The Ausable River Association (AsRA) has announced the launch of the Ausable Conservation Nursery (ACN). Located on land owned by the Henry Uihlein II and Mildred A. Uihlein Foundation Trust (Uihlein Foundation) in Lake Placid, the ACN is expected to prioritize growing hyperlocal, elevation-hardy, woody plants to strengthen the native plant supply locally available for riparian restoration.
Thanks to funding from the Lake Champlain Basin Program, NEIWPCC, and private funders, ACN is planning to install nursery infrastructure onsite, identify local seed and cutting collection sources, propagate and harvest bare root shrubs and trees, and distribute bare root stock for restoration projects in the region.
The long-term goals of the nursery are to increase the availability of native plants, enhance riparian habitat and ecosystems, and expand flood and climate resilience for local communities.
Ausable Conservation Nursery is planning to focus early propagation efforts on a handful of key riparian species, including red-osier dogwood, silky dogwood, shrub willow, and red maple.
As the nursery increases bare root production, they hope to broaden propagation efforts to include other species of interest, such as paper birch, gray birch, yellow birch, speckled alder, balsam poplar, quaking aspen, American elm, and chokecherry.
Native trees and shrubs will be propagated from wild-collected seeds and hardwood cuttings sourced from a variety of local habitats and started in the existing greenhouse on the Uihlein Foundation property.
From the greenhouse, the shrubs and trees will be planted in the production field for one or two years, and then harvested as bare root trees and shrubs to be used for restoration projects throughout the region.
AsRA hopes to work with local landowners, organizations, and interested volunteers to facilitate seed collection, tree and shrub propagation, and restoration planting efforts.
Photo: Chokecherry seedlings emerging from seeds propagated in 2022 at Intervale Conservation Nursery (provided).
