Posts

Using native plants to deal with drought (and deluges)

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Margaret Fisher

Neither droughts nor deluges are new to Northern Virginia, but as everyone has noticed, weather extremes are becoming more common. The prolonged drought this year that followed a wet 2018 was particularly hard on plants, as roots that have been weakened by too much water and accompanying fungi are more vulnerable the following year. When choosing which species to plant, we need to keep in mind the likelihood of these stressors repeating themselves in the future.

People living in the western part of the United States are more used to xeriscaping – planting for a dry environment – than those of us on the east coast. Lawns in California are being converted to native plantings at a rapid rate. But Virginians have been lulled by plentiful rainfall into settling for empty expanses of turf grass as the default landscaping choice, and those lawns start to look pretty peaked after weeks of drought. Fortunately, most native Virginia plants that have been installed in appropriate conditions held up quite well during our recent long dry spell. The gorgeous asters and goldenrods that define our fall landscape were no less beautiful this year. Having evolved here, they are used to both wet and dry summers. The exceptions tended to be plant species that have been experiencing ongoing stresses from disease, such as the Flowering Dogwood, and new plantings – all plants need appropriate amounts of water until they get established. By “appropriate,” we mean “not too much!” After the first few days, rainfall may indeed provide all that is needed during a wet spell, and supplying so much water that the plant never dries out is a good way to kill many native plants.

Determining which plants can withstand drought is not entirely straightforward. For instance, some of the best trees for dry, compacted soil are ones such as Baldcypress that normally live in swamps. They tolerate standing water not so much because they need the extra moisture but because they can deal with conditions of low oxygen. One way to quickly assemble a list of drought-tolerant plants is to look at recommendations for rain gardens. Rain gardens are designed to hold water for a couple days after a storm but then to absorb the water into the soil, leaving the plants dry in between. Another good reference is the plant lists for professionals page on the Plant NOVA Natives website. The plants in bold have been curated to include those that are particularly reliable as well as widely available, with detailed notations about their cultural needs.

Are you puzzling over where to install native plants instead of turf grass? Start where it is difficult or dangerous to mow, or where grass is growing poorly already. Or simply plop some shade trees in the middle of your lawn. In time, the summer temperatures in your yard will be noticeably lower.

Plants of the Forest Floor, A Talk by Margaret Chatham, Oct. 10th

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Green Springs Gardens
4603 Green Spring Road, Alexandria, Virginia 22306
Thursday, 10 October 2019
7:30 pm

Everyone knows that plants use the energy of sunlight to grow and feed the rest of the world. So how do plants live on the dark forest floor? Margaret Chatham will discuss a number of the strategies plants use to survive in the (relative) dark, with special attention to the mycorrhizal associations scientists are still in the process of unravelling.

Margaret is a devoted Fraser Preserve Volunteer Visitation Committee Member who removes invasive barberry shrubs in winter and wavyleaf grass in summer and knows the preserve intimately. She is also editor of the VNPS Potowmack News newsletter, a volunteer at the VNPS propagation beds at Green Spring Gardens in Alexandria, and an Arlington Regional Master Naturalist.

For more details visit https://vnps.org/potowmack/events/plants-of-the-forest-floor-with-margaret-chatham/

South Run Rec Center “Erosion Knoll” needs gardening TLC volunteers

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South Run Recreation Center
7550 Reservation Drive, Springfield VA
1st and 3rd Wednesdays from 9-11 am
2nd Saturdays from 9-12 for May-October and 12-3 pm from November – April

Enthusiastic and energetic volunteer gardener at South Run is seeking like-minded individuals to provide input on erosion control native plantings for a fairly small incline. Ideally, these volunteers would supervise the planting and maintenance of this area once the plants are obtained. South Run has dedicated landscape volunteer days monthly as shown above but knowledgeable supervision is much needed.

Interested? Contact Sally Berman via [email protected].  Planning volunteers may meet with Sally outside of scheduled volunteer times.

Those who just want to volunteer occasionally can go to https://volunteer.fairfaxcounty.gov/custom/1380/#/opp_details/180570

Those that want to volunteer regularly go to:
https://volunteer.fairfaxcounty.gov/custom/1380/#/opp_details/179743

Native Plants Intern needed at Meadowlark Botanical Garden

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Meadowlark Botanical Garden
9750 Meadowlark Gardens Ct, Vienna, VA 22182

Meadowlark Botanical Gardens, a NOVA Park, is seeking a paid intern to support its work with native plants and conservation gardening.
Meadowlark has several native plant collections including the Potomac Valley Collection (PVC) and the Virginia Native Wetlands Collection (VNW). The gardens within the PVC are based on biogeography and floristic composition within the Potomac River basin. The VNW includes species that occur within the state as a political unit.
The Native Plants Intern will gain experience:
• Managing and communicating with volunteers;
• Participating in all aspects of horticultural duties-weeding, mulching, planting, propagation;
• Maintaining databases of bloom time, plant records, etc.
This position is a paid, two day a week internship from 8:00 a.m.-3:00 p.m. Tuesday and Wednesday. If interested, please email Keith Tomlinson, Park Manager, at [email protected].

