Project Leader: Tyler Lau Project Date: February 7th- May 6th, 2011 Cowpens National Battlefield PO Box 308 Chesnee, SC 29323 Phone: 208-954-4462 Email address: tlau@thesca.org [1]
Swamps, Forts and Turtle Relocation [2]
Update for the week of 04-25-2011 to 04-29-2011
The week started off with a visit to Columbia, SC to work with the Congaree SCA Native Plant Team. A day was spent working at Congaree National Park along the Congaree River. Our team got to meet the local mosquito community and they were very friendly. Both teams worked together to cut and treat Ligustrum sinense (Chinese Privet) while some members of the Congaree team used chainsaws to cut down Melia qzedarach (Chinaberry).
In between invasive plant removal at Cowpens National Battlefield, team members helped relocate some native box turtles in areas that were going to be swept through by the gyro track. Who doesn’t love baby turtles?
After a hard days work, our team treated the Congaree team to a dinner of baked corn, salad, butternut squash soup, Mason’s homemade soup courtesy of his family, baked lasagna and ice cream.
The team departed Cowpens and arrived back at Cowpens National Battlefield ready to work. We focused on gathering data for the final report and also cut down some Morus rubra (mulberry) and pulling Verbascum sp. Scrophulariaceae (Mullein).
The final two days of the week were spent traveling to Charleston, SC where we got to meet SCA interns working as interpretive guides at Ft. Moultrie and Ft. Sumter National Monuments. The team visited both sites and even got to see the 5 flags being raised at Ft. Sumter in the morning. We’d like to thank the NPS Staff in Charleston and the SCA Interpretive Interns for letting us stay with them and showing us around.
The team topped off the weekend with a tasting of the local seafood of Charleston and also receiving a tour of downtown Charleston from our agency partner with Palmetto Conservation Foundation.
Overall it was a great week spent seeing old SCA friends and making new ones.
Check back for the final update and final report, we hope everyone is having a great time in the field.
Congratulations to those who’ve successfully finished their seasons too! Woot!
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[7] ![Taking a break in the shade after lots of [delicous] mulberry removal](http://www.thesca.org/sites/sca.sf.lmp05.lucidus.net/files/imagecache/large/corps-reports/P4270693.JPG)
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SCA UNOFFICIAL FOOD BLOG COMPETITION - COWPENS ENTRY [10]
Whoa it has been a while since we entered a submission into the competition but here one meal we couldn't pass up on.
Last week our team had a break in the weather and we took advantage of the grill at the picnic area to make up some delicious kebabs.
Tyler and Mason prepped the food:
portobello mushrooms
green, yellow, red peppers
zucchini
yellow squash
yellow onion
broccoli
4 boneless chicken breast
turkey bacon
pineapple
some left over steak and baked potatoes :)
The chicken and some zucchini were marinated in a teryaki sauce with diced garlic. 1/3 of the vegetables were were marinated in teryaki sauce, 1/3 in a mixture of lemon/olive oil/ground black pepper marinade, and 1/3 were left plain.
Charcoal was lighted and it got going pretty quick given a slight breeze feeding it.
The chicken was cut into cubes and kebabs were made by each team member, some heavy on the onions others very colorful.
The left over steak and baked potato were thrown on the grill and were the first to go. The turkey bacon was cooked a bit and then some members decided to wrap it around their chicken on the kebabs.
Pineapple was the desert so we threw it on the grill and had that going the whole time, members were free to take them as they pleased.
1/3 of the mushrooms were marinated and thrown on the grill - we call these mushroom poppers because you can pop them in your mouth once they are ready :)
Overall the meal was very satisfactory and the weather held up, we thank the higher powers for being considerate of our grill day.
Did we mention how many left over veggies we had the next few days :)
We hope to get one more entry in before our season ends and hope that everyone else is coming up with great recipes to share!
