May 9, 2023 Maintenance Day Lunch with Ohio State students from the Breakaway program.
Having a bit of lunch before back to more invasive removal and tree planting.
A maintenance and invasive management day at the TRWA involved a group of seven students from Ohio State University sponsored by Wanda DeWaard along with her son Cornelius, along with Tuckaleechee Garden Club members: Scott & Theresa Schehr, Anna Gaultney and Mark Seder.
The Oho State students came to the area to do service projects in our community thru a program called Break Away. They had worked at various locations in Blount County and Wanda contacted us to see if we could use a bit of help at the TRWA, that offer was not turned down.
The students, Wanda, Cornelius and Mark worked on clearing a large area of Euonymous that had been growing off the trail towards the river. This group did a great job of not only removing a large portion of the Euonymous but also other invasives such as: privet, bush honeysuckle, multiflora rose, honeysuckle vine and few small mimosa trees.
I, personally, was impressed with this fantastic group of students. They were incredibly helpful with no complaining, taking in all that they were being taught about the TRWA, the invasives and the other trees and plants and a lot of fun to talk to.
A teaching moment from Wanda DeWaard to one of the students.
While the students were working away along the Little River. Scott, Theresa, and Anna were getting the area around the new Robert "Bob" & Elaine Russell Tribute Garden, Roadside Specimen Garden and the Pollinator Garden cleared of some weeds and general tidying up.
Theresa Schehr clearing around a Gregory Bald Flame Azalea.
Anna Gaultney doing some maintenance around the Specimen Garden.
As often is the case we encountered some of the creatures that make the TRWA such a wonderful place.
Baby Snapping Turtle
Peck's Skipper Butterfly on a Paw Paw Tree.
It was a great day with fantastic help and as we ended our day at around 3 PM the group just had to try out the new children's picnic table that they helped install, created by Rodney Pearson out of a White Oak Truck, but that is another story for another day, Stop by and see all that is happening at the Townsend River Walk & Arboretum.
