Missouri River Cottonwoods: A Plan for Restoration

Employees of the Arbor Day Foundation and The Nature Conservancy were together again on the Missouri River bank last week, clipping and collecting thousands of cottonwood stem cuttings.

Gathering near Union, Nebraska, the volunteer crew set out to collect as many as 10,000 healthy donor cuttings that will be replanted in the Missouri River Valley this spring.

Tyler Janke of The Nature Conservancy explained that as much as 80% of the cottonwood forest along the river corridor has been lost to habitat change, flooding, and just old age. This concerted effort to restore the riparian forest will benefit a variety of native wildlife — from beavers to bald eagles — and will help stabilize the river bank.

This is the third time volunteer groups from these organizations have worked together specifically on cottonwood restoration along the Missouri River, with first cuttings taken in February 2012, a planting event in May 2012, and gathering last week to harvest more cuttings.

Related: Read our blog post about the May 2012 cottonwood planting north of Nebraska City, NE.

The cottonwood crew, front row from left: Sara, Tyler, Brad, Luke, Chase, Corey. Back row: Josh, Alex, Emily, Ashley, Beth, Darry, Heather, Connie, Tyler, Kate, Robin and Joe.

Photos courtesy Carrie Benes, the Arbor Day Foundation.

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