Have a great Easter Weekend,
COWP Team
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Welcome to the Jungle [15]
Update for the week of 4-18-2011 - 4-22-2011
Fresh from a leisurely Sunday, the Copwens Native Plant Team set to kick it into high gear for one of their few remaining weeks. The crew spent Monday and Tuesday by spraying herbicide over an area between the historical Robert Scruggs house and ending at a buffer set up 300 feet from a population on threatened Hexistylus naniflora. Over the two day period the crew sprayed 30 gallons of herbicide over an area of 26.1 acres.
During those two days, one of the mystical Gyro-tracks was brought in for some spring cleaning at one site. If you've seen Ferngully you'll have a picture of what we're talking about. But don't worry, it is not out to cut trees down, only remove underbrush so fallen limbs so more study and restoration can be done in the area :)
The following day brought many adventures of cut-stump treatments to several bamboo and privet patches, followed by a delicious meal of chicken-kabobs grilled by the picnic area (see food blog update).
With Thursday came more cut-stump treatments of Lingustrum Sinese (Chinese privet) as well as the beginnings of the fabled.... dun dun dun!!!! final report!!! The Mecca, if you will, of our pilgrimage to the end of the season, accompanied with pictures and GPS data.
Team members continued the work on the final report Friday due to rain in the morning, with the crew assembling pictures, writing analysis, and walking around the woods in the pouring rain with a GPS. We look forward to a week of traveling the state next week!
Hope the weather is very Spring-like for everyone!
COWP
In the words of Ralph Waldo Emerson:
"The sun shines and warms and lights us and we have no curiosity to know why this is so; but we ask the reason of all evil, of pain, and hunger, and mosquitoes and silly people."
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Unofficial SCA Corps Food Blog Competition (Open to ALL CORPS) [21]
Welcome one, Welcome All,
We're are here to announce the first Unofficial SCA Corps Food Blog/Competition.
After thinking about all those delicious meals that Corps Teams cook and eat, we thought it would be neat to have a place to showcase them.
Well here we are.
For the 2011 Season, we're hoping to get all Corps Teams involved in this.
Here are the unofficial Rules:
1) Post a photo of your meal
a) before and after are great
2) Post a description of the meal and how you made it
3) Proof Read and then post
4) Check out other Team posts
5) Voting to be done by Corps Teams in the Field and also Program Staff
There are two categories of food:
1) Actual Cooked Meals from Actual SCA Corps Teams in the Field
a) Food from camp stoves and camp ovens to those teams using Park housing or have off-site housing that have access to stoves/ovens/microwaves
2) Local Cuisine/Delights from local Restaurants and Establishments
a) Food with a local flavor
b) Unique restaurants?
If you have any questions, feel free to check out the photos attached and/or comment or email tlau@thesca.org [1]
We look forward to the posts and the creativity that will be displayed soon,
Thank you and have fun with this!
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Spring is no time for autumn...olive [25]
Progress Report for 04-12-11 to 04-16-11
This week the team got to work on a 1/2 acre patch of autumn olive near the Admin building. Using handsaws, loppers and handsparyers, the team cut and sprayed the stumps to the evergreen autumn olive plants. This area had previously been a housing plot, partially explaining the density of the patch.
A majority of the week was spent using backpack sprayers and foliar mixed herbicide to spray roughly 20 acres of a site near the Battlefield #1 Parking lot. The team made sure to create a 300 foot buffer from a known population of hexastylis naniflora to help prevent herbicide drift. All of the major invasive plant species the team deals with were present in the spray area. These included: chinese privet, autumn olive, multiflora rose and tree of heaven.
Two of the final days of the week were spent prepping a main bridge on the nature trail for a new round of non-stick mixed paint. Team members set up a tarp underneath the bridge to catch chipped paint that was coming off the bridge as they chipped the old layer off. They then repainted the bridge with a new coat of non-stick paint. This will benefit hikers, walker and runners on the trail as they cross the bridge, ensuring they have good traction on the bridge.
