Nor Serocki

We've found 3 patches of Bamboo in our area in the last few months, and are looking to help the landowners find the best way to take care of it in their area. For many of the other species, the state has their publications, which we use as a baseline, but the best document I've found for Bamboo is out of Clemson. Do you have any suggestions for homeowner treatment? Do you have any great handouts/instructions?

Recently, I had a home visit with a few land owners that abut an untended lot that has a small knotweed patch along the property line. My concern is that the knotweed is growing into the lawn, which is scheduled to be mowed by the city's contractor under their tall weed division at the end of the week. This is probably part of a bigger issue of how we need to start working with landscaping and mowing companies to recognize invasives, but has anyone found shorter-term solutions to work with our local officials to mark areas that aren't just the typical "weeds" to be mowed?

I've recently had a number of citizens asking what to do to the areas around invasive species patches to try and slow the spread. Particularly in with knotweed, landowners are worried about it spreading during the "wait" period until they treat in the fall. Has there any success with planting trees/shrubs/ground covers to prevent knotweed from sending up runners or new stems? What about other species? Thanks for your insight!

Looks like one of the Sagittaria sp. to me, though if it doesn't have much venation (hard to tell from the image), it could also be Pontedaria. Possibly Sagittaria rigida, though they can be a little harder to tell apart until they flower. It's If you have a lat/long, I'd be happy to go down and take a look, or talk to the land owner about it!

I went ahead and looked up each species the USDA's website as well as looking a bit closer at Michigan Flora, to look at establishment/distribution/etc. Let me know if there's any other information that would be helpful and please let me know if there are any errors! Common names can add in a whole other layer of confusion and uncertainty, so I tried to look for versions common in cultivation under these names. Chinese Forget-me-not (Cynoglossum amabile)--Has established in a few states, including Wisconsin. Wallflower, Siberian (Cheiranthus allionii)--Not established in the United States California Orange Poppy (Eschscholzia californica)--Listed by the USDA as native to Houghton County, presumably as a mistake. Native to the western US. Purple Coneflower (Echinacea purpurea)--Most likely both native and non-native verieties to various areas of Michigan, though multiple species go under the same name. Single Mix China Aster (Callistephus chinensis)--Rarely escaped in Michigan, but naturalized in a few states in the Northeast. Corn Poppy (Papaver rhoeas)--Commonly escaped throughout the United States and southern Canada. Lance Leaved Coreopsis (Coreopsis lanceolata)--Also, it seems, can be called "sand coreopsis", though common names introduce some uncertainty. Sand coreposis is native to northern and western Michigan in dry, sandy areas. Blue Flax (Linum perenne)-- Linum lewisii also goes by this name. L. perenne is escaped in many areas in Michigan, while L. lewisii is not listed as in the US. Baby Blue Eyes (Nemophila menziesii)--Native along the western coast of the US, not found in Michigan. Globe Gilia (Gilia capitata)-- Native west of here and possibly south, but not found in Michigan. Indian Blanket (Gaillardia pulchella )--Listed as native by some sources, but not by others. Appearing wildly throughout the US. Tidy - Tips (Layia platyglossa)--Native far west of Michigan, not known to be found in the great lakes. Plains Coreopsis (Coreopsis tinctoria)--Native west of here, but planted commonly. Locally escaped. Tall White Sweet Alyssum (Lobularia maritima)--Sporadically found throughout Michigan, where it has escaped from plantings. Listed in many areas as invasive. Lavender Hyssop (Agastache foeniculum)--Native west of here, but spread into the Upper Peninsula. Daisy Fleabane (Erigeron strigosus)--Native throughout almost all of Michigan. Forget-Me-Not (Myosotis sp.)--There are some native forget-me-nots in the area, but the more common "garden" verities are non-native and can become weedy. New England Aster (Symphyotrichum novae-angliae)--Native and common throughout Michigan. Bergamot (Monarda sp.)--Two species of Monarda sp. are found in Michigan, both of which are native. Monarda fistulsa is commonly sold as "wild bergamot", and is native throughout the state.

Thanks Ryan! I've attached another document that has a selection of the graphics from some of the questions. Questions 5, 6, and 8 all had multiple graphics, so I paired it down to the simpler questions as an example. In particular, it was nice to know what the group thought we should focus on, and what resources they needed from us. I'm hoping to use this information to find grant funding for projects, such as helping landowners actively treat, that we don't have funding for at the moment. If anyone would like a full copy of the graphics, I can try to send them along via email as well! partner_survey_results.docx

When starting to lay out our strategic and outreach plans, I put out a Google Forms "Partner Survey" to all of our stakeholders and project partners to get feedback on what the community wanted from the CISMA. I was worried while formatting long-term goals that my concepts for the CISMA (as a natural resource professional) would be radically different from local governments, road commissions, volunteers, and home owners. The survey was sent out to roughly 275 people via email in late November, and we gave respondents about a month (and a few reminder emails) to send in their answers. We had 48 responses, which was roughly a 17% response rate. In formatting the Survey, I wanted to keep things brief, but to produce information that covered all of the major topics. I've attached a version of the survey as it appeared to our partners. Based off of this data, I recently hosted an "extended partner meeting" that reached out to a wider range of partners than our typical working group meetings. We had 25 attendees, including Road Commission employees, city planners, and volunteers. After going over our draft strategic and outreach plans, as well as the survey data, we broke into small groups to discuss four key topics from the survey, which was really effective brainstorming and a list of events that our community members want and need. I walked away with a list of great ideas, and a much better concept of what needs to be done to make the CISMA an effective resource for the community. In building the SW X SW Corner CISMA, I think this information is going to be invaluable. I'm excited to use this information and feedback to adapt our program! partner survey.docx

Here in the SW X SW Corner CISMA we're looking to start a program to have citizens and schools start monitoring trees through eyes on the forest. The biggest problem we're running into though is having groups measure DBH, since D-tapes can get pretty pricey, and aren't equipment most people have. We've come up with three solutions, but are wondering if you have any other suggestions! 1.) For school groups, we are considering having teachers use a normal measuring tape to get circumference, then use this as an example to teach students geometric conversions. 2.) Having the CISMA purchase a D-tape, then using this to mark ribbons with the pre-converted measures. We could include one of these ribbons in a "starter kit" for groups and land owners that sign up for the program. 3.) Giving land owners a conversion chart for each integer measurement (which could cause rounding errors). What are your thoughts? Have you worked to start groups in the Eyes on the Forest monitoring?

From what I've read, the state law isn't often enforced, mostly because of funding shortages. However, local ordinances are much more regularly followed. I did a bit of digging, and I believe that Belleville is in Van Buren Township, correct? If not, this ordinance can just be an example! The Code of Ordinances for Van Buren Township, Chapter 42, Article II, Sections 42-96 through Section 42-103 cover the noxious weed code, which covers all listed weeds in the state of Michigan as well as lawns. It may be useful to reach out to local government officials as well, since "close to home" offenses are easier to enforce from the local level. Has anyone worked with local/state officials on this enforcement? I'm not certain what the best approach is, especially when it seems so spotty in places.

Hi Tyler, I hope the workshop went well and am sorry I missed it. Were there any handouts or presentations you would be able to share from this event? We are just starting to see reports of flowering rush in this part of the Southwestern part of the state, and I would like to take the winter to look everything over before hopefully starting up more concentrated efforts in the spring on this plant. Thanks!