Events

Michigan State University’s 408-acre MacCready Reserve in southcentral Jackson County is ideal for fulfilling its mission of education, research, and outreach about natural ecosystems. Join us  on Saturday, July 9 to experience oak savanna restoration firsthand. An oak savanna restoration experiment was initiated at MacCready in 2010 by MSU professors Lars Brudvig and Doug Landis. The experiment compares the efficacy of two restoration approaches for restoring the savanna understory plant community - prescribed fire with and without mechanical tree thinning, as compared to unrestored controls. The difference between restoration approaches is clear to see, and this field trip will highlight those differences. Initial results show that while burning is clearly effective, thinning in addition to burning jump starts the restoration process. Without repeat thinning the gains are somewhat ephemeral. Restoration is a long-term process as ecosystems evolved with human management and still requires it.