Olmsted County Parks Newsletter - Spring 2023

by: Celeste Lewis

The campground at Chester Woods Park may look at little different to some of you next season, as we have harvested many of the Black Walnut and Ash trees that were there.  I’m guessing most of you realize why the Ash trees needed to be removed, and that is because of the Emerald Ash Borer infestation.  These trees were dying and needed to come down before they became hazards.  The Black Walnut trees are another story….

These trees were not diseased or infested, they were not dying, however they were hazards.  In the fall these trees dropped thousands of walnuts which would dent or break camper windows and canopies, but worse, became a hazard to visitors, staff, and volunteers alike with walking.  In the grass you could easily twist or break an ankle.  Not to mention, they really hurt when they hit you on the head!  Over the years I cannot even begin to guess how many hours staff and volunteers have spent picking these up to try to limit these effects. The decision to take these trees down was not an easy one, but ultimately came down to the risk of damage and injury outweighing the benefit of shade.

Park staff and certified arbor care inspectors periodically assess the trees within the developed area of the park. Every year staff must make the decision to remove an average of a dozen trees due to hazard or disease.  Because of this, the park has a plan in place that they plant at least a dozen trees every year. Successive planting has been occurring within the park since it was developed in the 90’s and will continue as other trees reach maturity or are listed as hazardous trees. Planting a diverse mix of hardwood trees will hopefully prevent a large disease infestation that would cause damage to the entire canopy within the campground.

The harvested walnut trees will not go to waste, the usable trees have been “sold” with credit going to the park in lumber/hardwood costs for the future.  The remaining wood will be cut and split and used as firewood in the park.

The harvesting was done by park staff with the help of Sentence to Serve and volunteers on stump grinding, cutting, and splitting. Once the snow melts there will be evidence of the work done and what needs to be done. 

Over the next few years, the park will be planting a variety of trees in replacement of the removed trees.  Of course, they will not magically fill the void of the large Walnuts, but with a mix of quick growing soft woods, (River Birch, Poplars, etc.) and slow growing hardwoods, we will get our canopy back eventually.  In the meantime, if you have any questions feel free to reach out to park staff and we will gladly field any questions you may have.

by: Kris Nelson

If you haven’t been to the park lately, come and check out the progress on the New Nature Center! As construction inches closer to completion, we are also inching closer to our goal of $1 million toward the New Nature Center. Currently, we are just under $700,000 and hope to add to that total with some grants and generous year-end donations. Merchandise from Friends of Oxbow was a hot item this fall with shirts, hats, and key chains frequently selling out. One of our awesome volunteers, Harold, made us a new hat rack display. Much of the wood used in building the rack came from tree trimmings found at the park. We are so grateful to volunteers who help Friends of Oxbow with projects big and small.

by: Clarissa Schrooten

Humans are spending less time in nature than ever before; the results are not good for health and wellbeing. The year 2008 marked the first time in history that the majority of humans are living in urban rather than rural areas. These statistics are generating attention from both naturalists and scientists.

Japan was the first to see the drastic effects of stressful urban environments, people were being overworked and causing employees to die at young ages from stress-related illnesses. This led Japan to pave the way to finding the benefits of nature. In the 1980’s the Japanese term Shinrin yoku, which literally translates to “forest bath,” has been making a big splash around the world. In the act of forest bathing there is no actual bath or removing of one’s clothes, it is truly a nature therapy. The basic idea is to spend time in nature focusing on the senses to distract the mind from the typical busyness of everyday life. The benefits of this practice are amazing, and worth trying for a longer and healthier life.

Research has the numbers to prove the health benefits. When comparing leisure forest walks to urban walks people on average find a 6% decrease in heart rates, lowered blood pressure, and 12% decrease in cortisol blood levels (the stress hormone). Time in nature has shown decreased levels of anxiety and depression. Conversely, time in nature increases cognitive clarity and creativity. Extended time in nature can promote the body’s ability to produce natural killer cells (immune cells that fight viruses and cancer cells). The list of benefits goes on, to the point of doctors prescribing nature as treatment for certain conditions. Ask park staff about the Southeast Minnesota Park Rx group for more information on this topic.

Every individual can receive the benefits of nature; it is a resource that is available to anyone who can make the time for a leisure walk in a local city, county, state, or national park. Enjoying the great outdoors takes on a whole new meaning.

by: Jaide Ryks

To start off the New Year I would like to introduce you all to Tyler Nickel, an Oxbow Park volunteer! Tyler has been volunteering in the zoo and park since August 2022. Tyler spends most of his time volunteering in the zoo but enjoys getting out into the park, too. When asked what his favorite zoo animal to work with is, Tyler responded, “All of them. They each have a unique personality and reason for being at the zoo.” In his free time, Tyler enjoys hiking and bird watching at none other than Oxbow Park, spending time with his family and cat, Jack, playing board and video games, and relaxing on Sundays watching NFL football. His favorite thing about volunteering at Oxbow Park is talking to and learning from the great staff here at the park! We greatly appreciate Tyler’s efforts, thank you Tyler!

Next time you’re out at Oxbow, make sure to give volunteer Tyler a shout hello!