The Cheat-Potomac Ranger District hosts an open house Monday seeking public input on a proposed Nursery Bottom Management Plan. Ideas are still being encouraged and can be sent to Deputy District Ranger of the Cheat Potomac District for the Monongahela National Forest Jon Morgan at jrmorgan@fs.fed.us or by calling Morgan at 304-478-2000.
PARSONS – About a dozen residents of Tucker County gathered Monday at the Cheat-Potomac Ranger District or Nursery Bottom in Parsons to give input for a proposed Nursery Bottom Management Plan.
The District is working to develop a management plant in cooperation with the USDA Forest Service State and Private Forestry Program and the Northern Research Station. Officials said there are three main purposes including fulfilling agency needs, offering visitor services and providing for the recreational needs of the local community and tourists.
“The Nursery Bottom was established back in the 1930s as a nursery,” Terri Evans said. “They planted spruce trees and used them to plant in Canaan. The trees were planted to help with the deforestation.”
Currently, there are about 40 acres in the Nursery Bottom and currently it is used for planting of Beech Trees. During the 1985 flood, it was reshaped by floodwaters, and the site provides an access to the Allegheny Highlands Trail. Visitors to the Nursery Bottom have a system of paths that follow the boundary of the site.
“After the management of the nursery phased out, the fields are what resulted,” Jon Morgan said. “We allowed those fields to be cultivated for a number of years to keep it mowed and keep evasive plants at bay. Then we had a situation where one of our permit holders no longer wanted to hold the permit.”
They decided they needed a comprehensive management plan for the area. Suggestions for use of the Nursery Bottom include to improve environmental education by implementing an interpretive plan sharing information about the history of the site, including the previous state nursery and the Civilian Conservation Corps site, research developments that can assist private forestland owners in their land management and recreational opportunities such as Leave No Trace. Other ideas include creation of demonstration sites for workshops and educational days for native plantings, seed collection, seed propagations, beekeeping, pollinator habitats, master gardener programs, non-native invasive plant management and species identification of birds, plants and trees.
“This is the people’s land and we wanted to get their input into how they think it should be used,” District Ranger for the U.S. Forest Service Troy Waskey said. “We want to make sure they have an active voice into how we are managing this piece of land.”
Waskey said after information is gathered from the public, they will couple it up with the ideas they already have, and then package that up into a plan.
Residents who were not able to attend Monday’s meeting are still welcome to pass their ideas for the land use along to Forest Service Officials. Waskey said others wishing to provide input can stop by the office located in the Nursery Bottom or email Morgan to jrmorgan@fs.fed.us or Northern Zone NEPA Specialist Elizabeth Tichner at etichner02@fs.fed.us. Another option is to call the Cheat-Potomac Ranger Station in Parsons at 304-478-2000 or contact Tichner at 304-257-4488.
