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

Next Outing:  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. We strongly encourage individuals to take the initiative to maintain the ecological vibrancy of our community's lands. 

This summer of 2026 we undertook a major project to attack the huge kudzu infestations at Fletcher's Cove, the popular boating and fishing spot on the Potomac River on Canal Road in Washington, DC. In close coordination with NPS, we hired a contractor to spray the acre of kudzu. Our Tree Friends prepared the site by both cutting the vines off the trees bordering the large site and tracing the infestation deep into the woods. 

We are looking for volunteers and financial contributions to expand the project. Fletcher's Cove is just one of the many large kudzu infestations on NPS land bordering the C&O Canal and Clara Barton Parkway between historic Glen Echo Park and Georgetown. Like a growing cancer, the kudzu's relentless expansion continues to flattened acres of tall trees and smother vibrant ecosystems.