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Savage Neck Dunes Natural Area Preserve Stewardship Work Day
On Monday November 3rd, volunteers (ESMNS Jim McDaniel, Rose-Marie Roessler, and Tom Young and James Roessler) joined DCR staff (Will Mears and Jennifer Madden) to manually remove invasive species at Savage Neck Dunes NAP. English Ivy was snipped around the bases of affected trees, with large vines cut and treated with herbicide by DCR staff.…
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Magothy Bay and Savage Neck Dunes Natural Area Preserves Maintenance and Clean-up
Each spring, chapter members work alongside DCR Natural Heritage Stewardship staff to trim back vegetation encroaching on the trail through an area of the preserve that was restored by planting thousands of native shrubs in 2009 and 2010. This year, on Thursday May 22nd, four DNH staff and seven volunteers were able to ensure safe traverse of the…
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Managing Invasive Species at Mutton Hunk Fen NAP
With funds from the Virginia Department of Forestry and support from DCR procurement staff, the Coastal Region was able to establish a contract with a qualified company to conduct invasive species management activities at Mutton Hunk Fen Natural Area Preserve. On May 28th and 29th, DNH staff met the contractor staff on site to begin the efforts. Much of their…
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Magothy Bay NAP Annual Trail Maintenance Day
Each spring, ESMN volunteers from the Eastern Shore Chapter of the Virginia Master Naturalists work alongside DCR Natural Heritage Stewardship staff to trim back vegetation encroaching on the trail through an area of the preserve that was restored by planting thousands of native shrubs in 2009 and 2010. On June 4, four DCR DNH staff…
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ESMNs Training to be Flora of Virginia Ambassadors
The Flora of Virginia (FOV) and the Flora App, developed based on research by the Virginia Division of Natural Heritage and the Virginia Botanical Associates, are the definitive botanical catalogs and reference manuals for the state’s native, naturalized, and invasive plants. Virginia Master Naturalists and other organizations have partnered with the Flora Board on an …
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ESMN Education and Outreach Committee Supports Earth and Arbor Day Events
The Eastern Shore Master Naturalist’s Education and Outreach Team has been out and about during the month of April. They set up tables at the Exmore: Return to Our Roots festival and the ANEC’s Arbor Day and customer celebration. Chapter members volunteered at the Plant Eastern Shore Natives, Eastern Shore Bird Club, and ESMN tables. All conveyed the importance…
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Planting Natives at Cape Charles Natural Area Preserve
On Wednesday, April 10th, eight ESMN volunteers and four DCR Coastal Region stewardship staff planted an assortment of 163 native forbs, ferns, and shrubs and 48 plugs of American Beachgrass Calamagrostis breviligulata at Cape Charles Natural Area Preserve. Three weeks previously, invasive species were removed for threeconsecutive days, and this area was the focus of…
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Planting Beachgrass at Savage Neck Dunes Natural Area Preserve
With 24 flats of American Beachgrass (Calamagrostis breviligulata) to plant we formed a circle as our leader Eastern Shore Master Naturalist Chapter Advisor and Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR) Coastal Region Steward and Regional Supervisor, Shannon Alexander, had us briefly introduce ourselves and described both the best beachgrass planting techniques as well as why we were all there in the first place. Our goal was to help with dune restoration…
Eastern Shore Master Naturalists
Managing and preserving the Eastern Shore of Virginia’s natural resources and natural areas through education, outreach, citizen science, and stewardship.