Sugg-Jeff-tion: Fall 2023

Diversity is the key to life… 

With the cooler weather comes the stunning fall foliage that transform our forests, gardens, and other natural areas into a rainbow of colors that we have all have grown to love and appreciate. The term “leaf peeping” has been coined to describe the act of going out in search of the most vibrant and outstanding fall colors to photograph or just admire in person.  

Did you know that you can leaf peep right in your own yard to help you asses the amount of biodiversity you have in your plantings? Biodiverse landscapes are not only more attractive to wildlife such as birds and pollinators, but are also more resilient to diseases and pests. As the luscious greens of summer fade to the yellows, oranges, reds, purples, and browns of fall, you can quickly make a visual assessment of the amount of diversity in your plantings since in many cases the same species will eventually fade to a similar color. You can note the missing colors in your landscape and make a plan to augment with additional plantings during the next planting season.   

Missing red in your landscape? Add a pin oak (Quercus palustris), black gum (Nyssa sylvatica), or serviceberry (Amelanchier sp.). Missing some orange? Add American persimmon (Diospyros virginiana), American hornbeam (Carpinus caroliniana), or staghorn sumac (Rhus typhina). Need more yellow in your landscape? Pawpaw (Asimina triloba), eastern redbud (Cercis canadensis), or willow oak (Quercus phellos) will all make your landscape GLOW. Craving a splash of purple? Plant an American beautyberry shrub (Callicarpa americana) and the birds (and probably your neighbors too) will flock to see the beautiful berries that hang on until well after leaf drop. 

The good news is that WSA offers many of these trees through our Groves of Gratitude Program. You can order a collection of five trees or individual trees that include mulch and deer protection for a small donation. This program is a great way to create an explosion of color (and diversity!) on your property next fall, while also supporting a great cause! To learn more, click here.  

So, get outside, enjoy this cool weather, and figure out which colors you’d like to add to your landscape by doing some leaf peeping in your own yard. That's my sugg-Jeff-tion!

- Jeffrey Popp, Director of Restoration

RePollinate AACO 2023 Recap

RePollinate AACO 2023 Recap

RePollinate AACO began with the support of volunteers beginning the first week of March 2023. Seed had been collected, cleaned and cold-stratified in the fall/winter. Volunteers gathered in the hoophouse that shielded us from inclement weather and sowed the seed into seedling flats. The flats were allowed to germinate until the end of April, and then the transplant-o-rama began.

Transplant days at the beelab were conducted on Thursday afternoons and episodic Saturday’s. We also held six sessions at the UME Dairy Farm Pavilion. This satellite planting site in such an ideal location and the facilities provided proved to be quite fruitful in increasing our inventory substantially.

Distribution of plants this fall targeted AACO parks (KFP, Mayo Beach), schools (Crofton, Waugh Chapel), libraries, and communities such as Cape St. Claire that has a successful Weed Warrior initiative and community support.

The 2024 season will require the emergence of new leaders to support operations at the Beelab. Thursday and episodic Saturday support will be required. Leaders will be responsible for having familiarity with the inventory and identifying flats of seedlings ready for transplant. A cadre of volunteers will assist.

To support and sustain operations, we are kindly asking for donations that can be made through the Watershed Stewards Academy:  https://aawsa.org/repollinate

The photos display the efforts of the Mayo Beach Park Rangers and volunteers. Three fields were disced and Teff a cover crop was sown. Ernst Showy Wildflower Mix will be sown in winter. Each pollinator field was bordered by a two-foot perimeter of woodchips. The RePollinate perennials were planted into augered holes one foot on center. I encourage all to begin thinking about the AACO open spaces that will be “bed-ready” for the fall of 2024.

Thank you for what you do.

