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A Bird’s Eye View of the Low Line

August 11, 2020

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At first glance, our urban landscapes are beautifu

At first glance, our urban landscapes are beautiful gardens. But over time, they become part of the larger ecosystem. They offer food and shelter for wildlife, provide habitats for insects, and filter stormwater runoff. Our greenspace is a powerful combination of beauty and function and our work is supported by public and private donors - and if you’d like to pitch in, please do. Just visit our website - the gardens will thank you! (link in bio)⠀
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Photo credit: Lisa T.⠀
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#CapitalTrees #CapitalTreesRVA #urbangarden #RVA #Richmond #RichmondVA #urbanlandscape #greenspace #garden #publicgarden #ecosystem #nativeplants #Virginia #Stormwater #StormwaterManagement #Rainwater #Raingarden #Nonprofit⠀
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March is Women’s History Month, and at Capital T

March is Women’s History Month, and at Capital Trees, we owe our success in large part to the trailblazing women who came together over a decade ago to improve Richmond’s greenspaces.

In 2010, four local garden clubs banded together around one common goal - to help make our city greener and more liveable. The women of Boxwood, James River, Three Chopt, and Tuckahoe Garden Clubs launched our organization, helped Capital Trees evolve into the fully-formed non-profit we are today, and continue to support our work and growth. We celebrate the women who founded Capital Trees every day, but want to give them a special shout out for Women's History Month too! Thank you for all that you've done to bring more greenspace to Richmond, look how far we've come!

Pictured here are some of the women who have been part of our history over the past decade!
#WomensHistoryMonth

We plan our greenspaces strategically so that they

We plan our greenspaces strategically so that they provide aesthetic interest each season. Pictured here is Arrowwood Viburnum - Viburnum dentatum. Lush and green with white blooms during the summer - it looks totally different during the winter. But the residual stalks provide shelter for insects who are overwintering in the garden, and the contrast with the buildings of the city brings a much needed organic element to Shockoe Bottom. ⠀
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Photo credit: Kelly M.⠀
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#greenspace #wintergarden #richmond #richmondva #rva #capitaltrees #lowline #lowlinegreen #garden #urbangarden #urbanlandscape #publicgarden #greenspace #nature #ecosystem⠀

Signs of spring are on the horizon, and there’s

Signs of spring are on the horizon, and there’s plenty to see along the Low Line and Low Line Green when you look closely. These buds are Pinxterbloom Azalea - Rhododendron periclymenoides and will bring vibrant pink color to the space in a few months.⠀
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Photo credit: Kelly M. ⠀
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#LowLine #SignsOfSpring #LowLineGreen #CapitalTrees #Garden #UrbanGarden #Spring #UrbanLandscape #Greenspace #RVA #Richmond #RichmondVA⠀

⠀ The rain garden we installed at the Low Line G

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The rain garden we installed at the Low Line Green is functional (filtering 148,000 gallons of stormwater runoff annually) and beautiful. It doesn’t have to be one or the other. ⠀
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Pictured here: Winterberry, Ilex verticillata ’Sparkleberry’⠀
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Photo by: Kelly M. ⠀
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#stormwater #stormwaterrunoff #stormwatermanagement #CapitalTrees #LowLineGreen #LowLine #Winterberry #nativeplants #multipurpose #RVA #Richmond #UrbanGarden #UrbanLandscape #PublicGarden #Greenspace⠀

*IMPORTANT* This Saturday’s workday has been res

*IMPORTANT* This Saturday’s workday has been rescheduled due to icy conditions and freezing temperatures. All of the volunteers should have received an email with full details, but our new date is Saturday, March 6, 2021.

We appreciate all of you, and hope everyone is safe and warm!

