It’s that time of year again! The Virginia Department of Forestry is requesting acorns from around the state. HMNs can log volunteer service hours for this under “Habitat Restoration/Maintenance – Acorn Collection for Virginia Tree Nurseries (DOF)” in Better Impact. From the Virginia Department of Forestry News Release, September 8, 2022: Every year, Virginians from…
by Elizabeth Pass, Cohort VIfor the September 2022 issue of Headwaters Highlights September. This month brings with it the promise of wonderful things coming: And I’m sure you can think of many more wonderful things you look forward to each fall. Here are a few favorite finds I’ve come across that I hope you can use!…
Note the Tree Inventory Volunteer Days in September: 1, 6, 8, 9, 14, 20, 22. More details here and in Better Impact! To date eight HMN volunteers have spent 70 hours logging trees into a GIS field data collection app and have added a total of 733 trees to JMU’s Campus Tree Inventory Map. Information…
A new Continuing Education opportunity for Headwaters Master Naturalists Thanks to HMN Stephanie Gardner for reporting on this! I’ve long felt fortunate to live near Grand Caverns in Grottoes, Virginia, the oldest continually operating show cave in the United States. Grand Caverns recently announced a special new geology tour. It was a privilege to be…
Leslie Sturges, president of Bat Conservation & Rescue of Virginia, organized a bat count on the evening of July 27 at the farm of Carolyn Ford, just within Staunton city limits. We had excellent attendance and weather, with a total of about 17 participants, including three from our Headwaters Master Naturalist chapter. We began with…
by Elizabeth Pass, Cohort VIfor the August 2022 issue of Headwaters Highlights August has always been an odd month for me. It feels like it’s a neither-nor month: it’s neither summer nor fall. It’s still hot—and depending on where in the US you are, it can be the hottest month of the year—but it’s the month…
HMNs participate in new JMU stewardship projects James Madison University holds a designation as a Tree Campus. They have a committee for oversight of activities. Annually they must host service projects, have a tree care plan, and celebrate Arbor Day. One of their goals for this year is to increase the tree canopy coverage on…
The Brown Bag Lunch series at the Edith J. Carrier Arboretum at James Madison University featured two programs in June presented by Headwaters Master Naturalists. The first, on June 22, was “What Humans Hear in Nature & Vice Versa” presented by Lincoln Gray, who is professor of Communication Sciences and Disorders at JMU. The focus…
by Elizabeth Pass, Cohort VIfor the July 2022 issue of Headwaters Highlights Welcome to July! Farmers’ Markets, backyard BBQs, fresh lemonade, and lazy afternoons under any shade you can find. Everything is blooming and buzzing so this month I want to share a couple of finds focusing on smells and sounds. July Is for Smells In…
“It was AWESOME!” On June 7th, a group of 15 Headwaters Master Naturalists arrived early to Franklin Cliffs (milepost 49) in the Shenandoah National Park to observe four young peregrine falcons and learn about the program that has been taking place annually in the park since 1989. The forecast was for rain and clouds to…
Virginia Master Naturalist Headwaters Chapter 