Earth Month
Earth Day is an annual event on April 22 to demonstrate support for environmental protection, conservation, and sustainability. The first Earth Day was held on April 22, 1970, and it now includes a wide range of global events that reach 1 billion people in more than 193 countries.
As a leader in the sustainability movement, the City of Takoma Park celebrates not just Earth Day, but Earth Month, and a series of events hosted by both the City and regional partners take place each year in April. Here’s a list of what’s coming up:
Join the Earth Day Celebration! Saturday, April 20th, 2024, 10:00 AM- 2:00 PM in Sligo Creek Steam Valley Park
In honor of Earth Month, the City of Takoma Park will host a celebration in the Sligo Creek Stream Valley Park. This event will feature exhibitors from both city departments and local environmental partners in close proximity to the new playground at Houston and Kennebec Ave. Snow cones, face painting, art activities and educational materials about sustainability programs will be available for the whole family! Come check out the EV showcase, attend a guided tree walk, and learn about the various environmental involvement opportunities in our community. Rain date is Sunday, April 21st.
Are you a community organization interested in having an exhibitor booth at this event? If so, please fill out this partner participation form.
Teen Earth Day Volunteer Event!
April is Earth Month. What better way to celebrate than to help out in your own community on a day off from school! In partnership with City of Takoma Park’s Public Works Department, teens can volunteer to assist at the Stuart Armstrong Garden at the corner of Philadelphia and Holly Avenue. Participants will earn 2 SSL hours!
The volunteer event will take place on April 10, 2024 from 12:30-3:30 pm. Teens will meet at the Takoma Park Community Center in the Teen Lounge on and take a short walk to the volunteer site. Light snack and water will be provided.
Learn more on the Takoma Park Recreation webpage.
Join the City Nature Challenge 2024!
- Friday, April 26: Circle Woods (Poplar Ave & Circle) from 1-3pm
- (NEW) Saturday, April 27: eBird Blitz @ Circle Woods from 8-9am
- Saturday, April 27: Stuart Armstrong (Philadelphia and Holly Ave) from 10am-12pm
The City Nature Challenge is a friendly competition form of a bioblitz—an opportunity to observe and document plants, insects, animals, and fungi on a particular site.
In April 2023, the City hosted its first City Nature Challenge event. While the City is new to hosting, some of our residents are veterans of the project are active in documenting living organisms through the iNaturalist website.
This event took place over one weekend, in 482 cities across 46 countries. Participation in the annual event has been steadily growing since 2018. The D.C. Metropolitan area ranked fifth worldwide for participants and ninth for the number of species logged!
This year’s City Nature Challenge will take place at:
- Circle Woods, a two-acre site located between Cockerille and Poplar Aves that has been a focus of ongoing environmental restoration work, on Friday, April 26 from 1-3pm. Register here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/837754354827?aff=oddtdtcreator
- Stuart Armstrong Garden, the naturalized City site at Philadelphia Ave and Holly Ave on Saturday April 27 from 10am-12pm. Register here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/837762609517?aff=oddtdtcreator
This event is a fun way to get out and explore our natural world and meet neighbors! Click here for more information on how to join the 2024 City Nature Challenge: https://www.citynaturechallenge.org/
For more information, contact:
Anna Mische John, Vegetation Maintenance Supervisor
Email Anna Mische John
301-891-7622
Quick Links
Celebrate Arbor Day!
About Arbor Day
Arbor Day is also a time to recognize that a city can be a hard place for trees to live, and that they need our tender love and care! It is a time to redouble our commitment to providing our trees what they need to thrive in our urban environment. One of the most important acts you can take to support our urban forest is to plant a tree where there wasn’t one. Residents and property owners across the City are planting trees this season in solidarity with this mission. For the trees you already have, remember that a broad area of woody or leafy mulched soil for the roots to grow in is ideal. And don’t forget to water your new trees. Typically, fifteen gallons once a week is sufficient for a new young tree, though watering twice a week can be a good idea during times of drought.
Maryland Arbor Day
Maryland Arbor Day is celebrated on the first Wednesday in April, while nationally recognized Arbor Day is always the last Friday in April. Tree planting is best done earlier in the spring, but any time is a good time to celebrate trees! See the City’s Urban Forestry page to learn more about tree care and City tree programs.
Tree City USA
For several years, the city of Takoma Park has been a designated Tree City USA. Founded in 1976, Tree City USA is a partnership between the Arbor Day Foundation, the U.S. Forest Service, and the National Association of State Foresters. Takoma Park is part of an incredible network of more than 3,600 Tree City USA communities nationwide, with a combined population of 155 million.
Residents of Takoma Park should be proud to live in a community that makes the planting and care of trees a priority. Over the last few years, the value and importance of trees has become increasingly clear. Cities and towns across the globe are facing issues with air quality, water resources, personal health and well-being, and energy use. Takoma Park has taken steps to create to a brighter, greener future.
For more information, contact:
Marty Frye, Urban Forest Manager
Email Marty Frye
301-891-7612
Montgomery County GreenFest
The Montgomery County GreenFest is the largest annual environmental festival in Montgomery County, MD. GreenFest is organized by a coalition of public, non-profit, and university partners. The 2024 GreenFest will take place on Saturday, April 27th from 11am-4pm at Blackrock Center for the Arts in Germantown, MD.
Leap into action this 2024 and join us at GreenFest 2024 where people of all ages come together to celebrate, learn, and start or continue their journey to improving our community and the environment! For more information, visit the GreenFest website: https://montgomerycountygreenfest.org/
