Here\u27s the Dirt: The Newest Recommendations for Garlic Mustard Management

Garlic mustard (Alliaria petiolata) is an invasive plant that has quickly become naturalized throughout most of the United States. Due in part to high reproductive output and the release of chemical compounds that disturb beneficial plant-fungal associations, this species is able to outcompete many native plants. Over the years, different garlic mustard management strategies been prescribed and implemented with varying success. Here we summarize methods for the removal of garlic mustard based on the most recent literature and research conducted in our lab. We aim to provide a series of clear tasks that landowners, stakeholders, and managers may find useful regarding the eradication of garlic mustard

Stakeholder Perceptions of Green Spaces: Informing the New Landscape Master Plan

Two of the most important values at the heart of Smith College are sustainability and education. College campuses often have a large number of manicured lawns that serve as social and recreational spaces, and Smith is no different. However, these manicured lawns have a maintenance requirement that often results in the use of chemicals such as fertilizers and pesticides. These maintained landscapes are inherently unsustainable, so why doesn’t Smith convert some of these spaces to more sustainable alternatives, like a natural grass or native planting landscape? Constituents across Smith College often hear that the landscape cannot be changed because it would anger the alums. How much of this perceived resistance to landscape change is based in reality? This study aims to assess stakeholder perception of landscapes and landscape change at Smith College through interviews with key administrators. Administrators serve as proxies to each stakeholder entity at Smith, since they are often the direct line of communication between stakeholders and the college. Our study found that most administrators are in support of the conversion of peripheral landscapes to sustainable alternatives, and believe that the stakeholders they communicate with would support sustainable landscapes as well. There is a perceived reluctance to change due to the lack of communication between the administrators that represent each stakeholder. Landscape change that aligns with our college’s values of sustainability and education is feasible if there is communication and collaboration between administrators and stakeholders. Implementation of such landscape changes can begin by planning and testing more sustainable practices in small areas before up scaling to a more sizeable area

Putting the success in succession : comparing dominant species in a deciduous forest isn\u27t so clear cut

Forests occupy a large portion of the terrestrial land surface and account for almost half of all primary productivity on earth. Forest productivity is determined by a number of factors, including stand age, species composition, and environmental factors. Forests can serve as an incredible sink for carbon storage. Studying the sink/source dynamics of a forest post-clearcut is especially pertinent given the broader context of ongoing global climate change. This study delves into a commercial clearcut site in Harvard Forest, USA, six years post-clearcut, in order to quantify the physiological mechanisms that determine successional success for a snapshot in time post-disturbance. Six dominant species were identified based on species abundance studies, and various physiological data was collected. Photosynthetic capacity curves were collected using the LICOR 6400 XT, and analyzed to yield photosynthetic parameters. Leaf tissue was analyzed to identify the percent content of nitrogen, carbon, and the presence of the 13C isotope, indicating water use efficiency. When synthesized, the data suggests that although hayscented fern has a lower maximum capacity of photosynthesis, its ability to store nitrogen indicates that it will be a successful herbaceous understory species in the mature forest. Raspberry, a woody shrub, has high rates of photosynthesis, but its affinity for edge sections with high light suggests that it will not be able to succeed into the mature forest. Red maple and pin cherry are excellent pioneer species with high maximum photosynthetic rates. Red maple especially is able to support high growth rates and use less nitrogen, indicating that it will be a strong competitor through succession in to the eventual forest community. All woody species had low water use efficiency, indicating that in early successional stages, photosynthetic gas exchange is prioritized over water use efficiency