Gardener State: Gardens making a splash in Woodbridge

The Rutgers Cooperative Extension Water Resources Program and the Township of Woodbridge partnership continues to yield great results, with the completion of the latest in a multi-year series of rain garden projects.

At the intersection of Fulton Street and the Fulton Street Overpass, the latest gardens receive stormwater from an approximately 8,000-square-foot roadway. The gardens were excavated and built by the Parks Department and the Department of Public Works under the Water Resources Program’s supervision, with assistance from the Roads Department and the local water authority.

Approximately 1,000 native plants populate the gardens, bringing habitat for native birds and pollinators and beauty to the local neighborhood. A novel inlet structure was invented by the Parks crew, adapting a cast metal inlet with a custom concrete channel to bring stormwater from the street under the sidewalks and into the gardens. 

The water will flow into the upper garden, spreading out and soaking into the soil, part of which was replaced with a “bio-retention mix” composed of sand, soil, and compost. After spreading in the first upper area, the stormwater then overflows into a lower area where it continues to soak into the ground and provide the plants with moisture. During the largest rainstorms, the gardens are designed to overflow into the existing catch basin. 

The site will soon receive a special sign that will welcome visitors and residents to Woodbridge, calling out the innovative practices of green stormwater infrastructure that are happening all over town, making Woodbridge not only more sustainable but more beautiful as well.

Green Infrastructure Champions

Starting on Friday, Jan. 17, 2020, the highly successful Green Infrastructure Champions Program will be offered in partnership with Duke Farms in Hillsborough. The Rutgers Water Resources program piloted this program last winter into the spring, and 37 people were certified as Green Infrastructure Champions. The pilot program was made possible by support from New Jersey Sea Grant Consortium, The Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation, and Jersey Water Works. The 2020 program proudly announces Duke Farms as an additional partner.  

READ: Gardener State: 18 acres preserved in Raritan Township

Green Infrastructure Champions are expected to become key players in implementing concepts in green infrastructure design and implementation as a stormwater management approach in their hometown. 

The training will enhance attendee’s knowledge of green infrastructure concepts through workshops, seminars, and personal research and assist these champions in engaging community leaders to adopt green infrastructure as a stormwater management solution by updating ordinances and municipal master plans.

The training will also enable these Champions to encourage local non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and schools to incorporate green infrastructure in their existing landscaping; secure funding for green infrastructure projects; and publicize these installations through social media channels.

For additional details about the Green Infrastructure Champions Program as well as the topics discussed at each session, please visit bit.ly/2XgbOBx.

Species on the Edge

Conserve Wildlife Foundation of NJ is once again offering their STEAM-based "Species on the Edge" art and essay contest, designed to empower 5th grade students to become advocates for an endangered or threatened species from New Jersey through a well-researched, creative essay and original art piece.

READ: Gardener State: DEP honors Green Communities Achievement Award winners

Students can select one of more than 80 endangered New Jersey species and write a well-researched essay creatively advocating for their choice. Students can complete their essay and accompanying art piece as part of a week-long Common Core and NextGen Science standards aligned unit or with a quick one-day introduction. All educator materials, including handouts, PowerPoints, and detailed lesson plans, are included within the contest kit. Because students can become champions for New Jersey animals by learning where they live, what they look like, and what threatens their futures, a diverse range of learners are able to engage in a real-world research project where writing and art take on significance beyond the walls of the classroom.

This contest ends on Friday, Jan. 31, 2020, and all artwork and essays must be postmarked by that same date. Details for submitting entries and all classroom resources are available for download at the Conserve Wildlife Foundation of NJ’s website, www.conservewildlifenj.org/education/edge. 

Right tree, right place, right way

The New Jersey Tree Foundation and Public Service Electric & Gas are offering a free seminar on "Planting the Right Tree in the Right Place, the Right Way" on Friday, Dec. 6, at Croft Farm Arts Center, 100 Bortons Mill Road in Cherry Hill. Interested Environmental & Shade Tree Commission members, DPW supervisors and staff, county and municipal officials, and residents caring for trees in their town are invited to register by Friday, Nov. 29, by emailing Lisa Simms at LSimms@NJTreeFoundation.org. 

Topics will include tree pests; tree inventory and management; storms, trees and the aftermath; tree selection, planting, and maintenance; planting grants; 811! — the importance of utility mark-outs prior to planting; and utility tree pruning.

This session will be held on Friday, Dec. 6, with the day starting at 8 a.m. with registration, while the first session begins promptly at 8:30 a.m. and runs until noon. A continental breakfast will be served.

This seminar has been approved for three continuing education units for towns with a five-year Community Forestry Management Plan; three arborist certification renewal credits from the ISA; three CEUs for Public Works employees from the NJ Dept. of Community Affairs; and three credits for NJ Licensed Tree Experts and Tree acre Operators. 

Nicholas Polanin is associate professor, agricultural agent II, Rutgers New Jersey Agricultural Experiment Station Cooperative Extension of Somerset County. Email him at polanin@njaes.rutgers.edu.