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May, 2015

To the supporters of the Friends of Waterford Park:

As we write this spring membership letter, the park is glorious. The dogwood, viburnum and redbuds are in bloom, spring wildflowers are blooming and birds are returning to nest.

The woods is in better shape than ever. You donated $4,300 to have piles of brush and damaged trees removed, and what a difference it has made. We were able to get a discounted price from the contractor because we were providing him a substantial amount of winter work.

The worker bees are clearing honeysuckle, wineberry, etc. from the understory; we began last fall at the east end of the woods toward Rt. 15. Hopefully by this time next year we will have worked on the entire understory..

The contractor planted the roughly 140 new trees slated for the park as part of the City grant funds. We water some; the contractor does most of that work.

Seed has been purchased to revitalize the central portion of the meadow. Donnie Rohrback of MD DNR will plant that seed as soon as the ground is dry enough for his equipment.

Kevin Jaramillo is planning his Eagle Scout project: two mulched paths through the woods. This will be completed soon. We hope to also put a path through the meadow.

The shared use path is behind schedule because the complicated permits process took longer than anticipated; however, the path WILL come from Baker Park to Waterford, hopefully later in 2015.

In addition to the regular worker bee tasks, our project for 2015 is to treat ash trees to prevent their demise from emerald ash borer (EAB). This insect is in the county and will surely kill all ashes in this area within a few years. Working with the City, MD DNR and licensed contractors, we have identified 24 ashes that are worth saving with an approximate 2015 treatment cost of $3,400. Some have poor growth structure so we will cut those. Ashes are marked with white paint, and all but the largest of those that we will treat have pink tape with the dollar amount needed to treat each tree. Will you consider “adopting a tree”?  We will also need funds to cut trees that are not to be treated, and the treatments must be repeated in two years. We hope to build a reserve in our “ashes” fund for these future needs. We hope that when you read the enclosed Management Statement you will become a part of the effort to save our ashes. We have received $1,000 in grant funds from two State sources as well as several donations and pledges so we are off to a very good start.

Our other large project is to become Friends of Waterford Park, Inc., and to obtain 501c3 charitable designation. Until that process is completed, donations and dues will continue to be made to The Friends of Baker Park. We are grateful for their support as our fiscal agent.

Friends of Waterford Park has thrived since 2005. The state again this year awarded us the “Green” designation in the PLANT program (People Loving and Nurturing Trees). This designation usually goes to entities that have paid staff. Member dues and donations along with funds from state and federal grants have enabled our all-volunteer group to make a huge difference in the park. We hope that you will continue to support our efforts.

Friends of Waterford Park Board of Directors

Ginny Brace
Kathy Soria
Rachel Zigler
Alice Meiners
Karen Berkheimer Morton

Trees are budding, spring is here.

Lots of news.

First, we should shortly be FWP, Inc. – we submitted our paperwork to the state. Next steps are to get our tax ID number and apply for 501c3 status. Until we get that, we will continue to have our funds with Friends of Baker Park in an FWP account. We will get our membership renewal info to you soon.

Second, we have marked ash trees, and the DNR has recommended those that are worth treating and saving. We have $500 in grant funds to treat one large tree and have asked the state for an additional $1000 for two more large trees. More on this in the coming weeks.

Third, the planting of approximately 140 new trees should be completed by the end of this week. We will have more of the trees that do well in the park, and we are trying several new ones: Franklinia (I saw these at Mt. Cuba Center), Carolina silverbell (I saw this at Biltmore), 2 kinds of holly planted on the hill, a cottonless cottonwood (likes our soil), butternut (a walnut that needs good air circulation), sassafras on the hill, American smoketree (not the smokebush people plant in yards but with the same gorgeous pink blooms) and cucumber magnolia.

Finally, a year-long effort to clean up the woods from where the path curves in to the downstream bridge eastward toward Rt. 15 was completed yesterday by 5 worker bees. The weather was not our friend this winter, so there is more cleanup in other areas, but it is very exciting to have that section in good shape.

I hope you get out to see trees like the redbuds in bloom in the coming days and weeks.

Ginny

The below article regarding an underpass to connect Waterford Park with Baker Park appeared in the Frederick News Post on March 12, 2015.

Click here for the Winter 2014/2015 edition of “The Parks Reporter” newsletter.

Click here for the Winter 2013/2014 edition of “The Parks Reporter” newsletter.

We have three tree species in bloom that are worth the visit to the park. Both yellowwoods in Waterford are displaying their wisteria-like spectacular blooms. On the hill in Waterford further toward Rt. 15 are two horse chestnut ‘Briotti’ with their huge red blossoms.  The fringetree on the hill near the Meadowdale entrance is also wonderful.

Along the path the wood phlox and geranium are low to the ground, many cranberry viburnum bushes and arrowwood viburnum with white blooms are visible, our one mapleleaf viburnum has small white flowers and the blackberries are in flower. The native columbine is just about finished but some red blooms remain. In the woods the waterleaf with its small blossoms is still blooming, lots of them. While weeding near the path a couple of weeks ago we discovered a stand of solomon seal thriving.

If you get to the park, you may see some of the birds observed today by our expert birder. Below is the list he sent to me.  Look especially on the hill between Meadowdale and our shed at the multi-stemmed serviceberry – it attracts waxwings, robins, catbirds, all the birds that can swallow its pea-sized red berries. It is one of the earliest good berry trees.

