Invasive+Plant+Removal

=**Invasive Plant Removal at Gardner Street Trail**=

The Parks and Recreation Department in Gardner needed volunteers to remove invasive plants. The area of land that we cleaned was next to a large road. The invasive plants that we removed were, English Ivy (Hedera Helix), Ligustrum sinense (Chinese privet), Ligustrum Japonicum (Japanese privet), Eleagnus Pungens (Silverthrone) and Mahonia Bealei (lwatherleaf mahonia). These plants needed to be removed because they infected the trunks of the plants and caused them to rot. When these huge rot, they can fall over onto roads and block streets. This is a safety hazard and could kill many people. These invasive species needed to be removed in this area to avoid this hazard and prevent fatalities. During the plant removal, we used various tools to cut the vines of the English Ivy. Although the vines climbed to the tops of the trees, we were able to kill them by making two cuts along the vines. In addition, we had to use saws, to cut the larger Ligustrum Japonicum. These invasive species were large and tough to cut. Overall, we made great progress and were able to remove a large amount of the plants.