National Capital Weed Wrangle
In celebration of National Public Lands Day, the National Capital PRISM (Partnership for Regional Invasive Species Management) hosts an annual Weed Wrangle from mid-September to mid-October. The National Capital Weed Wrangle is an area-wide volunteer-powered effort to protect our natural areas through removal of invasive plant species. We focus on removing invasive plants from Rock Creek and parks throughout the DC region with partners including: Montgomery Parks, Arlington County Parks, and many of the national parks in DC and beyond.
Get Involved with Weed Wrangle
Volunteers help restore the forests and natural areas of the National Capital region. As Weed Wrangle events are scheduled, they will be added to the calendar below. If none are available at this time, we encourage you to view our full calendar here for more volunteer opportunities.
If you are a Weed Warrior Leader, PRISM member, or other natural resource manager interested in joining the effort by hosting an event during this timeframe, contact us at volunteer@rockcreekconservancy.org and include the date, time, location, and registration link for your event.
Reflecting on the 2025 Weed Wrangle
Our fifth annual National Capital Weed Wrangle ran from September 13th through October 11th and was a huge success! Thanks to all of the 591 volunteers who took part in this amazing people-powered restoration.
We are excited by the Weed Wrangle achievements of our volunteers and partners. Here is what we achieved around the National Capital Region:
Recreationists gave back to their local natural areas! Volunteers from the Washington Area Bicyclist Association and Mid-Atlantic Climbers helped remove invasive plants from the Anacostia River Trail and Carderock, respectively.
Rock Creek Conservancy organized 19 events with 168 volunteers who spent a combined total of 362 hours protecting our forests by removing invasive vines from 170 trees.
Montgomery Parks hosted 42 events where 329 volunteers spent 1,059 hours freeing 1,185 trees.
Arlington County Parks hosted 15 events with 65 volunteers.
In total, 621 volunteers served at 88 events, removing approximately 1 acre of invasive plants from our region's natural areas.
