Continued on

11450 Glade Drive, Reston, VA 20191 Dawn to dusk, enjoy year-round access to trails, restrooms and free parking.

FEATURES

72 acres of forested land, a picnic pavilion, demonstration gardens, educational signage, a fire ring, two streams, a pond, the entrance to 44-acre Lake Audubon and our education building, known as Nature House.

NATURE HOUSE HOURS

Mon. & Wed.-Fri. 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. Closed Tuesdays Saturday 10 a.m. – 1 p.m. Sunday 1– 4 p.m.

HOLIDAY CLOSURES:

Nov. 11 Veterans Day Nov. 25-26 Thanksgiving Dec. 24-25 Christmas Jan. 1 New Year’s Day

www.facebook.com/walkernaturecenter @restonnature @walkernaturecenter

Groups: Please call ahead to arrange your visit. Branching Out is a quarterly publication of the Walker Nature Center (WNC), owned and operated by Reston Association.

The mission of the WNC is to foster an environmental stewardship ethic in the community. It is named after Reston’s first Open Space and Nature Center Director, Vernon J. Walker. When replacing or adding trees, opt for native species. They are adapted to

Virginia’s climate and support other living things like caterpillars and birds.

The Virginia Department of Environmental Quality has asked Northern Virginia to plant 600,000 trees by 2025. To meet this challenge, trees must be planted on private property, not just public lands.

Tree Care from Top to Bottom

While trees may need to be pruned for safety or proper growth, never “top” a tree. Topping cuts through the main trunk and reduces major branches to stubs that cannot heal or sustain the health of the tree. Topped trees are weak, deformed, susceptible to disease, and have reduced lifespans. Also avoid

“limbing up” trees higher than eight feet from the ground. Disreputable “woodchucks”, people who are out to make a quick buck with a chainsaw, may try to sell you on this type of irresponsible tree work.

When it comes to mulching, less is more. Sadly, "volcano mulching" is applied by many landscape companies and misinformed homeowners. This practice creates a deep, volcanoshaped mound of mulch around the base and trunk of a tree. It breeds bacteria, suffocates tree roots, and traps moisture against the bark, leading to decay. During drought, roots may reach into the mulch to acquire water instead of growing through the soil as they should.

Proper tree mulching begins 3 to 6 inches away from the trunk. Allow the root flare, where the trunk meets the soil, to show. Mulch to the outer edge of the tree’s branches, known as the “drip line”. Only a thin layer is needed, about 1 to 2 inches. Think doughnut instead of Bundt cake! Avoid any product that contains dyes or synthetic materials. And remember, sometimes old mulch needs to be removed instead of just piling more on. A natural and low-cost alternative is to simply let the leaves stay where they fall under your trees.

If You Could, Wood You?

Humans have managed woodlands for millennia. The Native American Monacans of the Virginia Piedmont worked with the land to support life for animals and people. They cultivated native sunflowers, fruiting shrubs and nut trees. Today’s residents have multiple resources at their fingertips, and organizations like Plant NoVa Natives, the

Virginia Department of Forestry and the Nature Center are here to help.

Tree-sources

RA Design Guidelines- Tree Removal https://bit.ly/RADesignGuidelines Plant NoVa Trees www.plantnovatrees.org RASER https://bit.ly/RASER2020 Tree Benefit Calculator www.treebenefits.com/calculator

for planting trees at the Nature Center as part of their Bronze Award project! The scouts researched oak decline and donated trees to add diversity to our forest. They’re doing their part to keep the woods healthy and help curb climate change.

Bird Backpacks

Free, fun and educational

Learn more about our feathered friends while you hike our trails. Each backpack is filled with cool stuff like binoculars, sound cards, field guides, games and a take-home Bird Sleuth Guide. Backpacks must be signed out by an adult and used on-site.

Funded by Audubon Society of Northern Virginia and Friends of Reston.

This fall, we continued to rebound as our operation regained more aspects of normalcy. At the top of the list were the re-opening of Nature House to walk-in visitors in September and, to our delight, the return of many in-person school field trips in October. Many thanks to the teachers who walked their classes to the center to take advantage of our 72-acre outdoor classroom. We’ve also been impressed that nearly all of our dedicated Welcome Desk volunteers returned to service. Getting caught up with them has felt like a reunion.

We know that the pandemic isn’t over, and everyone’s continued diligence with COVID safety measures is greatly appreciated. Although cases are dropping in our region, wearing masks inside public places is still recommended by the CDC, regardless of vaccination status, except when eating or drinking. By the time this newsletter reaches you, we expect many children 5-11 years old will be vaccinated, too. Staff and volunteers have already started on their boosters.

Hats off to the 38 volunteers that made our 24th annual Halloween House and Trick-or-Treat Trail a smashing success, including the Girl Scouts from Troop 3866 who carved many of the festive jack-o-lanterns. As always, it was super fun seeing everyone’s costumes and raised spirits. This year, our resident Barred Owls added some genuine sound effects to the experience both evenings.

Thanks to our donors:

Julie and Charlie Bond, Eagle Scout Camryn Galbraith, Girl Scout Troop 6006, and the Reston Garden Club for the seasonal container gardens on the front porch and the always lovely floral displays at the Welcome Desk.

Thanks to our volunteers:

David Alfert, Emre Artuc, Joanne & David Bauer, Matt Bender, Julie & Charlie Bond, Bill Brown, Anne Cannizzaro, Aurie Catt, Assritha & Neha Sai Chikkala, Sansita Chirukuri, Mike Corrigan, Marilyn Dicke, Jody Douglas, Robin Duska, Cameron Elliott, June Ferrara, Martha Furniss, Camryn & Spencer Galbraith, Martha Garcia, Rimon Ghebremeskel, Mia Huybrechts, Vern James, Mikail Kapadia, Eva Recinos Kane, Mikail Kapadia, Diya & Yash Karayi, Haley Kowalski, Tracy Long, Fran & John Lovaas, Ethan Mairs, Arnav & Manjula Majeti, Lily Mannoia, Genesis Martinez, Sharon McHugh, Ilene McNeal, Jon Michienzi, Colin Mills, Carol Nahorniak, Keshav Nair, Lindsay & Minh-Chau Nguyen, William O’Brien, Terri Ostrowski, Barbara Paolucci, Ellen Perrins, Theresia Riesenhuber-Yafi, Victoria Ruano, Jennifer Salerno, Kate Schaub, Emily Serafin, Jim Seret, Elaine Sommer, Anna Tran, Brenda van Doorn, LeRoy & Eve Wallin, Verna Webb, Will Yafi