Spring 2026 Native Plant Sales in Northern Virginia

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Photo: Courtesy of LOUDOUN WILDLIFE’S NATIVE PLANT SALE AT MORVEN

 

 

Saturday, March 28
8:00am-1:00pm
National Arboretum Native Plant Sale
2400 R Street
Washington DC 20002Held in conjunction with the National Arboretum’s Lahr Native Plant Symposium 
Friends of the National Arboretum:
http://www.fona.org

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Friday, April 10 & Saturday, April 11
9am-3pm
American Horticultural Society Spring Garden Market at River Farm
7931 E Boulevard Drive
Alexandria VA 22308
See Garden Market site for details.
Native plant vendors include Seven Bends Nursey.

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Saturday, April 11
9am-2pm
Loudoun Wildlife Conservancy Native Plant Sale
Morven Park
17195 Southern Planter Ln, Leesburg, VA
Native plant vendors include Hill House Farm & Nursery and Nature by Design, Watermark Woods, Seven Bends Nursery, Yellow House Natives.
See Loudoun Wildlife Conservancy website and facebook page for details

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Saturday, April 11
10:00am
Friends of Riverbend Park Bluebell Sale
Riverbend Park
8700 Potomac Hills Street
Great Falls, VA 22066
Pre-sales orders end on March 31, 2026 for native plant and bluebell orders.
Pickup close to the visitor center and in conjunction with the Bluebell Festival. Bluebells will be available to purchase in person at the festival.
 – and –

Saturday, April 18
10am-5pm
Friends of Riverbend Park – Pickup for Native Plant Sale Riverbend Park Educational Pavilion
8700 Potomac Hills Street
Great Falls, VA 22066
Pre-sales orders end on March 31, 2026 for native plant and bluebell orders.

 

Saturday, April 18
10am-3pm
Master Gardeners of Northern Virginia Spring Celebration and Plant Sale
Glencarlyn Library Community Garden
300 South Kensington Street
Arlington, VA 22204
Vendors include Hill House Native Plants & Master Gardeners Hosted by Master Gardeners of Northern Virginia

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Saturday, April 18​
9:30am-1:00pm pickup
Walker Nature Center Native Plant Sale
11450 Glade Drive
Reston, VA 20191
Pre-orders are due by April 3rd at 5pm.
Online form for pre-orders is available.
See naturecenter@reston.org for other details.

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Saturday, April 18
9:00am-2:00pm pickup
Seven Bends Primavera Party
76 Moose Road
Berryville, VA 22611
2nd yearly gardening and conservation celebration

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Saturday, April 25
9:00am-4:00pm
National Arboretum Garden Fair and Plant Sale
National Arboretum
3501 New York Ave NE
Washington DC 20002
Contact Friends of National Arboretum: http://www.fona.org

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Saturday, April 25
9am-2pm
Northern Alexandria Native Plant Sale
The Church of St. Clement Episcopal Church
1701 N. Quaker Lane
Alexandria, VA 22302
See website for details

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Saturday, April 25
1pm-4pm​
Long Branch Nature Center Plant Pickup
625 S Carlin Springs Road
Arlington, Va 22204
Visit registration.arlingtonva.us starting sometime in March  to pre-order, and payments can be made by e-check or credit card online. Email longbranch@arlingtonva.us or call 703-228-4747 (option 9) for questions

 

DONT FORGET –  LOCAL PLANT NURSURIES:

Nature by Design in Alexandria, Earth Sangha in Springfield and Watermark Woods in Hamilton, Virginia are open throughout the growing season to supply your needs. 

Mason Neck Chapter Project – 2026 Plan

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The FMN Chapter Stewardship Project is restarting in mid-March 2026.

This project is for the long-term maintenance of Mason Neck State Park’s Pollinator Gardens. The volunteers on this project are providing long term care and maintenance of the 2 main pollinator gardens on the grounds of Mason Neck State Park and the beds around the visitor’s center. FMN is collaborating with the Friends of Mason Neck State Park and Park staff.

Photo by Sarah Mayhew, FMN Rob Warren with weed whacker Mason Neck Chapter Project

Purpose: This project will help volunteers gain knowledge and experience with the care and maintenance of pollinator gardens, how to collect seeds for sustainment of the gardens, how to identify and care for native plants, how to control undesirable invaders (weeds and pests), and work in a team environment.

Mason Neck State Park Pollinator Gardens work plan for 2026:
The plantings from 2024 have taken root and should be well established this year. We will see what happens with the attempt to bury weeds in the parking lot garden when the growing season starts up.
There are two big focus areas for this year. On March 14 we will bury the buttercups and other weeds in the driveway garden. Hopefully, this will knock them back enough that hand weeding will keep them under control.
The second big task will be a September planting in both areas we have spread deep wood chips on. This technique has worked in other landscapes as a way of restoring badly overrun gardens.

Project Location:
Mason Neck State Park – 7301 High Point Road, Lorton, Virginia 22079

FMN crew at MNSP – photo Rob Warren

FMN contact: Jim McGlone at dofmcglone@gmail.com if you are planning to attend so he can let you know if there are any schedule changes. Or register in BI calendar. Dress for the weather, drink plenty of water, use sun and insect protection.
Workdays have been scheduled in BI calendar so you can signup there. For 2026, workdays will be the second Saturday and third Wednesday of each month March to October from 9:30 to 11:30. Check BI calendar to sign up.  Most days will be spent weeding and sharing gardening tips.

To register:
1. Login to BI and click on your ‘Opportunities’ tab.
2. Select ‘Opportunity Calendar’ from the pull-down menu.
3. Find event in the displayed calendar; Click it to see event details.
4. To sign up, Click the ‘Sign Up’ box in the lower right. This automatically signs you up and puts the event on your personal calendar.

To record hours, please use CP179: Mason Neck Pollinator Garden Maintenance

 

Fairfax County Offers Free Trees to Community Organizations

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Photo: Courtesy of the Fairfax County’s Urban and Community Forestry Division

 

~Application deadline is April 10, 2026~

FAIRFAX COUNTY, Va – Community-based organizations in Fairfax County can apply to
receive free trees for planting on private properties, through a program by Fairfax County’s
Urban and Community Forestry Division (UCFD) of the Department of Public Works and
Environmental Services.

The program, offered in partnership with Casey Trees, is designed to help community
organizations in Fairfax County – such as volunteer groups, civic associations and faith-based
organizations – obtain high-quality, professionally grown trees suitable for planting. Purchasing
top-quality trees can be a challenge for these organizations.

This opportunity focuses on increasing tree cover in economically disadvantaged communities,
which typically do not benefit from moderate to high tree cover.

How to Apply: Fairfax County Tree Distribution to Community Organizations | Public Works and
Environmental Services
UCFD will prioritize applications for tree-planting sites within or adjacent to Fairfax County-
designated highly vulnerable communities, as defined by the county’s One Fairfax policy and its
associated Vulnerability Index. While planting in highly vulnerable communities will be
prioritized, all community organizations are encouraged to apply for tree delivery, regardless of
where tree planting is proposed.

The costs of the trees and delivery are covered by the county’s Tree Preservation and Planting
Fund and will be offered at no cost to participating organizations.

About the Trees and Delivery

Available trees are professionally grown, landscape quality, and meet or exceed industry
standards. Trees are sized 1.5” to 2.0” in caliper, 8-10 feet in height, and weigh approximately
130-150 pounds each. All trees comply with Fairfax County’s Natural Landscape Policy and are
non-invasive, regionally native, ecologically appropriate species and cultivars.

Casey Trees’ Casey Tree Farm is recognized as one of the foremost nurseries in the region.
Casey Trees will reserve and deliver trees directly to community organizations for planting
projects in Fairfax County. Delivery includes loading and offloading at a single location
designated in the application
Learn about UCFD’s tree programs: Urban and Community Forestry in Fairfax County | Public
Works and Environmental Services

Fourth Annual Conference for Spanish-Speakers – With Hands-on Training in The Afternoon, February 26th

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Photo: Plant NOVA Natives

 

Thursday, February 26, 2026 (Rain Date: Thursday, March 5)
9:00 am – 12:30 pm (Optional practical session – 12:30 pm – 3:30 pm)

Location: Annandale, VA (Location will be sent to registrants)

Registration is required by February 25.   Please click on the link for details and to register. (PlantNovaTrees.org/clase-en-espanol)

All for free! (Lunch and snacks are included.)

Spanish-language Workshop for Landscape Professionals 

Learn about native plants and natural landscape management. 

Open to owners, designers, foremen, laborers, and employees of garden centers.

Fourth annual conference for Spanish-speakers – with hands-on training in the afternoon
Thursday, February 26, 2025 in Annandale. The conference is free and in person and includes lunch.
Topics include
  • Introduction to invasive plant control as a business
  • Native shrubs and vines for the garden

  • Invasive shrubs and vines

If our new guide Native Plants for Virginia Gardens has been printed, everyone will receive a copy.

Special event – this year only!

In partnership with Fairfax Tree Rescuers PRISM, we will be combining this conference with the first offering of a certificate course on the identification and control of invasive plants. The course will include both on-line and in-person learning. Those wishing to be eligible for a certificate should stay for the afternoon session and plan to do the on-line learning and a second in-person practice later. Click here for more information.

Questions? plantnovanatives@gmail.com 

Enhancing Our Understanding of Ecology

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Enhancing Our Understanding of Ecology – By FMN Mike Mixon

National Geographic defines Ecology as, “the scientific study of how organisms interact with each other and their unique physical environments”.

As Virginia Master Naturalists we acquired a fundamental understanding of Ecology while undergoing the chapter’s basic training program. If  you would like to enhance your knowledge on this subject, I recommend you consider taking the online course offered by Universal Class entitled, “The Power of Ecology: Shaping a Sustainable Future.” I completed the self-paced course in January 2026 and was amazed at the breadth and depth of the material covered. Topics included extinction and evolution, biodiversity, conservation and adaptation, biogeography, ecosystems, and many others. The course consists of 20 learning modules, quizzes, and an end-of-course exam. Completing the course requires learners to accrue 70 percent of all possible points. Upon successful completion, a certificate was made available to me and my hours were accrued towards Universal Class continuing education. I then contacted our chapter’s Hours Committee and received approval to log 14 hours as FMN continuing education in Better Impact, using ‘Other’ as the Approved CE Organization.

Note that the online course provider—Universal Class—normally operates on a paid subscription basis. The good news is that Fairfax County Public Library cardholders can take Universal Class courses for free. If interested, you should check it out!  Universal Class offers a wide range of course topics and many of its other courses are not eligible for FMN continuing education.

If you are not familiar with the Fairfax County Public Library website, then here are steps you can follow to find the free course, “The Power of Ecology: Shaping a Sustainable Future” offered by Universal Class.
>Go to the following URL: https://fairfaxcounty.gov/library
>Under “Department Resources” click “Account | Log In”
>Login to your account
>In the far-left column, go down and find “Research Center” and click “All Databases”
>In the “Database / Key Word” search bar, search for “Universal Class”
>From the search results, click “Universal Class”
>Click “Browse Courses”
>Search “Ecology”
>From the search results, click “The Power of Ecology: Shaping A Sustainable Future” icon
>Click “+ Join This Course”
>Click “Register Now” and you are on your way.

Featured Image: “Parasitic ecology icon” by Debivort on EN wiki is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.

 

DWR Living with Coyotes

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The Department of Wildlife Resources in cooperation with VMN, is offering to train Master Naturalists via a statewide program on “Living with Coyotes”.

Recordings: As with all of our VMN CE Webinar Series, this session was  recorded and posted on the CE Webinar Series page of our website. Viewing the recorded session counts as VMN CE, not as the required train-the-trainer session for VMN volunteers who want to do public presentations and outreach about coyotes using the DWR materials. Those volunteers must attend the live webinar, and in-person training at Maymont.

Description:
Trained participants will work with the Furbearer Biologist from the DWR to develop educational programming about coyotes and how to sustainably co-exist with them. Trained volunteers will decide when and where to present the material to reach the desired audience. Possible opportunities include talks for homeowners’ associations, realtors, community groups such as Ruritans, garden clubs, libraries, and government groups such as boards of supervisors.  Volunteers can also present information in a tabling/booth format at local events and festivals.

To Volunteer:
Attend the required live training with Leah Card from DWR and provide her with your name and contact information in order to be on the list of trained volunteers prepared to give Living with Eastern Coyote presentations. There will be three live trainings offered in 2026. Additional trainings will be scheduled in subsequent years according to need and presenter availability.

Reporting Service:
When reporting FMN hours to this activity, please report to E301: DWR Living with Coyotes so that we can track this service separately from other VMN education and outreach. In the Description field, include details about who you presented to and please mention the word “coyote”. In the Direct Contacts section, include the number of people with whom you directly spoke. If the service was not a presentation and instead was something like writing an article for a newsletter on the topic, you may put the circulation number for the newsletter as Indirect Contacts. In the Impacts field, include any observational or written evaluation information.

Links and Materials:
* DWR will provide educational materials to the volunteers who are trained after the live trainings

* Questions? Contact Leah Card, DWR Furbearer Biologist and lead for this activity, Leah.card@dwr.virginia.gov, 804-801-4108 or Krista Weatherford, Maymont Foundation and local lead for this activity in the Richmond area at kweatherford@maymont.org, 804-358-7166 ext 325

Featured image courtesy of Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources