Bush honeysuckle leafs out earlier than native plants and trees, and stays green well into fall. “By summer, honeysuckle has largely shaded the forest understory, virtually eliminating any young native trees, seedlings and wildflowers that would naturally occur in our native woodlands,“ said Kent Theiling, Manager of Forestry and Horticulture for St. Louis County Parks and Recreation.

To preserve the St. Louis County Parks natural resources from this invasion, destroying the bush honeysuckle was identified as a priority, according to Theiling. It was decided that removal would begin where the honeysuckle was encroaching on County Park trails, not only for protection of the understory, but also to keep the trails safer. Sue Kuhnert, Coordinator of Volunteer Services for St. Louis County Parks and Recreation, began recruiting volunteers to help with removing the bush honeysuckle.

“We have been developing a network of volunteer groups the past few years from area high schools and colleges, as well as building our database of individuals who enjoy outdoor work on our trails and in our parks,” said Kuhnert, “We want to establish meaningful service projects especially for students so they can really make an obvious difference while learning about environmental issues, leadership and addressing genuine community needs. The honeysuckle removal is a crucial environmental task with both environmental and community impact, so we designed this project with high school and college students in mind.”

Three dates in October and November were chosen for honeysuckle removal in three parks. These parks were chosen for the initial removal effort based on amount of honeysuckle and geographical location - one north, one south and one central.

The first honeysuckle removal date was October 27, "National Make A Difference Day," a day set to recognize the value of volunteering and community service. Over fifty volunteers worked two-and-a-half hours that day, clearing over a half-acre of honeysuckle in an 800' x 30' area of the park. It took 7 1-ton truckloads to haul the limbs to a mulcher; the mulch will be used in the parks.

Another group volunteering to remove honeysuckle is from the United Way's "St. Louis Cares" Program. This program is the United Way's response to the growing trend of episodic volunteering: individuals sign up for one-day projects, perhaps several times a year, thus fitting community service into busy schedules.

“Episodic volunteering has contributed greatly to the soaring growth of our ‘Trail Crew’ over the past few years. We have grown from 50 volunteers to over 500 people of all ages who enjoy the outdoors and like the idea of "giving back" to the environment in general, and specifically to the Parks they enjoy using for hiking, biking and picnicking,” said Kuhnert.

Numerous high school and college groups - including fraternities, key clubs, ecology clubs, parent-child groups and others - have volunteered to complete St. Louis County Parks outdoor projects. Some schools are instituting community service classes or requiring community service hours to be able to graduate.

With over 11,000 acres in the St. Louis County Parks, it is a labor-intensive effort to rid the sites of the rapidly spreading honeysuckle. “Our valuable volunteers are our frontline in attacking this menace,” said Kuhnert, “With their hard work, we will be able to accomplish this huge undertaking.”

“We have encouraged the volunteers to revisit next spring or early summer the sites they cleared this fall, to see what native plants have resprouted - they will be surprised,” said Theiling.