The lower reaches of Thompson Creek are now more or less permanently flooded during the wetter parts of the year, and the water table remains high even during the summer. The high water is caused by intense bouts of stormwater run-off, which have eroded the stream channel, thereby releasing tons of sediment; the sediment is deposited in the lower reaches of the stream, where it impedes drainage. (January 2009)

The flooding is killing the forest along the stream. The trees here took root under very different hydrological conditions and are now, in effect, drowning. The stream-side forest is dead or dying along about one-third of a mile of the creek. (January 2009)

You can readily see the process at work in the stream channel itself. The section of bank shown here has been undercut, and in the stream bed, you can see mounds of material that has washed down from farther upstream. (January 2009)

But there are still sections of Thompson Creek that are in good condition, as this beautiful pebble bed attests. Thompson Creek is not just another blown-out stormwater ditch—the creek and its forest are well worth saving. (April 2009)

Our planting along the flooded portion of the creek is intended to help the forest adapt to the new conditions. The planting will establish a bank of saplings, from species well adapted to wet conditions, that can replace the current canopy as it, inevitably, continues to degrade. The stakes mark the spots where we’ll plant our seedlings. (April 2009)

The Sangha’s Nikki Oteyza hoists a bundle of tree shelters. These “tree tubes” prevent deer from eating our saplings. This forest is very heavily browsed by deer—that’s one of the reasons that there are so few saplings in the understory here. (April 2009)

As at our other Meadowood sites, much of the planting is done by students from the Lake Braddock High School environmental science program. We are very grateful to Lake Braddock environmental science for all that help! (April 2009)

This is a big, complicated site, with lots of obstacles—standing and downed stems, marshy spots, and a network of little rivulets. (April 2009)

Here you can see one of those rivulets. Yet another problem on this site is that light brown groundcover; that’s Japanese stiltgrass, an invasive alien plant that is pushing farther and farther into the forest along the creek channel. It’s at its densest in our project area, where it’s growing in full light. We don’t yet have a control plan for it. (At the time of the planting the stiltgrass had not yet greened up.) (April 2009)

Lunch: An opportunity to celebrate our work—and just to enjoy the forest. (April 2009)

Volunteers from the Art of Living Foundation. Art of Living “adopted” this planting as part of a larger tree-planting effort in which they are collaborating. We greatly appreciate all of the organizations who partner with us on our sites. (April 2009)

The planting is finished. This photo is a view from about the middle of the planting, looking north. The canopy over the northern end is still fairly dense but, unfortunately, many of these trees are dead or dying. (April 2009)

A view of the southern end. Here the die-off is more advanced. The area is in nearly full light and is densely infested with Japanese stiltgrass. (April 2009)

A view of the planting along the main branch of the creek. We planted a total of about 500 trees and shrubs representing 13 native species. (April 2009)

Another portion of the Thompson Creek drainage. This is fall in the upland woods overlooking the creek. The forest is beautiful and the uplands are not greatly affected by invasive alien plants, but the understory is sparse and lacks species diversity―strong evidence of heavy deer browsing. We hope to reestablish a more diverse understory, partly by planting and partly by protecting the seedlings already growing here. (October 2009)

Volunteers harvest seed from the upland forest floor. They’re looking mostly for acorns. We’ll sprout them at our nursery and plant the resulting seedlings back into Meadowood. (October 2009)

We did little work along Thompson Creek during 2010, but we returned in spring 2011. Here, volunteers are planting a variety of shrub and small tree species along the stream bank, to help restore the understory. (May 2011)

We are also planting some big trees. All of the species that we’re putting in are already present in the forest, and all of them do well in wet soil. This volunteer is planting American elm along a little channel that drains into the creek. Most of this lowland forest is now dominated by American beech and tuliptree, species that deer don’t seem to like very much. (May 2011)

The Japanese stiltgrass is greening up, and we’re pulling spot infestations of it in the more upstream areas, where its distribution is still patchy. This is hardly an effective means of control but it’s the best we can do at present. (May 2011)

Some of the trees and shrubs in our April 2009 planting are now emerging from their “tree tubes.” Less encouraging is that solid carpet of Japanese stiltgrass. (May 2011)

Despite the excessive deer browsing and the stiltgrass, there are still many interesting plants in Meadowood’s lowland forests. Here, for example, are clumps of royal fern―one of the largest and most widely distributed temperate-zone ferns. It can grow to over six feet, which is what makes it “royal.” There’s a lot of variation within this species. We’re hoping to propagate the Meadowood population. (May 2011)