National Public Lands Day at Mason Neck State Park (MNSP) was rewarding in more ways than one. The day saw a service commendation presented to our chapter president and the initial planting of a major pollinator garden. Virginia State Senator Stella Pekarsky (36th district) presented Sarah Mayhew with a volunteer commendation (Senate Resolution number 161). […]
VMN is encouraging all chapters to get involved with an optional training opportunity facilitated by our close partner at the Virginia Department of Forestry. VMN is working to build volunteer involvement in Project Learning Tree, which is a fantastic environmental education curriculum for youth. Involvement of VMN volunteers can include taking the PLT educator workshop […]
After a summer hiatus, the popular Smithsonian CE tour led by FMN John Kelmelis, returns in September. Speaking, of course, about the interpretive tour of the National Museum of Natural History for Virginia Master Naturalists. As a reminder, this tour is for FMN volunteers only and is limited by the Smithsonian to 6 people per […]
The VA Department of Forestry (VDoF) Acorn Collection Program is an established program that helps sustain the native tree population in Virginia. The program helps by collecting native acorns, raising trees on farms, and reforesting areas that may have been destroyed by fire, disease, or clear cut. In 2023, FMN volunteers contributed over 60 hours, […]
A few changes were recently made to the catalog of Activity Codes volunteers use to record service hours. Oh man – I can feel the eyes rolling now! Bear with me … it’s not that bad. Only two new codes, with one prompting a few others to be renamed to align code names with functionality. […]
New Stewardship opportunity – Pollinator garden care at Fairfax County’s Burke Centre public library. FMN Nancy Klein coordinated the initial garden project and helped plant the Pollinator Garden in 2019. Nancy is the Youth Services Manager at Burke Centre Library and she now needs a few volunteers to help maintain the garden on a regular […]
FMN and Mason Neck State Park are happy to announce the ‘FMN only’ summer CE Kayak schedule for 2024. All dates are on Sundays. Adventures launch from the MNSP car-top boat launch and paddle from Belmont Bay into Kane’s Creek wetlands. The 3 mile round trip takes approximately 1 hour and a half. Stopping along […]
FMN once again flicks on the spotlight – this time to shine it on longtime Stewardship opportunity provider, Virginia Native Plant Society (VNPS) and FMN Alan Ford, our chapter point of contact for VNPS. Spotlighting our partners and the opportunities they offer creates membership awareness and associates a name with an organization. This also affords […]
A wonderful day was enjoyed by all FMN in attendance on 18 May 2024 with our friends at Virginia Outdoor Foundation (VOF). FMN had 12 people attend the sui generis hike on Saturday at the Bull Run Mountains Natural Area Preserve. Richard Volk commented, “I had not previously been to the Preserve and enjoyed every […]
Washington’s River Farm, the home of the American Horticulture Society (AHS) has renovated their Bluebird Trail, with assistance from FMN. The Eastern Bluebird (Sialia sialis), once as common as the robin, saw a drastic decline in population for reasons including loss of habitat, pesticide use, an influx of feral house cats, and the introduction of […]