SILVER SPRING, MD-The
Montgomery County Department of Parks is supporting Friends of Sligo
Creek and dozens of parks volunteers to weed out garlic mustard from
Sligo Creek Parkway during four upcoming weekend pulls at the end of
May.
“Last year, the
Friends of Sligo Creek set a goal to rid the park of garlic mustard-we
can meet that goal with a little more volunteer help,” said Department
of Parks Volunteer Services Coordinator Jayne Hench.
Four 2-hour pulls in
four sections along the Sligo Creek Parkway are planned. Groups, such
as civic associations, neighborhood groups, parent teacher associations
and sporting teams are encouraged to participate. Dates, times and
locations for the pulls are as follows:
– Sunday, May 20, 9:00 am – 11:00 am, Forest Glen to Colesville Road.
Parking available at the soccer field across from the golf course. The group will meet at the soccer field parking lot.
– Sunday, May 20, 1:00 pm – 3:00 pm, Headwaters to University Boulevard.
Parking at end of Ventura.
– Saturday, May 26, 9:00 am – 11:00 am, Dennis Avenue to Forest Glen.
Parking on left of Sligo Creek Parkway, driving north past Forest Glen. Group will meet between playground and bridge.
– Sunday, May 27, 1:00 – 3:00 pm, University Boulevard to Dennis Avenue.
Parking at end of Windham.
Garlic mustard roots
give off chemicals that affect the health of trees and other plants.
Each garlic mustard plant makes hundreds of seeds, which spread quickly
and produce dense patches of the invasive garlic mustard preventing the
healthy growth of native groundcover. However, garlic mustard is easy
to pull and placing the plant in bags prevents further seeding.
For the pulls, the
Department of Parks is providing work gloves and bags. Students can
earn service-learning hours. An adult must accompany volunteers under
16. For more information on the pulls and how to sign-up to volunteer,
visit www.parksvolunteers.org.