It’s Saige again, and this time I volunteered with the Southington Land Trust at one of their properties, the Niles and Linnea Johnson Family Wildlife Sanctuary. This land is the remaining portion of the Johnson family farm, part of which was taken during the construction of I-84. It was donated to the land trust in 2021. During my second volunteering session, I learned how members of the Land Trust are dedicated to permanently conserving land, not even letting cold temperatures and rain getting in the way of their mission.

On this raw November day, I cleared small Autumn Olive shoots from the ground and helped members cut down large Autumn Olive trees. Autumn Olive is a native shrub from Asia that has spread into the U.S. as an invasive plant. I was able to identify Autumn Olive plants from the light green color of the top of their leaves and the silver-white color on the bottom. I also learned that if a plant is still thriving during cold fall days, they are most likely invasive. This is true because invasive plants take advantage of the extra sunlight and extend their growing season. Clearing the Autumn Olive plant was important because it would prevent native plants from growing and severely disturbing the health of our ecosystem.

Once again, it was inspiring to see different groups of people come together working on the property because they share the same mission as members of the Southington Land Trust. In addition to helping maintain a balanced ecosystem, I also learned helpful tips to stay warm on days like this rainy, frigid Saturday. The first thing I learned was wearing rubber gloves under my gardening gloves would help keep my hands warm and dry. I also learned that when working in the cold, it would be smart to wear ski socks! These two hours at the Niles and Linnea Johnson Family Wildlife Sanctuary flew by as I gained knowledge about the environment and actively preserved the ecosystem with the help of the Southington Land Trust.

Hi, I’m Saige, a teenage girl who decided to start my first blog to document my volunteer service assignments. I volunteer at the Southington Land Trust, a non-profit organization where the community comes together to help conserve land.

My first volunteer assignment was weeding the Linear Park – Rails To Trails in Southington. I learned about the different types of garden tools such as a Japanese Hori Hori, also called the “murder tool.” Due to the garden tool’s knife-like shape and how effective it works cutting through weeds, I realized why it had earned its nickname. Weeding with these tools was way more effective than weeding by hand!

I also learned about the importance of pollinator plants through weeding a pollinator pathway. When these plants bloom, they produce nectar and pollen which feeds birds and insects. I quickly realized that working hard to protect these plants will help keep species alive and healthy. During my first time volunteering we were specifically pulling out mugwort, an invasive plant, from previously planted native plants. We weeded out this invasive plant because they are preventing native plants from growing, starting a chain reaction that is dangerous to the ecosystem.

By the end of the session, multiple people who were walking on the trail thanked us for our service. They not only inspired me to keep working through the hot weather but showed me how many people appreciate our efforts to conserve the environment. Volunteering at the Southington Land Trust is a great way to learn more about the environment and how to improve it!