Help us continue to celebrate our 25th year of Saving Nearby Nature on September 15th. Join us for a relaxing day at The Winery at Bull Run - a beautiful spot that's protected forever by NVCT!
We will be offering lunch, wine tastings, historical tours, and the space to socialize with old and new friends!
This event will be outside, weather permitting, at The Winery's "General's Quarters," which overlooks the beautiful vineyard (pictured above).
Please RSVP
here
and save the date on your calendars for Sept. 15th, 11am-2pm!
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Nearby Nature Photo Contest - 9/1-10/31
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Our 6th annual Nearby Nature Photo Contest opens this Sunday, Sept. 1st!!
Stay tuned for this year's gallery showcase location and prizes!
You won't want to miss it!
Check out
our website for entry forms and submission details.
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Canoe/Kayak Cleanup - 9/28
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Thanks to funding from TransUrban ExpressLanes Community Grant program we will be holding a second Canoe/Kayak Cleanup this year!
This time we will be launching from Belle Haven Marina and will provide a free lunch for our volunteers at Belle Haven Park afterwards!
This will be a great time to both do your part to clean up our waterways and also to make some new friends!
Click
here
to register
and mark your calendars for Sept. 28th, from 10am-3pm!
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We are pleased to announce that NVCT is applying for renewal of our accreditation and a public comment period is now open.
The land trust accreditation program recognizes land conservation organizations that meet national quality standards for protecting important natural places and working lands forever. In order to achieve accreditation, The Land Trust Accreditation Commission, an independent program of the Land Trust Alliance, conducts an extensive review of each applicant’s policies and programs.
To learn more about the accreditation program and to submit a comment, visit
www.landtrustaccreditation.org
, or email your comment to
info@landtrustaccreditation.org
. Comments may also be faxed or mailed to the Land Trust Accreditation Commission, Attn: Public Comments: (fax) 518-587-3183; (mail) 36 Phila Street, Suite 2, Saratoga Springs, NY 12866.
Comments on NVCT’s application will be most useful by September 14
th
, 2019. Please call us at 703-354-5093 if you have any further questions.
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Fun interpretive hike with the Penn Club of DC
at Leopold's Preserve, led by Nancy Vehrs
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August 18:
We had a great Sunday, hiking through NVCT's 380 acre conservation easement at Leopold's Preserve, with The Penn Club of DC alumni! It was hot, but the shade provided by the canopy of protected trees definitely made it bearable! It's a great time of year to observe the different plant communities that surround the 4-mile loop-trail through the preserve. We saw an array of vividly colored wildflowers, butterflies, dragonflies, and a pair of mating eastern box turtles.
Nancy Vehrs, a wonderful ally in regional conservation and President of the Virginia Native Plant Society, was kind enough to share her time and vast knowledge of the natural world with us by leading our venture. We thank you, Nancy, for your leadership and dedication to the fields of ecology, botany, and conservation. You are a wonderful asset to the community!
Also, a big thank you to our board member, Mariel Murray, for connecting us with her Alumni group. The hike (and lunch afterwards) was a lot of fun! Thanks again to
everyone that shared their day with us!
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August 16-18:
As always, we enjoyed seeing everyone that stopped by our table at the Arlington County Fair earlier this month!
If you signed up for our newsletter while we were there, we thank you! Please continue checking in to see what fun events we are hosting as well as what conservation advancements we have made! We hope to see you again soon!
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Now is the time to pull and mow stiltgrass
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Late summer is the time to pull or mow the invasive Japanese stiltgrass, before it seeds.
In our line of work, we see a lot of this stuff - and appreciate the fact that the control of this damaging plant requires work from all of us.
Fairfax County Master Gardeners say that:
"Early control of stiltgrass is important, as it quickly spreads by rooting from stem nodes that touch the ground. If allowed to seed, each plant can produce from 100 to 1,000 seeds. Plants are best pulled in August to prevent seed maturation and dispersal. However, the soil disturbed by pulling or hoeing can bring to the surface seeds from previous seasons, and these stiltgrass seeds may have time to germinate.
Cut the weeds at or slightly below the soil surface when hoeing to minimize soil disturbance. Deep hoeing exposes more weed seeds. Mowing or weed whacking of larger infestations should also be done in late summer. You will want to bag and discard in the trash any plants you remove that might have seeds."
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