Volunteers clear out wild growth on Belle Isle

Excerpted from the Detroit Free Press

By Megha Satyanarayana, Detroit Free Press Staff Writer

On the Saturday before Earth Day, a group of students and nature lovers took to Belle Isle, chopping down trees instead of putting them up.

Their target was honeysuckle, the popular plant that’s actually an invasive species, sprouting all over the island into massive bushes with thick, striated branches. Armed with saws, hedge clippers and garden gloves, the 100 or so volunteers worked with the Belle Isle Conservancy and the Student Conservation Association to hack away at a plant that keeps native trees and shrubs from taking root.

“It’s nice if you have it in your yard, but in the forest, it prevents trees from germinating,” said Mebby Pearson of the Belle Isle Conservancy. ...continue reading