Olmsted County Parks Newsletter - Fall 2023

In this issue

The Summer of Faces of Chester Woods Parks, Master Naturalist Program, Buckthorn Trees, Bluffland Trail Bridge, and more...

Bluffland Trail Bridge

by: Iris Clark

I received this message in April earlier this year from Eyota Bike Trail committee chairman Jeff St. Mane. Jeff and several others got involved with the Chester Woods State Trail project in 1983 while serving on the Eyota City Council. Jeff expressed to me that he will be stepping down from the Eyota Bike Trail committee and that it is time for new residence to pick up the torch and see that the two trails can be connected to the City of Eyota.

Jeff wrote the following...

I have a couple items to update you with. It has taken 30 years to get to this point but by fall we will have a trail that we can walk on. It’s an exciting time, but our goal to have a trail from Rochester to Eyota won’t happen this year. There is more work to be done. It’s time to have new leadership involved to finish this up. I am stepping down as Chairman.

I spoke with Bob Storlie (DNR Trails & Waterways) this week. He said construction has already started in Chester Woods Park. The project this year is to start on the west side of the park and work towards the front gate. They also intend to work on the trail going west towards the Gun Club.

In a conversation with Tom Eckdahl (Chester Woods Manager), Tom said they are moving earth on west edge of the park where the trail will align with the Gun Club Road. The fence is down and there are piles of dirt. They had to take out 14 trees with an average diameter of 8”. They are being very careful to take as few trees as possible. The bridge work won’t start until May. They will keep moving east and create a trail head parking area and from there on to the front entrance of Chester Woods Park. There was $750,000 that we were set to lose because of timing. The money was awarded to the park to go towards the trail and trail head parking area. They will add a bike lane by striping on the existing park road for pedestrians and bikers to connect safely into the developed area of the park. They will also be using these funds to do the engineering from the trail head parking area to the east edge of the park. If there are sufficient funds available, the park plans to complete the grading to the east edge in 2024. Tom wanted to extend the parks gratitude for all the work our group has done through the years. This will be a great addition to the park and for our communities.

Tiffany Howard (DNR Trails & Waterways) is working on the trail alignment that will finish the connection from the Rochester Sportsman Club to Rochester and to complete the alignment from the park to Eyota. Most of the properties in both directions have been purchased by the DNR but problems have developed that have left us needing some alternative routing.

There are a lot that still needs to be done but thanks to all of you we are now becoming a priority with the Department of Natural Resources, and it should be easier to move forward.

The Blufflands State Bike Trail follows the Bear Creek and will connect the city of Rochester to Chester Woods Park. With anticipation that future funding will provide a connection to the city of Eyota and the Great River Ridge State Trail to our east. The new bike trail will provide picturesque views of the Bear Creek corridor, woodlands, and restored prairies. The trail is generally level and accessible, and will be popular for bicycling, hiking, and in-line skating. When complete, the trail will be paved for 25 miles and will connect the cities of Plainview and Eyota. Currently, there is 13 miles of paved trail that begins in Plainview, travels south through the towns of Elgin and Viola, and ends at County Road 9.

Trail construction is expected to be completed at the end of August and be open for public use.

Effective method to manage large buckthorn trees

by: Jim Peterson

Over the past several years there is an increased effort to control invasive species in Chester Woods County Park.  Perhaps the most abundant and one of the most difficult to control species is Common Buckthorn (Rhamnus cathartica) described by the University of Minnesota Extension Service as “a tall understory shrub or small tree up to 25 feet high which completely eliminates plant diversity in the understory over time”. There are several proven ways to irradicate Buckthorn and depending on circumstances such as plant size, number, location, time of year and area to be worked the best method to use may vary. In this article I’ll discuss the most efficient method we’ve found for eliminating larger buckthorn trees called basal bark treatment.

Basal bark treatment is a method of applying herbicide chemical on the bark of the tree usually from the ground up to about 18 inches. This method is highly effective, and we’ve found it to work on trees from 5 feet tall to the largest trees.  Using a hand sprayer, we apply a solution of 20% garlon (triclopyr) mixed with diesel fuel around the tree trunk from the ground up to about 18 inches. This herbicide combination is absorbed through the bark into the plant, and depending on the season it will kill almost 100% of the trees in as little as a 1 or 2 weeks. In the summer, the leaves on the trees will start drooping and falling off within a week and appear totally dead within several weeks. If we treat in late fall the trees may start to leaf in the spring but then die by early summer.  As a note, we have found for smaller plants spraying the leaves directly (foliar spraying) with 2-4% garlon in water quite effective.

We have been using basal bark treatment over the past 2 years and have treated roughly 10 acres with very good results. Our general approach is to use basal bark treatment for the larger trees in an area and at the same time use foliar spray the smaller plants. In future years we will then surveille the area and basal bark treat any larger trees that are missed and foliar spray any smaller plants remaining. The basal bark method is also appropriate for other invasive woody plants such as honeysuckle. Both basal bark treatment (larger trees) and foliar spraying (smaller thicker stands) are efficient methods for dealing with large trees and larger areas. 

This effort is being carried out by Friends of Chester Woods volunteers along with the assistance of park staff. We welcome anyone who would like to assist us in our efforts to control invasive species or just observe what we are working on. You can contact us on https://friendsofchesterwoods.org/ website.

