Hello Community Reps!
Cooler mornings let us know that fall is on its way! Summer invasive removal can feel a bit overwhelming at times, but let's give ourselves a great big pat on the back (or maybe you need a full-on bear hug) that we have made it through the worst of it!
Success!
Sometimes success can be as simple as a brown dead vine that has not yet fallen from a tree. That is what it looked like for me as I was walking my dog, and I happened upon an enormous Eastern red cedar that I had offered to cut the ivy off of more times than I can count over the last couple of years. It finally happened! (Photo below.)
On the other end of the effort spectrum, Stonehurst HOA has taken the first step to eradicate their bamboo. Find out how here.
Restoring native plants
Now is a great time to start saving up your empty jugs for winter sowing. I felt the time was just right as I tucked my first empty jug of the season away to keep for its future use.
If you are new to the native plant game, winter sowing is an affordable way to propagate native plants for your yard or to give as gifts to spread the native plant love. Learn more at the link below.
https://homegrownnationalpark.org/news/stories/winter-sowing-budget-friendly-way-to-start-your-native-garden/
May we use your closet?
We plan to stage a bag of tree-rescuing tools (clippers, loppers, etc) in each of a score of locations around the county for people to borrow when they are holding volunteer events (or even just need one tool to save their own trees.) We also would like to stage yard signs for park volunteers to pick up, since it costs ten times as much to have yard signs printed and delivered to each volunteer than to print them in bulk. Please let us know if you are willing to hold them at your house.
Weeds to Watch this Week are a bunch of berry bullies!
Probably the worst of all the invasive tree killers in my neighborhood is Porcelain berry. It will quickly cover the ground, then climb, drape and destroy your trees. This was the first invasive that I learned to identify because of its beautiful berries and complete smothering of a forest edge on the walk to my kids’ elementary school. I can see why it was planted, but the destruction has been made obvious for sometime now and it should have no place in our landscape! Learn how to identify and eradicate Porcelain berry here.
Next up is Autumn Olive.I hate that this one smells so nice in the spring, but those intoxicating blooms give way to autumn berries in late August through November that are spread far and wide by our hungry wild critters. These easily identified shrubs that have leaves with silver undersides will outcompete and dominate the native understory and help hurry the demise of our remaining wild areas. Learn how to identify and how to get rid of Autumn olive here.
Get ready for the next Extravaganza!
Let’s double the number of participants this time! The next Extravaganza will be held on the four weekends of October. Can you hold a tree rescue (or other invasives removal) event in your community? Let us know how we can support you.
Outreach
This week instead of a letter to your neighbors, I am attaching a screen shot of a Facebook post I recently shared with my neighborhood group. If you don't have a social media page or group for your neighborhood, I encourage you to start one. It is an easy way to share a lot of great information.
As we head into fall and hopefully a more manageable time in the yard, I want to send a sincere thank you for caring about our trees, our wild areas, and your neighbors!
See ya later!
Katy Johnson, Team Leader for Communities
Fairfax Tree Rescuers PRISM
