On Sunday May 6, 2012, Potomac Overlook Regional Park (PORP) held a dedication ceremony that marked the official opening of the new demonstration native plant garden for shady backyards.

The garden is adjacent to the Master Gardeners’ demonstration vegetable garden, across the driveway from the Native American garden. Next time you are at the park for a hike or to work on a volunteer project, please stop by to visit the garden.

Demonstration garden at Potomac Overlook Regional Park. Golden Ragwort blooming in mid-April.  Photo by K. Landis.

The Garden

The garden space inherited by the design team comprised both native plants such as American holly, dogwoods, spicebush, snowberry and sweetshrub and exotic plants such as thorny pyracantha, heavenly bamboo, boxwood, azaleas, and varieties of weeds. A lot of thought went into which plants to preserve and the decisions help make the point that it is possible to incorporate native plants into all gardens.

Azaleas, for example, were retained because they define the space well and are likely to be found in many of our shady backyards. A few other herbaceous exotics such as hellebores, lungworts, toadlilies also remain in the garden because they seem to be deer resistant and add interest to the design.

Site conditions, high wildlife value, visual and ornamental interest throughout the seasons, and deer resistance were the key factors in plants selection. The site is mostly in the shade with a surprisingly rich and well-draining clay-based soil that was amended with leaf compost. Plants selected have relatively low watering requirements once established.

While deer resistance was a requirement for plants selection because the deer population at PORP is very high, Azaleas spell “deer candy” and deer have been accustomed to browsing in the garden. The marauding deer are proving to be a big challenge and our team is experimenting with spraying the plants once a month with putrescent egg solids. We’re also caging trees to protect them from deer rubbing their antlers on the bark. High wildlife value in a garden is a double-edged sword!

The Funding

Martin Ogle at PORP.

The concept for the garden was initiated by former Chief Naturalist of PORP Martin Ogle and Cliff Fairweather during Cliff’s tenure with Audubon of Northern Virginia. Cliff wrote a grant and was awarded $1,500 under the Audubon at Home initiative from Together Green/Toyota, which has provided the bulk of the money for the project to date. Additional funding was generously donated by PORP, as was discounted plant material from the Virginia Native Plant Society (VNPS) and Earth Sangha.

The Volunteers

Demonstration Garden Volunteers.

Installed in October 2011, this demonstration garden project came to fruition due to the joint efforts and support of several partner organizations, promoting the use of native plants to improve biodiversity and habitat. Cliff Fairweather put together a team of two ARMN members: Master Gardener Joanne Hutton and landscape architect Kathy Landis, and Fairfax Master Naturalist Alan Ford, who is also serving as president of the Potomack chapter of the Virginia Native Plant Society. Along with Cliff Fairweather and Martin Ogle, the three key players helped design the garden, and wrote interpretive materials for the educational component of the project.

Many hands from our various parent organizations helped to prepare and install the garden. Among many who have contributed their time and provided plants are:  David Garcia, Elizabeth Gearin, Christine Friedel, Susan Grisson, Celia Denton, Ellen Parkhurst, Jane Longan, Katrina van Duyn, Lou Ott, Bill Browning, Maggie Needham, Judy Funderburk, Jim Hurley, Caroline Haynes, Crista Wattes, Karen Smagala Hendricks, Lisa Bright and Jean Woodrow. Sue Dingwell worked on signage and brochures, while Stephanie Martin produced a set of beautiful plant cards. Park staff were terrific, and Alan Ford and the VNPS were outstanding and generous in providing vision, leadership and plant ideas.

The Future

ARMN hopes to use the demonstration garden for tours and workshops, and to feature it through the popular Meet Me on a Sunday program. A box of interpretive materials on native and invasive plants has been developed and is stored at the Nature Center at PORP. Two brochures highlight species of interest in spring/early summer and in summer/fall. A comprehensive database of plants will be available from the Nature Center as well.

We hope that Master Naturalists will help staff an ARMN information table on Sunday afternoons and talk with park visitors about gardening with native plants. The garden will be a site featured during the  June 3 Green Home and Garden Tour, sponsored by Arlingtonians for a Clean Environment and Arlington County DES. We hope that this is just the beginning of the use of the demonstration garden for educational purposes.

If you’re interested in being trained to walk people through the garden area, or in helping with periodical work parties to maintain this space, or to support the project in other ways, please be in touch with a member of the team: joannerhutton@gmail.com or landisdesign@gmail.com.

In the ARMN 2011 Annual Report, President of ARMN Caroline Haynes shares a snapshot of ARMN volunteer effort last year. The numbers are impressive:  127 ARMN volunteers provided a combined 9,000 hours of volunteer service that reached out to over 10,803 individuals.

While the total number of volunteer service hours is often the first question we are asked about the ARMN program, the types of service ARMN members provide and the groups ARMN partners with are also significant.  ARMN volunteers engage on a daily basis in environmental education and outreach, in stewardship projects, in citizen science projects, in basic training, and in advanced training.   Dozens of ARMN partner groups include nature centers, county parks, public schools, Earth Sangha, National Park Service, National Aboretum, The Smithsonian, and The Nature Conservancy.

ARMN members are urged to report their volunteer hours, including the types of service and the partner groups for which the service is provided.  Those who have reached master naturalist certification levels recently will be recognized at the July 29 chapter meeting and cookout at Long Branch Nature Center in Arlington, Virginia.

Join us for the next Barcroft Park Habitat Restoration Work Party on Saturday May 19th at 9:30 am. This event is sponsored by the Arlington Regional Master Naturalists. The work party will be followed by a walk led by Jim Hurley to view the natives that have come up in areas that we cleared over the past year. We will also look for the champion trees that are in the park. This is a great opportunity for those who have worked with us in the past year to see the results of your hard work.

We will not hold work parties over the summer and the next one will be on Sept 15th.  So please join us on Saturday May 19th as we finish this season in Barcroft Park.

We will meet at the picnic pavilion in Barcroft Park. If you park in the Barcroft recreational area parking lot, walk past the soccer fields, bear right and then cross the stream on the wood and steel bridge. Wear long pants and long sleeves. Bring gloves and any favorite weeding tools, especially pruning tools and shovels if you have them. We will also supply gloves and tools.

This project needs you! Every pair of hands makes a difference for this valuable ecological site. Enjoy the satisfaction of clearing invasive plants to encourage growth of native plants which provide habitat for birds and other wildlife.

If you have questions, please contact Marion Jordan at mcjordn@verizon.net.

During the Unitarian Universalist Church of Arlington’s celebration of Earth Month, they encouraged members to keep tires properly inflated, which saves money, gas and reduces pollution. This is a free service that My Organic Market provides to shoppers twice a year at their stores.

Jennifer, Andre and Howard at the tire inflation volunteer service.
Photo by Bob Denniston.

When I read on the Arlington Regional Master Naturalist listserv several weeks back about an advanced training opportunity on botany, “Let’s Scope it Out! Advanced Botany.” I excitedly signed up. A little bit too eager, I missed that the word “advanced” modified “botany,” though it also qualified as advanced training.

As the class began, I planted myself at a table with a microscope, various texts, handouts, and plant samples. Once our instructor, Emily Ferguson, began speaking, I realized immediately that I was in over my head.

While a lot of the terminology drifted in one ear and out the other and feelings of inadequacy washed over me, I confessed my error to my learned table-mate, who reassured me that we would all be learning something new. Indeed, I did!

While I was weak on plant ID and terminology, I let my curiosity by my guide. I grabbed the razor blade and a pair of tweezers and began slicing as directed. As one of my classmates put it, looking at anything under a microscope is fun. How true!

Not only did I learn a good bit about plants and their many parts, I reconnected with fellow naturalists who were part of my initial training, was infected by the energy and enthusiasm of our instructor, and I scored a few points with my two elementary school-age kids who happened to be studying plants and their parts as well! I’ve actually been able to apply some of what I learned in other volunteer settings.

Lesson learned: get out and get involved! Even if you think you are in over your head, fellow naturalists offer lots of support and enthusiasm and will help to keep you afloat. And, you are sure to learn something new!

Special thanks to Kaythi Han for the amazing photos used in this post and to Emily Ferguson for the fun and educational class!

Variety of ground covers, ferns at the Demonstration Garden, Potomac Overlook Park.
Photo by K. Landis.

We look forward to seeing as many of you who can come to the dedication of our new demonstration garden showing off native plants suitable for backyards on Sunday, May 6th, at the annual May Day Fair at Potomac Overlook Regional Park.  The dedication will take place tentatively at 2:30 p.m. with Mary Hynes, Chair of the Arlington County Board, in attendance and doing honors.  We hope to have a tree planting as part of the ceremony and celebration of our new ARMN focus project.

To prepare the area for this high-profile event, please come out on Friday morning, May 4th, 9:30 – noon or as long as you can, for a work party and training about the plants we’ve included in the design.  We have invasives to remove, mulching, and raking to do.  When we’re done, I will show off the box of informational materials on invasive and native plants developed for Meet Me on a Sunday, and we’ll talk about how to interpret the garden or host a short tour even if you don’t consider yourself an “expert.”  This will be especially appropriate for any of you folks in training as Audubon at Home Ambassadors.

Christmas Fern with Phlox in foreground.
Photo by K. Landis.

We’ll be touring and talking as well on Sunday afternoon after the dedication, so that’s another training opportunity for those of you who work weekdays.

The garden dedication will take place during the Park’s 27th Annual Open House and Heritage Festival.  We can use your help if you are available to staff an ARMN information table for part or all of the afternoon.  It’s a very festive happening, complete with maypole and many exhibitors. Download an event flyer to share.

Bring garden gloves, tools if you wish to do so, as well as water and insect repellent.  I’ll provide snacks.  Contact me if you have questions, or to let me know you’ll be coming at joannerhutton@gmail.com.