On Saturday, April 16th, Tyler worked with two volunteers during a volunteer day to kick off National Park Week. They helped cut chinese privet in an area next to the Battlefield #1 Parking Lot and create a path through dense stands. There work will help the Native Plant Team travel through the area much easier to cut and spray the remaining plants.
The team is looking forward to the following week when the weather is supposed to be a bit calmer. We hope everyone is having fun in the field!
COWP
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Wanted: Baby Pandas. Reward: Lots of Bamboo [30]
Progress Report from the field for 04-04-11 to 04-07-11
The COWP Native Plant team began the week at the notorious Cowpens bamboo patch, where they spent two days cutting and treating the highly invasive bamboo. Stacy and Tyler worked the chain saw while everyone else had their hands full removing the cut bamboo and stacking it in neat piles. Eventually, these piles will be burnt via prescribed fire. While working in the bamboo the team felt that if given approval, baby pandas would need to be enlisted to help remove the plants (there is plenty of bamboo for several panda families). Unfortunately, the majority of the 18 acre bamboo patch remains standing but the team was able to clear away ½ and acre of dense bamboo stands.
Some quality time was spent removing the Hedera helix and Ligustrum sinense populations from around the COWP Administration building with the use of handsaws and hand sprayers. The acting superintendant appreciated the work, as the English Ivy is right outside his window, blocking the view of existing native plants.
The team spent the last day of the work week annihilating Elaeagnus pungens and Ligustrum sinense from the COWP maintenance area where invasive plant populations are especially high in number. Then in the afternoon, backpack sprayers were brought to a new site. The COWP team each emptied three gallons of 3% mixed foliar spray at the site, covering a range of foliage on invasive plants. Unfortunately the team could not cover the entire area in a single day; but never fear, our work will continue on this area, as well as at the bamboo patch, as weather permits.
Best wishes from the COWP team
COWP
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So "Hexastyl-in" right now [36]
Weekly update for 03-28-2011 to 03-31-11
The week began with team members getting dressed up in a variety of ways to bring in the Spring weather. The weather was not always cooperative, but some was removed using both herbicide (cut-stump treatment) and shovels.
On one rainy morning, the team had the chance to map the threatened Hexastylis naniflora, which involved searching for the plant along a riparian area that had been within the boundaries of a recent prescribed burn. Everyone was excited that they got a chance to see this awesome plant in bloom. Team members also went over some areas that had been foliar sprayed in earlier weeks and noted a lot of privet plants losing foliage, which is always exciting.
The week concluded with a visit from Mike Stefancic, SCA Native Plant Corps Program Coordinator. Mike had to opportunity to meet with each member individually and had fun working with the team members on some rainy day projects. On Thursday the team went to Spartanburg for a dinner at a local restaurant that served a world-famous cheeseburger; it was named the best cheeseburger in South Carolina by the Food Network. Mike also joined some members of the team for part of their foray to the Smoky Mountains on Friday. The hike meandered through forests and followed the famous wildflower trail.
After a great week of work and a fun weekend the team is excited for the next week of adventures!
Happy Trails!
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Our team In-Vests in the week [44]
Progress Report for 03-21-11 to 03-25-11
Greetings Planeteers,
We had a jam packed week full of work that ranged from our normal invasive plant control to not so normal tree pruning day.
The COWP Native Plant Team started off the week with a fun filled warm up of tag (see photos). After running around for 10 minutes the team decided it was ready to get to work and remove some autumn olive and privet. The energy was great and one member even decided to use a rather interesting tool to remove the privet (see photo).
During the middle of the week the team got to scout some sites that had been part of the recent prescribed burn. Backpack sprayers were brought in on a site with vinca covering the forest floor and choking out native saplings. A new plant that had not been dealt with was English Ivy, growing up trees and engulfing them. The team cut and treated the vines and had a lot of fun trying to find them on trees since they camouflage quite well.
