Have you ever attended a nature walk that included tree hugging, candy and a human-sized emerald ash borer? Thanks to the nine students participating in the St. Lawrence Sustainability Program this fall, 20 girl scouts from the Canton and Hermon-deKalb have. This nature-based lesson took place at the Sustainability Farm and focused on teaching the girl scouts about sustainability, invasive species, and the carbon cycle.

This was the third week of this year's Fall Trails Series, and the group spent a beautiful afternoon exploring the St. Lawrence University Kip Trail. We also talked about the Community Ash Tree Survey - a local effort in response to the arrival of emerald ash borer - and mapped some of the many ash trees on the trail. As a bonus, we spied a porcupine in a large red oak along the way!

We had a great workshop pulling, and making pesto from, garlic mustard on Saturday. We chose a spot along the trail at SUNY Canton with a recent infestation of this invasive plant. If left unchecked, garlic mustard can spread across the forest floor, rapidly out-competing native wildflowers and tree seedlings. The last two pictures are a before/after of one patch. Thanks to all who came out to help pull!