Baltimore Green Space is Baltimore's environmental land trust, which means they help preserve community gardens, pocket parks, and urban forests for generations to come. They provide technical assistance, basic liability coverage, and much more for over 100 community-managed open spaces and forest patches throughout the city. Their Forest Steward program is the key to successfully maintaining community-managed greenspaces and beautification projects in Baltimore City. One such Forest Steward is Sylvester Myers.

Sylvester stewards Sycamore Chinquapin Run, which is a lush green space in Northern Baltimore flanked by Towson, Northern Parkway, Glen Oaks, Chinquapin-Belvedere, and Lake Walker. Alongside a Forest Manager, Sylvester worked with 70+ volunteers this past year to maintain a swath of the community forest patch. Sylvester explains: "As the Forest Steward of Sycamore Chinquapin Run, I manage the health of the forest by removing invasive and destructive vines from the trees. With the help and support of volunteers, I monitor and clean the stream's edge of litter that washes down after rains... A bat house was installed by scientists, to support the study of urban bats in Baltimore city. Native trees and plants have [recently] been added to support a healthy bird and insect population. I successfully installed a bluebird house this past spring that produced three hatchlings. With the support of volunteers and the Orchard Project, we planted an orchard consisting of Pawpaw, Serviceberry, and Fig trees. Through the collaboration of Baltimore Green Space with Loyola Blakefield [this spring and summer], their middle school students were able to complete their required volunteer hours by removing invasive vines and moving mulch to our seating area, under the Sycamore tree."

Many thanks to Sylvester and other Forest Stewards for working hard to preserve community-managed greenspaces! 

Learn more about how to steward your own local forest patch here!

Mayor Scott has announced that applications for the Clean Corps Demonstration Project are now open and are being accepted until Sept. 19, 2022, at 5 pm. Clean Corps is a grant program that supports the City’s capacity to clean and maintain spaces in 15 historically disinvested neighborhoods throughout Baltimore. Baltimore nonprofit organizations and community organizations, in partnership with the Department of Public Works, can hire Baltimore residents to clean and care for community-selected sites, including maintaining vacant lots, alleys, and trash receptacles in up to 15 neighborhoods from a selected group of 33 Baltimore neighborhoods. Clean Corps is a key component of Baltimore City’s COVID-19 recovery strategy, tackling both unemployment and underemployment in Baltimore.

The 33 eligible neighborhoods are:

Arlington, Boyd-Booth, Broadway East, Carrollton Ridge, Central Park Heights, Coldstream-Homestead-Montebello, Darley Park, Druid Heights, East Baltimore Midway, Edgewood, Four by Four, Franklin Square, Greenspring, Harlem Park, Johnston Square, Langston Hughes, Madison-Eastend, Midtown-Edmonson, Milton-Montford, Mondawmin, Mosher, New Southwest/Mt. Clare, Oliver, Park Circle, Parkview/Woodbrook, Penn North, Penrose/Fayette Street Outreach, Rosemont, Sandtown-Winchester, South Clifton Park, Upton, Westport, and Winchester.

The Baltimore City Food Policy and Planning Division is currently rolling out five different programs to mitigate the negative impacts associated with food insecurity during and after the COVID 19 pandemic. The efforts are funded with an $11 million award to the Food Policy and Planning team through the Mayor's Office of Recovery Programs American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funding.

The five programs are: 1) Continue COVID-19 emergency produce box distribution; 2) Increase online SNAP participation and distribute fruit and vegetable e-incentives to residents; 3) Expand nutrition incentives at farmers' markets; 4) Implement a 'Produce Prescription (Rx) Program' at MedStar Harbor Hospital; 5) Build the BIPOC local food supply chain by improving access to produce. The produce box distribution program has already begun. In early June, the city began distributing over 2,000 produce boxes across 30 community sites.

The Pawpaw, America’s Largest Edible Fruit, Grows Quietly in Baltimore -- Baltimore Magazine

"...the city’s TreeBaltimore program is working to add even more of them to local forests, with plantings taking place in greenspaces such as the Herring Run, Clifton, Patterson, and Stony Run parks, as well as the Woodberry Woods and Cylburn Arboretum. Some of this work begins with urban forester Ted Martello, who also propagates saplings from the seeds of locally harvested fruit."

Back to the Garden: Our Summer Guide to Plant and Garden Care -- WYPR

Listen to Midday's "Back to the Garden," providing a seasonal guide to home gardening and plant care. The show features Carrie Engel, the Greenhouse Manager at Valley View Farms in Cockeysville, and Farmer Chippy, founder and farmer at Plantation Park Heights Urban Farm in Northwest Baltimore!

Ikea Piloting Electric Trucks at Port of Baltimore -- Sourcing Journal

Road One Intermodal Logistics and Ikea have launched an electric truck pilot at the Port of Baltimore, making the company the first user at the port to engage in an electric truck pilot and one of the first on the East Coast. This initiative is projected to eliminate the use of 11,000 gallons of diesel fuel per truck, and the associated emissions, over a one-year period.

The New Joneses -- YouTube 

Watch and listen to this YouTube series capturing how Australians are finding ways for average citizens to make a difference when it comes to climate change. Episodes are generally under 10 minutes and the information they provide is very accessible.

According to an article Published by the National Audubon, about 150 million birds are killed every year from window strikes at people's homes. There are things you can do to create a bird-friendly habitat in your own yard and help reduce window strikes.

Start by taking a "bird's eye tour" of your home. Look for windows that reflect sky or greenery at certain times of the day and consider exterior screens for these windows. Screens benefit birds by reducing reflections and providing a softer landing should a collision occur. If screens aren't your thing, hanging string or ribbons from a horizontal dowel rod above the window serves a similar purpose. Also, consider this permission to not clean your windows! Dirty windows are less reflective. Waiting until after bird traffic and migratory seasons have slowed to clean windows is another way to help. Decals are also a solution as they create the illusion of a dense, impenetrable space that birds won't attempt to fly through. The American Bird Conservancy has a database of products that serve this purpose and the products provide solutions for a variety of aesthetics. These actions are important considerations, especially for residents that hang feeders and encourage birds to occupy their yards. Check out our local Patterson Park Audubon for more ideas and for information local to Baltimore!