Students from the Maplebrook School helped out at Thompson Pond by removing invasive plants.
On a cool cloudy April morning, students from the Maplebrook School, a special needs school in Amenia, gathered at the Thompson Pond Preserve in Pine Plains for an outdoor work day with the DLC and Friends of Stissing Landmarks. Learning first about the tools they would be using from DLC Outreach & Preserve Manager Brain Straniti, and then carrying the tools to the worksite, the students began working with great gusto. Barberry, bittersweet, and garlic mustard - which was just beginning to green up - were but a few of the invasive plants the student enthusiastically dug up and set aside for removal. They also helped remove downed trees and dead brush that had fallen on the trail next to Thompson Pond. It was a great morning of fun mixed with learning and labor that the students and members of the DLC and Friends of Stissing Landmarks enjoyed immensely.
