The biggest current project that is nearing completion is the Helm Woods preserve in Dundee Township. The township and its forest preserve district joined with the county in the effort.

The 200-acre site, designated an Illinois Nature Preserve, long has been plagued by buckthorn, a plant introduced from Europe in the 19th century as a landscaping hedge that quickly proved to be a pest in natural areas, where it blocked off the sunlight and moisture that native trees and other wildlife depend on.

The restoration, which finally is nearing completion, has been 15 years in the making.

The plant must be removed and burned to ensure that it doesn?EUR??,,????'???t reseed.

?EUR??,,????'??When I first got to the site, there was buckthorn as thick as a man?EUR??,,????'???s waist,?EUR??,,????'?? Ullberg said. ?EUR??,,????'??It took a half-hour to cut down one. And there were thousands out there.?EUR??,,????'??

However, the process was speeded up when the county and township agreed to hire Homer Tree Service of Lockport, Ill.

Ullberg said it cost $2,000 an acre to clear out buckthorn. The company, with its equipment, has proven much more effective than the manual labor that the district had been relying upon.

Buckthorn is not the only invasive plant, but it is a significant problem in Helm Woods and elsewhere.

The forest preserve also has conducted similar work this month, on a smaller scale, at the Fitchie Creek Forest Preserve outside Elgin. That work has involved 24 acres. There?EUR??,,????'???s much, much more to be addressed. Ullberg said there was as much as ?EUR??,,????'??4,500 acres that need this kind of work.?EUR??,,????'??

Crews work during the winter because the ground is frozen and the soil is not disturbed as easily, he said.