February 2011 MOWE Pasture Planting

Date: February 28, 2011
Contact: Dennis Casper

National Park Service News Release

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – JANUARY 31, 2011

ED CUMMINS, CHIEF RANGER, MOCA/TUZI, 928-567-3322 X227

Public Workshop About Restoring Native Plants at Montezuma Well

The National Park Service, Natural Channel Design, Inc, a natural resource engineering firm in Flagstaff, and the Arizona Water Protection Fund, have been partnering to restore the Pasture area at Montezuma Well, a unit of Montezuma Castle National Monument. We will be hosting a free workshop on restoration practices being used in this project on Saturday, February 19th 2011. The workshop will include a field tour of the project area and an opportunity for "hands on" participation in the restoration process. Please come prepared to participate in the fun; hat, gloves, sunscreen, drinking water and snacks/lunch are recommended, and if you have a favorite shovel or planting spade, please bring it along. Meet at 9:00 AM by the picnic area at Montezuma Well. The walking tour begins at 9:30, and the workshop will wrap up around 2:00 p.m. There is no charge to participate in either the tour or the workshop.

Over 1200 seedlings will be planted during the week leading up to and including the workshop. This is the second year of extensive plantings for the 40 acres of the Pasture Restoration area for Montezuma Well. Last year, as part of the Pasture project, over 890 seedlings were planted with assistance from several local schools and many volunteers. 80% of those seedlings have survived.

The objectives of the Pasture Restoration project are to remove exotic invasive plants, restore native plant communities, and rehabilitate the degraded flood terrace habitat. The project area includes an active flood terrace along the northern border of Wet Beaver Creek, a tributary to the Verde River. The mesquite bosque, grassland, and riparian habitats in the area that are typical of flood terraces, are declining due to damage from decades of past ranching and farming activities that took place in the Pasture. The project’s goals are to EXPERIENCE YOUR AMERICA™ The National Park Service cares for special places saved by the American people so that all may experience our heritage.

increase plant species diversity, and to improve both wildlife habitat and water quality by reducing erosion and sediment carried into Wet Beaver Creek during storm events.

Montezuma Well is located in the community of Rimrock, just north of Camp Verde and about 4 miles off of I-17. Take the I-17 exit #293 and follow the signs.

If you have questions or comments on the workshop or the project please contact either Dennis Casper, NPS Ecologist, ([e-mail]) or Allen Haden, Natural Channel Design, Inc. ([e-mail]).