Parks hosted Master Naturalist Program

by: Clarissa Schrooten

Spring is the time for all of Mother Nature to awaken after a dormant winter. With plants emerging and birds migrating it is the perfect time to teach about the natural world. The University of Minnesota has developed the Master Naturalist curriculum to teach adults about nature in Minnesota. The Master Naturalist program offers three courses with themes of the three major biomes in Minnesota: coniferous forest, deciduous forest, and tall-grass prairie. 

This spring Olmsted County Parks hosted a Master Naturalist course under the theme tall-grass prairie, called “Prairies and Potholes.” Participants attend 40 hours of class time and field trips where instructors taught with a mix of classroom participation and outdoor exploration. The course covered nature topics such as geology, soils, prairie plants, prairie animals, lakes, and rivers. Participants also learn techniques for teaching naturalist led programs, creating interpretive educational material, and how to use all acquired skills to help promote a healthy natural world. A final requirement to graduating from the course is to complete a capstone project that transitions participants from educational training into volunteer service to benefit the natural environment.

Lead instructors who have been trained to be facilitators of the Master Naturalist program taught the course. Instructors invite guest speakers who are people working in the areas of the nature expertise. The lead instructors were Sharon Columbus and Clarissa Schrooten. Sharon is the chair of the Olmsted County Park board commission and certified in all three Master Naturalist courses and Clarissa is a Naturalist at Oxbow Park & Zollman Zoo.

The summer of faces of Chester Woods Park

by: Celeste Lewis

Each year the parks staff increases by around 200% during the busy summer months. As most folks know, in Minnesota after being cooped up during the cold winter season, people are eager to get outside and recreate. To keep up with the visitor demand increase, and acres and acres of land to maintain the county hires extra staff to get us through! 

This summer at Chester Woods Park there are a total of seven seasonal employees and one intern. Some of these staff are veterans, but most are new. Below is a brief introduction to each of these wonderful people!

KeyLee Hoffstatter, Taylor Stevens, and Stephanie Anders-Folstad are the three six-month seasonals. KeyLee is in her second year with the parks and graduated from Winona State University with a bachelor’s in environmental science and from Vermillion CC with an associate's in Science and Natural Resources. She enjoys camping, tubing, and spending time with her family and dog outdoors. This is Taylor and Steph’s first year at Chester Woods Park (although Steph did work a season at Oxbow Park). Taylor was born and raised on a farm in Rochester where he developed a keen interest in nature and wildlife. During his free time Taylor enjoys boating, trapping, fishing (he makes his own fishing lures) and watching horror films with his cat. Stephanie (Steph) lives in Rochester and is our clerical seasonal, she is also employed as a special education paraprofessional through Byron Public Schools. During her free time, she enjoys playing/working with her three dogs.

The three-month employees are Baden Fenton, Henry Davidson, Chris Fernandez, and Ken Brooks. Baden and Ken are veteran park staff and Henry and Chris are in their first year. This is Baden’s third season at Chester Woods Park.  He will be entering his second year at Mankato State this fall and enjoys being outside, playing sports and hanging out with friends. Ken is a full-time educator so has been spending his summers helping at Chester Woods Park off and on for about 20 seasons. Henry Davidson is in his first season at the park. After completing his three months of employment he will be moving to Ft. Leonard Wood in Missouri for five months of basic training for the National Guard.  The fourth of our 3-month seasonals is Chris Fernandez. Chris works as a paraprofessional for Eyota Public Schools during the school year and is also taking online courses to get his degree in Environmental Sciences.

Chester Woods was also blessed with one intern this summer, Maria Hanson. Maria is from Rochester and will be entering her sophomore year at the U of M where she is pursuing a degree in Environmental Engineering. During her time here at the park she has assisted with public programming both on site as well as outreach, assisted in the daily maintenance and operations of the park, as well as delighted staff with her amazing artistic abilities!

The summer goes by way too fast, and soon we will be losing many of these fine folks as they move on to their next adventures. However, as it says in the beginning of this article, the park would not be able to run as smoothly as it does without them! So, thanks to all these folks for their hard work and dedication over the past few months!

Friend of Oxbow update

A thank you to John

by Lonnie Hebl

Every year thousands of people visit Olmsted County Parks to enjoy the beauty and uniqueness that each park offers. I have always been intrigued; do people ever wonder how each park got its start or why they are situated where they are? The zoo at Oxbow Park is a perfect example. What made Olmsted County decide to start a zoo at a park that already existed? The answer to that question would be John Gilbertson. John was a Conservation Officer, or Game Warden, as they were called back then, with the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. John had a soft side when it came to caring for injured or abandoned animals. As his son Mark said, “We always had wild animals running around the house that Dad was helping to rehab and release!” In 1969, that urge to help is what led to the donation of approximately 18 animals, including a bear, two wolves and a badger. This was the start of the zoo at Oxbow Park. With the help and care of veterinarian and zoo namesake, Dr. Paul Zollman, the zoo took off and has grown into the special place that it is today and answers the question: “Where did the first zoo animals come from and where did the zoo get its name?” Recently John’s son Mark, his wife Sarah, grandson John, his wife Amber and great-granddaughter Ensley visited Oxbow Park to recognize John’s special gifts from all those years ago. They accepted a plaque from MN DNR Conservation Officers Annette Kyllo and Joel Heyn recognizing John’s many contributions not only to Zollman Zoo but to all the residents of Olmsted County, which he proudly served for over 29 years. The plaque will be displayed in the new nature center for years to come. It helps people learn that without past benefactors like John, Oxbow Park would be much different than it is today.