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Weed Wrench Rentals
Having trouble getting rid of that
buckthorn? The weed wrench is a
manually-operated, all-steel tool made to remove any woody plants by
uprooting. Designed &
manufactured by a restoration worker in California, the weed wrench
is a great tool to use for trunk diameters up to 2 inches, and the Defenders has two sizes available to
rent for a nominal fee.
Rental
Fee Schedule
For
Defenders members:
$5 per day weekdays
$10 per three day weekend (Friday, Saturday & Sunday), pick up on Thursday after 2 pm, return Monday by Noon.
plus $150 refundable deposit.
For Non-members:
$10 per day weekdays
$20 per three day weekend (Friday, Saturday & Sunday), pick up on Thursday after 2 pm, return Monday by Noon.
plus $150 refundable deposit.
For info on how to use the Weed Wrench,
click here.
For info on why you don't want buckthorn,
click here.
Environmental Restoration Work Crews
The Environmental
Defenders have begun organizing work crews for restoration work on our
members' properties. Our goal is to provide the "muscles" needed to do
the work that our members would like to carry out on their properties,
but don't have the time or ability to accomplish on their own. In turn,
contributions made for this service will provide additional funding for
the Defenders. We plan to utilize interested volunteers from our
organization as well as students taking part in MCC's Promise Program
beginning this Fall.
Our first work session
took place in early June and involved nine volunteers pulling garlic
mustard for two hours. Eighteen hours of labor were provided for a
member, who in return gave a contribution to the Defenders. Other types
of restoration work that we can provide include the following:
-
invasive brush
cutting, such as buckthorn, bush honeysuckle, autumn olive, etc.
-
control of
invasive vines, such as oriental bittersweet and wild grapes
-
invasive weed
control, such as
garlic mustard,
reed canary
grass, and
Phragmites
-
opening up oak
woodlands for oak regeneration
-
trash removal
and general clean-up of property
-
seeding and
planting
If you have need of any
of these services or if you would like to be part of the work crew,
please call the office.
Cary Junior High Prairie
Some volunteer stewards have built-in
help - Every Wednesday afternoon in the spring and fall, the members of
the Prairie Hill Ecology Club help Defenders' Nancy and Randy Schietzelt
cut brush, collect and distribute seeds, and keep the trails in good
shape.
Longtime Defenders' member Jim Wigman
is the volunteer steward for Crystal Lake's Veteran Acres and Wingate
Prairie Nature Preserve, dedicated as a sanctuary for native plants and
animals. Through the help of volunteers, this area is maintained in its
natural condition so that present and future generations can see the
Illinois landscape as it appeared in the past.
Scheduled work days are
every Tuesday from 2-4 pm and
the 1st and 3rd Saturdays of
each month, from 9-11 am. Meet at the Nature Center. Groups can help by
appointment.
from The Land
Conservancy:
"Oaks are one of the things that make McHenry County beautiful, but
we are losing them at an alarming rate due to a combination of
environmental stresses. Some of those stresses happen inadvertently
when homeowners mow, fertilize, and grade their property in ways
that harm the oaks' delicate root systems."
The Land Conservancy has created a brochure
aimed at homeowners that is full of information about taking care of
their oak trees.
Click
here for a digital copy.
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Environmental
Defenders of McHenry County 
