Joliet’s Pilcher Park needs invasive species cleared to help native ecosystem

Pilcher Park, an evergreen staple of Joliet residents’ ecological consciousness, has long been suffering from a seemingly unusual malady: It has too many trees.

Excessive shade caused by overgrown forest growth has stunted the growth of Pilcher Park foliage since the 1830s, said Matt Evans, managing ecologist of woodlands at the Chicago Botanic Garden.

But help is on the way. In 2023, Evans formed the Friends of Illinois Nature Preserve, which partnered with the Joliet Park District in an alliance called the Friends of Pilcher Park Nature Preserve.

That partnership is committed to restoring a “healthy and biodiverse oak woodland ecosystem at Pilcher Park,” according to a news release.

“The Friends of Pilcher Park is working to restore health to the ancient oak woodland by removing invasive species, reintroducing extirpated native species from nearby local populations, and returning fire to the ecosystem,” said Stone Hansard, a field representative of the Friends of Illinois Nature Preserves.

Evans elaborated on the group’s mission: “Without regular, low-intensity landscape fires, Midwestern ecologies begin to crumble into their simplest, least-diverse form. Fire and sunlight … are essential, and restoration of these factors leads to exceptional results for conservation of the rare plants and animals at Pilcher Park.”

Restoration will be further attained through “advocating for and finding increased support, resources, funding and staff for the system, and assisting local volunteer communities as they help restore and care for their Illinois biodiversity reserves,” according to the group.

Pilcher Park Nature Center superintendent Katie Zaban defined the almost two-year Joliet Park District and Friends of Pilcher Park relationship: “We have many conversations about workdays, what needs to be done and when.”

Plants affected by overgrowth

· White oak woodland/savanna flora

· Swamp saxifrage

· Wild hyacinth

· Poke milkweed

· Other rare plants

– Matt Evans

Volunteer meeting on restoring Pilcher Park

What: Volunteer meeting to restore Pilcher Park. No experience is necessary.

When: 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 10

Where: Pilcher Park Nature Center parking lot, 2501 Highland Park Drive, Joliet