Staff studies long-term management effects at Hoosier National Forest 

Staff at the Hoosier National Forest are partnering with the Indiana Department of Natural Resources (IDNR) to study long-term management effects from restoring ecological health and diversity to the forest.The forest ecosystem, known as the Clover Lick Barrens, is one of only a handful of specific plant communities in Indiana. Barrens contain wildflowers and plants more often seen in a prairie setting.Staff from IDNR and Hoosier National Forest hypothesize that woody shrub removal and canopy thinning will restore and protect the barren. During recent monitoring, staff identified rare and uncommon plants like the rattlesnake master, resulting from prescribed fires in the mid-90s to reduce leaf litter and woody encroachment.“Rattlesnake master is relatively uncommon in the state of Indiana,” said Cheryl Coon, Hoosier National Forest botanist. “It’s a wildflower that typically grows in prairies and benefits from periodic fire and other activities that increase sunlight. The seeds grow readily in areas that were just burned, and it looks like it is thriving in the barrens where we performed light canopy thinning.”Plots were established to monitor the plant response by using a quadrant, a square plastic measuring device used for sampling of plant communities, said Wyatt Williams, IDNR ecologist.“With enough snapshots of...