Northaven Trail, June 2023: As many of you may have noticed while out enjoying the Northaven Trail in our neighborhood, we have some exciting new Wildflower and Pollinator Habitats along the trail.  Native wildflower seeds were sowed this past winter, and our first wildflowers have already been blooming this spring.  Not only do these wildflower meadows create beautiful blooms for us to enjoy, but they also provide habitat for our native bees, butterflies, and other insects, as well as birds.  Wildflower meadows are a great way to increase the biodiversity in our neighborhood and support our wildlife.  They can also help save water, sequester carbon, and reduce mowing.

Since this is the first spring since the seeds were sowed, the wildflowers in our neighborhood are just getting started.  As the wildflowers grow, they will produce more seeds, and each year we can expect to see more beautiful displays and more dense wildflower habitats.  

Walking along the trail a little further east, between College Park and Inwood, you can view more established wildflower areas to get an idea of how our wildflower habitats will look in the future.

Photos below: Firewheel flowers near Strait Lane and Monarch butterfly caterpillar feeding on native milkweed near Welch Rd. 

Friends of the Northaven Trail, a local non-profit, all-volunteer organization, provided the seeds for the Wildflower & Pollinator Habitats and works along with Dallas Parks to care for and maintain the wildflower areas.

Northaven Trail, June 2023: Some Northaven Park residents have had questions and concerns about mowing and weeds in relation to the new wildflower areas.  Members of the NPNA recently met with leaders of the Dallas Parks maintenance crew for more information.  Following is a summary of what we learned.

• Dallas Parks maintenance has a three-man crew dedicated to mowing the Northaven Trail.  They are constantly working on mowing along the entire eight miles of trail, and should make it to our neighborhood every two to three weeks.  
• When mowing happens, the crew will mow around the wildflower areas marked with “Wildflower & Pollinator Habitat:  Don’t Mow, Let Us Grow” signs.  This will allow time for the wildflowers and native grasses to grow and produce seeds for the following year.  
• Once per year the Pollinator Habitat areas will be completely mowed down.  The exact time may vary depending on the weather and conditions of the plants.  It will likely be in the fall.  Our Dallas Parks Urban Biologist, Brett Johnson, oversees this process. 

Weeds. Refraining from frequently mowing the Pollinator Habitat areas will allow native wildflowers to grow.  In this process, some weeds will also inadvertently grow as well.  As the wildflowers and native grasses become more established over the next few years, they will crowd out more of the weeds.