Saturday over 50 volunteers braved the colder temperatures and gathered at the Rocky River Nature Preserve off of Shearer Road to plant 250 trees. The planting was part of a collaborative effort between the Creek ReLeaf program of the Charlotte Public Tree Fund and Davidson Lands Conservancy. After a short introduction from Rick Roti, President of Charlotte Public Tree Fund, volunteers from Davidson College, UNC Charlotte, CPCC and other local citizens hiked down about a half mile to the planting area on the west bank of the Rock River. Team leaders from Charlotte Mecklenburg Storm Water services had staked out the all the different types of native trees to be planted. Volunteers were split up into pairs and planted a mixture of Black Walnut, Black Gum, Persimon, Paw paw, and Ironwood trees. The young seedlings are protected by installing weed mats, tree tubes, and fiberglass stakes which deter weed growth and deer browsing.
The Rocky River Nature Preserve (formerly known as Brackett Bluff) was purchased by Mecklenburg County in 2002 for watershed protection for the Rocky River. The 61 acre preserve is different from a park where active types of recreation are allowed, the purpose of the preserve is the preservation of the natural features and in this case to help restore the natural habitat along the river basin. The Preserve is held in a conversation easement and is managed by the Davidson Lands Conservancy (DLC). DLC’s Executive Director Roy Alexander said this is the first time they have partnered with the Creek ReLeaf program. Creek ReLeaf has planted over 18,000 trees using volunteers at sites specifically chosen to improve air and water quality, tree canopy, and wildlife habitat. Next Saturday Creek ReLeaf has another planting scheduled for the Henderson Park neighborhood in Huntersville where over 500 volunteers will be planting 1,750 trees.