Invasive Management Workdays at Lake Accotink

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Lake Accotink Park
7500 Accotink Park Rd., Springfield VA
Saturdays, 15, 22 and 29 February 2020
9 – 11 am

Invasive plants prevent us from enjoying our forests. They degrade our natural ecosystems. Ever get stopped in the woods by climbing vines or shrubs with thorns? They may have been invasive species. Some of them, like multiflora rose, can completely swarm over a section of woods and block out everything else. However, invasive can be thwarted.

Join Fairfax Master Naturalists Elaine and Beverly as they combat invasives at Lake Accotink. No experience is necessary, this is a great opportunity to learn and everyone is welcome.

They have work gloves and equipment but please bring your own drinking water as the park’s drinking fountains have been winterized – the restrooms are still open.

If you can join them – even for an hour or so it would be greatly appreciated.

Lastly, the weather at this time of year is so unpredictable, please call or text Beverly at (571) 314-2107 if you are not sure.

Directions: There are several entrances to Lake Accotink Park, but it is easiest to take the Accotink Park Road entrance that comes off Highland Street in Springfield. Once you enter the park, follow the road all the way to the end and you will see the marina, mini golf course and a children’s carousel. There is ample parking. They are working in the area directly behind the children’s carousel but please call or text Beverly if you can’t find them.

Job opportunity: ANS seeks Naturalist Educator

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Audubon Naturalist Society is seeking to fill a position for a Naturalist Educator to work at its headquarters in Chevy Chase, Maryland.

The Naturalist Educator plans and teaches natural history classes, field trips, and programs throughout the Washington, DC region primarily for adult audiences with an emphasis on attracting new and diverse audience to ANS programs and serves as a natural history resource for staff, membership, media, and the general public.

See the complete position description and application instructions.

Simple composting for the whole family, Mar. 7th

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Belvedere Elementary School
6540 Columbia Pike, Falls Church VA
Rooms 136/138; Enter at Door #2
Saturday, 7 March 2020
10 – 11:30 am

Curious about composting? Learn how it can work for you and your family. There is something for the children too!

In this family-friendly workshop presented by the Fairfax Food Council, learn how your food waste and shredded office paper can save you money and enrich your property. Fairfax County Extension Agent Adria Bordas will demonstrate the basics of home composting, including how to build simple, inexpensive composters if you don’t want to buy one.

Environmental educators Ivy Mitchell and Stacey Evers will entertain children in the adjacent room, providing hands-on activities with worms, worm composting and gardening basics. Organic waste is the second largest contributor to landfills, so come find out how easy it is to be part of the solution!

Questions? Email Stacey Evers at [email protected].

Please register for this workshop by March 1st.

FMN Quarterly Chapter Meeting and Bluebird Box Monitoring presentation, Mar. 16th — CANCELLED!

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Hidden Oaks Nature Center
7701 Royce St., Annandale VA
Monday, 16 March 2020
7:30 pm

The Fairfax Chapter of Virginia Master Naturalists will hold a short quarterly chapter meeting which will be followed by a presentation from volunteers who monitor bluebird boxes. They work on behalf of the Virginia Bluebird Society which was founded in 1996 to promote bluebirds and other native cavity nesters. Volunteers record data and ensure that boxes are clean and free of pests to promote bluebird breeding success.

The meeting is free and open to the public. Please join us to learn about this worthwhile project and how you can become a nest box volunteer.

Parking at Hidden Oaks is limited, but there is overflow parking at the Fred M. Packard Center, 4022 Hummer Rd., Annandale, VA 22003. It is just a short walk along a wooded trail to the Hidden Oaks Nature Center from the parking lot.

Master naturalists earn one hour of continuing education credit for the presentation and can record service hours under code C034: Bluebird Trails if they participate in the project.

Mass Audubon Firefly Watch–Citizen Science in action

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Also known as “lightning bugs,” fireflies are neither bugs nor flies—they’re actually beetles that light up using a chemical reaction in their lower abdomen (the bottom part of their body). Some of them light up in a specific blinking pattern, like a secret code that they use to “talk” with other fireflies and to find mates. Flashes can be quick or long-lasting, and one kind is in a j-shape.

