Not your typical day at the beach
Volunteers plant seedlings at Elks Camp
With strong winds blowing off Pelican lake, a group of 60 volunteers huddled along the shoreline of the Elks Camp on Pelican Lake, planting native seedlings Saturday. The group was made up of Girl Scouts, Elks members, Master Gardeners, DNR members, University of Minnesota Extension personnel and members of the Pelican Lake Property Owners Association.
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Volunteers moved mulch Saturday to a portion of Elks Camp shoreline. Approximately 60 volunteers mulched and planted native seedlings on two parcels at the Pelican Lake camp. The plantings will reduce erosion and provide a buffer between the shore and the camp.
Brainerd Dispatch/Steve Kohls
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Last October, Bonnie Hiniker and Jodi Eberhardt harvested native plant seeds from other areas of the Elks Camp property. Hiniker incubated the seeds over the winter and had 6,000 seedlings to plant on two parcels, each 150 feet long and 30 feet wide, on both ends of 1,000 feet of sandy beach.
Tricia Dosh (left) helped Daisy Scout Shayla Makowski-Bubrow plant seedlings Saturday on the shore of Pelican Lake. The pair were among 60 who donated their time for a project by the Pelican Lakes Property Owners Association to restore native plants along a portion of the Elks Camp shoreline.
Brainerd Dispatch/Steve Kohls
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The native plants will provide a buffer between the water and the camp. With the shoreline buffer, the contaminates from the land will be filtered before entering the lake. It also will provide an example of proper shoreline management, offer a habitat for birds and insects and add beauty and diversity to the shoreline.
Tammy Anderson carried another flat of wetland plants for volunteers to plant Saturday at the Elks Camp on Pelican Lake.
Brainerd Dispatch/Steve Kohls
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Each year, the project will be monitored to document successful and unsuccessful plant species. The plant list will be shared for other projects on Pelican Lake.