Community Associations Supporting the Local Ecosystem

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Article by Plant NOVA Natives

Homeowner and condominium associations make many of the decisions that will determine the future of the birds and butterflies of Northern Virginia. Not only do community associations set standards for landscaping on private property, they also own and control large amounts of community property, including much of what is left of the undeveloped land in Northern Virginia and the environmentally sensitive areas along many streams. In recent years, the managers and Board members of more and more community associations have started adopting practices that both increase home values and support our local ecosystem.

Each community has its own needs and standards, but there are some common themes. For example, most developments have lawn areas that require heavy inputs of chemicals and labor to maintain. Often these lawns came into existence not because they were needed but because sowing turf grass was the fastest way for the builders to prevent soil erosion after the area was regraded. In the long run, erosion and stormwater control would be managed better by naturalized areas. Excess lawns can be thoughtfully converted simply by planting more ornamental native trees and shrubs along the edges and gradually allowing them to fill in. Another common situation is lawn that is being mowed right down to the edge of a stream or pond, which results in contamination of the waterways from runoff. It is a simple thing to create a buffer of native plants, ideally 100 feet on either side, though any buffer is better than none. Yet another example is invasive plant management, a problem that might not have existed when the community was first developed but which by now has become an unavoidable component of responsible land stewardship.

Some communities enjoy a more relaxed look, while others prefer a more formal appearance to their landscaping. Either way, there are many opportunities for helping songbirds and turtles without any major change to the overall aesthetics. Among the hundreds of species of Virginia native plants that are available from nurseries, there are ample examples of those that conform to a conventional look. Healthy lawns can be maintained by using organic materials to enrich the soil and reduce the need for chemical applications.

To help residents and decision-makers in community associations explore the many options that are available to them, the Plant NOVA Natives campaign is hosting a series of short symposiums, starting on October 4 and November 2, which will be repeated over time to allow participation by representatives from the thousands of HOAs and condo associations in Northern Virginia. Details and registration can be found at https://www.plantnovanatives.org/symposiums-for-hoa-and-condo-assoc-. The campaign has also created a website section that outlines ideal practices, local resources and many examples of what local communities have already accomplished, often in a budget-neutral method. It can be much cheaper, for example, to control erosion by the strategic use of native plants than by digging trenches or building walls.

Volunteer at Meadowlark Botanical Gardens

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9750 Meadowlark Gardens Court
Vienna, VA 22182
Any morning Monday through Thursday

Calling all gardeners! Meadowlark Botanical Gardens, a NOVA Park, needs volunteers to supports its 95 acres of ornamental display gardens and native plant collections for the enjoyment and education of our community.

To volunteer any morning Monday through Thursday in any of the ornamental display gardens:
-Email Tammy Burke at [email protected]

To volunteer Tuesday or Wednesday with native plants (Potomac Valley and Native Wetlands Collections) : Email Keith Tomlinson at [email protected] 

Earth Sangha fall open house and native plant sale

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Wild Plant Nursery
6100 Cloud Drive, Springfield VA
Sunday, 22 September 2019
10am – 2pm
Click here for the Wild Plant Nursery Species List.

The Fall is really the best time to visit the Earth Sangha nursery. In the Spring, plants are still emerging from winter dormancy, and so they cannot offer as many species. The Fall, as experienced gardeners know, is also the best time to plant! Trees, shrubs, and perennials like the cooler weather and greater rainfall lets them establish robust roots. Late blooming annuals can make great additions to your garden, and many will “volunteer” from seed next year.

All plant sale proceeds go toward local parkland restoration. Last fall, customers helped them raise over $15,600 for local parkland restoration!
Choose from over 275 local-ecotype native species and help them fund the restoration of our area’s native flora.

If you’re interested in volunteering at the sale please email Katherine Isaacson at [email protected]. There will be a morning shift (9:45 to Noon) and an afternoon shift (Noon to 2:30).

HOAs and condo associations: Sustainable solutions to landscaping headaches, Oct. 4th & Nov. 2nd

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Northern Virginia Community College, Richard J. Ernst Community Cultural Center

Annandale Campus, Annandale VA Friday, October 4 or Saturday, November 2
(Choose one date to attend. The content will be identical.)
9:30am – 1 pm

Is your community association board dealing with erosion or flooding problems? Is your property management company paying to maintain a lot of lawn that is not being used? Is your landscaping committee looking for ways to beautify community property while supporting birds and butterflies?

