Spring Invasive Species Workshop

Course Overview

The Spring Invasive Species Workshop is designed for land stewards or property owners who want to manage their natural resources more effectively. This expert-led short course will provide you with the essential background knowledge to further develop an understanding of safe stewardship practices.

Additionally, a follow-up Fall Invasive Plant Management Workshop will cover invasive plant management at the end of the growing season in the fall through winter.

Featured Topics:

• Invasive plant identification
• Prioritizing invasive management
• Spring season-specific invasive plant management techniques

Continuing Education Credits

The Spring Invasive Species Workshop is approved for credits from the following organizations.

NJDEP Pesticide Control Program

• Category 2 – Forest – 10 CEUs
• Category 3A – Ornamentals – 10 CEUs
• Category 6B – Right-of-Way – 10 CEUs
• Category 8C – Campground – 10 CEUs
• Category 9 – Regulatory – 10 CEUs
• Category 10 – Demonstration & Research – 5 CEUs
• Category PP2 – Private Applicator – 10 CEUs

About the Instructors

Mike Bellaus is the Manager of Habitat Restoration at Duke Farms and has been professionally managing both flora and fauna in New Jersey for nearly a decade. After graduating from McDaniel College in 2010, he worked for the New Jersey Invasive Species Strike Team and Monmouth County Park System systematically controlling invasive plant populations. He specializes in deer management with a focus on herd population reduction as well as deer management program creation and implementation. He works annually with the NJ Division of Fish and Wildlife performing deer population distribution surveys and held a position on the Hopewell Township Deer Management Advisory Committee for three years.

Mike Van Clef is the FoHVOS Stewardship Director and also serves as our Invasive Species Strike Team Program Director. He joined FoHVOS in 2007 and co-founded the Strike Team in 2008 with the goal of bringing greater efficiency and effectiveness to invasive species management. Mike has a Ph.D. in ecology from Rutgers University and over 25 years of experience in land stewardship, planning and research, working extensively in the evaluation and management of rare and invasive species and deer management. He has consulted with over 30 organizations in NJ including the NJ Invasive Species Council for which he prepared the New Jersey Strategic Management Plan for Invasive Species.

Prerequisites

This program assumes participants have a basic knowledge of native and invasive species and understand general ecology concepts. Please note that some components will take place fully outdoors and will require travelling several miles on various trail types (paved and unpaved) and uneven terrain for up to 2 hours.

Program Guidelines

Please stay home if you are sick. Pre-registration is required, walk-ins will not be accepted. No refunds and no exchanging or transferring tickets. Please note that each participant must be registered. Unless otherwise noted, ALL programs at Duke Farms are RAIN or SHINE.

Please contact registrations@dukefarms.org with any questions.