Milt Frye Vernal Pool

1–4p, Nov 6th, 2021

Rain date November 7th from 1-4p.

Where

Meet at the Norwich Green. Volunteers will work on the green and in the field at Milt Frye.

What will we be doing?

On the Green – we will rake and bag the leaves for transport to the vernal pool.

In the Vernal Pool in the field – we will be planting 2 inch plugs of wetland plants. It will be somewhat muddy, so dress accordingly. We will also spread the leaves from the green.

What to bring

Gloves; rakes and a trowel, if possible.

Who

All ages are welcome.

Why are we doing this?

The vernal pool is a new habitat asset for the Milt Frye Nature Area to support wildlife , but also for the education and enjoyment of town residents and students at Marion Cross. Our expectation is that it will fill with water over the fall, winter and spring, but that it will be dry by mid to late summer. We hope to see populations of wood frogs, salamanders and typical vernal pool macro invertebrates like caddis flies move in and thrive. As the pool is bare soil now, we want to get a healthy community of native plants growing in and around it. To support the plants and animals, the pool needs a good base of “clean” organic material, hence the leaves from the green, which have never been treated with chemicals or fertilizer, and have few, if any, invasive seeds mixed in.

The Conservation Commission gratefully acknowledges the volunteer efforts of Graham Webster in excavating the pool and the James Lamontagne Landscape Company for donating the plants.