Wallace F. Holladay Preserve at AmeriPlex

Record gift to Land Trust preserves property valued at $4.3 million

Record gift to Land Trust preserves property valued at $4.3 million

Indiana bat population could soar on land near Indianapolis International Airport

Real estate development firm Holladay Properties has donated 50 acres of land valued at $4.3 million from within its AmeriPlex complex in southwest Marion County to the to the Central Indiana Land Trust to be enhanced and maintained as a nature preserve. Continue reading

Jen Schmits Thomas

Media Relations

An award-winning communicator and recognized leader in Central Indiana’s public relations community, Jen helps us tell our story in the media. She is the founder of JTPR, which she and her husband John Thomas own together.
Burning bush at Meltzer Woods, pre-treatment

Don’t unwittingly spawn invaders

by Cliff Chapman
Executive Director, Central Indiana Land Trust

You probably don’t notice it when you walk into your office building or drive by the bank. The landscaping looks nice, so you don’t pay attention to it. Throughout central Indiana, though, developers and landscapers are using plants that are inexpensive and look good, but plants like burning bush and Japanese barberry are destroying our native habitats and hurting land and water quality.

It’s not intentional; it’s simply a lack of awareness. For that reason, I’m appealing to developers and landowners to stop using these plants and choose native alternatives.

These invasives and others such as callery pear trees, Asian bush honeysuckle and privet are crowding out plants that help keep soil in place, which causes erosion that fills in our rivers and lakes. Some have stronger branches than native plants, making it easier for predators to attack bird nests, thus eliminating wildlife that people using your properties enjoy. Such negative environmental factors hurt our region’s ability to attract economic development.

If you question how something planted in a commercial development can affect nature far away, think again. Plants have a remarkable capacity to spread. We’ve seen countless examples of invasives in protected nature preserves and pristine old-growth forests … places where nobody intentionally planted them.

That’s why we need to work together to stop them.

Most of us have seen one of the nation’s most compelling examples of this problem: kudzu, which has devoured large portions of land in the Southeast. Introduced as a means of erosion control, kudzu has become a menace, spreading at an estimated rate of 150,000 acres a year, killing whole trees and large areas of vegetation by choking out sunlight.

In Indiana, the public has become increasingly aware of Asian bush honeysuckle and garlic mustard, which have taken over large swaths of land. Hundreds of volunteers have helped remove these plants, painstakingly cutting and pulling out those invaders so native plants can grow. We’re making headway, but these invasive plants continue to grow all across the state.

The good news is, developers no longer plant or buy Asian bush honeysuckle (garlic mustard was a garden plant that escaped).

That’s not the case, though, with other invasives including Japanese barberry, burning bush and purple winter creeper, as well as privet and Callery pear (including the Bradford pear). Those invasive plants still are sold at area stores and are popular among landscapers.

So, what can you do? First and foremost, when you’re planting, choose plants other than privet, burning bush, purple winter creeper, Japanese barberry and Callery/Bradford pear. If you have those plants, replace them with non-invasives.

There is no magic bullet, but by working together, we can get these invaders under control and make our landscape more environmentally stable and more attractive to the community.

From IBJ Opinion – August 24, 2013

Cliff Chapman

President and CEO

As CILTI’s President and CEO, Cliff keeps CILTI’s focus on good science and stewardship. He’s mindful that the natural places you love took thousands of years to evolve and could be destroyed in a single day, and that knowledge drives his dedication to their protection.
Sketch of Daugherty House from 1971

Oliver Daugherty: A Gift of Green in Indianapolis

Oliver Daugherty was a contrarian with a passion for his land. 

His ancestor, Dr. James Livingston Thompson, moved from England in 1855 and took ownership of over 300 acres of land situated in the crossroads of America. Along the river in land that would become Oliver’s Woods, he built a home, and the land was used as a dairy farm, stretching to 96th Street. It remained intact as it was passed down through the family—even as neighboring farmland was sold to developers—until the 1960s when it was split in half for I-465 construction.  Continue reading

Bridget Walls

Communications and Outreach Intern

Bridget is our first ever Communications and Outreach Intern. She is a graduate of Marian University, where she combined English, studio art, and environmental sciences in her degree studies. As treasurer for Just Earth, the university's environmental club, she helped plan events encouraging a responsible relationship between people, nature, and animals.

Gift allows Land Trust to protect 64 acres in Parke County

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

June 4, 2013

Gift allows Land Trust to protect 64 acres in Parke County

Turtle Bend soon will be open for the public to enjoy

Approximately 64 acres of woods in southeastern Parke County will be preserved forever thanks to a generous gift from two retired Purdue University sociology professors to the Central Indiana Land Trust.

Continue reading

Jen Schmits Thomas

Media Relations

An award-winning communicator and recognized leader in Central Indiana’s public relations community, Jen helps us tell our story in the media. She is the founder of JTPR, which she and her husband John Thomas own together.
Fred and Dorothy Meyer Nature Preserve

Meyer Family: A Family Legacy Makes for a New Nature Preserve

(This post was originally posted in 2013.)

Bob Meyer was an outdoorsy kid whose happiest days included Scouting, canoeing, hiking and sledding. When Bob and his wife, Gayle, were raising their daughters, Anna and Molly, the family spent many hours hiking, climbing and camping. Continue reading

Shawndra Miller

Communications Manager

Shawndra is in charge of sharing our story and connecting you to our work. Through our print and online materials, she hopes to inspire your participation in protecting special places for future generations.

Central Indiana Land Trust buys 55 acres in Morgan County

Central Indiana Land Trust buys 55 acres in Morgan County

Fred and Dorothy Meyer Nature Preserve will be open for public use

Approximately 55 acres of pristine land south of Mooresville between S.R. 67 and Observatory Road will be preserved forever thanks to a generous gift from a retired businessman to the Central Indiana Land Trust.

Continue reading

Jen Schmits Thomas

Media Relations

An award-winning communicator and recognized leader in Central Indiana’s public relations community, Jen helps us tell our story in the media. She is the founder of JTPR, which she and her husband John Thomas own together.