Northwood News ♦ December 2004

Neighbors of Northwest Branch Carry Out Reforestation Project

By Charles Pritchard

One of our local environmental eastern and down county and preservationist organizations is the Neighbors of the Northwest Branch (NNWB), a not-for-profit private corporation of local residents who monitor the health of this major tributary of the Anacostia watershed, carry out reforestation of the forest buffer on both banks of the river, work to eliminate alien invasive plants (pernicious weeds), conduct water quality surveys, periodically inspect the WSSC sewerage system that parallels the Branch, and encourage community volunteer work to make these sub-programs possible.

A major reforestation program was carried out not too long ago on the park land bounded by Randolph Road and Kemp Mill Drive.  A large number of saplings were planted and then protected with heavy cardboard tubes.  Unfortunately, these tubes were not robust enough to protect the saplings from the hungry foraging deer that inhabit the local park land.

In November, the NNWB carried out another reforestation project, this time using protective sheaths of chicken wire.  Hopefully, this protection will allow the replacements to take root and flourish, providing a needed buffer for the flat open field.   ■