WFP in August 2009, the third growing season after buckthorn removal in winter 2007.	Whippoorwill Farm Preserve Mettawa Open Lands Association (MOLA) is partnering with the Village of Mettawa to natively landscape our village's historic Whippoorwill Farm Preserve.  Seven acres of highly dense buckthorn have been transformed into a prairie/wetland complex.  The farm is located on the NW corner of Riverwoods Blvd. and Rt. 60. IN THE FUTURE: Over the years we will transform the current landscape into rolling prairie/wetland of native flowers and grasses with the Mettawa trail and resting benches meandering throughout.
PHOTO AT WFP OF CDW IN FEBRUARY 2007 DURING                           BUCKTHORN REMOVAL WFP RESTORATION UPDATE 6/10 Three contractors are working at Whipporwill Farm Preserve: Intergrated Lakes Management (ILM), Tallgrass Restoration (Tallgrass) and DePaul University (DPU).  ILM is working the eastern area of the site that was full of flowers during the 2009 growing season.  This year ILM decided to mow their portion of the site, so flowers will be minimal for 2010.  The mowing will encourage growth of the young native plants sown from seed in 2008. Tallgrass is working the western area of the site that is planted in pasture grass for haying.  DPU is working the northern end of the site along Riverwoods Blvd. where they are performing scientific research on 45 test plots. WHY THE DIFFERENT LANDSCAPING METHODS?  Buckthorn eradication is one of the most challenging tasks when embarking on a native landscape effort in NE Illinois.  DPU, Tallgrass, ILM and MOLA have teamed up to study different methods of eradication over a 5 year period to determine which method works best. Keep your eyes open for fall 2010 when we convert the Tallgrass western area of the site from pasture to native grasses and flowers.	CDW, AUGUST 2009, IN YEAR THREE AFTER BUCKTHORN REMOVAL
Doug DeWitt, from Tallgrass Restoration, LLC, one of the WFP contractors, is educating MOLA member Carol Amrstrong from Mettawa about the WFP's native landscape during the "Spirit of Mettawa" Yard Walk in 2008.	Whippoorwill Farm Preserve History Whippoorwill Farm Preserve (WFP) can be sited on a 1939 aerial photograph.  The restoration site was historically used as a riding arena and for livestock at least as far back as 1939 until the early 1990's, when the farm was left fallow.  What followed was the growth of an infamously thick stand of young buckthorn. February 6, 2007 buckthorn demolition began with contractors Integrated Lakes Management (ILM) and Tallgrass Restoration.  As prescribed by MOLA, each contractor is using a different demolition method and the success of each method will be monitored closely over several years. De Paul University Professor Liam Heneghan and assistant Lauren Umek are evaluating and monitoring the site using scientific methods to validate the success of the different restoration methods. Buckthorn removal was completed in early April 2007.  It was quite a challenge to get rid of 20 to 30,000 buckthorn trees per acre.  In late spring Tallgrass Restoration turned over the soil, incorporating the chipped buckthorn into their 3 acres of soil.  They then seeded using  a pasturing mix.  In 2010 the pasture will be converted to natives.  ILM let nature take it's course with no soil disturbance and followed by summer herbiciding of buckthorn resprouts on its 3 acres. For both contractors, the weather played havoc on seed germination, so reseeding occurred over the winter and into the spring of 2008.  In September 2008, Liam, from DePaul University, harvested corn from his corn plots, and continues to test the soils and perform plant transects on all of his test plots.