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News & Events
May 6, 2007
Ithaca
Comes out to Celebrate Local Plants at Wildflower Appreciation
Day
Ithacans love their native species. Six Mile Creek Natural
Area proudly dislayed its native wildflowers to participants
in Saturday's Wildflower Appreciation Day organized by Friends
of Six Mile Creek and the City of Ithaca Natural Areas Commission.
The gorgeous, sunny day featured guided walks by local experts,
homemade garlic mustard pesto, a plant scavenger hunt and,
to the delight of local kids, a garlic mustard pulling contest.
Photos can be viewed here.
The Ithaca Journal did a nice story on the event here.
Sophie and Diego Payne Inigo, after hours in the Natural
Area scouting invasives, came out holding one of the prize
winning garlic mustard plants like a trophy fish. Their
prize winning root measured 11 inches. A huge thank you
to Anna Stalter, member of the Natural Areas Commission
and tireless volunteer and Jess Langan-Peck, our intern
for their creativity in designing activities and hard work
organizing the event.
2007
Wildflower Appreciation Day Announced
Friends of Six Mile Creek is happy to announce that the
second annual Wildflower Appreciation Day will be held Saturday,
May 5, 2007 (10am-3pm). Tours of the Six Mile Creek Natural
Area by local experts will be given every half hour on the
half hour. There will also be many more activities for kids
and adults including wildflower (and invasive species) identification
activities.
Below we have an excerpt from last year's wildflower check-off
list. Identification "stations" throughout the
Natural Area help plant identification novices to find these
biologically and culturally important plants.
This year's check-off list can be downloaded by clicking
here (be careful, it's a large file 2.7 mb). The plant
descriptions can also be downloaded.
Intern
Helps Organize Garlic Mustard Pulls
April 16, 2007
In Fall 2006 a group of five Ithaca College
students in a grantwriting class chose the Six Mile Creek
invasives species management project as their focus. They
developed several documents, including a draft grant proposal
that we will use in our continuing fundraising efforts.
Thanks to Shea, Jakki, Andy, Jess and Kyla for their hard
work! One of those students, Jess Langan-Peck, has been
serving as an intern to Friends of Six Mile Creek and the
Natural Areas Commission this semester. Jess has been working
closely with the Invasives Subcommittee to write and submit
one grant application (with no fewer than 2 additional submissions
forthcoming), and to assist with the organization of volunteers
and events. Working on an Environmental Studies minor, Jess
will initiate invasives monitoring plots in the next few
weeks.
Volunteer work days were held on March 31 and April 14,
2007. Students and other community members turned out to
pull garlic mustard and spruce up the trails. The garlic
mustard collected on April 14 was donated to Bernd Blossey,
a Cornell Professor who is conducting research to develop
biological methods of garlic mustard control. The garlic
mustard we picked will be food for beetles that are being
reared in experiments to determine their suitability as
garlic mustard herbivores. Perhaps the end of the garlic
mustard invasion is truly in sight!
See
story here.
Community
Joins Friends of Six Mile Creek for Wildflower Appreciation
Day 2006
More than 50 people participated in walks
and scavenger hunts at Wildflower Appreciation Day this
past Sunday including Ithaca's Director of Planning and
Development Thys VanCort and Common Council member Mary
Tomlan. Friends of Six Mile Creek and the City of Ithaca
Natural Areas Commission sponsored the events highlighting
the human and natural history of the area and pointing out
the threats posed to wildflowers from invasive species.
The Ithaca
Journal did a nice story on the event (note that this
link will likely only be active until Sunday, June 1).
A young participant in the Plant Scavenger Hunt double
checks his
list. These native violets are nearly surrounded by invasive
garlic mustard.
NEW:
Wildflower
Appreciation Day -- May
21, 2006 (10am-3pm)
Learn more about the Six Mile Creek Natural
Area through guided tours provided by the Friends of Six
Mile Creek, a native and invasive plant "scavenger
hunt", and other activities for kids and adults held
throughout the day. Learn how the creek got its name, how
to identify the wildflowers and trees that grow in the Natural
Area, and about the Friends' efforts to protect this resource
for future generations. Park at the entrance just off Giles
St. Contact Anna Stalter
for more information.
May 19, 2006
Invasives
Committee Releases Report on Threats to Six Mile Creek
In a report presented to the City of Ithaca's
Natural Areas Commission (NAC), a committee of experts outlined
the grave threats facing native plants in the Six Mile Creek
Natural Area. The Six Mile Creek Invasive Plant Advisory
Committeee (SCIPAC), convened by the NAC, used the report
to highlight priority areas in the Six Mile gorge and summarize
the invasive plants that threaten these areas and proposed
plans for addressing the threats. Click
here for more information and to download a copy of
the report.
Photos courtesy Daniel Otis
April 26, 2006
More
Than 25 Volunteers Help Maintain Trails and Pull Garlic
Mustard
Despite cold weather and a constant drizzle
more than 25 hardy volunteers from Phi Kappa Tau and Delta
Chi fraternities attended the most recent Friends of Six
Mile Creek work day. Delta Chi volunteers joined the us
thanks to the generous help of On
Site Volunteer Services. Volunteers helped with trail
improvement and pulled more than a dozen garbage bags of
garlic mustard from a particularly ecologically sensitive
area of Six Mile.
