Friends of the Nanticoke River riparian buffer tree planting at Roaring Point, Nanticoke, MD

 

On Saturday, November 17, 2001, The Friends of the Nanticoke River sponsored the planting of 132 native tree saplings, including red cedar, pin oak, persimmon, shadbush, and sweet gum at Roaring Point Park along the Nanticoke River.  This is an approximately 30-acre stretch of forested and herbaceous tidal and non-tidal wetland and dune/beach communities near the mouth of the Nanticoke River, which was slated in the mid-1990s for an 18 unit condominium development.  The Friends of the Nanticoke, the Nanticoke Watershed Alliance, the Wicomico County Planning and Zoning staff, the Lower Shore Land Trust and the owners of the property negotiated an agreement to sell the land to the state (funded by Program Open Space), and it was subsequently transferred to Wicomico County for maintenance as a low-impact park.

Approximately 8 years ago, a fire burned a large (approximately 2 acre) section of the woodland along the river shore, and regeneration of the native pines has been very slow.   We decided to enlist several local volunteer groups in an effort to restore and improve the diversity of the forest with native species.  Funding in the amount of $800 was provided through a grant from the Chesapeake Bay Trust.

The trees were purchased from Forest View Nursery, Clayton, DE, with the exception of the pin oaks, which were donated by the Lower Potomac Tributary Strategy Team.

 

Participating in the planting were 25 volunteers from the Friends of the Nanticoke, the Salisbury University Bioenvirons Club, the Maryland Conservation Corps, and the James M. Bennett High School Environmental Club. 

 

The success of this project was evaluated at the end of 2002.  There was an approximately 66% survival rate, which is excellent given heavy deer grazing and severe drought conditions.   More importantly, the success of exposing youth and other citizens to a stewardship project of this nature is unquestionable.