This past week saw NeighborSpace hosting a flurry of fun, environmentally-minded events for communities all over Baltimore County in celebration of Earth Week! This included a pair of bioblitzes, a community clean up, and several tree planting days, all of which involved different groups from within and outside of the respective communities.

Our bioblitzes, led by our Community Conservation Manager Will Kaselow, focused on connecting communities with the natural world at their local parks. By using iNaturalist, a flora and fauna identification app, participants were able to get a better understanding of the trees, shrubs, flowers, and animals around them. Our shiny new technology (in the form of tablets) allowed participants to begin identifying the flora and fauna immediately, without the need to download anything on their own devices. These events were hosted at both Adelaide Bentley and Ridgely Manor Parks, and we hope to continue running bioblitz events like this throughout the county!

Over at Turner Station, Will and Executive Director Phyllis Joris worked with Turner Station Conservation Teams to help clean up and beautify the Turner Station Neighborhood during their annual Dumpster Day. Volunteers aided our staff at Chestnut Park by cleaning up trash and removing weeds from the gardens, keeping the community gathering space clean and beautiful!

Lastly, a huge effort to plant native trees, shrubs, and perennials at Tollgate Wyndham Park was finally completed through three separate planting events, led by me, NeighborSpace’s Land Steward. This effort, months in the making, capitalized on a whole winter’s worth of invasive plant removal throughout a third of the park. Volunteers from corporate groups such as BGE and Stanley Black & Decker planted no less than 150 trees and shrubs in “Miyawaki Forests,” which are densely planted (~2 trees/shrubs per meter square) stands of native vegetation. In next month’s newsletter, we will talk more about this method, and why we decided to start planting in this fashion, so stay tuned!

Thank you again to all the volunteers who joined us at events this week. We couldn’t do the work without you and we hope to see you again soon!