December 10, 2005
Beloved
Conservationist Dr. Richard Fischer, Dies
In August 2005 Ithaca lost a devoted conservationist
and distinguished member of our community. As a lifelong
activist and environmental educator, Dr. Richard B. Fischer
engaged his students and the community as a whole in a wide
range of conservation activities. While Dr. Fischer was
recognized nationally for his contributions to environmental
education, it was Ithaca that benefited most directly by
his inspiration. Dr. Fischer dedicated countless hours to
the protection of Ithaca’s natural areas, he taught
numerous environmental education courses and he served on
many of Ithaca’s advisory boards including the Natural
Areas Commission. Dr. Fischer’s greatest contribution
to the community, however, may be his hands-on work to re-establish
the Eastern bluebird, New York’s state bird. Along
with enthusiastic volunteers, Dr. Fischer built and installed
hundreds of nest boxes which he would monitor in summer,
paint in the fall and clean out in the spring. From April
to August he would monitor up to 100 houses – visiting
active houses at least once a week. In honor of Dr. Fischer’s
contribution to the natural areas of Ithaca, the City of
Ithaca Natural Areas Commission will be installing several
blue bird boxes at the lower reservoir overlook in the Six
Mile Creek natural area. If you are interested in helping
with this effort please feel free to contact me or any member
of the Natural Areas Commission (contact information at
www.sixmilecreek.org).In August 2005 Ithaca lost a devoted
conservationist and distinguished member of our community.
As a lifelong activist and environmental educator, Dr. Richard
B. Fischer engaged his students and the community as a whole
in a wide range of conservation activities. While Dr. Fischer
was recognized nationally for his contributions to environmental
education, it was Ithaca that benefited most directly by
his inspiration.
Dr. Fischer dedicated countless hours to the
protection of Ithaca’s natural areas, he taught numerous
environmental education courses and he served on many of
Ithaca’s advisory boards including the Natural Areas
Commission. Dr. Fischer’s greatest contribution to
the community, however, may be his hands-on work to re-establish
the Eastern bluebird, New York’s state bird. Along
with enthusiastic volunteers, Dr. Fischer built and installed
hundreds of nest boxes which he would monitor in summer,
paint in the fall and clean out in the spring. From April
to August he would monitor up to 100 houses – visiting
active houses at least once a week. In honor of Dr. Fischer’s
contribution to the natural areas of Ithaca, the City of
Ithaca Natural Areas Commission will be installing several
blue bird boxes at the lower reservoir overlook in the Six
Mile Creek natural area. If you are interested in helping
with this effort please feel free to contact me or any member
of the Natural Areas Commission (contact information at
www.sixmilecreek.org).
To assist with the bluebird boxes please contact
Zev Ross.
August 11, 2005
City
of Ithaca Natural Areas Commission seeks new member
The City of Ithaca Natural Areas Commission
is looking for one new member. The NAC was established to
support conservation and monitor threats in the City's natural
areas including Six Mile Creek. The volunteer positionis
open to anyone with an interest in the City's natural areas.
The commission meets on the second Monday of every month
from 5:30-7:00pm. If you are interested or are interested
in learning more contact NAC Chairperson Zev Ross at zevross@earthlink.net.
Work
Day 2005 A Success
Two dozen volunteers worked
to remove debris
from trails and pick invasive species April 17, 2005.
Phoebe Lakin, 9, picks garlic mustard Sunday
in the Mulholland Wildflower Preserve. Lakin worked with
other volunteers to help remove the nonnative plant that
can crowd out native flowering plants. Friends of Six Mile
Creek, a citizens' organization that works to preserve and
restore the natural character of the Six Mile Creek Natural
Area, organized the work project.
Zev Ross, left, Dan Karig and Anna Stalter
remove debris from a flood-damaged trail Sunday along Six
Mile Creek in the Mulholland Wildflower Preserve. The group,
Friends of Six Mile Creek, organized the trail repair work.
Other volunteers worked to remove garlic mustard, a non-native
plant that can crowd out native flowering plants.
Photos and Captions from Bill Warren,
Ithaca Journal
Click Here for Photos
of the Trail Damage
Last Year's Activities
Click
Here for Photos
from last year's clean-up activities.
About Us
Formed in 2003, Friends of Six Mile Creek
is a citizens organization dedicated to the conservation
and restoration of the Six Mile Creek Natural Area in Ithaca,
NY. We are committed to conserving and restoring the natural
character of the area. At the same time we recognize the
many human uses and social importance of the area to the
Ithaca community. Friends of Six Mile Creek was originally
founded by members of the City of Ithaca Natural Areas Commission
and is an assembly of concerned citizens throughout the
Finger Lakes region. The only membership requirements are
a commitment to the Natural Area and willingness to volunteer
at least one hour per year in maintenance or restoration
activities.
Contact
Zev Ross
Friends of Six Mile Creek
Member, City of Ithaca Natural Areas Commission
Click Here for Email
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