Old Wagon Road Planting

Gorge Stewards volunteers recently assisted staff from the Saint Paul Department of Parks and Recreation in a project that provided erosion control, improved habitat, and increased plant diversity along a sad slope near the Meeker Dam ruins site.

The area along the Old Wagon Road Trail (which was recently redone using pervious pavers) was suffering from serious erosion, so the wonderful staff from St. Paul Parks devised a plan to stabilize it using bio-logs, erosion blankets, and native plants. Volunteers laid erosion blanket up the side of the slope, then staked bio-logs at the base holding the blanket in place. Bio-degradable cornstarch stakes were also used to hold the blanket in place. Finally, a variety of native ferns, sedges, grasses, and forbs were planted through the erosion blanket. These plants will provide habitat to our native critters, and their roots will help hold the soil in place and prevent further erosion of the slope.


A big thank you goes out to all the hard-working volunteers who helped with this important project!