Information Panel: You Missed a Spot!

"You Missed A Spot" information panel found in Dimple

NPS / Claire Hassler

Quick Facts

Amenities

2 listed

Historical/Interpretive Information/Exhibits, Picnic Table

You Missed A Spot!

If you glance at the photos below or think back to your previous visits to Wolf Trap National Park for the Performing Arts, you may notice changes to some of the park lawns. To promote greater plant and animal diversity, this meadow and other specified areas have been designated as "no-mow" zones. In 2012, park staff and volunteers planted 42 species of native grasses and wildflowers here to create a habitat that now supports over 40 kinds of bees and 25 types of butterflies. Look, smell, and listen to discover the spritely birds, fragrant flowers, and buzzing pollinators of the meadow.

Common milkweed is a native meadow plant that provides food and shelter to many animals. So many, in fact, that one might consider it an ecosystem in and of itself. Honeybees and hummingbirds feed on the nectar and polen, monarch butterfly caterpillars munch on the succulent leaves, and white-footed mice collect the silk to build nests. Do your part to protect the milkweed by staying on the designated paths and keeping your dog on a leash.

Want to learn more about the natural world found here at Wolf Trap National Park for the Performing Arts? Continue along the Wolf Trap Trail to discover the park's wetland, pond, and meadow ecosystems and the plants and animals that call these places home.

Learn more about the Native Meadow Project.