A site visit with our Agency Partner and the acting Superindendent was a nice break in the middle of the week. The team got to see new parts of the Park that needed to be worked on and received a whole new list of tasks to keep them busy until the end of the project.
A large patch of privet, with some over 10 feet high was cut down and treated. The result was very noticeable and the Agency Partner and NPS Staff were glad to see the privet gone. If you are keeping score the SCA team is way ahead on the privet now, possibly 3-0.
The last day of the work week consisted of removing scotch broom from a burn area and also pruning/trimming tree limbs. Team members used pruning saws while the project leader used a pole saw to remove low hanging branches from an area near the visitor center. The area will be replanted with native plants to cover the understory in the future.
Team members also researched new recipes to try and to submit into the Unofficial SCA Corps Food Blog Competition (see previous post). We hope everyone is gearing up their best recipes for it!
Did we mention that stretching and group photos go hand in hand?
We look forward to getting more updates soon and to have more recipes and food photos up for the Food Blog Competition.
Thank you all!
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Cane you Dig it? [52]
Below is a recap of the work the COWP Team completed during the week of 2/21/2011 to 2/25/2011.
- over 2 acres of privet removed using shovels and overpowering strength. Oh and plenty of body mechanics
- privet was removed from an area with a healthy population of the threatened species: hexastylis naniflora
- privet removed from area around base camp where native cane has established
- Herbicide safety training (first use of new backpack sprayers, with water of course) and tool safety training
- stablization of two historic pecan trees near the Scruggs House
- 20 native cane plants transplanted near the battlefield to help reestablish cane breaks that were similar to those seen during the Battle of Cowpens over 200 years ago.
Please see the photos for more details and feel free to comment,
The team is looking forward to ATV training this week and to see if the tornado warnings pass through without incident!
Ya'll come back now
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Log-ging some data was never this much fun [60]
Welcome to all,
This is an update of the progress of the SCA Native Plant Team at COWP for the week of 03/07/2011 to 03/11/2011.
Due to some very RAINY days, the team had to modify their work this past week.
The first day started off great, with the sun shining and a slight breeze to go along with it. Team members did a little trail maintenance and picked up garbage along the nature trail in the morning, spent some time on their mid-season project and then got to use backpack sprayers at some sites on the battleground.
The rest of the week had a few firsts:
1) First time using trimming/pole saws on the nature trail/horse trail
2) Getting new handsaws and loppers
3) Using the new handsaws and loppers for cut-stump treatment of invasive plant species
4) Presenting a preview of the mid-season project to NPS Staff
5) Heavy rain...we mean heavy. Heavy enough that the team had to move out of the basecamp area
Did we mention that COWP has its very own log ride? (see photos)
After some discussion within the team and also with some other teams, we have agreed to start the first unofficial Food Photo Blog/Competition between SCA Corps Teams (A new post will be up soon).
Please, if you have not already done so, begin to take photos of your meals and then write a description of what it is and post it on a continuing group post (see our example).
We're off for the weekend but look forward to updating you all soon with some more progress reports,
Thank you for reading and have a fabulous weekend!
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Lara Kobelt - Corps Member [72]
I'm Lara and I grew up in Geneva, Ohio and went to college at Ohio Wesleyan University in central OH. My hobbies include soccer, basketball, hiking, snorkeling, SCUBA, and generally being outside.
I spent my last field season working for the BLM in Rock Springs, WY and now I'm living in a tent near Chesnee, SC at the Cowpens National Battlefield! I love botany and field work and enjoy cutting down invasive species.
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This is a Privet Party and you are invited! [76]
Group post for 03-14-11 to 03-17-11
Well since you missed the Privet Party we'll be glad to describe what happened that week.
