Invasive species removal in Crooked Branch Ravine Park Tuesday, May 14 from 9 – 11 a.m. Other dates in May, weather permitting, are Sunday, May 19 (2-4) and Tuesday, May 28 (9-11). Please join us.

• Map to site
• Please bring your own work gloves and tools if possible. Small garden tools such as a trowel are needed for work at the entrance. Pruners and loppers are needed for removing ivy from trees; bring a small saw if you have one.
• Dress for the weather, wear sturdy shoes, bring water and a snack if needed.
• Volunteers will need to sign a waiver before participating. Those who are 18 and older may sign when they arrive. Waivers are good for the calendar year so you will not need sign one if you come again. Those younger than 18 must have a parent or guardian sign the form; either bring the form or e-mail to reedycreekcoalition@gmail.com
• Volunteer Waiver

Please RSVP below if you plan to attend. This is not required, but will help us plan for the work day and also let you know if there is a change.

Invasive species removal in Crooked Branch Ravine Park Tuesday, May 7 from 9 – 11 a.m. Other dates in May, weather permitting, are Tuesday, May 14 (9-11), Sunday, May 19 (2-4) and Tuesday, May 28 (9-11). Please join us.

• Map to site
• Please bring your own work gloves and tools if possible. Small garden tools such as a trowel are needed for work at the entrance. Pruners and loppers are needed for removing ivy from trees; bring a small saw if you have one.
• Dress for the weather, wear sturdy shoes, bring water and a snack if needed.
• Please RSVP below if you plan to attend and indicate which day. This will help us plan for the work day and also let you know if there is a change.
• Volunteers will need to sign a waiver before participating. Those who are 18 and older may sign when they arrive. Waivers are good for the calendar year so you will not need sign one if you come again. Those younger than 18 must have a parent or guardian sign the form; either bring the form or e-mail to reedycreekcoalition@gmail.com
• Volunteer Waiver

Invasive species removal in Crooked Branch Ravine Park Tuesday, April 30 from 9 – 11 a.m. Please join us.

• Map to site
• Please bring your own work gloves and tools if possible. Small garden tools such as a trowel are needed for work at the entrance. Pruners and loppers are needed for removing ivy from trees; bring a small saw if you have one.
• Dress for the weather, wear sturdy shoes, bring water and a snack if needed.
• Please RSVP below if you plan to attend and indicate which day. This will help us plan for the work day and also let you know if there is a change.
• Volunteers will need to sign a waiver before participating. Those who are 18 and older may sign when they arrive. Waivers are good for the calendar year so you will not need sign one if you come again. Those younger than 18 must have a parent or guardian sign the form; either bring the form or e-mail to reedycreekcoalition@gmail.com
• Volunteer Waiver

We will continue our work in Crooked Branch Ravine Park on Sunday, April 14 from 2 to 4 p.m. Our focus is removing ivy from trees; that’s good for the tree and also helps prevent the spread of seed to other locations. For those who may prefer removing invasives by hand, there is still work to be done at the entrance to the park.

• Sunday, April 14 from 2 – 4 p.m.
• Map to site
• Please bring your own work gloves and tools if possible. Small garden tools such as a trowel are needed for work at the entrance. Pruners and loppers are needed for removing ivy from trees; bring a small saw if you have one.
• Dress for the weather, wear sturdy shoes, bring water and a snack if needed.
• Please RSVP below if you plan to attend and indicate which day. This will help us plan for the work day and also let you know if there is a change.
• Volunteers will need to sign a waiver before participating. Those who are 18 and older may sign when they arrive. Waivers are good for the calendar year so you will not need sign one if you come again. Those younger than 18 must have a parent or guardian sign the form; either bring the form or e-mail to reedycreekcoalition@gmail.com
• Volunteer Waiver

Please join us as we continue our work in Crooked Branch Ravine Park on Tuesday, April 9 from 10 a.m. to noon. Our focus is removing ivy from trees; that’s good for the tree and also helps prevent the spread of seed to other locations. For those who may prefer removing invasives by hand, there is still some work to be done at the entrance to the park. These are recent pictures of some native plants that come up in early spring. All are threatened by invasive plants. Left to right: Small flowered buttercup, grape fern, and wood rush flower.

• Tuesday, April 9 10 a.m. – noon
• Map to site
• Please bring your own work gloves and tools if possible. Small garden tools such as a trowel are needed for work at the entrance. Pruners and loppers are needed for removing ivy from trees; bring a small saw if you have one.
• Dress for the weather, wear sturdy shoes, bring water and a snack if needed.
• Please RSVP below if you plan to attend and indicate which day. This will help us plan for the work day and also let you know if there is a change.
• Volunteers will need to sign a waiver before participating. Those who are 18 and older may sign when they arrive. Waivers are good for the calendar year so you will not need sign one if you come again. Those younger than 18 must have a parent or guardian sign the form; either bring the form or e-mail to reedycreekcoalition@gmail.com
• Volunteer Waiver

Invasive plant species are destroying the natural areas in our parks!  The James River Park Invasive plant Task Force, Friends of Forest Hill Park and Reedy Creek Coalition working to remove these plants from our parks, but the job is huge.  English ivy is probably the most significant problem.  Winter Creeper and privet are not far behind.

