Olivette horticulturist outlines habitat restoration plan, seeks volunteers for Cottonwood Trail work

Brian, the horticulturist for the Olivette Parks and Recreation Department, used a recent "Talking with the Mayor" event to describe the city's habitat restoration work and to recruit volunteers for upcoming efforts.

"The goal is to improve the habitat quality, making it to where it can support more life," Brian said, summarizing the program's objective to restore sections of the city's parks toward native Missouri ecosystems including tallgrass prairie, oak‑hickory forest and riparian areas. He said the department focuses on practical, action‑oriented site work rather than lengthy formal planning.

The presentation outlined the restoration sequence: site selection, invasive removal, debris clearing, seeding and supplemental planting. Brian listed the most troublesome invasives in Olivette parks as honeysuckle, wintercreeper (creeping euonymus) and weedy white mulberry; he said staff remove large trees while volunteers known as Weed Warriors and other volunteers handle smaller removals. He also described techniques used to protect young trees, including a cardboard ″weed‑control zone″ around new plantings to limit competition and reduce the need for herbicide or repeated cutting.

Brian credited local partners and volunteers for much of the work. He said the city has obtained many trees from a nonprofit nursery (presented in the talk as Forest Relief) and has planted about 2,000 trees across approximately 15 acres of managed habitat. He described working with student groups—he named a Ladue High School team that helped with a planting—and with a contractor, Melinda of Compass Landscape, who has assisted with prairie and basin maintenance.

On methods, Brian said seeding is the cost‑effective approach for grasses and many wildflowers, and that the city now collects and stores seed from parkland for redistribution. Asked how long seed stored in paper bags remains viable, he replied "it depends on the plant," noting that most fall‑collected seed remains usable into the following spring but that storage method affects longevity.

Brian acknowledged ongoing maintenance needs—watering (the city transports water with a tank because hoses are unavailable at many sites), deer browsing, mower damage and returning invasives—and stressed that maintenance and monitoring are continuous. He said some trees receive cages to protect them from deer, and that the department intentionally leaves some logs and standing snags because they provide habitat value.

Volunteers and events were a prominent part of the presentation. Ed, an Indian Meadows resident who began as a volunteer building trails and is now employed by the city, described a volunteer effort to re‑wood‑chip the Cottonwood Trail and asked residents to bring wheelbarrows and hand tools. Kate of Olivette Sustainability Advocates urged residents to join and said wheelbarrows and tools are available: "It's any ability... it's a great contribution," she said, inviting people to sign up for the Sunday event (noted in the session as 1–3 p.m. at the Cottonwood Trail).

A resident suggested the city consider a broader program to help homeowners remove honeysuckle that spreads from rights‑of‑way. The Mayor (unnamed in the session) said the idea would require volunteers and city resources and "will be a conversation for the future," leaving policy or a formal program unresolved for council consideration.

Brian closed by encouraging volunteers to join Weed Warriors (meetings start at about 9 a.m. for removal work beginning in November) and by highlighting outreach opportunities—an Oct. 20 master gardener talk by Elizabeth Strachoff on neighbor‑friendly native gardens and the city Harvest Festival on Oct. 26. The mayor closed the session with reminders about refreshments and upcoming events.

The presentation emphasized practical, volunteer‑driven restoration: targeted invasive removal, a mix of seeding and transplanting, partnerships with local nonprofits and contractors, and ongoing maintenance needs that the city plans to meet through staff and volunteer coordination.