Inside the nature preserve lived a tree growing in a valley. Further up the hill, in fields on both sides of the valley, the farmer grew corn and soybean. For many years heavy rain would wash the soil down and with it all the good stuff the farmer had used to make his crops grow good and strong. This tree was on steroids! And it grew to be very large.

When I became volunteer steward I was told that although this was only a Box elder it was a state record, 47ft tall, and I was not to cut it down. However I attended a Nature Preserves Commission meeting where I learned that the tree was Special to Randy Heidorn of IDNR, he had worked on the preserve around 1980; I was asked to find out how it was doing?

Some 7 years previously IDNR had purchased the farm fields as a buffer to the preserve. This prevented the gravel mining company from excavating to within 50 ft of the preserve fence, which their permit allowed. I had not paid attention to the tree respecting the request not to cut it down but said I would check on it.

The understory of Buckthorn and Honeysuckle had made access difficult but when the restoration group cleared it out an amazing sight was revealed. When farming ceased it had been deprived of its steroids and as a result had yielded to the onslaught of a storm and all seven main limbs had broken from the trunk and dropped to the ground.Each was too big to get your arms around but had retained a strip of bark that had kept it alive. Some of the limbs had rooted and grown 20ft tall trees off the limbs! The stump was huge, so we took a photo of me standing beside the trunk and sent it off to Randy with a “What the heck do we do now?” comment.

It took over a year but finally we got the OK to cut it down. Quite a project as my Chainsaw only has a 20 inch Bar. Cutting from both sides I cut off lengths which we then rotated to cut off portable slices. Beyond that I got help from the McHenry County Conservation District staff using their saw with a 36 inch Chain Bar.

We did a great deal of work culminating in trying to get the rooted sections to where we could rotate and cut them up. Working with two one ton winches and a 3,000 pound hydraulic jack, Pry bars, hand saws, and chain saw blades that were repeatedly blunted when cutting the huge roots we did finally get them free. We completed the Euthanasia putting the old giant to sleep with Garlon 3a.

We had carried him up the hill into the old farm field where we have built a burn pile and multiple rows of logs. All that remains now is the cremation, when we get some snow on the ground to avoid the fire spreading. Everyone who has worked on this project wants to attend the funeral and I suspect it will last for several weekends. We will then only have these photos to keep as his memorial.

Alan Wilson.

By ex site steward Al Wilson

The year 2008 has seen a dramatic change at the preserve. Following several changes in the Stewardship Manual that required stewards to follow new directives controversial issues arose. Some of these were resolved by Elizabeth Kessler the new Executive Director of the McHenry County Conservation District. Others remain in place to this day that I do not agree with. A steward is permitted to continue to use his chain saw but is not permitted to maintain the trails with his walk behind lawn mower this will be done by MCCD staff. The steward is not permitted to take his vehicle onto MCCD property; a special dispensation was negotiated for the Preserve as the group frequently worked at locations that were a 30 min hike to anywhere that an ambulance could reach. If someone was hurt or sick I needed to get them out right away. Also if a storm arose we needed to get everyone out. The burning of brush piles in the winter when there is snow on the ground is no longer permitted; the presence of MCCD staff is required. Similarly a rule that we were no longer permitted to use the first aid kit that we are required to carry was negotiated to permit its use except to giving any Medication. We are still required never to carry other volunteers in our private cars on the public highway. No car pooling; if my wife and I attend an event on MCCD property we have to drive our own cars. In early March the final conflict came when a local newspaper reporter asked what was going on at the MCCD Rothschild Property. He had helped us defeat the construction of a new village hall on the land that adjoined the preserve. IDNR and other funding sources acquired the land from the village as MCCD property. I showed him what was being done, introduced him to MCCD staff on site, and took him home to give him the same planning information that MCCD handed out to village residents at the Town Hall Meeting. At the house I received a phone call from an irate MCCD Communications Manager informing me, correctly, that the steward's manual "Forbids any media interface without prior approval". The hold the phone well away from the ear conversation was one-way; she did not want to hear any explanation. She talked to the reporter and wanted him to submit his article for her revue prior to printing! The following day I received a phone call from another local paper requesting an escort for their photographer. I called the Communications Manager and was told "No way, you are banned from the property!" My wife tried to talk to her and we requested a meeting with the Exec. Dir. but were told that Elizabeth was too busy to talk to us that week. I sent an email to Elizabeth explaining that being banned from the property meant that I would have to resign my stewardship until the matter could be resolved. I went next day to visit McHenry County Court Services and explain that being banned from the property I would try to find work on non MCCD property for Community Service Workers assigned to me but would have to decline any new workers. They told me that MCCD had called them and required that all assignments to me were terminated and those phone calls had already been made. I did finally receive a letter from the MCCD Board informing me that my services were no longer required and that I could no longer work on any MCCD property.

