Kudos to our Southern Maryland Audubon Society volunteers Brenda Nairn-Davies and Lynne Wheeler, who braved the late summer heat to hold a fun activity at the Dorchester Community Center in downtown La Plata. On August 26, 2021, they gave an interactive presentation about how native plants help birds and insects. Using a long table of reference pictures, community kids painted rocks and explored the newly created native plant gardens, which were in full splendor.
They even found a Monarch caterpillar on some blooming butterfly weed, where they placed a beautiful rock painted with a Monarch butterfly. The garden itself became the teacher! And, as you can see, these young painters have great talent, too.
Southern Maryland Audubon Society was awarded a grant from Chesapeake Bay Trust to establish the urban native plant garden (completed in spring 2021) and to conduct educational outreach. Many thanks to Chesapeake Bay Trust and our partners at Dorchester Community Center and the Town of La Plata!