Over the years, the Westchester Land Trust and the community has benefitted tremendously from the talents and dedication of our high school, college & graduate-level interns. This summer, WLT welcomed three interns: Jason Manning, a rising junior at Swarthmore College majoring in Biology and Political Science; Kristen Gamboa, a recent transfer student at Pace University; and Ben Smotrich, a rising sophomore at Colorado College.

In addition to supporting WLT’s Hudson to Housatonic (H2H) Initiative – a collaborative regional landowner engagement effort — Jason (above) has focused his talents on projects which lie at the intersection of land conservation, public health, and accessibility. Recognizing that preserved land is a vital public health resource, particularly for the disabled and disadvantaged, who often have the least accessibility to it, Jason surveyed existing programs and tools utilized by land trusts across the United States to manage protected lands in the interest of people of all abilities and backgrounds. Jason’s research will help WLT establish criteria to encourage a diverse array of end-users to take advantage of and benefit from access to open space. Exploring these myriad benefits — including trails for physical activity and rehabilitation, scenic viewsheds for mental and emotional restoration, or the chance to observe, first hand, native flora and fauna — offers a conceptual framework for revealing connections between public health and land conservation and has the potential to guide WLTs land and easement acquisition process in the future.

Supported by a grant from the Rusticus Garden Club, Kristen (above) has been creating management recommendations for the meadows at three of WLT’s preserves — Tom Burke, Frederick P. Rose and Pine Croft Meadow. The purpose is to extend their ephemeral lives and increase their overall biodiversity in the form of introducing native wildflowers and grasses, removing invasive species and formulating a consistent and timely mowing schedule. An example of her efforts can be found at the Pine Croft Meadow Preserve in Lewisboro, where Kristen discovered a few apple trees remaining from what was once part of an orchard. Due to human disturbance, the soils around and beneath the trees are invaded by Japanese stilt grass (below left), oriental bittersweet and a nonnative invasive wineberry species. Kristen has suggested removing the invasive species and transplanting native plugs such as Chrysogonum Virginianum (green and gold) and Antennaria Neglecta (field pussytoes) beneath the trees, and Aster Divaricatus (white woodland aster) and Monarda Didyma (red beebalm) around the trees. All of these natives are shade-tolerant, thrive in dry/medium moist soils, and are quick spreaders that out-compete invasive regrowth. They also bloom at different times throughout the growing season and will providing pollinator food all season long.

Finally, Ben (above) has been working alongside WLT’s Director of Stewardship, Tate Bushell, on a variety of land management projects on our preserves including cutting an aggressive patch of bamboo at the Pine Croft Meadow Preserve. Additionally, at Sugar Hill Farm, he has been removing invasive plants from the meadows and assisting our resident farmer through the Food Bank for Westchester, Doug DeCandia, in the gardens.