WILLISTOWN CONSERVATION TRUST

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It’s a Wrap for the Campaign for Rushton Woods!

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Cover Photo by Jennifer Mathes

In 2018 Willistown Conservation Trust embarked upon an ambitious $2 million fundraising campaign. Named the “Campaign for Rushton Woods,” the effort came on the heels of the construction of the Rushton Conversation Center (RCC), located on the grounds of the Rushton Woods Preserve. 

The Campaign supported a vision to enhance the Rushton Woods Preserve, featuring the stunning new RCC as its heart, as a hub of conservation activity for WCT. Specifically, the campaign was designed to raise funds to renovate the White Farm House on the property, establish an environmental master plan for the Preserve, improve circulation and recreational enjoyment of the Preserve, and provide much needed operating support for the vibrant programs based from Rushton Woods: Watershed Protection, the Community Farm, Bird Conservation, and Land Stewardship activities. 

We are thrilled to report that the WCT community of generous funders and donors came together and, as of December 31, 2022, successfully completed the Campaign.

Many results made possible by the Campaign can already be seen by the community. The White Farm House which sits just west of the RCC has been attractively rehabbed and expanded. It now boasts a guest room which has provided overnight accommodations to visiting conservationists and scientists. Ornithologists from Tadoussac Bird Observatory in Canada recently commented, “Such a wonderful place with such wonderful people! We had an amazing time at WCT and we learned a lot from all of you,” upon conclusion of their stay. A first floor conference room and bird book library now serve as a small group meeting space for organizational meetings, as well as a place for farm staff to cool off over lunch on hot summer days. 

The Master Plan for Rushton Woods was also completed with Campaign funding, and it outlined a framework to address identified environmental and recreational improvements needed in the Preserve. As a result of the Master Plan, several projects have already begun, including the first step in restoring the hedgerows in the center of the Preserve. The first 100 feet of invasive species were removed by Land Studies Inc., and replanted by Preserve and Facilities Manager Mike Cranney with the help of volunteers. The project was funded with a grant from Pennsylvania Society for Ornithology. 

A new visible result is the just-completed equestrian/pedestrian trail through the woods, constructed by Green Roots Landscaping. This beautiful and functional path will be enjoyed by hikers and horses alike as they wind their way through the woods on sure and dry footing. Further enhancements planned in the coming year include an ADA accessible trail connecting the Rushton Farm shed to the RCC with a section of hedgerow restoration along Delchester Road as well as a bioretention basin, which will address stormwater, improve stream health by reducing erosion, provide habitat, and be accessible to all with an additional ADA trail loop.

Campaign funds will also support WCT operating activities and programs. Rising costs and growth of our departments require constant funding, and our ability to keep the departments running relies upon the generosity of a community who understands the importance of open space and conserved land and its positive impact on wildlife preservation and a healthy environment.

The Board and staff of WCT would like to acknowledge and thank all those who came together in this effort. There were approximately 71 donors, made up of individuals, foundations, and governmental organizations. Additionally, the work at this Preserve wouldn’t be possible without our dedicated volunteers and Land Stewardship Team. We will continue to provide updates to the community, as work is completed at Rushton. The entire community is welcome and encouraged to visit the Preserve to enjoy a solitary winter hike or a lively, warm weather picnic at one of our Community Super Series events. There is something for everyone at Rushton Woods Preserve!

A big thanks to everyone who contributed to this Campaign:

Anonymous (2)

1976 Foundation

Mr. Timothy B. Barnard and Ms. Meredyth Patterson

Lisa Hatcher and Charlie Bernard

Michael and Linda Burg

Mr. Adrian A. Castelli and Ms. Molly G. Love

Chester County Preservation Program

The Colket Foundation

Mr. and Mrs. John F. Cozzi

Department of Conservation and Natural Resources

Department of Environmental Protection: Growing Greener

Diamond Ice Foundation

Anthony and Linda DiValerio

Ray Dombroski and Colleen DeMorat

Dick and Nancy Eales

Mr. and Mrs. Christopher B. Ebmeyer

Kate and Ben Etherington

First Cornerstone Foundation

Mr. and Mrs. John Fry

Jim and Dina Gibson

Steve and Christina Graham

Julie S. and K. David Graham

Mrs. Perry C. Gresh

Dr. Janet F. Haas and Mr. John Otto Haas

Mr. and Mrs. Nathaniel P. Hamilton Jr.

Meg and Chris Hardesty

Alice and Peter Hausmann

Lynn Hitschler

Mr. and Mrs. Thomas W. Hofmann

Mr. and Mrs. Bill T. Howard

Elayne Howard

Beth and David Hucker

Mr. and Mrs. Scott Johnson

Mrs. Barbara M. Jordan

Michelle Kichline

Mr. George F. Krall Jr.

Ms. Lisa Krall

Mr. and Mrs. Joseph Layden, Jr.