1) 3/14/2011 - an area of 0.7 acres of privet was treated with the tender love and care of the team's shovels*
* no shovels were hurt during this day
a) also, an area of 0.3 acres was treated using loppers and handsaws to cut stumps and herbicide sprayers to spray the cut stumps
2) 3/15/2011 - rainy weather came in and put a damper on the team. But before it really started to pour, the team removed privet and multiflora rose from the picnic area around their campsite
3) 3/16/2011 - 1/2 an acre was canvassed by the team and autumn olive was removed using the cut-stump method of treatment
a) roughly 100 short leaf pine were planted near a clearing at the park boundaries
b) The team also met with a historic cabin restoration team from the Great Smoky Mountains.
- The specialist spoke with the team for half an hour about the unique field of cabin restoration as they repaired the roof of the Scruggs House at COWP.
4) 3/17/2011 - roughly 250 short leaf pine were planted in another area of the park that can be viewed from state highway 110
The team worked hard and were happy for a long weekend. We thank you for taking the time to visit our webpage and hope to keep the updates coming at a more frequent pace,
Hip Hip Hooray
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Mason Floyd - Corps Member [87]
I'm from Knoxville, TN and have been studying Environmental and Soil Science at the University of Tennessee for the past four years. I enjoy anything to do with being outdoors: camping, frisbee golf, hiking, etc. I'm looking forward to my first season with the SCA!
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Brailey Simplican - Corps Member [91]
Brailey is happy to be with the SCA NPC for the 2011 Spring Season. This isn't Brailey's first time with SCA, as he was part of an Alternative Spring Break SCA Team and also an SCA National Crew. Brailey recently recieved his Biology and Environmental studies degrees from Warren Wilson College, and wants to be Spiderman when he grows up. He enjoys sleeping upside down and making sure to look both ways before darting across the road.
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Stacy Stone - Corps Member [94]
I'm Stacy Stone from Tempe, Arizona. I graduated in 2009 with a degree in Environmental Science from California Lutheran University. I enjoy traveling and exploring the outdoors. This is my second season with the SCA and I am very excited to be back!
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Excuse me, but do you have A TV training? [98]
Greetings Ladies and Gentlemen,
Highlights are a plenty as we catch up on our updates for the work completed the past few weeks.
We have here an update for the week of 02/28/11 to 03/03/11:
1) 20 tall native cane transplanted
2) More privet removed
3) More basecamp moving
4) The Team took an ATV training and certification course at Kings Mountain National Military Park (KIMO) taught by Rangers at KIMO
5) Team worked with backpack sprayers for the first time, applying a foliar spray of herbicide and covering roughly 8 acres of land at Cowpens National Battlefield.
6) Watching the Turkey everyday of the week and starting a photo collection of them (see turkey updates soon)
Check out the photos and look forward to more photos and other updates soon,
Yours truly,
The SCA Native Plant team from Cowpens National Battlefield
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Yes we Cane! [106]
Week of 2/28/2011, it is just the beginning of the week but the team just finished transplanting 20 tall canes near the main battlefield.
The team was just too excited to wait until the end of the week to update the website that we are uploading the info and photos now!
Please see the photos,
Thank you and see you all back here at the end of the week,
Happy Trails
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Hungry, why wait, wrap a burrito [115]
To whom it may concern:
Below is a step by step photo instructional guide to burrito wrapping tools.
Courtesy of Stacy Stone and Mason Floyd
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Orientation to Cowpens National Battlefield [121]
Greetings all,
After a great week of Corps Member Training in Oracle, AZ, our team returned to South Carolina and got to meet and greet with our agency partner and NPS staff.
Team members took a tour of the Battlefield Loop and watched a video depicting the Battle of Cowpens. A day full of history was also supplemented with some local cuisine at a cafe down the road from the park. The team also was able to see areas of the park after a controlled burn that took place several days before.
In between the orientation to the park, team members set up a tarp for rain cover (see photos) and also the rest of their base camp for the season. Note: This is due to change as the team has decided a new tarp structure is needed for the site.
More training awaits the next two weeks but the team is excited and ready to put their experience to work,
Have a great day everyone!
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