Biodiversity Restoration Along the Tsurumi River

Oghi plants restoration activity at the lower segment of the Tsurumi-river Tsunashima Riverside Green Belt is entering second winter season. We are working busy to prepare good condition for growing 1young Oghi community that is just entering hibernation by pulling off invading major winter grass and herbs that may extract ,during the winter, significant amount of nutrients from the soil that may support spring shoots of the Oghi plants.

This time volunteer members from nearby company joined us on 24^th Dec. We introduce them basic restoration ecology of Oghi plant with reference to invading foreign plants like bur cucumber and rat rye grass. Winter is just the season for rat rye grass that sprouts in deep autumn, grows very tall during winter , then put ears and completely wither in May and June next year, leaving the surface of the soil bare just suitable for the vicious foreign climbing plant bur cucumber to sprout all over the area having been densely covered by rye grass. So we can prepare a better spring condition for Oghi plant to sprout by thinning rye grass and other competitive plants at this time. Our staff and volunteer members did a good amount of thinning work half a day.

This year Oghi community has reached the expected level of restoration as seen by continuous distribution of whitish ears (flowers) in the upper zone of where restoration work began 7 years ago. While the degree of restoration in the lower zone of TRGB is just reached 20~30% as judged by the distribution of whitish ears.

With our best efforts to restore Oghi community , assisted by varioussupporters like in these days, we expect that restoration level in the lower TRGB may also attain the level of today’s upper TGBR in 3 or 4 years.