 |
Marott Park and Nature Preserve
How to get there - Google map
(Driving Directions)
Service Learning Project
Date:
Time:
Backup Date:
Time:
Work Day Description:
Participants will work with Indy Parks and Recreation to
remove invasive exotic plant species and will install native plants
in the woodlands areas.
Meeting Location: Please park
and meet at the parking area on the south side of 75th Street
between College Ave. to the west and the Monon
Trail and Westfield Boulevard to the east.
Participants must wear clothes
appropriate for outdoor field work. Long pants and closed toe
shoes are required (NO Crocs or Keens). Lunch, water, gloves, and equipment will be
provided.
Marott Park Overview
Marott Park and Nature Preserve is located in north-central
Indianapolis. The main park entrance is located on College Avenue
just across from Park Tudor School. The nature preserve, encompassing most
of Marott Park, is composed of an old second-growth mixed mesophytic
upland forest in the north, and floodplain forest and successional
fields along Williams Creek and the White River to the south. Tree
species throughout the park and nature preserve include Ohio
buckeye, paw paw, bur and chinquapin oaks, and rough-leaved dogwood.
IUPUI service learning students have been working in this park with
Indy Parks and Recreation since 1996. Service-learning projects
contribute to the ongoing restoration of the area and include
removal of invasive exotic plant species, erosion control, hillslope
stabilization, and hardwood forest restoration.
IDNR Division of Nature
Preserves
Marott Park Woods Nature Preserve:
http://www.in.gov/dnr/files/np-marott_park.pdf
top of page
 Marott Park and Nature Preserve Background Information
from Indy Parks and Recreation Land Stewardship Restoration Plan
Summary
Introduction
Marott Park is named after the Marott family (George and Ella) who
donated ~ 87 acres of land to be used as a nature park. Later, other
parcels were donated for a total of ~102 acres of parkland.
The
majority of Marott Park is a dedicated Indiana nature preserve owned
and managed by the Department of Parks and Recreation (Indy Parks)
in coordination with the Indiana Department of Natural Resources,
Division of Nature Preserves (IDNR-NP). The first portion of the
preserve dedicated in 1987 is a second growth 16-acre forested
natural area. This part of the nature preserve is considered one of
the best areas in Marion County for viewing wildflowers and native
flora. This natural remnant allows the park visitor to see an
example of how the county may have looked prior to settlement in the
1820’s. In 1992, much of the remainder of the park was added as a
nature preserve. It is this latter addition that requires intensive
management. Agriculture and other past land use has propagated a
weedy landscape that does not provide quality of habitat or the
environmental benefits of a natural area. The long-range goal is to
convert the weedy portion of the preserve to native floodplain
woodland.
Project Site
The site contains 22 acres of old field in early woodland
succession. By looking at aerial photographs from 1937, 1941, and
1956 and into the late seventies, this area was used for row crop
agriculture. The agricultural field lay fallow and the property is
now in an early woodland stage of succession. Plant species such as
staghorn sumac and Canada goldenrod grow here. Native trees include
young stands of mesic floodplain tree species such as sycamore and
hackberry. However, most of the area contains thick pockets of
invasive exotic shrubs and trees. The most common species is Amur
honeysuckle. Other species include Siberian elm, white mulberry,
tree-of-heaven, and common privet. There are also several
invasive-exotic groundcovers and vines. These include wintercreeper,
Japanese honeysuckle, oriental bittersweet, crown vetch, and vinca.
Garlic mustard is also prominent.
Project Goals
The short-term goal is to establish control over the invasive plants
and the seeds that will vigorously sprout from the seed bank in the
soil. The long-term goal of the restoration is to sustain the
recovery and regeneration of native forest plant communities that
include native canopy trees, understory shrubs and trees, and an
herbaceous layer of flowers, grasses and sedges.
Control Methods
Control of dense stands of invasive plants will intensive
management. Heavy equipment will include a chipper, truck and
tractor. Control and removal methods in the old agricultural field
in the east, northeast portion of the preserve require a phased
approach to achieve the management objectives. Natural succession
processes have resulted in a tangled stand of almost impenetrable
exotic shrubs, trees and vines. Mixed within dense stands of
invasive-exotic plants are native “pioneer plants” such as box
elder, ash and cottonwood. In this situation, most invasive shrubs
and trees will be chipped and hauled offsite. Native woody species
will be thinned to optimize growth rates while allowing access and
maneuverability for maintenance and planting equipment. Groups of
native plants such as cottonwood or sumac stands that are relatively
unspoiled by invasive-exotic plants will be maintained. The
short-term goal in the old agricultural field area will be to remove
a majority of invasive shrubs and establish native canopy trees and
a native grass layer. Natural succession will be interrupted for a
period of time until exotic seed sources and plants are controlled.
Gradually, pockets of native vegetation will be reintroduced and the
natural succession will be allowed to continue as native plants
regain dominance. Monitoring and follow-up walkthrough maintenance
will continue annually. Native plants will be reintroduced to fill
the niche that wintercreeper and other exotics now control. The
other goal of native plant introduction is to establish an
appropriate seed source to enhance regeneration in areas that have
significant loss of one or more components of forest structure.
A number of Eagle Scout candidates, churches and businesses have
donated their time to restoring this park. Additionally, the IUPUI
Center for Earth and Environmental Science, the Sierra Club and
Butler University Department of Biological Sciences are partner
groups that help maintain the preserve.
top of page
Educational Note:
Reference the IUPUI
Center for Earth and Environmental Science when citing
material from this website. To learn more about citation
and plagiarism visit:
University Library
General Reference Resources:
http://www.ulib.iupui.edu/genref
IUPUI Code of Student Rights, Responsibilities, and
Conduct:
http://www.iupui.edu/~sldweb/rights/
top of page |