Potomac Overlook Regional Park is located at 2845 Marcey Road, off of Military Road, in north Arlington, VA.  Call 703/528-5406 for directions and more info.

“Everyday is Earth Day for ARMN volunteers,” Robin Davis, ARMN Outreach Committee Chair, remarked at the April ARMN Board Meeting.

How right she is! Since ARMN’s mission is to provide environmental education, research, citizen science, outreach, and stewardship of Virginia natural resources and public lands, everyday is indeed Earth Day for all ARMN members.

Wherever you are volunteering your time on Earth Day 2012, enjoy your day, rain or shine!  E-mail armneditor@gmail.com to share photos, including the name of the photographer and a caption of your Earth Day 2012 volunteer service.

Digging native plants. Photo by S. Dingwell.

What could be better than to spend a beautiful spring day in the woods doing something you love to do? For several weeks, ARMN volunteers came together at Long Branch Nature Center to help them get ready for their Native Plant Sale Day. Workdays like this one not only provide opportunities to give something worthwhile to the greater community, but they also give volunteers the chance to connect with each other in low stress ways, and to share knowledge with each other. I am always both interested, and heartened, to hear the incredible variety of reasons that drew people to the Master Naturalist program. And the learning part is like reading historical fiction. Because it’s part of a story, it’s fun!

Redbud (Cersis canadensis). Photo by S. Dingwell.

Take a redbud tree for instance.  I can ID a redbud tree from a mile away, but I had never in all my life gotten close enough to one bloom to realize the flowers are cauliflorous! I didn’t make that up, by the way. “Cauliflorous” is just a fancy way of saying that the flowers emerge directly form the trunk or branch. Try that on one of your neighbors!

Geranium (Geranium maculata). Photo by S. Dingwell.

Along the many walkways and bike paths in our local area, these two little beauties have been in prolific bloom recently. I was absolutely thrilled to learn that they were both natives, and not, like lesser celandine, Ficaria verna, and so many others also in bloom, from Eurasia.

Golden ragwort (Packera aurea). Photo by S. Dingwell.

Columbine (Aquilegia canadensis). Photo by S. Dingwell.

Columbines are plants I know well, both as garden inhabitants and as wild natives seen on hikes in California. Is there anyone who is not completely seduced by their delicate intricacy? Guess what? Native here in Virginia, too! Hurray!

So my volunteer work enriched not only Long Branch with lots of sale plants, but my own store of knowledge and friendship as well. And, as one of our group members observed, for those who wish to work in quiet solitude when they volunteer, there are also oportunties for that!

My neighborhood in Alexandria (Beverley Hills), which borders Monticello Park, is known for its beautiful mature trees. Unfortunately, storms, age, and construction have claimed many of them and English ivy threatens to overtake many that remain. So, I was happy to be able to put my training from the Choking Hazard campaign to good use at the April meeting of our citizens’ association (http://northridgecitizens.org). Using the Powerpoint template on the TreeStewards.org website as a guide, I created a presentation incorporating photos and details from our neighborhood. Given the casual nature of the meeting and the evening’s prior presentations, I opted not to set up my computer and projector and just talked about the Choking Hazard campaign using the handout as a guide.

The 30 or so people in the room were highly receptive and most were aware of the damage ivy can do to trees.

We discussed how we could spread the word to our neighbors. Some suggested distributing the Choking Hazard handouts to homes with threatened trees, but we decided we didn’t want to be in the business of issuing ivy citations! Since there are key areas in the neighborhood where the signs can be posted, I am going to look into laminating the signs to display the front and back of the Choking Hazard handout.

The president of the citizens association said she would include a link to the TreeStewards.org and ARMN.org websites on their website. We also have a very active neighborhood listserve and I am planning to attach the Choking Hazard .pdf file to a friendly, informational email on the topic.

I would encourage everyone with an interest in the Choking Hazard campaign to set up meetings or presentations on this topic.  It is quick and the prepared materials make it easy.

Click here for more info on the “Choking Hazard” campaign
Click here for non-invasive alternatives to English Ivy

Celebrate Earth Day by joining us for the next Barcroft Park Habitat Restoration Work Party on Saturday April 21 at 9:30 am. This event is sponsored by the Arlington Regional Master Naturalists. The work party will be followed by a natural history program on Freshwater Stream Ecology presented by Arlington Regional Master Naturalist Michelle Ryan.

We will meet at the picnic pavilion in Barcroft Park. If you park in the Barcroft recreational area parking lot, walk past the soccer fields, bear right and then cross the stream on the wood and steel bridge. Wear long pants and long sleeves. Bring gloves and any favorite weeding tools, especially pruning tools and shovels if you have them. We will also supply gloves and tools.

This project needs you! Every pair of hands makes a difference for this valuable ecological site. Enjoy the satisfaction of clearing invasive plants to encourage growth of native plants which provide habitat for birds and other wildlife.

If you have questions, please contact Marion Jordan at mcjordn@verizon.net.