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Page 1: Summer Solstice 2005 Director’s Editorial: Growing Gains ... · Director’s Editorial: Growing Gains and Pains ... Reaction will follow them, ... Summer Solstice 2005 Volume 1,

- Director’s Editorial: Growing Gains & Pains - Featured TreeKeepers: French Street - Special Feature: Save Money, Save Water - Street Tree of the Season: Ginkgo biloba

Director’s Editorial: Growing Gains and Pains We are so excited to announce that we have moved to a new office! D.C. Greenworks’ new headquarters is now in the heart of Shaw at 1701 6th Street, NW, upstairs from the Chain Reaction Bike Shop. The Shaw EcoVillage Project—who formerly lived at our address—relocated to their new, bigger offices at 1416 North Capitol Street last month. Soon Chain Reaction will follow them, and D.C. Greenworks will take over the entire property. We are thrilled to have more office space with room to grow, a place to properly store our truck, tools and plants, and a yard to create a demonstration site, workshop space, and community asset. We are most thrilled to be located in the heart of the community that gave us our start and has sustained us so many years. We have big plans for our quaint, new home. Inside, we hope to offer community meeting and classroom space, a small tool library for community treecare activities, and workshop space for our young trainees. Outside, we plan to design our yard as a lovely demonstration site and outdoor classroom in low impact development and sustainable landscaping. Over the next several months, as we settle in to our new home, keep your eye on the corner of 6th and R Streets. We think you’ll like what you see. However, to bring our new space up to par, there is a lot of work to be done. Our new home desperately needs a new coat of paint inside, new windows, and kitchen, toilet and bath renovations. Outside, we need a storefront sign, lighting, and a water hook up, and the yard desperately needs fencing and major landscape renovation. Since we are mostly supported by project grants, DCG’s funding allows us to provide trees, tools and training to our communities, but doesn’t allow us to provide much for our own infrastructure, especially for needed office renovations. So what we need most right now is support from the community to provide what grant funding cannot. Please help us make our new office a reflection of our community values and investment. If you have extra paint trays, rollers, brushes, or ladders to lend or donate, we’ll take them! If you are a plumber or electrician and can spare a few hours, we’d love it! Know someone in iron fencing or sign painting? Hook us up! And, of course, your tax-deductible financial contributions are always welcome. After all, it will take a lot of plants, mulch, paint, lumber, sweat, and generosity to make the corner of 6th and R Streets a treat for all who come by. - D.C. Greenworks Update

- Community Connection - Summer Treecare: Water! Water! Water!

FEATURED TREEKEEPERS: The French Street TreeKeeper Community definitely wins the prize for the most creative tree names. In April 2004, after planting two sugar maples, the group of neighbors proudly named their young trees, “Chip” and “Dale.” These neighbors take their treecare responsibilities very seriously, and as a result, all of the adopted trees on the block are thriving. In February, we were pleased to see three French Street TreeKeepers at our community-wide Winter Pruning and Monitoring Workshop. We had offered this free workshop at Seaton Elementary School with the hope that the partici-pants would return to their blocks and practice their new pruning skills on their own street trees. However, the French Street TreeKeepers went one step further. They contacted D.C. Greenworks to borrow the proper tools and organized their own pruning workshop for their block. On a Sunday morning in early March, they taught some of their neighbors the basics of tree pruning. When we picked up the tools the next day, the pruned trees looked great! We are very proud of the way the French Street residents have taken ownership of their trees and shared knowledge and skills with one another. We look forward to future projects on French Street.

Summer Solstice 2005

Volume 1, Issue 4

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UFA Corner (UFA Corner will be back next season) Special Feature: Save Water, Save Money Did you know that up to 40% of your summer water bill is spent on watering plants, trees and lawns? You could be saving money and helping our rivers by collecting and storing rainwater in beautifully designed rain barrels. Rain barrels and cisterns collect and store rain that falls on rooftops. D.C. Greenworks in partnership with Shaw EcoVillage Project are now offering workshops and reduced price rain barrels to D.C. residents who want to save and use rainwater from their rooftops for watering their trees, gardens and lawns, and washing cars and windows. By collecting and storing rainwater you help yourself and you help the community at large. Rain barrels divert rainwater that would otherwise flow out into the storm sewers. Simply this means it costs less to treat and decreases the amount of sewage released into the Anacostia and Potomac by Combined Sewer Overflows. It also saves property owners money on water bills and provides warm, soft, chlorine-free water for your gardens and lawns. A rain barrel system can easily be installed to virtually any building of any size with a gutter downspout. To learn how to do it yourself you can attend a workshop this summer. At our workshops the youth of the Shaw EcoVillage Project Rain discuss the benefits of harvesting rainwater and provide attendees with a reduced price, high quality rain barrel that they designed and made themselves. For more info about the D.C. RainKeepers Program, and to sign up for our next workshop email [email protected] or call 202-518-6195

Page 2 - The Leaf: Seasonal News for D.C. TreeKeepers

Have you ever noticed the strange leafy green giants that bless the sidewalks on 18th Street in Adams Morgan? No? Well open your eyes and take a look at one of the Earth’s oldest plant species, the ginkgo tree. It was around when dinosaurs roamed the earth, truly a testament to its resiliency. Ginkgo trees are easy to identify because they look completely different from all other trees growing in D.C. The leaves are fan-shaped, sometimes with a notch

everyone knows the infamous smell of the female tree’s fruit. The female tree produces a fruit that falls around October and has a rotten odor and slimy texture. D.C. tree planters have started planting male ginkgo trees, and female ginkgo trees are sprayed with a chemical that discourages them from producing fruit. Despite the mess and smell some ginkgoes make, they are valued for their medicinal uses and the tasty flavor of the ginkgo nut. In D.C. they are marvelous city trees that provide us with shade and beauty—something everyone can appreciate.

Street Tree Spotlight: Ginkgo (Ginkgo biloba)

911 11th Street, SE (202) 543-5172

Drought-tolerant plants & mulch. Find everything you need at:

202-797- 9005

Mon–Fri: 10–7 Sat: 9–7 Sun: 11–5 www.gardendistrict.biz

1801 14th Street, NW

Washington, DC 20009

dividing the leaf into two sections. The often irregularly spaced branches are straight, up-ward reaching, and covered with leaves. The ginkgo tree might not be recognized for its unique shape but

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Volume 1, Issue 4 - Page 3

Save Your Rain Water with D.C. RainKeepers. D.C. RainKeepers grants rain barrels and installation workshops to D.C. residents who want to protect our rivers by using stormwater for watering trees and lawns. For more info, contact D.C. Greenworks at 518-6195 or [email protected]. Scott’s GiveBack to Grow Awards Program is accepting nominations of individuals who have given their communities pride and joy through gardening. Winners will receive a cash prize and public recognition for their work. Nominations are due 12/2/05. For more info visit their website, www.scotts.com, and type GBTG Nominations in their search box.

Community Connection

DCG Update

D.C. Greenworks’ New Location! Come visit our new headquarters! We are now located in the heart of Shaw, the community that gave us our start. We are very excited about our new space and the opportunities we have to grow. We have some wonderful ideas for our new home but we need a lot of plants, mulch, paint, lumber, sweat, and generosity to make our new home a treat for all who come by. If you would like to help us out in this endeavor call us, 202-518-6195 or stop by and visit! Our new address: 1701 6th Street, NW Washington D.C., 20001 The Canopy Store is Now Open! D.C. Greenworks is proud to announce the grand opening of our new online store—The Canopy Store. There you will find lots of great things to help you take care of your community greenspace: TreeGators®, tree dedication plaques, and all of our user-friendly guidebooks, like Knowing Your Community, Showing Your Community, and 10 Ways to Love Your Street Tree. Over the coming months, we will be adding rain barrels, rain barrel accessories, new guidebooks on downspout disconnection, greenroofing and more. As always, your purchases support the important work of D.C. Greenworks in your community. Visit often! Tell a friend!

D.C. Greenworks is a 501(c)(3) social enterprise whose mission is to bring ideas, experience and tools to empower urban communities to improve their natural and built environment. DCG works in partnership with local residents, nonprofit organizations, businesses, and government agencies to help these groups take a broader and more participatory and holistic approach to urban revitalization. Your charitable investment in D.C. Greenworks’ programs is tax-deductible.

1701 6th Street, NW Washington, D.C. 20001

202-518-6195 202-518-6115 fax

[email protected] www.dcgreenworks.org

Creating the Space for Good Things to Grow

“Thank you for taking care of our

community’s trees!”

1416 P Street, NW (202) 265-8900 M-F: 8-8 Sat: 9-6 Sun: 10-5

Citizen Foresters are volunteers who serve the D.C. community to restore, enhance, and protect our city's tree canopy. Casey Trees offers a free program, which trains volunteers in tree science, planting and care, and urban environmental stewardship. For more info call (202) 833-4010 or visit their website www.caseytrees.org.

Frager’s Hardware 1115 Pennsylvania Avenue, SE

(202) 543-6157

M-F: 7-7 Sat: 7-5:55

Sun: 8-5

Do you like The Leaf? Contact DCG to subscribe for our online edition & save a tree!

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1701 6th Street, NW Washington, D.C. 20001 www.dcgreenworks.org

Summer Tree Care: Water! Water! Water! The summer heat has arrived! Make sure your TreeGators are on and filled! D.C. summers mean thirsty trees. In the summer your trees need to be watered once a week, or else your tree will struggle through the summer heat, become weak, and possibly become diseased. Summer is a good time to improve the condition of the tree’s soil by safely loosening, watering, and amending compacted tree pit soil. It is also important to weed and mulch because mulch helps retain moisture and suppresses weeds, which are unwanted competition for your tree. Please keep in mind these mulching guidelines:

1. A 2 to 3-inch layer of mulch is best. Any more mulch will prevent the roots from getting the air and water they need.

2. No mulch should touch the tree trunk, because

it can cause the bark to rot. Please keep the mulch 4 to 6 inches away from the tree trunk.

Be sure to put on your TreeGators; the summer heat has arrived! CALL D.C. GREENWORKS TO

SCHEDULE YOUR FALL TREE PLANTING AND CARE WORKSHOP

TODAY! (202) 518-6195

Growing Gains and Pains…


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