Are firefly populations growing or shrinking, and what could lead to changes in their populations? Mass Audubon has teamed up with researchers from Tufts University to track the fate of these amazing insects. With your help, they hope to learn about the geographic distribution of fireflies and what environmental factors impact their abundance.

Join a network of citizen scientists around the country by observing your own backyard, and help scientists map fireflies. Anyone in North America can participate in Firefly Watch. Just spend at least 10 minutes once a week during firefly season observing fireflies in a single location. All firefly sightings — or lack thereof — are valuable!

Learn more about fireflies and participate in the Firefly Watch this summer.

NVSWCD 2020 Native Seedling Sale–order now!

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The Northern Virginia Soil and Water Conservation District’s annual seedling sale makes low-cost bare-root native shrub and tree seedlings available to Northern Virginia residents. Seedling packages go on sale in February and are available for pickup in April. Trees and shrubs help cleanse water, prevent soil erosion, provide habitat, cool our climate and clean our air. Consider adding native trees and shrubs to your community today!

This year’s seedling sale features small shrubs and trees which are hardy in small spaces and bear gorgeous flowers and fruits, and display beautiful colors. The fruits and flowers that these plants grow are important food sources to birds and pollinators, and are delicious treats for us! By planting these native species, you are directly contributing to the betterment of our environment. The plants in each package clean our water and air, prevent soil erosion, provide valuable habitat, and add beauty to your property.

Order today!

“Audubon at Home” program presentation, Mar. 21st

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Jammes House
Mason Neck State Park
Saturday, March 21, 2020
2 pm

The Audubon Society of Northern Virginia and Plant Nova Natives will present “Creating a Wildlife Sanctuary on Your Property: The Audubon at Home Program” at 2 PM on March 21. The program will explain the importance of native plants to restoring and maintaining a balanced ecosystem and give guidance on how to do it.

The program is free and is open to everyone. The Friends of Mason Neck State Park, which is hosting the program, will provide light refreshments. Registration for the program will open on February 15. Space will be limited, so be sure to register as soon as you can.

2019 Year in Review, by Michelle Prysby, Virginia Master Naturalists Program Director

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For the full report, click here.

National Academies of Sciences, Medicine, and Engineering study on Grand Challenges for Environmental Engineering in the 21st Century

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The National Academies of Sciences, Medicine, and Engineering performed a study on Grand Challenges for Environmental Engineering in the 21st Century, which they published in 2018. It is now available to the general public and is a good, bracing read. The excerpt below is from the introduction. Yup, it’s 125 pages and will take longer than 15 minutes to absorb, but it’s worth the time. You can download the report and slides, too.

“The report identifies five pressing challenges for the 21st century that environmental engineers are uniquely poised to help advance:

1: Sustainably supply food, water, and energy

2: Curb climate change and adapt to its impacts

3: Design a future without pollution and waste

4: Create efficient, healthy, resilient cities

5: Foster informed decisions and actions

These grand challenges stem from a vision of a future world where humans and ecosystems thrive together. Although this is unquestionably an ambitious vision, it is feasible—and imperative—to achieve significant steps toward these challenges in both the near and long term.

The challenges provide focal points for evolving environmental engineering education, research, and practice toward increased contributions and a greater impact. Implementing this new model will require modifications in the educational curriculum and creative approaches to foster interdisciplinary research on complex social and environmental problems. It will also require broader coalitions of scholars and practitioners from different disciplines and backgrounds, as well as true partnerships with communities and stakeholders. Greater collaboration with economists, policy scholars, and businesses and entrepreneurs is needed to understand and manage issues that cut across sectors. Finally, this work must be carried out with a keen awareness of the needs of people who have historically been excluded from environmental decision making, such as those who are socioeconomically disadvantaged, members of underrepresented groups, or those otherwise marginalized.”

Let’s Get Growing Symposium, March 21st

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Leesburg Community Church
835 Lee Avenue, SW, Leesburg VA 20176
Saturday, 21 March 2020
9 am – 4 pm

Join the Loudoun County Master Gardeners at their 11th Annual Gardening Symposium featuring noted speakers, knowledgeable practitioners, plant sellers and vendors of garden related items The Symposium is a great way to get motivated and jump into the spring gardening season with new information and refreshed enthusiasm.

More information and registration here.