New funding will allow restoration work in Shawmont to move forward

An update from Project Manager Dennis Burton

Ecological restoration in Shawmont continues to move forward! Thanks to additional funding from the Schuylkill Restoration Fund (managed by the Schuylkill Heritage Area), the Schuylkill Project is able to continue restoration and landscaping work begun last summer on the 4½ acre Ottinger tract in the Shawmont area of Upper Roxborough. The project follows the guidelines recommended by Natural Lands Trust in its “Shawmont Area Management Planning Report: Fall 2010.” The William Penn Foundation also played a large part in allowing this project to move forward, both with its funding of the planning report and with matching funds for planting. Other key players are the Philadelphia Water Department Office of Watersheds through their support of the Schuylkill Restoration Fund.

Work on the Ottinger tract will continue this winter with the removal of invasive vines and shrubs such as Ailanthus, Oriental Bittersweet, Winged Euonymous, English Ivy, Japanese Hops, Japanese Honeysuckle, and Japanese Cork Tree, to be cut and mulched on site. Invasives control on the Ottinger tract will be completed in the late spring of 2012 after the suppression of herbaceous perennials and annuals such as Garlic Mustard, Japanese Stilt Grass, Lesser Celandine, Goutweed, Mugwort, and Japanese Knotweed. The list of invasives for removal may seem long, but native species and non-invasive alien plants actually outnumber the invasive species on the site. The presence of numerous native trees, shrubs and herbaceous species will contribute to the success of the ecological restoration.

Often restoration projects are initiated after invasive plants have begun to dominate the landscape. Removing them at that point generally causes excessive disturbance to the ecosystem, leaving gaps in the tree canopy and disturbed soil, making it easier for more invasives and their seeds to reestablish. The Ottinger tract’s healthy canopy of riparian trees, and an understory of native shrubs and wildflowers will improve the 4½ acres for wildlife habitat and make restoration more obtainable.

The new funding will allow the restoration to be extended from the Ottinger tract along the bike trail toward Manayunk to approximately Fountain Street. That will be a distance of more than a mile encompassing 11 acres between the SEPTA tracks and the Schuylkill River. The goal of the first phase of this project is similar to the Ottinger project: The removal of invasive vegetation. The invasives along this stretch are mostly the same as those on the Ottinger tract with a few not found on Ottinger, such as Jetbead (Rhodotypos scandens), Bamboo, and a long rocky slope along the railroad track berm covered with a dense coppice of Japanese Honeysuckle. The work will begin this fall and continue through 2012 as needed to control the invasive trees, shrubs, vines, and herbaceous species. Fortunately, as with Ottinger, the native trees prevail along this tract. The canopy trees include some very impressive American Sycamores, Silver Maples, Oaks and Ash. Some native shrubs can be found in the area, but invasive vines have claimed many of them. Removal of the vines will be the focus of this fall and winter’s work to be implemented by Applied Ecological Services, a local, ecocentric landscape firm out of Conshohocken. Phase 2 of the restoration project will be planting and landscaping. Native trees and shrubs will be added after the invasives have been suppressed. Large tree planting will begin in fall of 2012. The large trees are especially important where shade intolerant invasive plants have been removed. Fast growing American Sycamores and Silver Maples will begin casting shade over the areas where the shade intolerant invasives grew, restricting their ability to reestablish.

In the area of the new canopy trees and along the bike trail, shrubs and smaller trees will be planted. The shrub planting will begin in the spring of 2013. Planting along the bike trail will be done as an ecologically sound landscape design project. Shrubs further from the trail will be planted according to ecological restoration Best Management Practices for ecosystem diversity and function, especially for wildlife habitat. Work in this area will provide opportunities for volunteer involvement. The shrub plantings could provide an excellent volunteer opportunity: the shrubs will be chosen for both practicality and design and will be small enough for volunteers to handle. Limited fencing will be used for the more vulnerable-to-deer species and the fencing also could be erected by volunteers. Some maintenance of the plantings will be needed as the shrubs and trees get established, allowing for more volunteer engagement.



Dennis Burton is the founder of Landscape Restoration and Ecological Design. Dennis has worked and consulted on ecological restoration and design projects for over fifteen years with numerous organizations in the private and municipal sectors, including New York City Parks and Recreation, Baltimore Parks and Recreation, Preservation Alliance of Greater Philadelphia, George School in Bucks County, and Riverbend Environmental Education Center.