Greening Stockton

1. Greening Stockton Suggestions from Jamie

2. LANDSCAPING

3. Do not mulch native species that are drought tolerant. Mulch should never be piled up around the bases of plants; do not bury any plantings in mulch hills. • “Do not place mulch within 3 inches of trunks or stems” • Housing V Reforestation Plan • 2 July 2007

4. Do not injure trees by hitting them with lawn mowers and string trimmers Locust near A&S damaged by lawn maintenance

5. Don’t prune shrubs before they fruit and birds have a chance to feed 9/24/08 “Today the maintenance department flat top pruned the cranberrybush viburnums.  This is a large shrub that grows 8-12 feet tall, it has a vase shaped habit.  Where it is planted, there is no reason to prune it.   Removing dead branches is the most maintenance should do. This viburnum has red to purple fall colored foliage and berries that are eaten by birds.  Both are all gone. “

6. Reduce extent of managed turf grass, apart from athletic fields by 50%

7. Reduce roadside turf grass to less than 15 feet width

8. Leave an unmowed buffer along all woodland edges

9. Identify all eroding slopes, shaded areas, etc. where turf grass is not preventing erosion

10. Replace erosion areas and selected other lawn areas with xeriscaping (as seen at Burlington Co. College, Pemberton)

11. Replace lawn along all foundations with xeriscaping or other native plantings

12. Discontinue mowing under trees, except for footpaths; where necessary, replace with xeriscaping or native shrubs, etc.

13. No mow zone signs should be created and put in place to explain the areas to those unfamiliar with this approach

14. Reduce maintenance • Cut lawns at 4 inch height or higher; mow as needed only, not on a schedule • Do not mow any non-turf areas (old fields, etc.) except in winter, preferably every 2-3 years • End use of string trimmers and leaf blowers, except for clearing paved surfaces; use mulching mowers • End use of herbicides, except to control invasive species • Reduce fertilizer by 75% (reduce lawn area 50%; cut application on remaining lawns by 50%)

15. Develop and implement a forest management plan Restore open, savanna type habitats

16. Identify and protect specimen trees

17. Enhance wildlife habitat • Snags, fallen logs, brush piles, etc. • Nest boxes, etc. • Shelter boards for reptiles and amphibians

18. End further expansion of roads, etc. into woodlands

19. Restore native species in woodlands and along powerline

20. Maintain a diversity of stand types, successional stages (especially brushy open fields) and plant species, upland and lowland

21. Keep fire breaks, trails and access roads out of special habitats, like vernal ponds; remove those that exist

22. Preserve all existing natural vegetation within the current campus footprint; build only on already cleared areas

23. For all future development , maximize preservation of natural vegetation in building sites outside the existing footprint

24. Reconnect campus landscape to native vegetation and biodiversity • Create a gradient of native vegetation between forest edges and turf areas • Restore margins of lakes and ponds to native vegetation; restrict fishing and other uses to dikes and managed access points

25. In planting garden areas around buildings, attempt to provide examples of native plant communities • Try to arrange plantings to resemble natural communities; use NatureServe and other references for guidance • Encourage efforts to cultivate native species not available commercially • Have soil conditions that resemble natural conditions

26. Favor showy and useful native species, preferably those considered native to the Pine Barrens by Witmer Stone, the Plants of Southern New Jersey

27. Remove invasive species from streams, old fields and other succession areas • autumn (Russian) olive • multiflora rose • wisteria • Eurasian bittersweet • water starwort • Phragmites • etc.

28. Enhance plant and animal diversity • Replace “golf course” with native vegetation; golfers can go to commercial establishments and pay the cost of maintaining the lawns • Discontinue plantings to encourage deer (they don’t need it) replace fields of non-native grasses, etc. with restored native field vegetation • In choosing native landscape plantings, favor those that provide resources for insects and birds • Do not use insecticides, except single application BT for gypsy moth control

29. Construct safe crossing for footpath over Morse’s Mill Stream

30. Close off ORV trails, especially stream crossings

31. Close and post all access points; vigorously enforce

32. Consider impacts on wildlife when planning construction projects

33. Eliminate light pollution

34. Replace fixtures to direct light only where needed

35. Eliminate mercury vapor bulbs

36. STORMWATER AND EROSION CONTROL

37. Maintain all sediment control fences until no danger remains

38. Fix broken or absent floatable controls on inlets

39. Eliminate the fire hose discharge from the cooling tower, or find a way to diffuse the discharge to stop the gully erosion. Eliminate or fix all similar discharges

40. Immediately ban parking on unpaved roadsides and in woods

41. Limit extent of vehicle traffic on unpaved areas

42. Minimize soil compaction during all construction and maintenance activities

43. Fix the overland flows around Housing I by restoring native vegetation or planting absorptive landscaping

44. Install paved turnarounds and emergency pull offs to eliminate stopping on vegetated roadsides

45. Restore native vegetation or install absorptive landscaping in stormwater basins that currently hold water for over two days, or that have outflows directly into wetlands

46. Eliminate soil compaction before planting

47. Restore soil permeability before installing landscaping after construction

48. Plant species appropriate to the hydrologic and soil conditions

49. Eliminate soil compaction and restore native vegetation on all eroding surfaces

50. Eliminate parking on unpaved surfaces