Please see the short article on native shrubs and other foundation plantings, and share it as widely as possible.
2020 – A tough year for all, but solid progress with the native plant campaign
· Educational events
o Three HOA and Condo Associations symposiums – One in-person and two on Zoom
o Faith communities – Zoom symposium in June
o Eleven “Ask the Experts” videoconferences
o Second annual conference for landscape professionals (via Zoom)
· Social media
o 3,577 followers on Facebook (up from 2,484 on January 1)
o Facebook group for members of community associations
o Instagram presence ramped up
· Campaign updates went out directly to 1300 people and via listservs to many others
· Forty-five volunteers posted our shareable articles on NextDoor.com each month
· Fifty-five volunteers put red stickers on native plants at 22 participating garden centers
· Eighteen videos were created and added to our YouTube channel (in addition to thirteen recordings of our educational events)
In other good news, Fairfax County adopted a natural landscaping policy for county facilities.
Mini-grants for community associations -
The Audubon at Home Program will be distributing 6 one-to-one matching grants of $2,350 apiece for community associations to re-landscape their entrances using native plants. Applications are due May 31, 2020. Details and the application forms may be found here audubonva.org/neighborhood-entrances-grant.
Ask the Experts - We continue our series of interactive videoconferences in which you can ask landscape designers for advice on improving your native plantings. Submit your questions and photos ahead of time if you can. Register on our website.
o Monday, January 18, 10 am – 11 am (MLK Day): Melissa Gildea, Lotus Design and Consulting
o Topic: Shade Gardens and Gardening among Tree Roots
o Monday, February 1, 10:30-11:30 am: Jim McGlone, Virginia Department of Forestry
o Topic: Choosing and planting native trees
Recordings of previous “Ask the Expert” events can be viewed on this YouTube playlist.
Other events:
· Tuesday, February 2 – Seedling sale orders open – Northern Virginia Soil and Water Conservation District
· Saturday, February 6 9am – 12 pm. Stop Mowing, Start Growing! 3rd Annual, Native Plant Symposium for Beginners
· Saturday, February 20 9:30-12:30pm. EcoSavvy Symposium: Integrating Storm Water Management in Landscape Design.
· Sunday, February 21 2pm – Talk by Kim Eierman, author of “The Pollinator Victory Garden”
Next Steering Committee meeting – via videoconferencing – All are welcome. ________ Details on our Event Calendar.