Lincoln School

Salter Grove recently hosted high school students who fulfilled their community service hours towards their graduation requirements. The experience proved to be mutually beneficial.

*Alexandra Dickinson maintaining the trail through the Knotweed Jungle and excavating a hole for a trail marker.*

Two equally effective approaches were taken. Starting in late May, Alexandra Dickinson, a senior from Lincoln School in Providence dedicated 40 hours over a two-week period to assist with maintaining the vegetation and signage along the nature trails.

Using both field observations and the Guide to Salter Grove, she learned to identify many of the common birds and plants that occur in the park.

*Alexandra examining wild asparagus along the Marsh Trail.*

*MET HS students, their blue-tied teacher, and their mascot The Rock.*

In early June, Cole Robinson and his class of 14 sophomores from the MET High School devoted two hours to: 1) install signage along the Upland Trail, 2) clear vegetation to provide access to a patch of heavily fruiting blackberry, and 3) remove Japanese knotweed throughout the park to deter further invasion.

*Clearing vegetation for access to blackberry patch.*

*Removing Japanese knotweed from pond area.*

All of the students were first introduced to the impenetrable patch of Japanese knotweed on Audubon Field. Witnessing the aggressive growth of this introduced species helped them realize how their respective tasks contribute to the overall care of the park.

See more photos from the MET students’ work at Salter Grove below: