Tree Friends United volunteers recently cleared invasives at C&O Canal Lock 10

Next Outing:  Wednesday, November 4, 1-3 pm  at Fletcher’s Cove.  Come to scenic Fletcher’s Cove along the C&O Canal in DC to continue our progress removing kudzu and other invasive vines.  See the dramatic results of contractor work funded by some Tree Friends, which we’ll build on.  Note that Fletcher's Cove's sharp entrance can be accessed only from Reservoir Road or Canal Road outbound.  Sign up here for logistics and weather notifications:  https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0549A4A92EA0F94-67050879-fletchers

and Saturday, November 14, 1-4 pm at Glen Echo Park.  Join us and our good friends at ForestPlanet for an afternoon clearing invasive vines from the lovely grounds of Glen Echo Park.  English ivy, kudzu, porcelain berry, and Japanese honeysuckle are trying to take over, but we’re coming together to fight back.  Experienced weed warriors appreciated to help guide some of the newer volunteers.  Stay as long as you like within 1-4 pm.  ForestPlanet is a 501(c)3 organization that helps plant hundreds of thousands of trees annually worldwide.  Sign up here for logistics and weather notifications:  https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0549A4A92EA0F94-66914306-glen

For more information, or to join our mailing list, send email to: avanti7700@verizon.net

Tree Friends United is a group of 300 citizens centered in the Glen Echo, MD area who are concerned with the accelerating spread of invasive species overwhelming Montgomery County's parklands, roads, and neighborhoods. As volunteers, we assist the National Park Service (NPS), the county, and residents to remove invasive vines that are smothering trees and the plants that are destroying native ecosystems. As advocates, we are allied with other groups to seek broader public awareness of the growing problem, achieve better funding, and establish coordinated action to counter the invasives. Further, we seek changes in park service policies to actively engage our communities to maintain the ecological vibrancy of our public lands. 

Without decisive action, the future of our parklands is well represented by the photo above of the huge spread of kudzu on NPS land near historic Glen Echo Park. Like a growing cancer, the kudzu's relentless expansion has flattened many acres of tall trees. It is now extending its devastation towards the C&O Canal and Potomac River. On the Virginia side, kudzu patches have appeared on NPS's George Washington Memorial Parkway which will smother vibrant ecosystem along the river. 

Allowing invasive vines to kill our communities' trees and the expanding deterioration of our parklands is not acceptable. It can be solved. Ignoring the problems allows them to exponentially increase. But it takes community action and support to reverse the course.   We count on you to help restore our trees, ecosystems, and make our voices heard!