Earth Sangha DC - Area Field Schedule for Spring 2008

This is a temporary web page. The text below was written by Lisa Bright and last updated on April 9.

April 12 and 13, Saturday and Sunday, 10 am to 2 pm, in Wilburdale Park in Annandale: Planting 200 native tree seedlings to restore stream buffer forest in Wilburdale Park in Annandale. PLEASE NOTE THAT WE CHANGED THE LOCATION of the planting site from my previous announcement. This is a different section of Wilburdale Park. This half acre lot was once a multiflora rose field and is now brush hogged. It is adjacent to our Alluvial Forest. Please bring a pair of work gloves and a bottle of water. We will provide all the material, tool, and light lunch.

Directions to Wilburdale Park in Annandale: from the Beltway, exit to Braddock Road East; at third light on Backlick Road, turn left (north); pass one light (you will see a large strip mall with the Giant store to your right); then soon look for an obscure road sign, Byrnerley Lane to your left. At the end of the road, you will see the entrance to the park. Please park the car along the road. My cell phone is 571-213-8025 in case you got lost.

April 12, Saturday, 10 am to 1 pm, at our Native Arboretum project in the Marie Butler Leven Preserve: The Fairfax County declares this as an Invasive Plant Removal Day! All 40 or so countywide park sites will simultaneously at work! We will be having a huge event with an energetic Roots & Shoots volunteer group (Shawna Levins is a local leader) at our Native Arboretum site (MBLP) in McLean. Our IMA leader, Alan Ford will lead the event. Chris will be there while I will be at Wilburdale Park.

Directions to the Marie Butler Leven Preserve: 1501 Kirby Road. From the Beltway, exit on Route 66 East; take the first exit (exit #66) to Route 7, Leesburg Pike; turn right on Idylwood Road and just stay on this road. After crossing Great Falls Street, it becomes Kirby Road. Pass Old Dominion Road (there's a traffic light) and Chesterbrook Road (a stop sign); look for the Preserve on the right. There's a small sign in front. We will meet at the parking lot.

April 16, Wednesday, 11 am to 1 pm, at Wilburdale Park: Lisa Williams, a Biology class professor at NVCC Annandale campus, will bring her students back to Wilburdale Park to plant about 75 native seedlings of Elderberry, Silky dogwood, and spicebush in that 3,500 sq.ft. stream buffer area that they helped clear the invasive vines on April 2nd! They are one hard-working group of students! (Call me first if you would like to attend this event.)

April 20, Sunday, 10 am to 1 pm, at our Native Arboretum project in the Marie Butler Leven Preserve: Our Earth Day Event here is a culmination of our winter-long effort of clearing all the invasive plants in the area we named "Pollinator Garden Forest."

We have basically three tasks for the day. One is to plant 100 to 150 native trees and shrubs and ferns and grasses in the wooded area; the second is to weed and plant 30 to 50 herbaceous plants in the existing Native Pollinator Garden (this task will be performed by a Girl Scout team led by Dominique Poirier). Third one is hauling all the discarded plant debris into a huge dumpster parked by the edge of the wooded area. Our IMA leader, Alan Ford is very good at directing us for the task and Alan will once again be there!

We will order a temporary toilet for the occasion, and we will bring all the material and tools and light lunch. So please let me know if you plan to come. Please wear protective shoes and clothes (long plants and long-sleeve shirt and sneakers, no sandals) and bring a pair of work gloves and a bottle of water.

Directions to the Marie Butler Leven Preserve: 1501 Kirby Road. From the Beltway, exit on Route 66 East; take the first exit (exit #66) to Route 7, Leesburg Pike; turn right on Idylwood Road and just stay on this road. After crossing Great Falls Street, it becomes Kirby Road. Pass Old Dominion Road (there's a traffic light) and Chesterbrook Road (a stop sign); look for the Preserve on the right. There's a small sign in front. We will meet at the parking lot.

April 22, Tuesday, 9 am to 2 pm, at our Native Arboretum project in the Marie Butler Leven Preserve: We will celebrate Earth Day itself with a big group of EPA staff members at our Native Arboretum site (MBLP) in McLean. EPA's Office of Site Remediation and Technology Innovation, organized by Suzanne Wells, will devote the day for clearing another half acre woodland just across the restored area. We expect anywhere between 30 to 50 EPA staff members. That would be a huge boost to our ongoing effort. (Call me first if you would like to attend this event.)

April 24, Thursday, 9 am to 2 pm, at our Native Arboretum project in the Marie Butler Leven Preserve: Yet another Earth Day event, this time with staff from EPA's Office of Finance. About 20 EPA volunteers, organized by our Barbara Freggens, will help restore the half-acre woodland at our Native Arboretum site (MBLP) in McLean. (Call me first if you would like to attend this event.)

April 26, Saturday, 10 am to noon, in Wilburdale Park in Annandale: By now, a major brush hogging of European privet would have done by FCPA. We would like to uproot some of them if they are far away from the stream banks. Let's meet at the main park entrance of Wilburdale Park, near the children's play ground and the stormwater ditch. Just bring a bottle of water and a pair of work gloves. Earth Sangha will provide tools and fruits for snack.

Directions: from the Beltway, exit on Braddock Road East; at 3rd light, turn left (north) on Backlick Road; pass a light almost immediately; and immediately look for an obscure sign and road, Wilburdale Lane to your left; turn left and at first stop sign; turn either right or left (it's a circular road); upon seeding the playground, park the car on the street.

April 27, Sunday, 10 am to noon, at our WIld Plant Nursery: Every Sunday would be our nursery work day! Meditation at 10 am on the open platform among plants.

Directions: The nursery is in Springfield, in Franconia Park, which lies just south of the Beltway, and just east of the Beltway's intersection with 95/395. (You can find it in the ADC Northern Virginia Map Book, on Map 23, square A8.) Bring a bottle of water and a pair of your work gloves. Earth Sangha will provide tools and snacks. If you're on the Beltway, exit on 95 South and then almost immediately, take Franconia Road (644) east. (If you're coming by 95/395, look for Franconia Road, just south of the Beltway intersection.) Once on Franconia Road, turn north on Thomas Drive, less than half a mile east of the 395/95 intersection. Thomas is easy to miss! (It starts at Franconia, so you can't turn south on it.) From Thomas, turn right onto Meriwether Lane. Turn left onto Cloud Drive. After entering the Park, turn right onto the dirt road into the community gardens. Our nursery lies beyond the community gardens.

May 10, Saturday: IMA site leaders tour of our Native Arboretum site (MBLP) in McLean.

May 11, Sunday, 10 am to 2 pm: Tree planting day at Wilburdale Park. Details to come.

May 18, Sunday, 10 am to 2 pm: Stretch shade cloth over the container yard at our Wild Plant Nursery in Springfield. Details to come.

May 25, Sunday, 10 am to 2 pm: Annual Bodhisattva Vow Ceremony at our Wild Plant Nursery in Springfield. Details to come.

Lisa Bright
703-764-4830