Through the Wind and the Driving Rain
You could say the weather was against me that day. I woke up in the morning to pouring rain and a temperature in the 50s. Not exactly the best conditions for planting wetland grasses on an island in the Chesapeake Bay. But nonetheless, the Baltimore Aquarium volunteer packet did say “RAIN or shine.”
So I hopped in the car with some fellow co-workers and began the hour-and-a-half drive from Annapolis to the planting site at Eastern Neck National Wildlife Refuge. I had never been to Eastern Neck before, but I will surely return, preferably on a warm, sunny day! The refuge, located at the mouth of the Chester River on the Eastern Shore, is one of the top five waterfowl habitats in Maryland.
I arrived at the parking lot to find the hardy Aquarium staff ready to load us onto a boat and shuttle us to the planting site. So I suited up in layers and raingear and prepared for an interesting boat ride. The river was a bit choppy, so the ride was a cross between white water rafting and riding a rollercoaster with a bucket of water dumped over your head every five minutes. Taking a ride in a washing machine might be a similar experience.
Thoroughly drenched, I arrived at the planting site ready to get to work. My mission that day was to plant two species of grass on the eroding sandbar separating Hail Creek from the Chester River. We broke into teams and started planting. My team had a diviler, a feeder and a tucker. The diviler dug the hole, the feeder put fertilizer in the hole, and the tucker planted the plug of grass.
A tucker planting a plug of marsh grass
We repeated the process over and over and over until half of the sandbar was planted with new grass. The other half would be planted by more volunteers the next day.
Before and after planting marsh grasses on a sandbar at Hail Cove
After a long day of planting, we boarded the boat back to the mainland. Soaked to the bone, the Aquarium staff was nice enough to give us some trash bags to sit on or in, depending on our preferences. I went home knowing that through the wind and the driving rain, my blades of grass will remain.
Krissy stands in the driving rain at Eastern Neck National Wildlife Refuge after planting marsh grasses at Hail Cove
Ferrying plants for a cleaner Potomac River
Krissy Hopkins is the Communications and Education Subcommittee staffer with the Chesapeake Research Consortium at the Chesapeake Bay Program.
Last week, I volunteered with the National Aquarium in Baltimore for a day of
shoreline buffer planting at the Naval
Support Facility at Indian Head, located along the banks of the Potomac
River in Maryland. Over
the course of five days, Aquarium staff, the Maryland Conservation Corps, Charles County
Master Gardeners and local residents planted over 5,000 native grass plants
and 1,500 native trees along 4,830 feet of Potomac shoreline.
I’m pretty sure the trees I planted that day are among the
most protected in the state of Maryland. After
successfully passing through several security checks to enter the Naval
facility, I met up with Aquarium staff at the marina. We then piled into
vans and passed through yet another security checkpoint before entering what I
was told was a highly restricted area of the base (think ‘explosive
deliveries’ signs and mysterious steam hanging in the air). We soon arrived at
the drop-off and scampered down a steep hill to our planting site along the Potomac River.
When I arrived at the site, I was given the job of ferrying
plants from the center of the site to their new and permanent home along the
shoreline. There were low, medium and high marsh plant species that had to
be placed accordingly. After ferrying the plants to their new home, the
planting brigade -- mostly Maryland Conservation Corps folks -- dug holes and
planted the trees.
After a short lunch break, I informed those in charge that I
wanted to participate in the planting so I could have a more well-rounded day
of volunteering (and because ferrying the plants was a lot of walking!). Soon
after I began planting, I truly realized how difficult it is to successfully plant
a tree. For some holes I had to use a pick ax to get through the tough
soil! After about three hours of planting, we had completed our section
for the day and all the trees were securely in the ground.
I climbed back up to the top of the hill where I had been
dropped off in the morning and looked down upon the section we had planted. It
was amazing to see the sea of plants below me and the hard work of everyone
volunteering that day. I’m curious to see what the site will look like in
five, 10 and 20 years when the plants have established.
I especially enjoy these days of my job when I’m able to
leave the office and experience watershed restoration first-hand. I
walked away from that day with muddy boots, sore arms and a greater
appreciation for ferrying plants.
Thanks to the National Aquarium in Baltimore for both of these photos!