Investing in ‘a very special spot’

The Sauk Creek Nature Preserve in Port Washington — a peaceful oasis created in 1994 by what was then the newly formed Ozaukee Land Trust as its first sanctuary — is the focus of a multi-year restoration project  intended to help improve the forest and habitat.

The project focuses on increasing diversity in the forest by planting trees and eliminating invasive woody shrubs and plants that have been crowding out native species on the 27 acre preserve.

“We only have 10 or 11 species of trees in the preserve right now,” Christine Bohn, restoration manager for Restoring Lands, as the land trust is known today, said.

“We can get that number to 25 or 30 with planting, and each of those trees will support different bird and wildlife species.”

And that, she said, creates a healthier preserve that will support a variety of plants and animals.

The project represents the largest single infusion of money into a single improvement project by Restoring Lands in at least 10 years, Ryan Wallin, the group’s restoration and stewardship director, said Monday.

“We’ve done a lot of stewardship work through the years and put a lot of effort into the trail system,” Bohn added. “But this is the biggest lift in terms of a restoration project.”

It’s fitting that the work is being done in the organization’s first sanctuary, she said, adding, “This is a very special spot, that’s for sure.”

It also was seriously being compromised by the amount of invasive species on the land, she said.

Bohn will lead a community walk and talk through the Sauk Creek Nature Preserve from 4 to 5:30 p.m. Thursday, June 4, to explain the project.

The project is estimated to cost “tens of thousands of dollars” and take three years, Wallin said, adding that Restoring Lands is already looking for additional grant money to extend the work.

Money for the project came from a U.S. Forest Service grant awarded to the American Bird Conservancy, which made a sub-award to Restoring Lands, Bohn said, noting the preserve is along an important migratory flyway.

The work, which is being done by Stantec Consulting, includes things that may seem counterintuitive, Wallin said.

That includes using machines to “forestry mow” dense patches of woody species on roughly three acres of the preserve, much of it done on the north side of the sanctuary.

It also involves using chemicals to kill some of the woody invasives, Wallin said.

“One of the things we pride ourselves on is we take an approach calculated to reduce the amount of chemicals we put on  the land,” he said, noting the process being used involves a heavy hand with select herbicides in the first year and a lighter touch in subsequent years.

“You can’t just cut them down,” Bohn said, or they will sprout again.

“If you just leave it, in five or six years you’ll be right back where you started. With restoration work, it’s a multi-year process.”

The project also includes selective hand picking of the woody invasives, particularly near the creek.

While dead and dying ash trees can be seen throughout the preserve, the project only removes those that pose a hazard to people walking through the land.

Walking along the north trail in the preserve, it’s easy to see the progress. On one side of the trail, large areas have been cleared or visibly thinned out, while the opposite side looks overgrown.

While work on the project began in winter, it’s continuing with hand clearing and will conclude with the planting of more than 500 trees and shrubs to promote resilience and create a healthy forest, Bohn said, adding next year Restoring Lands will be looking for volunteers to help plant those trees.

“It’s really cool we’re doing this huge restoration project here,” Community and Outreach Manager Catie Petralia said. “We’re getting back to our Ozaukee Land Trust roots and to our new name by restoring land here.”

It’s hard to believe the preserve, which is located east of Moore Road and extends north to Walters Street and is bisected by Sauk Creek, could easily have been lost to development.

  A developer had proposed buying the land, then known as the Wittmann property, and building housing there, but a group of residents opposed the project, saying it is important to have a nature area in the midst of a city to keep people connected with the natural world.

The residents formed the Port Washington Nature Preserve to mobilize support and raised $400,000 to buy the land, and in the process joined forces with the newly formed Ozaukee Land Trust, which ultimately purchased the land.

“This is a heavily used preserve,” Bohn said, and the restoration work will ensure that continues. “We’re really looking for this to be a catalyst that will bring more investment and more attention to the preserve.”

To register for the community walk, visit www.restoringlands.org/events.