The Finger Lakes Land Trust (FLLT) recently planted 575 native trees and shrubs on a recently acquired property in the Cayuga Lake watershed. The project took place in a former corn field bordering Taughannock Creek and adjacent wetlands in the town of Enfield, Tompkins County, on a conservation area that is managed for wildlife habitat.

The plantings will help reduce stormwater flows and erosion, while filtering pollutants—improving the water quality of Taughannock Creek, a tributary of Cayuga Lake. In addition, the newly planted trees and shrubs will provide habitat and act as a food source for various wildlife, including resident and migrant songbirds. Species planted include black cherry, shagbark hickory, sycamore, elderberry, and gray dogwood.

Photo: Chris Ray

The planting was established on a 25-acre property that was recently purchased as an addition to the FLLT’s Lower Nature Preserve. Located on Iradell Road, the preserve features wetlands, ponds, brushland, and forest that provide habitat for a diversity of wildlife species.

This is the FLLT’s fifth restoration project involving the creation of stream buffers completed in the Cayuga Lake watershed. Over the past five years, the organization has worked with partners to plant more than 10,000 trees and shrubs across the region.

Funding for the project was provided by The Nature Conservancy and the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation.