12th Annual Gardening Symposium with Loudoun County Master Gardeners: Plant – Nurture – Grow – Gardening in Rhythm with Nature, March 19th

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Saturday, March 19, 2022
9am – 3pm
Live webinar
Register by March 18th
Cost: $45

Four expert speakers will provide inspiration, ideas, and information on garden basics that will appeal to all gardeners. The event is fully virtual, and there is a focus on native plants. See the website for the list of presenters. Presentations will be recorded and available for registered attendees to watch for six months following the Symposium.  Titles include Super Tough Wildflowers and Things Your Tree Wish You Knew.  

FMN Quarterly Chapter Meeting, Plant NOVA Trees, March 21st

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Photo: J. Quinn

Monday, March 21, 2022
7 pm
Online
Email vmnfairfax@gmail.com for the link

Fairfax Chapter of Virginia Master Naturalists will hold their Quarterly Chapter Meeting online on Monday, March 21st at 7 pm. There will be a short business meeting and Margaret Fisher will present on Plant NOVA Trees and the Role of Master Naturalists. Of course you do not have to be a master naturalist to appreciate this insightful presentation and ways you can help.

FMN is a founding partner of Plant NOVA Natives and continues to provide critical support. Learn about the regional native tree campaign and the many ways that each of us can contribute. As a preview, here is an example of the work of Plant NOVA Trees.

Margaret Fisher is a Fairfax Master Naturalist and one of the coordinators of Plant NOVA Natives/Plant NOVA Trees. She is also an Audubon-at-Home Ambassador, Fairfax Invasives Management volunteer site leader, and volunteer stream monitor.

Below the Surface: How Plants & Geology Interact, webinars March 8th & 15th

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Tuesdays, March 8 and 15, 2022
6:30 pm, meet and greet both evenings
Sessions start at 7pm and 8pm both evenings
Please register only once for both sessions

Join Virginia Native Plant Society for either or both evenings on geology and plants. March 8th’s sessions topics are Land Management Lessons from Piedmont Prairies and Virginia’s Geology. On March 15th the topics are Geology and Soil Parent Materials as Determinants of Natural Communities in Virginia and the Carolinas and Beyond Substrates.

Evening Woodcock Walk

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Photo: Courtesy of the Fairfax County Park Authority

Evening Woodcock Walk

When: Wednesday, 3/02/2022  5:30-7:00PM

Where: HUNTLEY MEADOWS LOCATION

3701 Lockheed Blvd.
Alexandria, VA,
Map of Huntley Meadows Park

Cost: $9.00

Click here for more information.

Register Online.

Event Description:

Take an evening stroll through the forest to one of the park’s largest meadows. Listen for the call of the male woodcock and hopefully see his amazing courtship dance and flight. Bring a flashlight. Approximately 1.5 mile walk on uneven terrain. Canceled if rain. Meets at the South Kings Highway entrance to the park.

Great Backyard Bird Count

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Photo: Carolina Chickadee by Brad Imhoff/Macaulay Library

When: Wednesday, February 16, 2022  2:00-3:00pm ET

Where: Livestream webinar

Click here for more information and registration.

Event Description:

Join us for a free webinar to help you make birdwatching easier and more fun—right in time for the 25th Great Backyard Bird Count. Join our experts as we brush up on bird ID, unlock the mystery of bird songs, and practice counting birds no matter how large the flock or busy the feeder. Plus, we’ll discuss how to create group counts using new eBird Trip Reports. This webinar is designed for birders of all ages and experience—you’ll leave confident and ready to be part of the GBBC!

The Mysterious History of Native Grasslands in the Virginia Piedmont, April 16th

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Image courtesy of the Clifton Institute

When:  Saturday April 16 @ 2:00 pm – 4:00 pm

Where: This program will take place at a grassland on Raccoon Ford Road, south of Culpeper.

Cost: $8 – $10

Piedmont grasslands are the most diverse plant communities in the state of Virginia. These prairies are also home to declining birds and insects and a number of rare plants. Grasslands in our region require frequent fires, mowing, or grazing to prevent them from turning into forests. Therefore there is an active debate about how prairies were maintained historically, how extensive they were, and how long they have been present in northern Virginia. Join grassland expert Devin Floyd from the Center for Urban Habitats to learn all about these special habitats and their history. This will be an outdoor event that will take place at one of Virginia’s most diverse grasslands.

Click here for more information and registration.

Citizen science in natural resources: How volunteers are making a difference, webinar February 17th

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Photo:  Stream monitoring by Dianna Bridges, VMN New River Valley Chapter

Thursday, February 17, 2022
Noon – 1:15 pm
Pre-registration required here.

Citizen science is the involvement of people who are not professional scientists in real forms of scientific study. Through the Virginia Master Naturalist program, citizen scientists are making important contributions to natural resources research and conservation, greatly increasing the capacity of professional scientists and land managers. Join Michelle Prysby, Director of the Virginia Master Naturalist program, to explore examples of impactful citizen science and to learn how you can get involved in citizen science, regardless of your background.

Michelle Prysby is the Director of the Virginia Master Naturalist program and an Extension faculty member in the Department of Forest Resources and Environmental Conservation at Virginia Tech.

Please note that this webinar is being hosted by Virginia Tech’s College of Natural Resources and Environment’s Advancement Team as part of their monthly Lunch and Learn Series for alumni and any others interested in joining.

View recordings for this and past webinars: VMN Continuing Education Webinar page.

Audubon Afternoon: The Evolution of Birds with Douglas Futuyma, webinar March 27th

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Photo courtesy of Douglas Futuyma

Sunday, March 27, 2022
3:00 – 4:00 PM
ONLINE
FREE, but registration is required

We all learned that dinosaurs died out 65 million years ago – but now we know that they are still with us today. Join Douglas Futuyma, Distinguished Professor Emeritus in the Department of Ecology and Evolution at Stony Brook University, for an Audubon Society of Northern Virginia presentation on how birds evolved and continue to evolve. How did birds become so diverse, and spread throughout the world? Why are many of them so brightly colored? Join us to learn the answers to these questions and more. Youth 14+ who are interested in science and animals may enjoy this presentation.

Douglas J. Futuyma recently published, “How Birds Evolve.” In this multifaceted book, Futuyma examines how birds evolved from nonavian dinosaurs and reveals what we can learn from the “family tree” of birds. He looks at the ways natural selection enables different forms of the same species to persist, and discusses how adaptation by natural selection accounts for the diverse life histories of birds and the rich variety of avian parenting styles, mating displays, and cooperative behaviors. He also explains why some parts of the planet have so many more species than others, and asks what an evolutionary perspective brings to urgent questions about bird extinction and habitat destruction. Along the way, Futuyma provides an insider’s view on how biologists practice evolutionary science, from studying the fossil record to comparing DNA sequences among and within species.

Growing Bird Food: New Research about Native Hydrangeas, webinar March 10th

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Photo: Sam Hoadley

Thursday, March 10, 2022
7 – 8 pm
ONLINE
Fee: $10
Register here.

If you love birds, help them by growing native plants in your yard. Birds cannot live on birdseed alone, but also need to eat native insects – which need native plants for food and shelter.

Join Audubon Society of Northern Virginia for a presentation by Sam Hoadley from the Mt. Cuba Center, a nonprofit dedicated to preservation and conservation of native plant species of the Piedmont ecoregion. Sam will take us on a deep dive into Mt. Cuba Center’s newly released Hydrangea arborescens evaluation results. After just completing a five year trial, the results are in on which Hydrangea species received top marks from a garden perspective and which species and cultivars tallied the most pollinator visits. Included will be tips for successful cultivation and care of wild hydrangea in your home landscape, and where you can purchase plants to get started.

Sam Hoadley is the Manager of Horticultural Research at Mt. Cuba Center where he evaluates native plant species, old and new cultivars, and hybrids in the Trial Garden. Sam earned his degree in Sustainable Landscape Horticulture from the University of Vermont.

Secrets, Spies, Sputnik and Huntley, February 28th

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This double ring of antennae was the first U.S. tracking station to compile data on the path of the Russian satellite Sputnik just five hours after its launch. 

Photo courtesy of Fairfax County Park Authority

Secrets, Spies, Sputnik and Huntley

When: Monday, 2/28/2022 2:00 pm

Where: HUNTLEY MEADOWS LOCATION

3701 Lockheed Blvd.
Alexandria, VA,
Map of Huntley Meadows Park

Cost: $12.00

Click here for more information or call 703-768-2525.

Register Online.

Event Description:

Huntley Meadows Park is home to a nationally significant historic house, majestic forests, wildflower-speckled meadows and vast wetlands bursting with life. Some of the best wildlife watching in the Washington metropolitan area is here.  The Park we know and love today does have an intriguing history.

Take a stroll through the less-visited side of Huntley Meadows Park to uncover the history of spies, espionage and how the Cold War struggle between the US and the USSR shaped Huntley and the Fairfax County we know today. The program at Huntley Meadows Park runs from 2 to 4 p.m. The cost is $12 per person. Meet at the South Kings Highway entrance. The program includes a 2.4-mile walk over flat terrain.