Tag Archives: ReTree

A new trail and great news from the Friends of Webster Trails

21 May

The Friends of Webster Trails have made two exciting announcements recently which I want to share with you today.

The first is that the Friends are introducing a brand new trail, leading into the new Michael A. Johnson Nature Preserve, which was added to Webster open space in 2022. The wooded area is adjacent to the John Ungar Nature Trail, just north of the Hojack Trail between Drumm Rd. and Van Alstyne Rd. The Dombovy family donated funds for the purchase of the land in memory of their late husband and father, Michael A. Johnson.

The new loop trail created by the Friends leads off the Hojack Trail about 1/4 mile east of Drumm Rd.

Community members are invited to help dedicate the new trail, when the Friends of Webster Trails hosts a grand-opening group hike on Saturday morning June 3 at 9 a.m. Meet at the intersection of Drumm Rd. and the Hojack Trail at 9 a.m. From there, the group will hike to the entrance of the new Michael A. Johnson Trail. The total distance will be about 2 miles.

Parking is available at the Gosnell Big Wood parking lot at the intersection of Drumm and Vosburg. From there you can walk down Drumm Rd. to the Hojack Trail entrance on Drumm. Hiking boots or good sneakers are recommended.

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The Friends of Webster Trails also recently announced that the organization has received a $1000 grant from the Rochester Birding Association for their ReTree Project.

The Friends began the ReTree Project last year to address habitat loss, with a particular focus on trees. The project has two objectives:

  • to improve the ecological resiliency of forested habitat within the Webster Open Space area, and
  • to increase public knowledge of the threats to local forest ecology and ways we can collectively mitigate these risks

The project has especially focused on planting native tree species in areas where other native species have previously been lost or are currently under threat. The supplemental plantings will increase overall canopy cover while enriching the mix of tree species, age, and physical structure, resulting in a more robust and resilient ecosystem.

The Friends plan to use the funds to clear areas overgrown with invasive plants and to purchase native trees and shrubs and browse-protection materials in the Whiting Road Nature Preserve.

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(posted 5/21/2023)

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Help the Friends of Webster Trails preserve Webster’s natural beauty

8 Oct

If you’ve lived in Webster for any length of time, chances are you’ve heard about, or perhaps even hiked, our town’s beautiful trails. The system’s almost two dozen trails already stretch from the farthest corner of northwest Webster, south to 104 and east to Phillips Rd., and more are being created every year.

We have the Friends of Webster Trails to thank for this outstanding trail system. These hard-working volunteers put in thousands of hours every summer and fall planning, creating and maintaining the trails, clearing brush and invasive plants, laying gravel, building bridges and boardwalks, and more.

A good example of the Friends’ dedication to preserving our beautiful natural lands is their current ReTree Webster initiative.

ReTree Webster is a program which recognizes that Webster’s forests are under attack from insects and disease. As thousands of ash, hemlock, oak and beech die, they’re replaced by invasive and, usually, non-native trees.   

The Friends of Webster Trails developed the ReTree program to fight back. They first completed tree surveys along many of the trails. Then, after removing some of the invasive species, new trees were purchased or grown from seedlings to replace them.

The Friends have already started planting many of those seedlings along a high traffic area of Whiting Road Nature Preserve (WRNP). Those new plants will be joined by larger saplings and other native trees next weekend, when volunteers will plant 20 saplings, some up to six feet tall, along the new Michael Johnson Trail at WRNP.  

The planting event will take place on Saturday morning Oct. 15 at 9 a.m. at WRNP. Volunteers of all skill levels are needed to transport, plant, position and protect the trees. If you’re interested in helping out, just show up at the Whiting Rd. Nature Preserve parking lot that morning. You can help make a big difference in protecting Webster’s open spaces.

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If you haven’t explored any of Webster’s trails yet, this time of year is the perfect time to do so. Our area’s natural beauty is especially spectacular in the fall. Three events in the next few weeks offer some opportunities to do so.

On Saturday Oct. 29 at 12:30 p.m., the Friends will lead a guided hike through Four Mile Creek Preserve and tell the history behind six abandoned cars you pass along the trails there. There should be some interesting stories.

The following weekend, the Friends will host their annual Hot Cocoa Hike on Saturday Nov. 5. This is a fun self-guided hike along a trail marked with lights. At the end, hikers are rewarded with hot chocolate. The hike will begin at 7 p.m., at a location yet to be determined. (Details to come at webstertrails.org.)

Earlier that day, kids of all ages are invited to enjoy a Family Scavenger Hunt at Kent Park on Schlegel Rd. Three skill levels for ages 2 through 12 will be available. The event begins at 10 a.m. on Saturday Nov. 5 and costs $5 per child. For more information and to register, visit the Webster Parks and Recreation website.

Click here to find out more about the Friends of Webster Trails.

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email me  at missyblog@gmail.com. “Like” this blog on Facebook and follow me on Twitter and Instagram.

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(posted 10/7/2022)

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The ReTree Nursery is up and running

15 May

Regular readers of my blog already know how much I love the Friends of Webster Trails. This is an amazing group of volunteers who create and maintain the many miles of beautiful trails that snake through our town.

But their commitment to our town’s natural beauty does not stop there, evidenced by the group’s most recent project, which they call ReTree Webster.

Basically, ReTree Webster is a program born from recognition that Webster’s forests are under attack from insects and disease. As thousands of ash, hemlock, oak and beech die, they’re replaced by invasive and, usually, non-native trees.   

The Friends of Webster Trails has come up with a plan to fight back. They first completed tree surveys along many of the trails to record the kinds of trees present and how many of them there are. Then, after removing some of the invasive species, new trees will be purchased or grown from seedlings and planted.  

Plans are continuing apace. The Friends recently completed their new ReTree Nursery, located adjacent to the Webster Parks and Recreation maintenance building on Webster Rd. A few weeks ago, volunteers planted 100 Sweet Gum, Red Pine, White Spruce and Nine Bark seedlings in the nursery, many purchased from New York State and Monroe County, and others raised from locally collected native plants.

When these baby trees grow to a healthy height, they’ll be planted in Open Space areas throughout the town to replace trees lost to insects and disease.

To find out more about this amazing ReTree Webster project, to volunteer or donate to the effort, send a message through the Friends of Webster Trails’ website contact page.

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email me  at missyblog@gmail.com. “Like” this blog on Facebook and follow me on Twitter and Instagram.

You can also get email notifications every time I post a new blog by using the “Follow Me” link on the right side of this page.

(posted 5/16/2022)

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What’s going on at WRNP?

14 Mar

You may remember reading a short time ago about the Friends of Webster Trails‘ Re-Tree Project, the goal of which is to save our Webster forests from insects and disease.

If you’ve hiked the trails at Whiting Rd. Nature Preserve recently, you may have noticed some work being done there as part of that project. John Boettcher from the Friends recently explained what was going on, writing,

As part of the ReTree effort from the Friends of Webster Trails, we have had a contractor come in on two occasions to clear some of the invasive woody plants on the east side of WRNP.  Thus far this work has been concentrated along the Blue Trail north of the parking lot. … In the future, we will replace the invasive species with native plants purchased or grown in a nursery to be constructed.

Signs have been posted along the trail explaining what’s happening.

Here’s more detail about the ReTree Project, from the Friends:

The forests of Webster are under attack. Insects and disease are going after the ash, hemlock, oak, and beech. As they die, they will be replaced by invasive and most times non-native trees unless we do something.  

The Friends of Webster Trails has established a group to come up a plan and set it in motion.  ReTree – Replanting Our Native Forest aims to do just that. Tree surveys have been completed of many of our trail areas telling us what trees are present and their number.  You may have already noticed efforts to clear invasive plants along the Blue Trail in the Whiting Road Nature Preserve. In fall, potted trees of appropriate species will be purchased and planted in this area.  In spring, we will be building a tree nursery to grow native trees from seeds for future planting.  

If you’d like more details about the project or want to participate, contact the Friends of Webster Trails through the form on the website and someone will get back to you.

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email me  at missyblog@gmail.com. “Like” this blog on Facebook and follow me on Twitter and Instagram (@missyblog)

You can also get email notifications every time I post a new blog by using the “Follow Me” link on the right side of this page.

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