90% of the plants we installed at the Low Line Gre

90% of the plants we installed at the Low Line Green are native, meaning that they’re part of our region’s natural ecosystem. That makes them more naturally resilient to our growing conditions and they provide food and shelter for native wildlife. Our new signage at the Green explains some of the benefits of the particular trees and shrubs we planted, and will help you easily ID the additions so that you can learn more about them. ⠀
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Photo Credit: Lisa T. ⠀
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#lowline #lowlinegreen #capitaltrees #rva #richmond #richmondva #garden #urbangarden #raingarden #urbanlandscape #nativeplants #ecosystem #pollinators #wildlife #beneficials⠀

Pssst… Put down your phone. Look around, look up

Pssst… Put down your phone. Look around, look up. Take in the nature around you. You’ll feel better for it. And if you take comfort in the greenspace at the Low Line and Low Line Green, consider supporting our work from the link in our bio.⠀
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Pictured here: River Birch Tree⠀
Photo credit: Kelly M.⠀
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#riverbirch #unplug #relax #gooutside #nature #walk #lowline #lowlinerva #richmond #richmondva #rva #greenspace #garden #publicgarden #freshair #urbanlandscape #urbangarden⠀

Happy Valentine’s Day from Capital Trees! Grab y

Happy Valentine’s Day from Capital Trees! Grab your valentine, a pup, or a pal and take a socially-distanced walk on the Low Line today.⠀
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#happyvalentinesday #valentine #capitaltrees #rva #richmondva #virginiaisforlovers #lowline #lowlinerva #garden #nature #walkoutside⠀

Couldn’t make our recent work day? We’re hosti

Couldn’t make our recent work day? We’re hosting another community work day on Saturday, February 20th and you’re invited! We’ll be getting the Low Line ready for spring from 10 am to 12 noon. Get more details and RSVP from the link in our bio. ☝️

Thanks to our friends at @mainstreetrealty for partnering with us on this event.⠀
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#volunteer #workday #trail #cleanup #springcleaning #capitaltrees #rva #richmondva #lowline #lowlinerva #community⠀

Tuesday’s workday was a success! Sending a big t

Tuesday’s workday was a success! Sending a big thank you to Bryan Puckett with Terra Forma - he was our resident expert on site to help guide the pruning process. With staff, board members, and 14 volunteers - the Low Line benefited from a whopping 30.5 volunteer hours!

✅ The group cut back Bluebeard (Caryopteris x clanodensis) and American Beautyberry (Callicarpa americana) - they both do best when pruned in the winter, because they’ll still be able to bloom this summer.

✅ We also completed “rejuvenation pruning” on the Red Twig Dogwoods (Cornus sericea) and Inkberry (Ilex glabra) to encourage leafy growth and improved vigor going forward.

Want to join in on the fun? We've got another community work day coming up on February 20 - you can get the details and let us know you're coming from the link in our bio. ☝️

#rva #richmond #richmondva #community #cleanup #springcleaning #urbangarden #urbanlandscape #publicgarden #greenspace #publicgreenspace #virginia #raingarden #nativeplants

The ferns we planted at the Low Line Green are low

The ferns we planted at the Low Line Green are low-lying which makes them great ground cover. They do well in shady areas, and thrive in moist soil - making them an appropriate choice for rain gardens like the one at the Green. Plus, the texture of the leaves bring long-lasting interest to greenspace. ⠀
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Pictured here: Autumn Fern - Dryopteris erythrosora⠀
Photo credit: Kelly M. ⠀
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#Fern #Plants #RainGarden #Garden #CapitalTrees #Richmond #RichmondVA #RVA #UrbanGarden #NativePlants #Ecosystem #Ecofriendly #StormwaterManagement #LowLine #LowLineGreen⠀

Capital Trees is truly a partnership. As a non-pro

Capital Trees is truly a partnership. As a non-profit, we rely heavily on the support of our community to accomplish our work and maintain our projects. Our new signage at the Low Line Green talks a bit about our organization, and gives a well-earned shout out to all the generous donors who helped turn the vision of the Low Line into a reality. If you want to help us continue to make a difference - you can join in from the link in our bio.

Photo Credit: Lisa T.

#nonprofit #capitaltrees #richmond #lowline #lowlinegreen #rva #richmondva #greenspace #publicgreenspace #urbangreenspace #urbangarden #urbanlandscape

We’re so thankful for the support and kind words

We’re so thankful for the support and kind words we get from our community, we’re so glad that so many of you benefit from the public greenspaces we create.⠀
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Photo credit: Kelly M.⠀
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#CapitalTrees #RVA #RichmondVA #Richmond #LowLine #LowLineGreen #Garden #RainGarden #Greenspace #PublicGarden #Garden #UrbanGarden #Nature #Health⠀