Tag: nature | Page 7 | Annandale Today

Volunteers clean up Oak Hill Park

April 10, 2016

Volunteers cleared a trail that had been overgrown. Oak Hill Park in Annandale is looking a lot nicer, thanks to the efforts of a group of neighbors who formed the Friends of Oak Hill Park. The group organized volunteers to clean up trash and remove invasive plants and established a working relationship with Fairfax County … Continued

Invasive insects destroying local ash trees

March 24, 2016

#environment, #gardening, #nature, #wildlife

This pest is killing ash trees. [Emerald Ash Borer Network] If you have an ash tree, it’s most likely infected with the emerald ash borer, an invasive insect that has killed millions of ash trees in the United States since 2003. The Fairfax County Department of Public Works and Environmental Services is urging residents to … Continued

Park Authority urged to protect the natural resources at Lake Accotink

March 15, 2016

#environment, #Lake Accotink, #nature, #parks, #trails

The marina area at Lake Accotink. People who enjoy Lake Accotink Park want the natural resources preserved and don’t want more paved surfaces. At least that was the theme of a community meeting March 14 hosted by the Fairfax County Park Authority. More than 130 people crammed into the cafeteria of Cardinal Forest Elementary School … Continued

Scene around A-Town: Frogs!

February 28, 2016

#animals, #nature, #parks, #streams, #trails, #wildlife

I’ve walked along the Holmes Run Stream Valley trail several times a month for years and never saw anything like this: On Sunday, Feb. 28, a large puddle next to the trail was filled with hundreds of very loud frogs. This was on the part of the trail in Annandale near Round Tree Park. The … Continued

Fairfax County to revise master plan for Lake Accotink

February 26, 2016

#community events, #environment, #Lake Accotink, #nature, #parks, #Recreation, #streams, #water

The Fairfax County Park Authority is beginning the process of revising the master plan for Lake Accotink Park. A public meeting on the plan revision will be held March 14, 7 p.m., at Cardinal Forest Elementary School. Fairfax Board Chair Sharon Bulova; supervisors John Cook (Braddock), Jeff McKay (Lee), and Pat Herrity (Springfield); and members … Continued

Friends group forming for Oak Hill Park

January 28, 2016

#nature, #parks, #volunteers

An overgrown trail in Oak Hill Park. [Glen Erickson Bell] Oak Hill Park in Annandale has long been neglected by the Fairfax County Park Authority. Nearby residents have done some maintenance on their own over the years, but now Glen Erickson Bell is mobilizing his neighbors to become more active advocates by creating a friends … Continued

An upsurge in coyote sightings

January 12, 2016

#animals, #nature, #police, #wildlife

A coyote pup seen last summer in Falls Church. [FCPD] There’s been an increase in coyote sightings in Fairfax County in recent months. The animals are now considered “established and widespread” in the county, states a post in the Fairfax County Police Department blog. Coyotes could prey on free-range cats and small dogs, so residents … Continued

Scene around A-Town: Nature in action

January 1, 2016

#nature, #street scenes, #wildlife

Eddie Haskell Carlstrom took this photo of what looks like a Cooper’s hawk feasting on a squirrel in his backyard in Broyhill Crest in Annandale on New Year’s Day. There has been a sighting of a bald eagle off Evergreen Lane. If anyone gets a photo please send it in.

Public input sought on revising plan for Green Spring Gardens

November 13, 2015

#gardening, #nature, #parks

The Horticulture Center at Green Spring Gardens. The public is invited to learn about and comment on a revised master plan for Green Spring Gardens Dec. 2, 7 p.m., in the park’s Horticulture Center. Written comments will be accepted through Jan. 11. The draft master plan considers several development options for generating revenue, such as … Continued

Local teen fixes up Long Branch trail

August 26, 2015

#nature, #streams, #trails, #volunteers, #youths

Carter Murray on Long Branch trail. The trail along the Long Branch Stream in Annandale has been improved by Carter Murray, 17, who completed an Eagle Scout project involving the use of gravel to smooth out the trail. Murray, a senior at Woodson High School and member to Boy Scout Troop 1965, started planning the … Continued

Deer sharpshooting approved for Annandale Community Park

August 13, 2015

#nature, #parks, #wildlife

Deer at Annandale Community Park. The Fairfax County deer hunting program is expanding again this year. Two new parks have been added in Mason District for bow hunting – Bren Mar Park and Turkey Cock Run, both in the Alexandra area – and for the first time sharpshooting will take place in Annandale Community Park. … Continued

Local Scouts take on the wilderness

July 23, 2015

#nature, #volunteers, #youths

Thirty-one local Boy Scouts from Troop 895 took part in a challenging wilderness hiking and camping experience in New Mexico earlier this month. The boys, along with 12 adult advisers, were based at Philmont Scout Ranch in Cimarron, N.M., the Boy Scouts’ flagship high adventure camp. They hiked 80 to 100 miles over 12 days, … Continued

Get free milkwood seeds at Hidden Oaks to help save monarch butterflies

June 2, 2015

#animals, #environment, #gardening, #nature, #wildlife

A monarch on milkweed. Have you seen a lot of monarch butterflies this spring? Probably not, because the monarch population is in serious decline. Milkweed plants, the only food monarch caterpillars eat, is fast disappearing due to loss of habitat as vacant land is developed. To help save monarchs, the Hidden Oaks Nature Center in … Continued

Eakin Park project raises concerns about threat to frogs

May 27, 2015

#animals, #nature, #parks, #trails, #wildlife

A frog in Eakin Park. [Photos by Gary Rubin] Preparation for a construction project near the pond in Eakin Park in Annandale has raised alarm bells that the frogs who breed in a vernal pool nearby might be danger. Gary Rubin, who lives near Eakin Park, says his children enjoy watching the frogs and tadpoles … Continued

Beautify your yard with native plants

March 4, 2015

#environment, #gardening, #nature

Silky dogwood The Northern Virginia Soil and Water Conservation District is selling packs of seedlings in an effort to spread native plants throughout the region. Native plants use less water, attract wildlife, protect air and water quality, and bring beauty to your landscaping. They are also more disease resistant than imported plants. There are two … Continued