Houlton Farm Planning Committee Meeting 2016-02-02

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However, scattered native species are present, including common milkweed, hoary vervain yarrow, sumac and prickly ash. Sumac and prickly ash could be thinned in some areas in order to achieve historical coverage levels. The unit also has scattered canopy trees, including red/pin oaks (18.3-80.1 cm dbh). Some of the larger oaks are clearly open grown, evidenced by large horizontal branches. To the northeast, the unit grades into a more woodland/forest area, which should likely not be part of the same MLCCS classification, making the boundary between the savanna and degraded woodland unit unclear. Treating invaders in this area will be a priority, and potential expansion of this unit should be considered. Ak -native decius forest (1.48 ac) and grassland with sparse deciduous trees - L 11 non-native dominated (2.02 ac) The remaining i re classified as altered non-native deciduous forest and grassland with spa ciduous trees - non-native dominated. These two narrow, linear areas abut the prop rty line on the northwest side of the property and run along the fenceline that separates these units from the farm field. However, the vegetation in these units is quite similar, as both contain similar species in the fenceline (box elder, buckthorn, honeysuckle) as well as on the other side of the path. The largest ecological issue in either unit is the population of black locust trees that occurs on the border of the oak savanna unit (Photo 26). In all, there are somewhere near 50 individuals ranging from 5-25.3 cm dbh. This species is an aggressive prairie invader, and removal of this population will be Friends of the Mississippi 51 W H Houlton Conservation Area NRMP