Mr. and Mrs. Mark T. Ledger

Lindsay and Ted Leisenring

Michael McGraw

McLean Contributionship

Mr. and Mrs. Robert S. McMenamin

Dr. F. Arthur McMorris and Dr. Joanna Balcarek McMorris

Mr. and Mrs. Peter Morse

Donna and Bill Oliver

Otto Haas Charitable Trust

Heidi S. Phelan

Marshall-Reynolds Foundation

Quaker City Foundation

Lang and Marilyn Smith

Mr. and Mrs. Steven L. Spinner

Veritable, LP

Mr. and Mrs. Michael A. Stolper

John F. and Holly H. Stoviak

Jennifer H. Gorman-Strawbridge

Mr. and Mrs. Peter S. Strawbridge

Jeanne and Doug Swope

Mr. Matt E. Taylor and Ms. Francie Ingersoll

The Darling Fund of the Philadelphia Foundation

The RJM Foundation

Bob and Carolyn Turner

UNFI Foundation

Mr. and Mrs. James L. Van Alen II

Mr. and Mrs. James L. Van Alen, Jr.

Mr. and Mrs. Alexander S. Van Alen

Mr. and Mrs. Rob B. Van Alen

Mr. and Mrs. Richard Warden

The Honorable Thomas D. Watkins and Mrs. Penelope Watkins

Ms. Lida A. Wright

Alex and Janine Zozaya

Market in the Meadow Vegetarian Chili Recipe

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This recipe comes from What’s Gaby Cooking.
Cover photo by Jennifer Mathes

You all loved our Vegetarian Chili from Market in the Meadow, so we had to share!

A special thanks to our dedicated volunteers who harvested, chopped, and cooked this delicious meal at the Rushton Conservation Center. Most of the ingredients came right from Rushton Farm.

INGREDIENTS

  • 1 tablespoon olive oil, plus 2 extra teaspoons
  • 1 large sweet potato, peeled and diced
  • 1 large red onion, diced
  • 4 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
  • 2 tablespoons chili powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground chipotle pepper
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
  • 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 3 1/2 cups vegetable stock
  • 1 15-ounce cans black beans, rinsed and drained
  • 1 14.5-ounce can fire roasted diced tomatoes
  • 1/2 cup dried quinoa
  • 4 teaspoons lime juice
  • serving suggestions: avocado, cilantro, crema, grated cheese

DIRECTIONS

  1. Heat a large heavy bottom pot with the oil over medium high heat.
  2. Add the sweet potato and onion and cook for about 5 minutes, until the onion is softened. Add the garlic, chili powder, chipotle, cumin, and salt and stir to combine.
  3. Add the stock, tomatoes, black beans, and quinoa and bring the mixture to a boil. Stir to incorporate.
  4. Cover the pot and reduce the heat to maintain a gentle simmer.
  5. Cook for 30-40 minutes until the quinoa is fully cooked and the sweet potatoes are soft.
  6. Add the lime juice and remove the pot from the heat. Season with salt as needed.
  7. Garnish with avocado, cilantro, crema, or cheese before serving.

Serves 4 people.

This recipe comes from What’s Gaby Cooking.

Designing the Future of Motus

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Birds are on the ropes in our rapidly changing world. One recent report suggests that North America’s bird populations have declined by more than a billion birds—more than a third—in the past 50 years. Among the biggest threats are habitat loss and climate change, but there are many other reasons for these declines. Willistown Conservation Trust is addressing some of these issues through our strong partnership program called the Northeast Motus Collaboration (www.northeastmotus. com), which includes the Ned Smith Center for Art and Nature, Project Owlnet, and the Powdermill Avian Research Center. 

A young ovenbird is fitted with a Motus nanotag, a tiny lightweight radiotransmitter.
Its signal is detected by Motus receiving stations located within 15 kilometers of its path. Data from these receivers is filtered, analyzed, archived, and disseminated to all organizations in the network and made available to the public through motus.org.

The Collaboration has achieved incredible success with support from the Pennsylvania Game Commission and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, among many other donors and partners. Since 2017, we have been building a network of more than 70 automated telemetry receiving stations throughout the northeastern U.S., allowing researchers to track the migrations of small birds, bats and even insects like monarch butterflies and dragonflies. We are now the largest collaborator with global coordinator Birds Canada in the Motus Wildlife Tracking System (www.motus.org). For the first time, Motus is allowing us to follow the full, annual life-cycle movements of animals once too small to track across great distances. 

The Motus Wildlife Tracking System has grown explosively in its first five years, expanding from a largely regional Northeast telemetry network to one with an international scope—more than 850 receiver stations on five continents, involving more than 600 research partners and collaborators. If Motus is to continue to expand to its full global potential, strategic planning is urgently needed at multiple levels—to ensure sustainability of funding for both infrastructure and maintenance; to provide more seamless data integration and processing as data upload rates increase dramatically; and to create systems to adopt and adapt to changing technology. 