Unused lawns. Impervious surface. Heavier rain storms. Invasive introduced plants. These are just some of the reasons for our degrading suburban and urban environments. But planting native plants can help address these problems while improving the overall beauty, sustainability, and ecology of our area.

Board members, landscape committees, property managers, and landscape maintenance companies are particularly encouraged to attend, but everyone is welcome. See details and sign up here.

When is a jewel not a gem?

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Jerry Nissley

When is a jewel not a gem? When it’s a weed—at least that’s what I thought at first. Alas, the common jewelweed.

So what, then? Jewelweed is a common widespread plant that occurs in most moist, semi-shady areas throughout northern and eastern North America. Some people may call it an invasive native plant. So why take the time to write about it? Well, here’s what happened to me one day this summer, which may be an all too familiar occurrence for you as well. 

Photo 1, by Jerry Nissley

Friends and family know I recently completed the VMN program and frequently send me pictures of plants or animals to identify. Does that happen to you too? But no worries—I love the challenge. So one day a friend sends a single, iPhone picture depicting a lovely specimen she found of what she thinks is a yellow lady slipper. “Please confirm?” she asks. 

I know only enough to know it does not look like one of the three lady slippers known to grow in Northern Virginia. So I send the picture to Martha Garcia, a fellow VMN who happened to present her wonderful FMN final class project on Lady Slippers, from which I learned that Lady Slippers are orchids. Martha did not believe it to be a lady slipper, but the picture looked enough like an orchid that she was interested in additional photos. 

“Yay,” I say—an opportunity for “field work”! I grab my SLR and tripod to hunt down the suspect at the obscure Kirk Park in Alexandria. Of course, I am looking for something of magnificent splendor tucked beside a log but nothing like that do I find.  Eventually my eyes refocus with a wider aperture and catch glimpse of little orange dots on a bushy vine by the side of the path (see Photo 1).  The flowers are not even an inch across, they are tiny, and they are on a bush. Alas, my chance at fame and fortune melted away with the summer heat after realizing I was not about to discover a new orchid. Ha, of course not—why would I even think that?

Photo 2, by Jerry Nissley

However, upon returning home (and to reality), I reviewed the photos, looked up information, and discovered the plant to be a jewelweed, a.k.a. touch-me-not or orange balsam. It soothes poison ivy rash, the seeds explode into the air when touched, hummingbirds are the primary pollinator, it has the face of an orchid (sort of), and the leaves shimmer under water—what is not to like?  I found the so-what factor, and why I came to consider it a hidden gem after all follows.

Jewelweed (Impatiens capensis)

It often forms dense, pure stands in floodplain forests and around the forested edges of marshes and bogs. Jewelweed also colonizes disturbed habitats such as ditches and road cuts. It can be an aggressive competitor in its favored habitats, and is one of the few native North American plants that has been shown to compete successfully against garlic mustard (Alliaria petiolata), a non-native invasive weed that threatens many eastern North American forests.

 Jewelweed is an herbaceous plant that grows 3 to 5 feet tall and blooms from late spring to early fall. The flowers are orange (sometimes blood orange or rarely yellow) with a three-lobed corolla; one of the calyx lobes is colored similarly to the corolla and forms a hooked conical spur at the back of the flower (see Photo 2). Plants may also produce non-showy cleistogamous flowers, which do not require cross-pollination. The principal advantage of cleistogamy (closed flowers) is that it requires fewer plant resources to produce seeds than chasmogamy (open flowers), because development of petals, nectar and large amounts of pollen is not required. This efficiency makes cleistogamy particularly useful for seed production on unfavorable sites or in adverse conditions. Impatiens capensis has been observed to produce only cleistogamous flowers after being severely damaged by grazing. 

Photo 3, by Jerry Nissley

The round stems are smooth and succulent, semi-ranslucent, with swollen or darkened nodes on some plants. The leaves are alternate and simple and have teeth on the margins. The seed pods have five valves which coil back rapidly to eject the seeds in a process called explosive dehiscence. This reaction is where the name ‘touch-me-not’ comes from; in mature seed pods, dehiscence can easily be triggered with a light touch. The leaves appear to be silver-blue or ‘jeweled’ when held underwater or in morning dew (see Photo 3), which is possibly where the jewelweed name comes from. 

 Nectar spurs are tubular elongations of petals and sepals of certain flowers that usually contain nectar (see Photo 4). Flowers of Impatiens capensis have these nectar spurs. Nectar spurs are thought to have played a role in plant-pollinator coevolution. Curvature angles of nectar spurs of Impatiens capensis are variable. Research shows this angle varies from 0 degrees to 270 degrees. The angle of the nectar spur is very important in the pollination of the flower and in determining

the most efficient pollinator. Hummingbirds are major pollinators. They remove more pollen per visit from flowers with curved nectar spurs than with perpendicular nectar spurs. Ruby-Throated hummingbirds are not the only pollinators of Impatiens capensis. The flowers attract long-tongued bees, including bumblebees and honeybees. Swallowtail butterflies are occasional visitors. Sometimes bumblebees will steal nectar by chewing holes near the spur of the flower. Various smaller insects (e.g., Syrphid flies and ants) will visit the same holes to steal nectar. The caterpillars of several moths feed on the foliage, including Euchlaena obtusaria (Obtuse Euchlaena), Spilosoma latipennis (Pink-Legged Tiger Moth), Trichodezia albovittata (White-Striped Black), and Xanthorhoe lacustrata (Toothed Brown Carpet). Seeds are eaten by birds and mice and White-Tailed Deer browse on the foliage. Photo 5 shows an ant taking a morning sip of nectar.

Figure 4. Photo by Jerry Nissley

Figure 5. Photo by Jerry Nissley

Along with other species of jewelweed, the juice of the leaves and stems is a traditional Native
Peoples remedy for skin rashes, including poison ivy. The effectiveness of its use to prevent the development of a rash after short-term exposure to poison ivy has been supported by peer-reviewed study and is likely due to the plant containing saponins. These studies also found that some individuals have sensitivity to jewelweed which can cause a more severe rash. To treat a rash, gather some of the whole jewelweed plant and macerate well until it becomes wet in your hands. Apply the wet plant matter to the rash area directly. Leave on and repeat applications as needed. Jewelweed helps counterbalance the oils in poison ivy. It has also been used as an agent to promote blood flow, for post-childbirth, joint pain, bruises and swelling, and athlete’s foot. 

As an aside, most saponins, which readily dissolve in water, are poisonous to fish. Therefore, in ethnobotany, they are primarily known for their use by indigenous people in obtaining aquatic food sources. Cultures throughout the world have used fish-killing plants, mostly those containing saponins, for fishing. Although now prohibited by law, fish-poison plants are still widely used by indigenous tribes in Guyana. Many of California’s Native People tribes traditionally used soaproot, (genus Chlorogalum) and/or the root of various yucca species, which contain saponin, as a fish poison. They would pulverize the roots, mixing in water to create foam and then add the suds to a stream. This would kill, or incapacitate, the fish, which could be gathered easily from the surface of the water.

Jewelweed makes a lovely addition to native plant gardens that are located in moist, partially shaded areas. Not only are the flowers aesthetically pleasing, so are the hummingbirds, bumblebees, and butterflies that are attracted to the flowers. Jewelweed can be used to fill in empty spaces in the garden that might otherwise be taken over by non-native weeds. Jewelweed can be propagated easily by direct sowing of fresh seed in early fall. Once established, a patch of jewelweed will maintain itself through annual seed production.

So there you have it. Once again, something that may have gone unnoticed because of its diminutive size or under-appreciated because it’s “just another woodland weed,” indeed turns out to be a resource for native insects, animals, and humans. But who would have known? I had to become aware, get out there, take a look, and do my homework to understand the intricacies of everything jewelweed. At the risk of sounding corny, moments like this are my reward for getting involved with the VMN program. I may have never taken the time to discover the importance of this tiny jewel of the forest. So maybe it was a new discovery after all, if perhaps only for me. How many more ‘new discoveries’ are out there?

References

https://www.fs.fed.us/wildflowers/plant-of-the-week/impatiens_capensis.shtml

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Impatiens_capensis

http://www.illinoiswildflowers.info/wetland/plants/or_jewelweed.htm

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2682495/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saponin

Native plant sale, Sep. 14th

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Morven Park,17195 Southern Planter Lane, Leesburg
(Enter via Old Waterford Rd. and proceed to the main parking lot.)
Saturday, 14 September 2019
9am – 3pm

Native Plant Sale sponsored by Loudoun Wildlife Conservancy!

Three native plant nurseries will have a huge selection of fall blooming flowers, shrubs, trees, vines and ferns for sale. Along with native plants, they’ll have:
– Loudoun Audubon at Home program
– Loudoun Stream Monitoring program
– Unique yard art from Sunny Lane Forge
– Loudoun County Master Gardeners
– Virginia Master Naturalists
– Information about JK Black Oak Wildlife Sanctuary
– And much more!

For more information, visit: https://loudounwildlife.org/event/fall-native-plant-sale-3/

For questions, contact Kim Strader at [email protected].