Skaneateles Conservation Area/Vegetation management

This plan is intended to discuss the issues involved in protecting and restoring biodiversity to the Skaneateles Conservation Area (SCA) by controlling invasive plant species and where necessary replacing them with appropriate native plants, including trees and shrubs appropriate for encouraging succession the historical forest type for this area. The plan will take into account current and possible future uses of the area.

Probably the best plan for managing invasive species is to educate everyone responsible for any level of management of the area about what is invasive and what should be protected. This should include lawn and trail mowing personnel and volunteers doing basic trail clearing. At a minimum, their supervisors should understand the importance of keeping invasive plants away from trails and gathering spots. This would gradually reduce the need for future maintenance.

For example, one of our common invasive plants, and arguably the most annoying, is multiflora rose. This will grow wherever it can get a little light, so it loves trail edges and will send long stems across trails to seek more light. It has huge thorns that will grab at clothing, arms, hats, and ears. Many hikers carry pruning shears and nicely trim the roses and other invasives back just enough avoid hikers who obediently follow the designated trail. Untold hours are spent by hikers and volunteers pruning our trailsides, some of which end up being essentially tight hedges of various invasive shrubs, including honeysuckle, privet (as in hedge) and other invasives. These hedges continue to thicken and spread, and the area takes on the feel of a maze, where any native plants that remain are hidden from view.

An obvious solution is to remove any invasive shrubs completely from trail sides. This takes more work in the short term, but it will at least delay the need for further trimming until the whole shrub grows back, as most invasives tend to do.

Trail maintainers often have choices when trails get overgrown or develop muddy spots and need to be diverted to some extent. Saving native vegetation should be a priority when doing so. When there is a choice about which way to move a trail, the way that saves the most natives at the expense of non-natives is probably preferable.