Page 56 - Park and Open Space Plan

Events: Natural Management Overview:
• Bernerfest Dog Event – Bernese Most of natural management area the park is a

Mountain Dog Club
• Trail Assail Run – Silver Circle Sports hardwood forest of varying quality. There are two
• Mother’s Day Run/Walk – Silver Circle wetland areas of high quality and scattered sites of oak
Sports/TA woodland, oak savanna and prairie that show great
• National Sweetest Day Run/Walk – promise. Forest Lake and Grass Lake make up part of the
Silver Circle Sports/TA Core Zone, with a combined 64 acres of undeveloped
• Bark for Life Run/Walk – American shoreline in Waukesha County. The only development
Cancer Society around the lakes of Nashotah Park are trails and a carry-

in boat launch. There is a unique interaction between
a lake and the first few feet of dry land where the
humidity and proximity of the water creates conditions
not found elsewhere. Many plants and animals benefit
from a pristine lake. Nashotah is one of the most diverse
and unique landscapes in the Waukesha County Park
System.

The Core Zone for Nashotah Park covers 138.4 acres.
Invasive species that challenge the management of the
Core Zone include Common buckthorn, Garlic mustard,
Honeysuckle, Reed canary grass and Purple loosestrife.
The goal for management of the Dry-mesic forest area is
to allow the composition to transition to true Dry-mesic
forest species. For the Deep Marsh area it is to monitor
and remove invasive species as necessary to maintain
quality. For the Dry Forest area, the goal is to eventually
restore/reclaim the pristine vegetation ringing Forest
Lake. For the Oak Opening, the goal is to create an area
of representative pre-settlement vegetation around
Grass Lake, and to protect the integrity of the existing
vegetation by monitoring and removing invasive species
as necessary. For the Sedge meadow, the goal is to
maintain and improve the quality of the unit and provide
for a diverse, intact wetland. For the Mesic Prairie the
goal is to keep the unit as prairie/old field grass land.

Nashotah, like most parkland, is in the midst of suburban
development providing an opportunity to educate the
public on why this area is of high quality and why it is a
dry (Xeric) forest or savanna. Natural management
techniques such as selective thinning, invasive plant
removal and selective burning is done to preserve the
value of large, intact plant communities in the park.

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