Volunteers were busy in our neighborhood on Saturday. Van Ness Main Street: “Thank you to yesterday’s wonderful volunteers for helping us plant flowering pollinators in front of the small businesses along Connecticut Ave!” You’ll have more opportunities to pitch in over the next few weekends. Pollinator-friendly plantings are happening every Saturday and Sunday afternoon (weather […]
Do something nice for your wild neighbors: FrogWatch, watershed cleanups and pollinator plantings on tap
Our local parks and streams have given us places of respite and recreation in a stressful year. This spring we have several opportunities to return the favor. Events below include neighborhood and Rock Creek Park cleanups, wildflower planting, and a census of sorts for frogs. FrogWatch If you are familiar with Forest Hills Connection at […]
Meet the leader of the team that’s been working to clear Broad Branch Stream of invasive plants and protect the natives
by Marlene Berlin Last Friday, two men met at Broad Branch Stream. One was Tony Donaldson, Jr., a Ward 3 representative from the Mayor’s Office of Community Relations and Services. The other was John Burwell, who has been leading with teams of volunteers clearing invasive plants from the daylighted stream. Burwell is a certified Weed […]
This MLK weekend, do something good for the national park in our backyard
Rock Creek Park has been an oasis for many of us during the long months of the pandemic. This weekend is a good time to return the favor. The Martin Luther King Day of Service is usually Rock Creek Conservancy’s second largest cleanup event of the year (after the springtime Extreme Cleanup). This time, a […]
Volunteers needed for rain garden maintenance at Forest Hills Park on Nov. 21
Did you know? Forest Hills Park (at 3200 Chesapeake Street) has two rain gardens. One is tucked alongside the basketball and tennis courts on Brandywine Street. The other is next to the amphitheater across the footpath from the tennis courts. They were installed to help capture and filter stormwater that otherwise might pollute Rock Creek […]
Practice “socially-distant stewardship” at Melvin C Hazen Park bamboo cleanups this month
Rock Creek Conservancy is in what it calls “socially-distant stewardship mode.” That doesn’t mean its work has stopped. This month, the group is inviting volunteers to help attack a stand of invasive bamboo in the western section of Melvin C Hazen Park. “Bamboo is an aggressive invasive plant that can overtake wildlife habitats and out-compete […]
From ‘Extreme Cleanup’ to mini cleanups: Rock Creek Park still needs our help
Saturday, April 18th would have been the 12th annual Rock Creek Extreme Cleanup organized by Rock Creek Conservancy. Group events like these can’t happen now, obviously. But we can still get out there, get a little exercise, and do something good for the Rock Creek watershed while we’re at it. RCC Executive Director Jeanne Braha […]
You – yes, you – could lead a Rock Creek cleanup. Learn how during in-person or webinar training March 14 & 18
If you have participated in a Rock Creek Conservancy stream cleanup, you know the drill: Listen to a safety briefing, sign a waiver, grab gloves and a trash bag, and go! The leaders of these cleanups go through 90 minutes to two hours of training – that’s all. And the organization is hosting training sessions […]
Local groups ISO volunteers for planting trees, protecting streams, planning fun events
Friends of Forest Hills Playground makes sure the park’s amenities remain safe and in good shape. The nonprofit organizes popular events like the summer concerts and Halloween Spooktacular. And the small but mighty board needs more hands to do everything they would like to do for the park and the neighborhood. They are meeting today […]
Enjoy and protect Rock Creek and tributaries on MLK Day and beyond
Rock Creek Conservancy has cleanups scheduled during Martin Luther King weekend and beyond, including invasive species removal at Melvin Hazen East, more invasives work on RCC’s “mini-oasis” project in Melvin Hazen West, and trash cleanup at Peirce Mill. For more events like these and other ways to enjoy the park, check Rock Creek Conservancy’s calendar.