Five Lakes Natural Area Greenbelt
Emily Sewell is serving as the Native Plants Coordinator for the Otsego County Conservation District. One of her duties as a Huron Pines AmeriCorps member is to work with local schools, lake associations and landowners to reestablish native plants along the shoreline which is called a greenbelt. Greenbelts filter pollutants, reduce erosion, provide wildlife habitat, and are an important part of the natural ecosystem.
In late May, Emily coordinated a volunteer greenbelt planting at the Five Lakes Natural Area, owned by Gaylord Public Schools. This area provides excellent educational opportunities for students but is being overrun by spotted knapweed (an invasive weed) in parts of the property. As part of the volunteer project the spotted knapweed was removed by students from Gaylord High School’s landscaping class. Students from the Middle School’s outdoor education classes then planted native wildflower and grass mixes, a septic field mix, and established a native plants greenbelt along the lakeshore. As part of the project Emily spoke briefly to the students about invasive plants and how greenbelts help protect water quality. They were very excited to actually be the ones doing the planting and did an amazing job. Emily’s guidance and coordination of the project made it a great success! Some students had no experience in planting and it was wonderful to see them put a greenbelt in their own school forest where they can watch the plants grow. A generous grant from the Wildflower Association of Michigan and the Glassen Foundation made this project possible.