Mallard
Great Blue Heron
Red-tailed Hawk
Mourning Dove
Chimney Swift
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Downy Woodpecker
Phoebe
Kingbird
Blue Jay
Fish Crow
Tree Sparrow
Titmouse
House Wren
Robin
Catbird
Starling
Cedar Waxwing
Cardinal
Song Sparrow
Grackle
Cowbird
House Finch
Goldfinch
House Sparrow

– Ginny

Staff from Fountain Rock Nature Center and classmates from my Master Naturalist training class came to Waterford to see our work. We walked for about an hour and a half on a gorgeous spring day. Lynn Leathery joined us to help answer questions. – Ginny Brace

April, 2013

To Friends of Waterford Park members:

This is the eighth renewal letter for our group. When we started in 2005, we had no idea how long we would exist or what we might accomplish. Amazingly, we are still going strong. Some of our stalwart volunteers from the early years have moved, started families, or gone on to other interests, but some are still staunch supporters and/or worker bees, and new people have moved to the area who are equally as dedicated to the mission of the group.

We have had the good fortune to benefit from many groups who want to do park work: Troop 799 and the City’s Summerserv program, for example, have given us many hours of service for multiple years. This Spring we have groups returning from the Mount St. Mary’s University Rugby Clubs and from Wells Fargo Bank.  We also have had the ongoing support of the Maryland Dept. of Natural Resources, Friends of Baker Park (our fiscal agent) and the City of Frederick.

We participate in the MD PLANT program (People Loving and Nurturing Trees), a MD Forest Service program. They recognize participation with three levels of awards; Silver (which we received for our 2005 work), Gold (received 2006-2012) and Green (received 2013). I never expected us to reach the green level. You will understand why when you read the criteria for that level:

The GREEN AWARD is a green-colored date plate for display on the wooden PLANT plaque. Although simple in form, it represents the highest PLANT honor to recognize a community that has developed a well-established urban forestry program. This coveted award is reserved for programs that are funded, fully functional and staffed by qualified professionals (including volunteer assistance). Communities that are recipients of the federally awarded Tree City USA status automatically qualify for PLANT’s Green Award.

Our recognition by the MD Forest Service is a tribute to the thousands of volunteer hours and thousands of dollars donated by members. Through the PLANT program we have received several grants for trees and shrubs, but it is the member support that enables us to have essential grant matching funds and to purchase the fencing, the park signage, the trailer, additional plants (including wildflowers) and other supplies. We display our PLANT plaque in the window of the shed in the park.

We are also gaining wider recognition by participating for the second time in MD Public Television’s celebration of volunteers who work to help the Chesapeake Bay. The filming of the show is scheduled for April 14, 2013, with the date for broadcast to be announced. We are one of the groups whose comments and pictures will appear in the broadcast.

Here is your 2013 FWP Membership Renewal Form. Please complete the form and mail it in along with your dues. Note that the form contains one new section—a list of proposed officers of the group. We ask you to initial if you support this slate. These people are volunteering to do not only what we really enjoy, working in the park with our hands dirty, but also to do the behind-the-scenes tasks that keep the group functioning.

I want to especially recognize Dave Maloney for his expertise and effort in revamping our website and keeping it current. People I meet in the park who are interested in the group often say that they have checked our website, www.friendsofwaterfordpark.org.  It is our face to the public, and it benefits us in many ways to have an active, well-designed site.

I encourage you to read three important documents: the Forest Stewardship Plan prepared in 2005 by Mike Kay, DNR Forester at Gambrill Park, the Invasive Alien Plant Management Plan and the Wildlife Management Plan. These are our guiding documents. I will put these online for those on the email list, but if any of you who do not receive our emails want copies, just let me know and we’ll mail them to you.

As always, Thank You for your ongoing support. I hope you enjoy the park. Some of our trees are getting big! We have had a good wet winter so I expect wonderful spring color. Please stop and chat with us if you see us in the park or contact me with any suggestions or questions.

Sincerely,

Ginny Brace, President
Friends of Waterford Park

First, the trusty worker bees have put in 45 hours in the park in January – we had a few days above freezing so we mulched, weeded and fenced – all the usual activities. We have a great group of workers.

Secondly, to the right is a scanned picture of a note that was written by the daughter of one of our new helpers. The young girl is about 10 yrs old. She asked if she could sit in my truck and drink her smoothie for a few minutes – I saw her writing something on the back of the label for the roll of fence. Later when I read what she said, I knew I wanted to share it with you.

Thirdly, click here for the official brochure for the Green Neighborhood Forum—a Saturday morning event at Hood College to be help on March 2nd. Friends of Baker Park is the main sponsor, and FWP is co-sponsoring, meaning that we are promoting the event. I thought the workshops sounded quite interesting and am planning to attend. The registration form is right on the brochure. Feel free to pass the brochure along to anyone who might be interested. I will put a few copies of the brochure in the kiosk in the park if you prefer to get one there. You can even register online by going here.

Hope you are all having a good winter.
Ginny

Friends of Baker Park, our fiscal agent, is leading the Green Neighbor Forum Saturday morning March 2. Many groups are involved. Friends of Waterford Park is a co-sponsor; we are helping to get the word out on this important topic. Click here for the brochure that has program details and registration information. I hope to see many of you there. – Ginny 1-17-2013