Steward Spotlight: Katie Matta

Katie Matta, Class 10

Steward Candidate Thomas Marston (left) and Katie Matta (right) installed a rainbarrel on Marc Wirig’s home in Hillsmere.

Why did you become a Master Watershed Steward? 
I work for the Environmental Protection Agency, but most of my work is done on a computer. I was interested in doing hands-on environmental work that would benefit my community, especially the drainage creek in my backyard.

What was your capstone project?
It's Kitty Duvall Creek Buffer Planting Project. This little creek drains 142 acres of Hillsmere Shores community into Duvall Creek which opens to the South River. On October 13th the planting effort will take place - three conservation landscapes in three backyards and three buffer plantings on slopes and banks within 20 feet of the creek in three backyards. Two of the properties were identified as good candidates for rain cistern/barrels, which were installed September 13th with the help of a property owner and four other WSA volunteers.

How did you hear about WSA?
I moved back to Annapolis in November 2016 and did some internet searches on local environmental organizations.

Why is restoring the waterways important to you?
I grew up in Annapolis and learned about Chesapeake Bay issues at various environmental camps including one at Arlington Echo. When I was 16, I volunteered for the Chesapeake Bay Foundation at Meredith Creek, a place where I had gone marsh mucking and canoeing at summer camp. It's rewarding to come home and do work through WSA that is directly linked to Bay health.

Katie Matta and Ann Brown planting natives at the Class 10 project.

What was one of the most surprising things you learned during the certification course?
I was surprised with the number of restoration projects completed and in the pipeline by AA County and the South River Federation.

What was your favorite project you worked on after becoming a Master Watershed Steward?
I've never applied for a grant before and it's rewarding to gain the skills and confidence to do so. I applied for and received a South River Federation Stewardship grant for my capstone project.

What advice do you have for our Class 11 Steward Candidates?
If there are Stewards in your neighborhood, talk to them about your project ideas and get their input. If this is the first time you are getting involved in your community, get to know board members/officers/involved residents. They have experience and insight that may be useful as you finalize your project idea and seek community buy-in. Your classmates and other Stewards are a great resource - many have environmental or project experience beyond the WSA classroom and are willing and able to lend a hand. Don't be afraid to ask for help!

How do you plan to continue engaging the community in your environmental efforts?
I wrote an article for our community newsletter about rain barrels and I will continue to write short articles for our newsletter on various rainscaping topics. Several other Hillsmere Watershed Stewards have expressed a willingness to write articles as well. Maybe I will apply for another South River Federation grant if there is interest and financial support (you need matching funds) for another project. A longterm goal (dream?) is to make Kitty Duvall kayak/canoeable again. Through my project I found out that 30 years ago I could have put a kayak in my backyard and floated down to Duvall Creek. I would love to do that!

When you work full time and have young kids and move to a new area, it is not easy to meet other adults. My husband and I were able to attend the South River on the Half Shell and the GreenGive Kick-off Party this year and ran into Stewards and Hillsmere residents who I wouldn't have met if it wasn't for WSA. These friendships are just forming, but we are starting to feel more a part of our neighborhood and greater Annapolis community.

Kevin Green, Thomas Marston, Monica Maynard, Katie Matta and Marc Wirig install a rain barrel in Hillsmere.

Clean Water Communities Update: Pines on the Severn

Written by Cindy Hall and Noelle Chao, Class 10 Steward Candidates and Pines on the Severn residents, for their community newsletter.

Last fall, Pines on the Severn was selected by the Watershed Stewards Academy to participate in their Clean Water Communities Program.  In order to achieve this certification, we were asked to complete 5 benchmarks in 2018. Here’s how we’ve done:

1. Assessment of Community Property: COMPLETED! ✅

The South River Federation and the Watershed Stewards Academy visited Pines in November 2017 and conducted a comprehensive assessment of community property spaces.  SRF and WSA delivered a report to Stewards in January 2018. You can find a copy of this report on the Pines Website. It provides a detailed roadmap for addressing different areas of concern in our community, and offers suggestions for the best path forward.

Pines Stewards celebrate Cindy and Noelle completing the Master Watershed Steward Training Course!

Front Row: Cindy, Noelle, Michelle; Back Row: Ann, Ellen, Martin, Alice, Jim, Pat

2. Training of 2 Master Watershed Stewards: COMPLETED! ✅

In October 2017, Cindy Hall and Noelle Chao began taking WSA’s annual Master Watershed Steward Certification Course.  Over a series of 11 sessions, Cindy and Noelle learned about rainscaping practices that reduce stormwater runoff and became familiar with the grants and permits necessary for getting big projects in the ground.  This November, they will officially graduate from the course and become certified Master Watershed Stewards for Pines on the Severn. If you have any concerns about drainage or runoff issues in Pines, please don’t hesitate to contact them.

3. Training of 10-15 Community Stewards: COMPLETED!  ✅

Between December 2017 to February 2018, 15 Community Stewards completed a four-session training, during which they learned about best practices for reducing pollution sources and runoff in the Pines.  Community Stewards have worked hard to organize outreach events that have raised awareness about different actions that all of us can take to help keep Chase Creek and the Severn River clean. Our Community Stewards include Jim & Alice Corey, Dayna & Asha Myers, Jason & Laura Toraldo, Dan & Lauren Weirauch, and Pat Leffler, Michelle Montalbano, Ann O’Malley, Debby Roberts, Laurie Pasieka, Ellen Posten, and Martin Wittel.

