Early spring is when we most need blooms in our gardens. Please see the article at the bottom of this update and share as widely as possible.
Spring planting time is almost here!
The native plant nurseries are opening soon, the conventional garden centers are stocking up, and the first local native plant sales takes place at the end of March. It’s good to get plants in well in advance of the heat of summer. Just don’t try to work the soil when it is still wet.
March 9 Zoom to learn about volunteering in garden centers to label native plants
Many volunteers are needed to put labels on native plants at participating garden centers. We will have a Zoom for current and potential volunteers to talk about the details this Sunday, March 9, 7:30 pm. Email plantnovanatives@gmail.com for the Zoom link.
Reston - Burke - Great Falls - Fairfax Station residents - please help! We are in particular need of volunteers for the garden centers in those areas to label the native plants. Email plantnovanatives@gmail.com.
Announcing a new invasives organization for Fairfax County!
A group of volunteers are in the process of launching Fairfax Tree Rescuers: A Partnership for Regional Invasive Species Management (PRISM). The idea is to build a county-wide campaign to get a definitive grip on the invasive plant situation, focusing on the threat to our native trees and woodlands across all land types, whether publicly or privately owned. The role of this organization is not to provide the actual labor but to support the numerous other organizations and agencies that are working on it by providing resources, expertise, publicity, and coordination.
Many, many, MANY volunteers will be needed.
Outdoor roles include conducting surveys of natural areas and site visits to advise landowners..
Indoor roles include organizing neighborhoods, administering the website, social media, and other tech, developing the overall strategy, overseeing mini-grant programs, and working with businesses to adopt our local parks.
This may require some of us to step way outside our comfort zones, so please consider stretching yourself!
Please fill out this form to let us know about your background, skills, interests, and availability.
Upcoming events:
March 9 - Learn how to help label native plants in garden centers (See above)
March 11, 6:30-9:00 pm Creating a Sanctuary for Wildlife in Your Own Backyard (In person) Register here.
March 13, 7pm - via Zoom - Weird and Wonderful Native Orchids with Melissa McCormick. Details here.
March 14, 7 pm - online or at a watch party at the UU Congregation of Fairfax - Doug Tallamy - Saving Nature with your Yard. Live event, with Doug streaming from Delaware. Register here.
March 25, 11:00-1:30 Park Stewardship Models webinar. Discover how communities across Northern Virginia are transforming their parks through powerful community-government collaborations. Register here.
March 27, 7pm webinar - Stories and Strategies for Growing Native Spaces. Register here.
March Date TBD - in person - How to build a rain garden - see the actual work in progress. Culpeper. Details here.
April 22, 7 pm - online - The Inner Workings of a Pollinator Garden - Steph Johnson of Green Steeze. Register here.
April 25-28 - City Nature Challenge - Everyone is invited, from wherever you are, to help document life on Earth using the iNaturalist app.
May 8, 7 pm - online - Butterfly Gardening. Register here.
Volunteering at tabling events
The organizers of public events throughout the year - but especially in spring and fall - welcome us to set up a table to chat with people about native plants. It’s easy! Please sign up here. The first one is on April 12 in Reston. More will be added over the next few weeks, so please check back!
Partner of the month: The Friends of Huntley Meadows Park (FOHMP) was founded in 1985 to protect, enhance, and preserve Huntley Meadows, a premier wetland wildlife sanctuary in Northern Virginia. With over 400 members, FOHMP is an active and influential voice for the physical, cultural, and natural heritage of Huntley Meadows. The group has an active cadre of accomplished volunteers who help educate the public while serving as a community link to other professional associations and neighborhood organizations. FOHMP has also been an active partner of the Plant NOVA Natives campaign, helping to educate the park’s visitors about the crucial role native plants play in healthy ecosystems.
Report your native tree and shrub plantings
Please help Northern Virginia meet its tree-planting obligations by reporting your tree and shrub plantings here. So far 17,769 have been reported!
Report your tree rescues
Millions of trees in Northern Virginia are at risk from invasive non-native vines. You can help by saving them on your own land or by volunteering on public land. (Plant NOVA Natives/Plant NOVA Trees only does educational outreach, so all this work is done under the auspices of our partnering organizations or other landowners.). So far, 17,051 tree rescues have been reported in Northern Virginia. Please add your report here.
Next Steering Committee meeting – March 13, 10am-noon via videoconferencing. All are welcome. Check our Event Calendar for future meetings.
This month’s newsletter articles to share. For social media, please use this link.
Early spring blooms for the garden
Our woodlands and meadows are about to awaken and burst into a vibrant display of spring ephemerals, the transient native beauties we love to see, especially after the cold and snowy days of winter. They are among the first spring plants to emerge and are indeed ephemeral. They don’t last long, completing their life cycle in a matter of weeks to take advantage of the sunlight that filters through the canopy before the trees leaf out.
Virginia Bluebells are a well known and popular example of a spring ephemeral, celebrated during Bluebell festivals around the region in April. But the show starts earlier, with Spring Beauty sprinkling the ground starting in late March, followed by a whole array of fascinating species including Trout Lilies and Dutchman’s Breeches. We can bring their splendor and interest to our homes by planting them in our landscapes and gardens. They are the native equivalent of crocuses and daffodils, a difference being that they are transplanted in pots rather than planted as bulbs.
The blooms of spring ephemerals are small and delicate, almost fairy-like in appearance, and yet they are an important source of early pollen for newly emerging bees. Our gardens can serve as a haven for these small but mighty plants that directly support the biodiversity of the region. Spring ephemerals will emerge before many of us begin to actively garden, so successful cultivation requires some advance thought and planning. They need sun in late winter and early spring but require shade later on as the sun intensifies and temperatures rise. They will be at home in most woody settings on your property, so plant them under trees, shrubs, and other large perennials where the soil is moist. They are particularly charming along paths and walkways where you can enjoy them every day as you pass by. You can read about them on the Plant NOVA Natives website.
Some growers advise that early fall is the best time to plant spring ephemerals, but the plants are harder to find for sale then since they would just look like empty pots. Planting them in the spring is just fine, but you may not see blooms in the first season. Most commercial nurseries these days sell the more popular species of spring ephemerals such as Virginia Bluebell, but a wider selection of species can be found in the native plant nurseries and at the local spring native plant sales.
Please remember this important rule when considering spring ephemerals for your property. You should always buy them from a grower and never take them from the wild. They are slow to propagate and will likely die if you disturb them. They may be small and short lived, but they are crucial to the native ecosystems and a testament to the renewal of spring. Let’s enjoy them in the wild where they have decided to plant themselves.
Before this year’s spring ephemerals come and go, it’s worth the effort to get out and see them sprinkled across wetlands and woodland floors in parks and other undisturbed preserves across Northern Virginia. They are a sight for sore eyes after the drab gray of winter. Open your plant identification apps, grab your native plant guidebook, or go on one of the spring ephemeral walks such as the ones hosted by the Virginia Native Plant Society. Watch your step and stay on the paths as you take in the wonderful display. Get to know them, fall under their spell, and you will no doubt be inspired to purchase and plant several of these magical beauties for your own garden viewing pleasure.