The Northeast Motus Collaboration, which has grown into the second-largest operator of Motus receiver stations in the world, has received support from the Richard King Mellon Foundation to help underwrite this critical strategic planning process. As the collaboration’s lead organization, Willistown Conservation Trust, together with Birds Canada, will host a strategic planning conference  that will include Motus partners and experts from the Western Hemisphere. The meeting will be facilitated by the Institute  for Conservation Leadership and plans to create a framework to support diverse research, conservation action, education, and continued sustainable growth and management of the Motus network for the future. The date of the conference, originally scheduled for June 2020, has yet to be determined.

Through this remarkable collaboration, we are helping the scientific community translate research into specific conservation action that will protect and conserve small migratory animals, especially birds. Through the innovative use of technology and research methods, we’re improving our understanding of what populations of birds and other wildlife need to survive. 

With the Spotted Lanternfly it’s Always Squash Season

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At our most recent free lunch & learn at the Rushton Conservation Center, Meagan Hopkins-Doerr provided a wealth of useful information about the invasive and destructive Spotted Lanternfly (SLF). Meagan is Coordinator for the Master Gardeners of Chester County and Master Watershed Stewards of Chester & Delaware Counties, and she travels the area providing informative sessions like this one on a variety of topics.

Background

SLF is an invasive species that was discovered in Berks County back in 2014. With few natural predators, it has spread and threatens the Pennsylvania economy. It is critical to manage this pest now. SLF was also introduced in South Korea, which is similar in size to Pennsylvania.

So, here are some of the highlights of actions you can take now:

Destroy the Eggs

The SLF adults have now died from the cold, but have left behind their egg masses. Here’s a photo of what they look like.

Photo: Penn State University Extension – Image by Erica Smyers

Females will lay eggs on virtually any outdoor surface. In addition to trees you may find them on:

  • Fence posts
  • Grills
  • Sheds
  • Lawn furniture
  • Outdoor seating cushions
  • Exterior walls (siding, brick, stone)
  • Flower boxes
  • Bird feeders

Careful inspection of your property for the egg masses is an important step in controlling the spread of the SLF. Each egg mass can contain, on average, 37 eggs. Therefore it’s important to destroy any you see. When you see one, here’s what you do:

  • Scrape the egg mass into a jar or similar container
  • Soak the eggs in isopropyl (rubbing) alcohol
  • Dispose of the container

You can also smash the egg masses, or burn them if you have a fire pit.

Limit the Spread

Willistown Conservation Trust’s program area is within the quarantine zone. At all stages of growth, SLF are very efficient hitchhikers. There are some things you can do to limit the spread of the SLF:

  • Check your car (wheel wells, grille) and any trailers and remove all SLF before departing. This is important ESPECIALLY before driving out of the quarantine zone.
  • Don’t park under infested trees
  • Do not transport firewood
  • Inspect any material stored outdoors before transporting it elsewhere

Remove Tree of Heaven

If you use landscapers or arborists, ask if they have received an SLF permit from the PA Department of Agriculture. For more information about the permit visit: https://extension.psu.edu/does-your-business-need-a-spotted-lanternfly-permit

Though the SLF will feed on other plants, the Tree of Heaven is one of its preferred hosts. If you have Tree of Heaven, it is important to remove them. You MUST use an appropriate herbicide to treat the tree before cutting it down or it will multiply.

Get Ready for Hatching

Banding. When the SLF eggs hatch in the spring, the nymphs will begin to forage. By banding trees they prefer, you can help to capture them. Bands should be checked regularly and replaced as needed. Excluder cages should be used to  keep other animals away from the bands. Read more about use of traps here: https://extension.psu.edu/using-traps-for-spotted-lanternfly-management

Insecticides. If you have an infestation, it may be necessary to use insecticides. There are a variety of systemic and contact insecticides with varying degrees of efficacy against the SLF. Always read and follow the label before applying any insecticide. Additional information can be found here: https://extension.psu.edu/spotted-lanternfly-management-and-pesticide-safety

See the Penn State Extension website for instructions on how to band trees and for selection and use of insecticides.

Report. Report. Report.

Researchers need data. By reporting sightings of SLF you will help researchers understand how the SLF are moving. To report SLF you can go online to extension.psu.edu/spotted-lanternfly or call 1-888-4BADFLY.

Learn More

You can download a variety of helpful information at the PSU Extension website. The Trust also has some print materials left over from the lunch & learn. You’re welcome to stop by our office and pick up some while supplies last. We also have a small supply of scraper cards, which also have helpful information on them including the number to call to report SLF.

Watch for more informative lunch & learns coming up.

OUR NATURE PRESERVES

Our nature preserves are open to the public 365 days per year from sunrise to sunset, providing natural places that offer peace and respite for all. Willistown Conservation Trust owns and manages three nature preserves in the Willistown area - Ashbridge, Kirkwood and Rushton Woods Preserve. We maintain these lands for the … Learn more about our nature preserves.

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WHERE WE WORK

The work of the Willistown Conservation Trust is concentrated on 28,000 acres of Willistown Township … read more