Friends of Sligo Creek

FOSC Maryland Champion Tree Tour

Saturday, October 10 from 10:00am – 12:00pm
9500 Brunett Ave, Silver Spring, MD 20901 in the old Parkside building parking lot. You must RSVP – see below.

Maryland is filled with Champion Trees. Some of them, as well as many close contenders, are right here in our own Sligo Creek Watershed.

If you would like to learn more about what it takes to be a champion, join us on October 10th for a guided tour with Joli McCathran, Chair of the Maryland Big Tree Program.

We have 9 humongous (at least for their species) trees on the itinerary. The trees are on both public and private property; we will drive to each location, get out, and, if the trees are willing, maybe give them a hug.

The tour is limited to the first 25 registrants. Kids are welcome with parents. RSVP HERE.

Those lucky enough to make the top 25 should meet at the old Parkside Headquarters Building parking lot. The tour will last for approximately 2 hours.

The Big Tree Program originated in Maryland in 1925 and its popularity spread across the United States through the National Champion Tree Program now housed at the University of Tennessee. Each state has a State Coordinator who collects data, measures trees, and biannually submits certain trees to the program as potential National Champions. In Maryland, the Big Tree program is run by highly trained in the art and science of Big Tree identification and measurements. The group manages the largest database of Big Trees in the US. Visit the Big Tree website www.mdbigtrees.org to peruse the database.

Weed Warriors – Mid-Long Branch

Sunday, Oct. 11 from 1:00 – 3:00pm
This work afternoon will be on the Long Branch trail between Piney Branch and Carroll Ave; the exact location will be sent to registrants. Register here. Limited to 15 people.

Litter Cleanup at Sligo Creek and East/West Highway

Saturday, October 17 from 9:00am – 11:00am
Meet in the park on the Sligo Creek trail just north of East/West Highway.

This is a beautiful area of the park that unfortunately has a lot of litter and discarded bulk materials. Please bring gloves if you have them, and protect yourself against insects, including possible ticks. We’ll have some gloves, grabbers to loan, and trash/recycling bags.

Litter Cleanup at Sligo Creek and Sligo Parkway

Saturday, October 17 from 9:00am – 11:00am
The cleanup will take place in Green Meadows park at the Parklawn building at 1601 East/West Hwy, Adelphi, MD 20783. There is parking on site. You can park there, walk a short way to the sign-in and supply station across the street at 1600 East/West Highway, and then return to the clean up location. We’ll have some gloves, grabbers to loan, and trash/recycling bags.

This area of the park is in the coastal plain, reflected in its flatter, meandering geology. As a downstream location, it receives a lot of litter from the rest of Sligo Creek. Please bring gloves if you have them, and protect yourself against insects, including possible ticks.

FOSC Listservs on

Friends of Sligo Creek – Main Listserv

FOSC Advocacy Listserv

FOSC-Litter Listserv

FOSC-Stewards Listserv (for Section Stewards only)

FOSC-Stormwater Listserv

FOSC-Water Quality Listserv

FOSC-WeedWarriors Listserv (for Weed Warriors only)

FOSC Weed Warriors Remove Invasive Plants at Colt Terrace Park at the Sligo Headwaters

In anticipation of MoCo Parks’ extensive trail restoration project at the Sligo headwaters in Wheaton, FOSC Weed Warriors have been out tackling invasive plants in an environmentally sensitive wetland area near the existing trail. (See photo of Weed Warriors surveying wavy leaf basket grass encroaching into the wetland, at right.) The replacement trail will be rerouted away from the wetland and mature upland forest in order to restore this habitat, while bringing the trail up to current standards.

Clean up at Indian Spring Terrace Local Park

More than 30 volunteers cleaned up the entire length of this long narrow park on Sunday, March 8. They wrestled a sofa, mattress, various chairs, fencing, many bags of plastic and glass bottles, cans, fencing, and a plastic castle playset – good for many years if not decades or more of decomposing plastic. After removing well over 1,200 pounds of trash from the park, it is looking a lot better. We also had some Weed Warriors who started freeing trees from English ivy!

Thanks to everyone who came out and helped us get this park and restoration site, the headwaters of Long Branch, poised for spring growth without the trash and pollutants that would have been carried downstream into the rest of Long Branch. The restoration area, which has 5 stone stormwater retention ponds and hundreds of native plants installed by the Parks Dept, is worth a visit to see the investment the County is making in our watershed.

Sligo Creek connects us. Become a FOSC member and help protect and restore the Creek for everyone in our community. It’s simple to do and can be free if you wish. Membership gives you early notice of events and the monthly FOSC newsletter.

You can make a donation, either online here or using the button below (both are simple and secure), or by check to FOSC, P.O. Box 11572, Takoma Park, MD 20913. Thank you!