Alaina's Restoration Ecology Review

My first impression of the field trip was that I would enjoy it, but I wasn't sure exactly why it mattered or why it was relevant to people like me who don't see much forest other than Deer Grove. As I started learning about invasive species I realized why it was important. I wouldn't want someone to come into my home and take my stuff just because they can and no one is stopping them. That's what is happening to our native species. I feel not enough people are aware of the harm that invasive species are doing.  Restoration ecology is very important because humans should try and fix what we caused. We brought these plants over and now they are destroying our natural plants. What is crazy to me it we all spent that whole day out there and barely put a dent in what needs to be done. I'm proud of all that me and my class mates accomplished, not just tearing down what shouldn't be there but speeding up the spread of what should be there! My favorite part of the field trip was definitely planting the acorns and watering the trees. I thought it was so fun to be a squirrel for an hour and spread the seeds and water plants. I was amazed by the fact that all those trees were planted by volunteers like us and that they would grow so quickly! That was when I really knew we were making a difference. Over all, I loved this field trip. It opened my eyes to the importance of protecting nature and fixing the damage that has already been done.