The Orleans Conservation Trust protects and restores natural lands—for people and wildlife, the health of our waters, and the character of our community. | | |
Thursday, April 17, 2-3:30pm
80 Bakers Pond Road, Orleans
Search for signs of spring on this longer, brisk-paced walk: 1.75 miles on adjoining conservation lands around the “great pond” that straddles Orleans and Brewster.
| | National Go Birding Day Walk for Kids & Families | | |
Saturday, April 26, 9am & 10:30am
Boland Pond Trails, Orleans
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Monday, April 28, 9-10:30am
Orleans
With spring just around the corner, we eagerly await the return of red-winged blackbirds, osprey, alewives, singing spring peepers, and Preschool Explorers. Perfect for families with kids ages 2-5, we hope you’ll join Naturalist Ms. Andrea Higgins to get outside, get creative, and get moving during this adventure sponsored by Orleans Conservation Trust and Harwich Conservation Trust. Breathe in the fresh air, see signs of wildlife, and learn about the land we live on.
Location and driving directions will be included in your registration confirmation email.
Photos by Gerry Beetham.
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Volunteer Workdays are now scheduled for the first and third Thursday of each month. Can't make Thursday workdays, but still want to participate? Contact Sam O'Neill at sam@orleansconservationtrust.org
We're now using SignUp to organize our upcoming Volunteer Workdays!
Here's how it works in 3 easy steps:
1) Click here to see OCT's SignUp page.
2) Review the events listed and choose the spot(s) you'd like to sign up for.
3) Sign up! It's easy - and you will not need to register an account or keep a password on SignUp.
| | Henson's Cove Conservation Area Eco-Restoration | | |
Thursday, April 17, 9:30-11:30am
Meet at 203 South Orleans Road, Orleans
Help us remove silt fencing from a former eco-restoration site. This project will require digging and some heavy lifting, so come prepared with work gloves, water, any personal items you might need, and a fierce determination!
We will also work on invasive control with an eye toward Velvet Grass seed collection. Be sure to wear shoes and clothing appropriate for off-trail travel.
Due to limited parking, we will meet at the OCT office and carpool to the work area.
| | Diamondback Terrapin Education and Work Session | | |
Wednesday, April 23, 9:30-11:30am
Meet at 203 South Orleans Road, Orleans
Join OCT and Mass Audubon for a morning of northern diamondback terrapin education and support! This event will begin with a brief presentation of terrapin conservation on OCT properties and ecology, followed by an opportunity to support the upcoming terrapin nesting season by weeding and maintaining turtle garden beds at our Henson's Cove property. Curious about what a turtle garden bed is? RSVP below and come find out!
Volunteers should bring work gloves, water, sun protection, and hand tools for weeding and digging. We will meet at OCT's office at 9:30am and carpool to the property at 10:00am. You are welcome to come to the presentation and/or the workday; please indicate one or both on your RSVP.
Interested in helping Mass Audubon monitor terrapins this summer? A training session is in development for the first week of June. Stay tuned!
| | Orleans Pond Coalition's Earth Day Clean-Up | | |
On April 26, please join Orleans Pond Coalition for their traditional Earth Day beach clean-up day, and for additional activities, including hands-on demonstrations of water management strategies and ways to create a Cape-friendly lawn. There will also be a scavenger hunt for kids and families.
Click the image below to learn more and see the full schedule.
| | Town of Orleans Seeking Water Samplers | | |
The Town of Orleans Marine and Fresh Water Quality Committee is recruiting new water quality samplers for the 2025 season. Fresh water pond sampling begins in April, and marine estuary sampling begins in July. It's easy, it's fun, and you will work with a team of like-minded people who want to protect our local water resources. Sampling gets you out on the water and training is provided.
Please visit the Town of Orleans website (click the image above) to sign up and someone will contact you to follow up to get your started.
| | Apply Today for AmeriCorps Cape Cod | | |
Do you want to serve your community and make a tangible difference? Do you care about the environment and helping people in crisis? Do you love the outdoors?
Join AmeriCorps Cape Cod in making lasting impacts on Cape Cod, Massachusetts! Year 27 (2025-2026) service members will serve in the areas of natural resource management, disaster preparedness and response, environmental education, and community outreach. The term runs from September 2, 2025 to July 23, 2026. Applicants must be available to serve the entire term (vacation time provided) and live in provided residential housing.
You can read the Year 27 Position Description HERE. For more information, visit our website.
Applications are accepted starting in March 2025. The application will close on July 31, 2025, or when all 20 positions are filled, whichever comes first. It is likely that positions will fill quickly.
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Upcoming Walks:
- Preschool Explorers (4/28)
- Beach Walk to Namskaket (5/21)
- Preschool Explorers (5/30)
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At Home with Nature
Nature-friendly practices you can adopt for your yard
| | Native Plant of the Month: Downy Shadbush (Amelanchier arborea) | | |
This native shrub is named for the downy velvet of its leaf undersides and the April-May blossom of its flowers that coincide with the shad fish (herring) runs in New England. These early blooms of white flowers are exceptionally popular pollination sites for bees. Tolerant to varying levels of light, soil moisture, and pH, its range extends across the varying climates of the eastern half of North America. While it typically grows between 15–40 feet, it may reach heights up to 70 feet under full sunlight in well-drained, acidic soils.
Downy shadbush is typically found in meadows and woodland understories, often providing important resources for wildlife as an early colonizer of disturbed habitats. It is a larval host plant for numerous butterfly species, including the admiral, tiger swallowtail, viceroy, and striped hairstreak. Its berries are set around June and ripen into summer, at which point they are consumed by more than 40 bird species and many mammals. The seeds within these fruits are then stripped of their protective shells during digestive processes, allowing them to germinate once they are dropped by the animals.
| | Learn more about living At Home with Nature on our webpage. | | Orleans Conservation Trust is a private 501(c)(3) nonprofit established in 1970. Over its 50-year history, the Trust has preserved more than 660 acres in Orleans. Among the most active land trusts on Cape Cod, OCT stewards a range of ecosystems, from freshwater ponds and wetlands to saltmarshes, wooded upland, and coastal grasslands, managing its lands to protect and enhance wildlife habitat, restore native ecosystems, and provide public recreation and education through a network of trails and informational signage. OCT also educates residents and visitors about important natural values and environmental issues in Orleans and around Cape Cod via guided walks, free lectures, its website, newsletter, and other communications. | | | | |
