Urban forests help to store carbon, suck up stormwater, filter air pollution, cool our cities, provide food and homes for wildlife, and improve our own physical and mental health. But powerful as they are, trees are under attack from climate change, invasive species, increasingly severe storms and development. We are losing them at an alarming rate.
These are reasons why U City in Bloom staff and volunteers, with the help of a Missouri Department of Conservation grant, have set their sights on a long-term project to restore Ruth Park Woods and save it from the invasive wintercreeper vines, Japanese hops and honeysuckle that threaten to devour it.
Ruth Park Woods volunteers
We began work in late August this year and have made good progress. This winter, we will continue to focus on removing the vertical wintercreeper that’s climbing up and strangling our trees. In addition to our regular Monday and Thursday work crews, we hope to entice a new group of volunteers into the woods by offering some Saturday afternoon sessions. We can easily show you how to do this work. Our first meeting will be on Saturday, January 15th, 2022 at 1:00 pm. Help us to protect these wonderful trees so they can continue to provide ecological benefits for many years to come. Can you imagine a better investment of your time?
To volunteer, go to https://www.ucityinbloom.org/volunteers/
