Restoring two sites with ponds in one day

Last September 26, 20 employees working for pharmaceutical company Lilly took part in a community initiative at Neuhof-Illkirch Nature Reserve as part of the Lilly Day of Service. This day of social responsibility organized once a year gives employees the chance to get involved with community projects.

Two groups of volunteers were taken in hand by the Nature Reserve team to carry out operations with the aim of conserving the open habitats and tackling the invasive alien species found at two small sites where there are ponds.

The work entailed weeding and clearing away Solidago gigantea (tall goldenrod) plants and pulling out, cutting, and girdling young trees.

• At the first site, the volunteers were kept busy weeding goldenrod plants by hand around the pond. Young poplar, locust, and willow trees were also uprooted to ensure the pond received enough sunlight.
• At the second site, the goldenrod plants had already been cut down, so the volunteers were tasked with clearing away and loading a horse-drawn trailer. They also got to watch two draft horses employed on our reserves uproot young trees.

Now in its second year, the initiative helped to raise awareness about the problem of invasive alien species while giving participants the opportunity to learn about the work of the teams at the nature reserve.