It was in this very same county that this spring I also observed crews cleaning out the understory vegetation in the wooded portions of the median. These are areas that were left in their original woodlot condition when the road was constructed. No doubt many had open, near vegetation free understories at the time of construction. They had been grazed woodlots, wrestled from farmers, with nary a sprig of green to be seen on the ground. Now with 30 to 40 years of benign neglect they have been redeveloping that lowest tier of vegetation. But alas, apparently they have lost that city park open, see for ever nature and must be retamed...at what cost to the taxpayer, and to what real tangible benefit to safe and efficient operation of the highway? Come on VDOT, reign in your overzealous managers. I can only wonder at the number of Virginia state trees, the flowering dogwood, denizens of the understory, that were decimated by these clearing crews right here on our own Virginia state owned right-of-ways.
I must take a moment here and comment on my grudging admiration of the design of the I-81 and I-64 corridors in Virginia. When these roads were planned, laid out and constructed in the 1960's and 1970's obviously detailed attention was given to retaining the character of the neighboring landscape. While the road had to occupy huge expanses of land and had to have straight, long gentle grades and broad bands of pavement, the designers took pains to preserve the existing vegetation features that existed on the right-of-way. The woodlots "cross" the road from one side to the other, just as they had lain pre-construction. Pastures seem to join pastures, only interrupted by the macadam lanes. Abandoned cedar patches and fields reverting to pines match the character of those on the other side of the fences. The effect is that these two massive engineering marvels, are among the most attractive interstate's anywhere.
It is with these thoughts in mind, that I wonder if we can't better manage these swaths of vegetation. Must we maintain the coarse fescue cover for ever? And as colorful as the Poppies and other non-native, non-naturalized "wildflowers" are, can we not use less intensive interventions to develop swaths of wildflowers. Along the entire length of I-81 there are vast swaths of Queen Ann's Lace, yes less splashy than the poppies, but just as attractive, just as interesting. And what of the Mulleins, as individuals and small clumps, with their 6 to 8 foot, bold yellow stalks, interspersed with the Lace? Are they to be disdained? But these free plantings don't exist on Augusta County interstate right-of-ways and other counties where lawn management is the prevailing management philosophy.
