Written by FOMR Board Member Linda Hoffman/Photos by FOMR
Saturday, October 27 was a lovely, warming Fall day at our Malheur National Wildlife Refuge. Our hard-working crew, fueled by coffee and snacks, was ready to get to work. Chatting up a storm (Spurge and Larry in particular!), it didn’t take long for jackets and sweatshirts to start being shed. The focus of all this energy was to clean up all the hugely overgrown weeds and shrubs surrounding our new Crane’s Nest Nature Center.
Alice single-handily tamed the lilac hedge on the south side of the yard, removing load after pickup load of dead wood.
Larry and Spurge became our experts at attacking and removing the huge root balls that were flush with the foundation. As a result, the original iron grates covering the foundation window wells, not only now allow more light into the basement, but are handsome, historic pieces to admire. The window wells are also now clear of years of leaves and debris.
Lisa Sanco, Program Manager for Worthy Garden Club, our Pollinator Garden sponsor, corralled all the cottonwood leaves into pile after pile which soon found their way into the back of the Refuge’s pickup headed for the debris pile.
The weeding crew, especially Jody Newman, found all the buried flagstones that some of us remember from many years past. They found a new home next to the east door filling a small space between the door steps and the first foundation window well that is only suitable for some new ground cover.
Cay, Susan and Jody just worked and worked, weeding, thinning and transplanting several plant clumps on the east and along the south end of the building. Many were moved to the south end of the building but a more appropriate distance from the building’s foundation.
This Spring, when we gather to build and plant our Worthy Garden Club Pollinator Garden, we will also add some flowers and plants in these newly created beds. hey will support our hummingbirds and pollinators with more color than the former residence has seen for many years. So put April 11-14 on your calendars and join us* in building our largest project to date, a 10×18 foot raised bed, garden.
Thank you all for your hard work and love for our Refuge! Have a lovely Winter and see you in the Spring!
*Watch the monthly newsletter for an opportunity to sign up for this volunteer project.
