Maddie R.- “Today, the high temperatures are estimated to climb into the 90s, so we decided to do our outdoor restoration work- removing Japanese hops- in the morning when the heat wouldn’t be so unbearable. We met Jennifer at the glass house and got suited up in long-sleeve shirts, heavy-duty gloves, and bug spray. After briefly discussing methods to exterminate invasive plants, we waded out into the 5-6 foot prairie to unwind the Japanese hops vines from native forbs. The work was sweltering and sweaty, only intensifying when we moved from the prairie to a bank on the side of the creek. There, the Japanese hops was much hardier and more convoluted, making it nearly impossible to pull up the entire root. All in all, we were all very glad to break for lunch in the air conditioning, but also proud of the amount of the nasty vine we had helped remove. It felt good to make the native eco-system healthier and know that we were a part of Litzsinger’s ongoing progress. After lunch, Jennifer showed us a powerpoint on the spread of invasives, equipping us not only with removal tactics but sslo with preventative measures. We rounded out the day with more vine pulling, leaving us hot and tired, yet satisfied.”