in plant physiology and ecology are encouraged to contact the Pound Ridge Land Conservancy for more information about volunteer opportunities for research in the fens.

Woodlands Health Management Program

Introduction to the Woodland’s Health Project:
Spring 2009 Newsletter article: Forest Management
Fall 2009 Newsletter article: Our Woodland’s Health

This longer-term PRLC project is based on the fact that the variety and abundance of wildlife present in our woodlands depends upon food, water and shelter. These factors combine to determine the habitat of a particular species. Wildlife management can more aptly be considered habitat management where efforts focus on providing the habitat necessary to support the desired biodiversity for a variety of wildlife species. Working with the New York City Watershed Council’s Forestry Program, the PRLC seeks to plan and implement a staged series of initiatives to promote biodiversity and healthy woodland life in several of our preserves. In so doing, the PRLC hopes to provide education and understanding for Pound Ridge landowners to manage their woodlands and backyards in ways that support good land stewardship. Maintaining healthy landscapes over generations also protects one of our most precious resources – water.

Many decisions go into forest management. You can accelerate and improve forest growth and diversity by selecting the trees that will dominate the ‘stand’. You may chose the healthiest and most vigorous, or you may select a tree for its value to wildlife or for its products such as the sugar maple or white oak. You can manage for a tree’s survival and vigor by opening the growing space around its crown to receive more sunlight which will in turn, increase the tree’s photosynthetic capabilities and make the tree more resistant to insects and disease. Woodland management mimics natural forest development to produce a healthier and more valuable forest in terms of diversity for wildlife and landscape. By choosing a ‘preservationist’ approach – also known as a hand’s off approach – it is highly likely that invasive insects, plants and trees and deer overbrowse will increase with native plant species continuing their decline and wildlife habitat being further degraded. (Taken in part from the Watershed Agricultural Council’s ‘An Introduction to Forestry”.)

As part of this program, vegetative monitoring plots have been established at the Clark and Halle Ravine Preserves. These four foot radius monitoring plots have been randomly selected to measure tree regeneration over the years. An inventory of the trees and plants growing in each plot is taken once a year and over at least a five year period, we hope to see an increase in both herbaceous and woody vegetation in light of the town of Pound Ridge’s deer management program (controlled bow-hunting). In the future, it is contemplated that fenced ‘exclosures’ may be built to monitor larger areas of re-growth where diversity is re-established.