Champlain Valley Native Plant Restoration Nursery

A view of the nursery
© Mary Droege

Project Summary

The nursery, located on Nature Conservancy property in Whitehall, NY, started growing seedlings in the spring of 2002. The start-up of the nursery was funded by federal funds channeled though a partnership between the Poultney-Mettowee Watershed Partnership and the Conservancy’s Southern Lake Champlain Valley Program. The Partnership focuses on the interstate watersheds of the Poultney and Mettowee Rivers and is itself a partnership between two state soil conservation districts; one in NY and one in VT.

The Poultney and Mettowee watersheds are located in northern Bennington and western Rutland Counties, VT and in northeastern Washington County, NY. The Conservancy’s Southern Lake Champlain Valley Program has a similar interstate focus, as its program area includes land in both New York and Vermont. The originating and continuing goal of the nursery is to produce seedlings from local genetic stock for restoration and buffer plantings within the Poultney and Mettowee watersheds. The plantings will serve many goals including stabilizing streambanks (reducing erosion), restoring native plant communities (clayplain and other floodplain forests), re-establishing connectivity of habitat along riparian corridors, improving water quality, and preventing the spread of non-native plant material in the landscape.

As of August 2004, over 18,000 seedlings produced from locally collected seeds were growing in deep-cell containers. Murray McHugh, the nursery’s manager, coordinates with volunteers and interns to accomplish seed collection, propagation, and growing operations. The long-term financial goal of the nursery is to become self-sustaining through the sale of seedlings. Seedlings will be sold to the Poultney Mettowee Natural Resource Conservation District for planting in local federal cost-share programs and the Southern Lake Champlain Valley Program for valley clayplain and floodplain restoration. The plan for the nursery also explores the possibility of "contract-growing" seedlings for other nearby conservation planting projects and other nearby Nature Conservancy programs. Seed could be shipped to the nursery and seedlings would be shipped back, thus ensuring the use of local genetics for plantings in other conservation project areas. As a working example, dwarf pitch pine and chestnut oak are currently being germinated for the Nature Conservancy’s Shawangunk Program.

For more information, you can call our Southern Lake Champlain Valley Office at 802-265-8645.

Directions

From Route 4 just east of Whitehall, NY:
Turn on Route 9A heading north – Garden Time garden center is opposite the turn; Travel 0.9 miles to “T” and make a right; Travel 0.5 miles and make a left onto Stalker Road; Travel 0.6 miles to “T” and make a right onto Route 10 (a.k.a. Sciota Road); Travel 1.9 miles and make a left - continues as Route 10; Travel 0.6 miles and make a left onto Ward Lane (dirt road); Travel to red barn and park; Nursery is beyond the barn – walk down along the right side of the barn and look left.

Species List *Species growing as of July 2004.

Trees

Silver maple, Acer saccharinum Sycamore, Platanus occidentailis*

Red maple, Acer rubrum Cottonwood, Populus deltoides*

Sugar maple, Acer saccharum* White oak, Quercus alba*

Musclewood, Carpinus caroliniana* Swamp white oak, Quercus bicolor*

Shagbark hickory, Carya ovata* Bur oak, Quercus macrocarpa*

American beech, Fagus sylvatica* Chestnut oak, Quercus prinus*

White ash, Fraxinus americana Red oak, Quercus rubra*

Green ash, Fraxinus pennsylvanica* Black willow, Salix nigra*

Hophornbeam, Ostrya virginiana* Basswood, Tilia americana*

White pine, Pinus strobus Eastern hemlock, Tsuga candensis

Pitch pine, dwarf, Pinus rigida* American elm, Ulmus americana*

Shrubs

Speckled alder, Alnus incana Carolina rose, Rosa caroliniana*

Button bush, Cephalanthus occidentalis Low bush blueberry, Vaccinium angustifolium

Silky dogwood, Cornus amomum* Maple-leaf viburnum, Viburnum acerfolium

Gray dogwood, Cornus racemosa Arrowwood, Viburnum dentatum*

Red-osier dogwood, Cornus sericea* Nanny berry, Viburnum lentago*

Witch-hazel, Hamamelis virginiana* Highbush-cranberry, Viburnum trilobum*

Winterberry holly, Ilex verticillata*