Did you know you can Work from Home to help manage this problem?  Many of these plants are spread by birds and other critters who eat the fruit and then deposit the seed in other places.   Start with the ones mentioned above.  Are these in your yard?  If so, please take steps to remove these plants.

Need help with identifying these or other invasive plants and information for removing them?  Plant Invaders of Mid-Atlantic Natural Areas is an excellent resource and is available as a PDF.  If you prefer hard copy, check out the book from our library, Good Reads for the Watershed. Another good resource is Mistaken Identity? Invasive Plants and their Native Look-Alikes.

When disposing of these plants:

• If you do not have a space in your yard to let them decompose, send them to the trash.  
• Do not dispose of these in our parks or on other properties. This could contribute to the problem.
• Any plant with fruit or seed should be bagged for disposal.

We would love to hear your success stories!   https://reedycreekcoalition.org/contact-us/

Kick-off the annual Project Clean Stream weekend with the Alliance for the Chesapeake Bay on Friday, April 12 with a stream clean-up event at Crooked Branch Ravine Park in Richmond, VA. We’ll gather at the entrance to the park at the end of Northrop Street starting at 2 pm, before splitting up to collect litter along the trails and stream within the park.

• Friday, April 12 at 2p.m. Crooked Branch Ravine Park
• Meet at the end of Northrop Street. Map to the site is at the link below.
• What is provided: Gloves, trash bags, trash pickers, water and snacks will all be provided.
• What to bring: A reusable water bottle, sturdy walking shoes (closed toed preferred), and sun protection.
• Rain or shine?: The event will be canceled in the case of rain.

Click this link to sign up

Hope to see you there!

Please join us as we continue our work in Crooked Branch Ravine Park on Tuesday, April 2 from 10 a.m. to noon. Our focus is removing ivy from trees; that’s good for the tree and also helps prevent the spread of seed to other locations. For those who may prefer removing invasives by hand, there is still some work to be done at the entrance to the park. These are recent pictures of some native plants that come up in early spring. All are threatened by invasive plants. Left to right: Small flowered buttercup, grape fern, and wood rush flower.

• Tuesday, April 2 10 a.m. – noon
• Map to site
• Please bring your own work gloves and tools if possible. Small garden tools such as a trowel are needed for work at the entrance. Pruners and loppers are needed for removing ivy from trees; bring a small saw if you have one.
• Dress for the weather, wear sturdy shoes, bring water and a snack if needed.
• Please RSVP below if you plan to attend and indicate which day. This will help us plan for the work day and also let you know if there is a change.
• Volunteers will need to sign a waiver before participating. Those who are 18 and older may sign when they arrive. Waivers are good for the calendar year so you will not need sign one if you come again. Those younger than 18 must have a parent or guardian sign the form; either bring the form or e-mail to reedycreekcoalition@gmail.com
• Volunteer Waiver

• Tuesday, March 12 from 1000 – noon
• Map to site
• Please bring your own work gloves and small hand tools such as a trowel or pruners. Don’t have tools? That’s OK. We have a few for you to use.
• We will be working in the woods so dress for the weather, wear sturdy shoes, and bring water and a snack if needed.
• Please RSVP below if you plan to attend and indicate which day. This will help us plan for the work day and also let you know if there is a change.
• Volunteers will need to sign a waiver before participating. Those who are 18 and older may sign when they arrive. Waivers are good for the calendar year so you will not need sign one if you come again. Those younger than 18 must have a parent or guardian sign the form; either bring the form or e-mail to reedycreekcoalition@gmail.com
• Volunteer Waiver

• Tuesday, March 5 from 1000 – noon
• Map to site
• Please bring your own work gloves and small hand tools such as a trowel, pruners or a small saw. Don’t have tools? That’s OK. We have a few for you to use.
• We will be working in the woods so dress for the weather, wear sturdy shoes, and bring water and a snack if needed.
• Please RSVP below if you plan to attend and indicate which day. This will help us plan for the work day and also let you know if there is a change.
• Volunteers will need to sign a waiver before participating. Those who are 18 and older may sign when they arrive. Waivers are good for the calendar year so you will not need sign one if you come again. Those younger than 18 must have a parent or guardian sign the form; either bring the form or e-mail to reedycreekcoalition@gmail.com
• Volunteer Waiver

Note: The intersection at Forest Hill Ave and Roanoke will be closed on March 5.