4. 20% of Household Adopt Habits that Help: COMPLETED AND CONTINUING! ✅

Since Spring, Pines Stewards have been asking residents to sign a pledge to adopt at least two of four “Habits that Help,” which will reduce pollution in our neighborhood.  The four habits we are asking Pines residents to consider adopting are

• Caring for Septic Systems

• Disposing of Pet Waste

• Protecting Canopy Trees

• Maintaining Leaves

By adopting two, three, or all four of these simple habits, we can GREATLY REDUCE the amount of nitrogen, phosphorus, and bacteria that enter the Chesapeake Bay.

Currently, over 20% of residents in Pines have signed the pledge.  Our team believes that we can do even better, and will continue to collect pledges through the rest of the calendar year.  If you would like to sign the pledge, please contact Ann O’Malley.

April planting day at Lynne Seach’s home
Front: Noelle and Cindy
Back: Zoe Clarkwest, WSA’s Restoration Coordinator who designed the rainscaping projects in Pines, and Lynne Seach.

5. 10 Rainscaping Projects Installed: 90% COMPLETE! Almost There!

In April 2018, Cindy, Noelle, and their classmates in the 2017-18 Master Watershed Steward Training Course installed two conservation landscapes at the home of Pines resident Lynne Seach.  In June 2018, rainscaping projects were installed at eight homes throughout the neighborhood. Practices included plantings on slopes and hillsides to address erosion concerns, installations of rain barrels to slow down the flow of runoff from downspouts, and landscaping with deep-rooted native plants which have the capacity to absorb a tremendous amount of stormwater.  This fall, installation of the final plantings will begin at the home of Tom and Debbie Carrico. Once the Carrico projects are in the ground, we will have completed all of WSA’s benchmarks, and officially be a Clean Water Community!

Latin for Gardeners: September 2018

September’s Native Maryland Plant
Symphyotrichum laeve (L.) Á. Löve & D. Löve var. laeve (sim-fy-oh-TRY-kum LEE-vey)
Common Name: Smooth Blue Aster

Aster is September’s birth flower, and I couldn’t be more delighted. My birthday is in September and that’s when I see the greatest variety of butterflies in my garden – all because of the Symphyotrichum laeve growing there. They flock to this nectar source – a tall, sturdy, multi-stemmed plant that produces an abundance of daisy-like pale blue flowers. It has a non-aggressive rhizomatous root system, spreading slowly and persisting in my garden, providing I keep the more aggressive taller plants at bay (e.g. Eupatorium maculatum aka Spotted Joe-Pye Weed). It prefers full sun and tolerates drier conditions, once established.

Labor Day marks the unofficial end of summer but if you grow Symphyotrichum spp. you’ll continue to have beautiful blooms and many pollinators visit your garden, well into October.  This is an easy plant to propagate and it’s guaranteed to attract pollinators.  You can extend the bloom season even further by “pinching” (pruning with hedge shears) the stems back by about one-third in early June. This will delay the blooms a few weeks, so if you pinch some and leave some, you’ll have an overall longer fall bloom. Don’t pinch later than June – you’ll remove buds that are forming which will result in less flowering.

As we know, Latin (botanical) names are universal and are rarely changed.  However, due to DNA and genetic research findings, many of the Aster spp. were recently reclassified.  This plant, a member of the Family Asteraceae, was assigned its own Genus, Symphyotrichum, but is still commonly referred to as Aster in the horticultural trade.

~ Alison Milligan – MG 2013
aligmilligan@gmail.com

Latin for Gardeners: August 2018

August’s Native Maryland Plant
Ceanothus americanus L.  (see-uh-NOE-thus uh-mair-ih-KAY-nus)
Common Name: New Jersey Tea

Ceanothus americanus has taken its time to grow on me.  I was originally attracted to this plant due to claims of its severe drought-tolerance and ability to thrive in poor soil.  I had just the right place to test these claims!  I planted a 6” tubeling in an area where other plants have struggled and eventually died.  I knew this plant was a favorite of deer and bunnies and, sure enough, in its first year the tubeling was reduced to 2” by bunnies that visit my yard. Not to be deterred and knowing most of the growth in the early stages was happening below ground, I kept the plant in this difficult site. I am thrilled that I stuck with it - after three years I have a fully grown, low-mounding, low-maintenance shrub that has lovely white blooms starting in May. Another benefit? Pollinators love this plant!

Ceanothus americanus is a nitrogen fixing plant in the Buckthorn (Rhamnaceae) family, one of the few non-legumes that can fix nitrogen; this ability allows the plant to improve the soil and survive where other plants wouldn’t stand a chance. My experience has been that this is one tough plant. It prefers full sun and doesn’t want to be moved once established so consider this when siting it. Although I’m delighted the plant has lived up to its drought-tolerant claims I won’t be testing out another claim that many Midwesterners have stated, “the roots of the plant can break a plow”. 

Fun Fact: Ceanothus americanus leaves, like Monarda didyma leaves, were used as a substitute for “real tea” during the American Revolution.  Unfortunately for the drinkers, these leaves contain no caffeine. 

~ Alison Milligan – MG/MN 2013
Watershed Steward Class 7