Celebrate the release of the first Antietam Watershed Report Card and an opportunity for community members to meet various organizations and environmental stewardship practitioners.

The event is free and open to the public. Light refreshments will be provided.

Watershed report cards are powerful tools used around the world to describe ecosystem status, increase public awareness, and inform decision makers. The Antietam Watershed Report Card assesses ecosystem health of the Antietam and the land (in Maryland) that drains into the Creek using nine indicators in three categories. The report card was developed by ACWA, BCWA, and the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science (UMCES).

Attend the event to receive your copy of the report card, learn how the watershed’s grade was determined, and hear about projects planned to help improve our report card grade. We will also announce new State Whole Watershed Act Funding to assist with Antietam Watershed restoration projects.

After the presentations, community members can visit with environmental stewardship practitioners who will offer suggestions to improve your land use practices and explain funding sources available to complete stewardship projects. For example:  property owners can learn how to create sustainable landscaping in their own yards, discuss funding for large- and small-scale tree plantings, and consider healthier agricultural practices to protect soil and water quality.

Stewardship Practitioners will include:

·       Chesapeake Bay Foundation, Maryland Grazers Network Representative

·       Heart of Maryland/Catoctin Land Trust Representatives

·       MD DNR Forest Service Tree Planting Specialists

·      Potomac Riverkeeper Network - Upper Potomac Riverkeeper

·       Washington County Master Gardener Bay-Wise Coordinators

·       Washington County Stormwater & Watershed Services Department

·       Washington Couty Soil Conservation District Representatives

Schedule:

3 pm Doors Open of the Beaver Creek School Event Center

3:30 pm Report Card Presentation & Whole Watershed Funding Announcement

4-6:30 pm Community Reception and Open Stewardship Practitioner Tables

Come when you can, leave when you must.

Hosted by the Antietam-Conococeheague Watershed Alliance (ACWA) &
the Beaver Creek Watershed Association (BCWA)

RSVP not required, but helps us plan. Thank you!

Visit ACWA in Keedysville's Taylor Park on April 12 and receive a free packet of seeds to benefit pollinators!

Learn more at: https://www.facebook.com/share/1Xtc41e8iA/

FREE TREE & SHRUB SEEDLINGS

with the MD DNR Backyard Buffer Program

This year's theme is: Buffers for Birds: Creating a Landscape That Will Make a Difference

Register for your free bag of native seedlings by April 7, 2025; Bag pickup will be at the:

“Buffers for Birds” Workshop

April 12, 2025

Presentations 9am-12:30pm (Seedling Pickup: 8am-1pm)

Washington County Ag Education Center, 7313 Sharpsburg Pike, Keedysville

Tree Giveaway Pickup: 8am-1pm

- 30 total trees/shrubs

- 5 of each of: White Oak, Loblolly-Pitch Pine Hybrid, Chickasaw Plum, Serviceberry, Red Osier Dogwood, Northern Bayberry

Buffers for Birds: 9am-12:30pm

- Managing Forest Bird Habitat (TBD, National Conservation Training Center)

- Shrubland Bird Habitat: Using Woody Natives for Wildlife (David Smith, Audubon Society of Central Maryland)

- Grassland Birds and Certifying Your Property (KC Walters, Potomac Valley Audubon Society)

- Managing Bird Habitat in Your Yard: Using Wildflowers and Grasses (Annette Cormany, UMD Extension)

Sign up today or contact Bob Schwartz (robertr.schwartz@maryland.gov) for more information.

ACWA will be hosting a booth at the 29th Annual HCC Alumni Flower & Garden Show

March 15 & 16, 2025

We will be selling native trees and shrubs at the event. A list of tree and shrub descriptions available in this article.

Mark your calendars and hope to see you there!

ACWA will be hosting a booth at the 29th Annual HCC Alumni Flower & Garden Show

March 15 & 16, 2025

We will be selling native trees and shrubs at the event. A list of tree and shrub descriptions available in this article.

Mark your calendars and hope to see you there!

Visit ACWA at Booth #140 at the Hagerstown Community College Alumni Association’s

28th Annual Flower & Garden Show

March 16 9am-5pm and March 17 10am-4pm

Speakers, exhibitors, and vendors in the 48,000 sqft Athletic, Recreation, and Community Center (ARCC) building.

ACWA will be offering limited quantities of native trees & shrubs for sale, information about native species, and details of upcoming volunteer events. The following species will be sold in smaller container sizes.

• Bur Oak (Quercus macrocarpa) 2 gal

• Allegheny Serviceberry (Amelanchier laevis) 2 gal

• American Hazelnut (Corylus americana) 3 gal

• Red Twig Dogwood (Cornus sericea) 2 gal

• Witch Hazel Shrub (Hamamelis virginiana)  1 gal

There is a $5 admission for attendees; children under 12 are free. Show brochure and schedule are provided on the HCC website: https://www.hagerstowncc.edu/docs/flower-garden-show-documents

Visit ACWA at Booth #140 at the Hagerstown Community College Alumni Association’s

28th Annual Flower & Garden Show

March 16 9am-5pm and March 17 10am-4pm

Speakers, exhibitors, and vendors in the 48,000 sqft Athletic, Recreation, and Community Center (ARCC) building.

ACWA will be offering limited quantities of native trees & shrubs for sale, information about native species, and details of upcoming volunteer events. The following species will be sold in smaller container sizes.

• Bur Oak (Quercus macrocarpa) 2 gal

• Allegheny Serviceberry (Amelanchier laevis) 2 gal

• American Hazelnut (Corylus americana) 3 gal

• Red Twig Dogwood (Cornus sericea) 2 gal

• Witch Hazel Shrub (Hamamelis virginiana)  1 gal

There is a $5 admission for attendees; children under 12 are free. Show brochure and schedule are provided on the HCC website: https://www.hagerstowncc.edu/docs/flower-garden-show-documents