A Race against the Clock – Metro Parks’ Restoration Projects

ELAINE HALL AND LOGAN DUNN
Assistant Resource Managers

Resource Management at Metro Parks is deep in the throes of spring projects, including restoration. The first stage in our land management operations is land acquisition. We’ve acquired nearly 420 acres of land in the past three years at various parks across the district. Some of these properties include already well established beautiful resources like maturing forests and quality floodplain habitat. While other portions were recently in agriculture or let go to fallow fields and invasive species, they are ripe for restoration and serve as a blank canvas.

Determining what restoration approach should take place on a specific parcel of land requires us to look at it from many angles. We investigate the history of the land which can be told to us from the soil found under our feet, to records and stories documented by surveyors exploring the Northwest Territory. For example, Ellis Pond at Pickerington Ponds is a remnant glacial kettle lake. Upon acquisition, the body of water had greatly changed and probably retained little of its natural character, but it was still attractive to an abundance of nesting and migratory waterfowl and wetland species. So Metro Parks set out to restore the body of water and the surrounding area to boost a complex wetland ecosystem.

Site prep and planting is a race against the clock. Weather and soggy ground conditions work against us in the spring. Sometimes, several herbicide applications are needed in order to rid the soil of noxious and invasive weed species that can hinder a prairie planting. So proper timing, along with ideal ground conditions are key to a successful restoration.

Out of the recent land acquisitions, roughly 200 acres have been designated to plant. To plant cover crops or prairies in the park, we use equipment such as our Truax seed drill. This machine, pulled by a tractor, allows seed to be planted and has discs that disturb the surface of the soil to allow the seeds to sink into the top layer of the earth and then the closing wheels assist covering the seed once laid into the furrow. It takes approximately one hour to plant every 2 acres with a single operator.

Depending on the restoration goal, a combination of cover crops, such as wheat and/or our very own harvested prairie seed may be planted. The cover crops will sprout quickly to protect the ground from erosion. Areas slated for reforestation may get only cover crop, or cover crop and prairie grass, until tree plantings in the fall. Prairie sites will get a combination of cover crop and prairie seed. The prairie seed takes much longer to sprout, sometimes several years, while the cover crop will assist with nutrient intake and prevent competitive noxious weeds from outcompeting the prairie plants. To learn more about our prairie seed harvesting read here