After the 22 years as a volunteer, typically with over 1,000 hours spent each year working on the preserve, along with 11 years leading Community Service workers who performed over 36,800 hours of restoration work, it has all now come to an end. Long time volunteer John Scott has agreed to take over the stewardship responsibility but he is now a restoration work group of one. He has worked on the preserve since 1980 and could not just walk away.

I have not been out on the preserve at all until Nov 4th when my wife conducted a nature walk for the Elgin Community College environmental studies instructor and one of his students who is living alongside another state nature preserve where I now work. My wife has continued the monthly free public guided nature walks and classes on botany. The plant monitoring has continued with the Botanical Society's Plants of Concern program. Dave and Dan have continued the Bird, Butterfly and Plant monitoring work they have done for many years. Their data has been forwarded to the relevant societies. Barb got disgusted with the poor attention given by MCCD staff to the Spotted Knapweed problem and went out to fill a large garbage bag with plants she pulled up by hand. On the 11/4 walk I saw that the trail through the main fen is sadly in need of repairs and attention and that the Canada Thistle were starting to make a come back. It was gratifying to see the proliferation of prairie grasses and forbs and that our efforts at controlling the invasive species are still holding up.

My wife and I will still fund the printing of Self Guided Tour booklets, 300 new ones this week, and she will continue her botanical and teaching efforts out there. We will maintain the notice board and she will remain in contact with MCCD. I shall not be going out there again as I can not bear to see the preserve go downhill after all the effort and money that we and hundreds of others have spent on it over the last 22 years. This will be the last Annual Report from:- Ex Steward Al Wilson.

Thanks to the work done by the restoration work crew we have become accustomed to seeing dramatic improvements every year. 2007 has exceeded all previous wonders thanks to help from the McHenry County Conservation District and the regular Saturday and Sunday morning workers.

During the annual State and County fall tour to asses progress and to prepare the management program for the following year, the Conservation District said they would try to get some Grant Money transferred to the preserve to enable a contractor to come in and clear what was really the last remaining forested area. This eagerly anticipated event had to wait for an extended cold spell so that the ground would be frozen solid and their equipment would not do extensive damage. The contractor came on a Thursday in February with workers using chain saws and two tracked vehicles with “Grabber” arms in front that picked up everything that was cut. They constructed two “Burn” locations on the gravel hillside and got everything burnt. They did not herbicide the stumps so Friday I spent the day doing just that. The Saturday work group continued this job with a wind chill of 23 degrees below zero! We lasted about 45 minutes before running to my house for a warm drink and to warm our bodies. Nancy thought we should try another shift but that one probably only lasted 30 minutes.

The contractor left after a week and our work crew extended the area clearing virtually every non native tree on the south side of the preserve. The ground was frozen like cement enabling us to get into wetland areas where normally much damage would result. It was very hard work dragging out what was cut through deep snow but it did enable us to burn virtually all of it while there was no chance of setting fire to the preserve. The Conservation District provided two garbage cans of wetland grass seeds and half a can of flower seeds which have been hand spread over the now exposed peat wetland soil. It will be about 3 years before we see much of a result and we will have to go after the re-sprouts with herbicide.

All this was followed by the Conservation District carrying out an excellent “Controlled Burn” of the entire south side of the preserve. This is an interesting day for us helpers but the real benefit is that dead grass and leaves are burnt exposing the soil where seeds can receive sun and rain along with the ash as a fertilizer. The result has been dramatic everything has just “Taken off” in a display that takes ones breath away!

The bottom line is that 2007 has had an inspiring start. Everything is progressing wonderfully and the tours have been well supported in addition to approx 15 “Self guided tour booklets” being used every week.

Come and see for yourself on our regular monthly walks or be adventurous and join us on one of the “Grand Tour” walks. Check the dates and time here on this website.

Sincerely Alan and Barbara Wilson, your volunteer site stewards.