Category: Parks

Image: courtesy of Katja Schulz, Creative Commons I have lived in Dayton, OH, since 1986. This May and June, for just the third time in those 35 years, I look forward to the spectacle of Magicicada Brood X, the 17-year…

Perfect for birthday parties, graduation parties, family reunions and more, large group shelters are available in eight of the Centerville-Washington Park District community parks. Reservations for the 2021 calendar year may be made beginning at 8:00 a.m. Thursday, April 1.…

Spring! It’s the season when robins and red-winged blackbirds regale us with song and, in Ohio, when Hinckley welcomes back its turkey vultures. Who doesn’t look forward to the lengthening daylight and warming weather? But why wait for the robins…

In late summer, at their colorful flowering peak, goldenrod (Solidago) flowers provide an important source of nectar for the late-season activities of butterflies, bees and wasps, flies, and other insects. But even in winter, when the plants have long since…

The Centerville-Washington Park District began work on the Grant Park master plan project in March 2020. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, proposed community engagement sessions were modified to include an online survey and a virtual community meeting. The online survey…

Squirrels are among the most recognizable local wildlife; they’re noisy, they’re active, and they always seem to be around. But there’s more than one way to be a squirrel! Squirrels are members of the rodent family Sciuridae, and our local…

With the season of diminished daylight upon us, the shift from summer wildlife to winter wildlife is pretty much complete. Insects have substantially disappeared from the meadows. You’re not likely to see a snake in your path through the woods.…

Honeysuckle was introduced in the United States in the mid to late 1800s as an ornamental plant. It has since become one of the most aggressive invasive, non-native plants in the state of Ohio. Honeysuckle shades out desirable native woodland…

We have been lucky again this autumn, living as we do in the temperate forest biome of Ohio, to witness one of nature’s spectacles, as summer’s green leaves turn to red, orange, and yellow. Now, as the weather cools, those…

Going nuts! A good year for walnuts — and squirrels. These days, every squirrel seems to have a nut in its mouth. And if you walk in the woods, it’s hard not to notice the crunch of acorns underfoot, or…