From Autumn Olive to Ninebark: Installing a Native Shrubland at Blandy

By Jack Monsted, Assistant Curator

The autumn olive was the biggest problem. In the far Eastern corner of Blandy’s native plant trail meadow, just uphill from the ephemeral pond known as Lake Arnold, stood a dense strip of 10-foot-tall invasive shrubs. Their silvery leaves waved in the summer breeze, and small red berries already adorned their branches.

When I first took note of this area in 2023, I was amazed at how quickly the shrubby trees had overtaken the space. In just a few years, what was once a handful of small shrubs had morphed into an impenetrable thicket. A full half-acre strip had been swallowed by the autumn olive, and the few native dogwoods and black cherries that had grown there before were quickly being choked out. I realized the space needed attention, and soon.

Removing the autumn olive shrubs would be a lot of hard work, but relatively straightforward. We have a tried and true method for invasive shrub removal here at Blandy. It involves using a chainsaw to cut the tree down at its base, applying a dab of herbicide to the stump, and then hauling the cut tree away. The herbicide is most effective when applied at the end of the growing season, around September or October, so the Blandy grounds staff took care of that over a few weeks in late 2023.

What came next was not as easy. As we cut our way into the patch of autumn olive, we immediately realized why the shrubs were so well-established: A large limestone rock outcrop ran along the length of the space. This rock, while beautiful, halted the flames of our prescribed burns from reaching the area while simultaneously preventing us from mowing the space to keep the shrubs at bay.

This complicated plans for future management of the area. It meant that the original plan of seeding native grasses and wildflowers where the shrubs had been was not an option – we would have no way to keep it from reverting right back to an autumn olive monoculture. The shallow soil near the rocks meant reforesting with native canopy trees would also be a difficult undertaking. It seemed the place just wanted to be a shrubland.

As I considered options, I realized that this was one of those moments when the land was telling me something. I decided to listen. Why not allow the space to be a shrubland, but try to replace the invasive shrubs with natives?

Shrublands are an important, and rapidly declining habitat type in Virginia. These landscapes – typically consisting of a mixture of native grasses and shrubs or small trees -host an enormous amount of biodiversity. According to the Clifton institute, they are prime habitat for box turtles, many species of caterpillars, and more declining bird species than any other habitat type in the state. They’ve also declined by more than 90% as a result of fire suppression, land development, and invasion by non-native plants (like our autumn olive).

So the plan was formed. We would acquire over 100 native shrubs from local nurseries, and plant them in ten small plots right on the space formerly dominated by autumn olive. To protect the developing shrubs from Blandy’s prodigious deer population, we surrounded each plot in a four-foot tall wire fence. While these fences are not tall enough to keep deer out of a large space, it is an excellent exclosure method for smaller areas as deer will not jump into tight spaces where they could get stuck. Once the plots were established, we could then develop interpretive signage for the unique shrub species we planted to help visitors understand the somewhat chaotic nature of the dense plantings.

We rallied our staff and volunteers, and in March of 2024 we planted the 6-inch-tall shrub seedlings throughout the space. After planting, we also hand-dispersed some native grass and wildflower seed throughout the area to ensure that the herbaceous layer wouldn’t be immediately dominated by invasive plants.

The final piece of the puzzle was how to keep the weeds at bay while the tiny native shrubs are developing? New plantings in the meadow are always besieged by invasive thistle, mullein, and autumn olive seedlings for the first few years and need periodic weeding. To further complicate things, the space is somewhat remote – nearly a half mile from quarters, it is a long walk for our normal gardens volunteers. Since our staff are stretched thin working to maintain over 700 acres at Blandy, we decided to try a new approach where volunteers, after a few training sessions, could be empowered to come and work on the space by themselves, on whatever schedule works for them.

For the first year, we had three volunteers sign up to help with this space, and their efforts have been instrumental in keeping the shrubs alive and the plots weed free. They now even have a sign to recognize their contributions out in the shrubland! If you are interested in joining their ranks and helping to maintain this unique space, email me at jackmonsted@virginia.edu – we’re always looking for additional help.

Now we’re in our second year, and already many of the shrubs we planted last year are blooming. Instead of a sea of silvery autumn olive leaves, we are seeing beautiful ninebark flowers, pasture rose blooms, and the fascinating berries of aromatic sumac. Other shrubs, like native crab apples, hazelnut, dogwoods, and hawthorns are getting established as well, as are a variety of native grasses and wildflowers.

If you’re ever walking through the meadow along Blandy Farm lane, look for the mowed grassy path that heads northeast into the meadow and follow it to see how the shrubs are doing – you might see an orchard oriole or field sparrow along the way, singing happily in their new habitat.