- Lauren Toomey

Latin for Gardeners: October 2023

Latin for Gardeners

Plants for Riparian Buffers

October is Riparian Buffer¹ month, a time to learn more about these important features of our landscape and consider how we can contribute to the health of our creeks, rivers, and all tributaries of the Chesapeake Bay. Riparian buffers are the vegetated areas next to streams, rivers, lakes, and other water bodies. These buffers protect water quality by intercepting and filtering sediment and other pollutants before they enter the water. They also create shade along a stream and provide habitat for fish, crab, and other species - both on land and in the water. Because riparian areas are the interface between aquatic and upland ecosystems, the vegetation here commonly has characteristics of both aquatic and upland habitats - that means that many of the plants are suitable for home landscapes as well. In Maryland, you don’t need to live within view of a stream to contribute to its health.

I live in the Severn River watershed, a river that is one of only nine rivers designated as a Maryland Scenic River. According to the Department of Natural Resources, a Scenic River is a “free-flowing river whose shoreline and related land are predominantly forested, agricultural, grassland, marshland, or swampland with a minimum of development for at least 2 miles of the river length”.²

When reading the 1978 Maryland Scenic Rivers: Severn River³ study I discovered the history of this river, its unique features, and the many reasons and recommendations for protecting it. Since that time development and other activities have continued to impact the health of the Severn and all of Maryland’s rivers. In 2022 the Severn River report card graded the Severn a C-, up from a D+, slightly good news that was mainly due to a small-scale recovery of underwater grasses. Well-vegetated riparian buffers can improve the grade even more.

In 2022, I participated in a pilot program to document marine life along the shores of the Severn. The goal of the program was to understand the impact of changing weather, seasonal conditions, and prevalence of certain species. This program, along with the water quality monitoring program can serve as an early warning of factors that may cause a decline or increase in certain species. When water quality declines, food chains are broken, recreational activities are interrupted, and human health is at risk.

In 2023, I was fortunate enough to visit Albania’s Vjosa River National Park⁴, Europe’s first wild river national park. This river is unique in that it is a free-flowing waterway - free from artificial barriers like dams; it also is home to countless species.

People all over the world are concerned about the health of waterways and the effect their decline is having on human health and biodiversity. Riparian buffers are just one way we can help protect and preserve Maryland’s rivers, and all rivers, for future generations.

Alison Milligan – MG/MN 2013

Watershed Steward Class 7/CBLP

aligmilligan@gmail.com

¹ https://www.chesapeakelandscape.org/riparian-buffer-month/

² Natural Resources Article, 8-402(d)(2)

³ https://severnriver.org/wp-content/uploads/MD-Scenic-Rivers-The-Severn.pdf

⁴ https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2023/mar/15/albania-vjosa-wild-river-national-park-europe-first-aoe

Latin For Gardeners: September 2023

Latin for Gardeners

September’s Native Maryland Plant

Chelone glabra L.

(kee-LOH-nee GLAY-bruh) 

Common Name: Turtlehead

Why are there so many hummingbirds still visiting my garden in late September when many of my plants are out of bloom? It’s simple, it’s the wonderful Chelone glabra that is helping to keep them here; providing them with nectar as they spend their last days in Maryland before setting off on their long migration south. However, it’s not only hummingbirds that are benefiting from this late-summer to mid-fall blooming plant – its main pollinator is long-tongued bumble bees; bees that are still very active, even as the weather cools. These bees have the necessary strength and tongue needed to pry open the flower and reach both the pollen and the nectar.

Turtlehead is often found along stream banks and riparian areas, places where you might also find turtles.  In fact, its common name refers to the flower’s arching upper lip, which overlaps the lower lip like a turtle’s beak. 

Turtlehead is an easy plant to identify.  It’s clump-forming and has distinct two-lipped flowers that appear on dense spikes. Interestingly, it’s like Penstemon digitalis (June 2023’s native plant), in that it has 4 fertile stamen and an infertile one that is fixed to the bottom of the lower petal. 

Although I haven’t seen insect pests on these plants, I do find the plant is susceptible to powdery mildew and I’ve been told that deer may find it irresistible.  

If you’re interested in supporting bees in the fall and keeping hummingbirds in your garden for as long as possible, you really should consider planting Chelone glabra.

Alison Milligan – MG/MN 2013 

Watershed Steward Class 7/CBLP

aligmilligan@gmail.com