Ausable Freshwater Center

Enjoy this river birch seed ASMR! Birch trees are great for riparian restoration due to their adaptability and rapid growth, providing quick canopy cover that stabilizes soil and reduces erosion. As pioneer species, they fix nitrogen and improve soil health, while their lightweight seeds aid natural regeneration and support wildlife. Seed collection happens in late summer when cones turn light brown. The process involves harvesting cones, drying them, and extracting the small, winged seeds. In this video, ACN staff uses sieves to clean the seeds, ensuring better soil contact and higher germination rates. The seeds will be stored and used for spring 2025 propagation at the nursery. #lakeplacid #birchtrees #asmr #riparianrestoration #ausablecenter

Ausable Conservation Nursery staff are hard at work this month constructing a new hoop house to aid in native plant propagation. A hoop house (also known as a high tunnel) is a simple greenhouse structure made from a series of curved metal arches with a covering of transparent plastic film. It protects growing plants, shielding them from harsh weather conditions like frost, wind, and heavy rain while extending the growing season. By controlling the growing environment within the hoop house, temperatures and humidity will remain consistent for seed germination and the propagation of native trees and shrubs. AFC's 18 x 96 ft structure will help extend the bareroot seedling production season at the nursery in Lake Placid. AFC will utilize the hoop house for seedling production this coming spring. #adirondacks #lakeplacid #nativeplants #propagation #ausablecenter

Our water quality team has been enjoying sampling Mirror Lake in the recent gorgeous weather. Even though most of our lake and pond sampling is finished for the year, we monitor Mirror Lake water quality with our partners at Adirondack Watershed Institute twice a month year-round. Look for us on the ice this winter! #adirondacks #lakeplacid #mirrorlake #cleanwater #waterquality #ausablecenter

Executive Director Kelley Tucker presented to the annual convening of the NYS Adaptation Practitioners Network in Albany. Since 2020, the network brings together nonprofit, government, and academic experts working on practical solutions for ensuring communities and people can adapt to rapidly changing climate conditions and do so equitably. AFC was a founding member. The Network is led by Rebuild by Design in partnership with Cornell University’s Water Resources Institute and Syracuse University’s Environmental Finance Center. #NYadapts #adaptation #climateadaptation #ausablecenter #climatechange #planning

And that’s a wrap! Our water quality team completed their first lab season in our lab at Uihlein Farm in Lake Placid. Among the samples we’ve been processing in-house, we tested pH, conductivity, and color of our water samples from a set of lakes in the Adirondack High Peaks region. The water quality team might have finished their lab season, but our lab won’t go dormant this winter. Our biodiverse habitats team will use the space to analyze macroinvertebrates while the water quality team prepares for next year’s field season. #adirondacks #waterqualitymonitoring #cleanwater #labwork #ausablecenter #lakeplacid

AFC's Healthy Streams staff have been taking advantage of this recent dry spell and conducting geomorphic surveys on the East Branch Ausable River from St. Huberts downstream through the Town of Keene. Assessing over 12 miles of river channel, we collected thousands of topographic measurements, hundreds of photos, and many pages of notes as part of our comprehensive assessment to identify and prioritize restoration work in Phase 2 of our East Branch Restoration Program (EBRP) for the Town of Keene. Much like our Phase 1 EBRP work for the Town of Jay, this planning report will help the towns secure state and federal funds to improve flood resilience, protect infrastructure, and restore habitat for threatened native brook trout. #adirondacks #ausableriver #streamrestoration #healthystreams #floodresilience #ausablecenter

Our summer water quality monitoring will soon be finished for the season. AFC conducts monthly water quality assessments on five lakes in the Ausable watershed. The data collected helps track how these lakes react to seasonal and climatic conditions, as well as environmental threats such as road salt. The field work we did this and in past summers helps us plan for the Survey of Climate Change in Adirondack Lake Ecosystems (SCALE). SCALE is a multi-year sampling project that will collect and interpret a broad range of physical, chemical, and biological data across aquatic Adirondack ecosystems. Learn more about this project and the historic research that led to it on our website: https://lnkd.in/evYa5mjY

Last week, our Stream Wise team completed their assessments for the year. They worked with ten landowners interested in learning more about management of their buffers. Six of the properties assessed were given the Stream Wise award, meaning they met all of the criteria needed for a healthy, functioning riparian buffer. Are you a streamside landowner? Learn more about Stream Wise - https://lnkd.in/ebU2FQFR Lake Champlain Basin Program NEIWPCC #streamwise #Stewardship #ausableriver #adirondacks

Got tickets? Join us at the Mirror Lake Inn on Tuesday, September 17th for our annual Shindig. Don't miss your chance to enjoy incredible food, great conversations with AFC staff, local auction items (yes, there will be another gorgeous handmade quilt!), and an excellent talk by guest speaker Suzanna Randall, Chief Resiliency Officer, NYS DEC. Get tickets online: https://lnkd.in/eEQgYzE2 or email [email protected] for more information. Tickets won't be available much longer! Thank you to the Mirror Lake Inn and North Woods Engineering for making this event possible. #adirondacks #ausablefreshwatercenter #ausablecenter #protectwhatyoulove #lakeplacid

Late August and early September are peak seed ripening months for many species, including the Eastern larch, also known as Tamarack (Larix laricina). This tree has the distinction of being the only northern conifer that sheds its needles every fall, making it our only deciduous evergreen species in the Adirondack Park. Our Ausable Conservation Nursery team has been monitoring and collecting seeds from tamaracks throughout the Ausable River watershed. These seeds will be propagated in our greenhouse in 2025, and then planted at appropriate restoration sites. #nativeplantnursery #nativeseeds #propagation #tamarack #ausableriver Lake Champlain Basin Program NEIWPCC