King Conservation District

06/05/2026

Pests can be one of the most challenging aspects of successful gardening, especially for gardeners who want to use environmentally friendly methods. At this tour of City Soil Farm we will discuss how managing soil and water in your garden relates to pest management, and how to support our garden allies, beneficial insects! KCD and City Soil Farm staff will share information and strategies they use to reduce the impact of garden pests. We will have hearty snacks, and plenty of time to ask questions and share knowledge.

Topics include:
- Maintaining soil heath, and its role in supporting resilient gardens
- Promoting beneficial insects in the garden
- Evaluating pest damage to identify pests and solutions
- Non-chemical pest control options
- Deciding when and how to use chemical control options

Visit kingcd.org/events to sign-up today!

06/03/2026

Join us this summer for a series of free educational tours that focus on community-led conservation and natural resource stewardship. These outdoor events offer opportunities to learn from peers and neighbors, connect with community, and explore conservation practices in action.

Living with Beavers: Coexistence Strategies and Resources for Land Managers. June 16, Duvall
Explore how beavers benefit water quality and salmon habitat while learning practical tools and resources for managing beaver-related challenges on working lands.

Garden Pest Management Tour at City Soil Farm. June 23, Renton
Learn about environmentally friendly approaches to pest management in your garden.

Streamside Restoration Tour. July 9, Maple Valley
Tour two local streamside restoration projects and learn about native plants, w**d control, erosion prevention, habitat features, and long-term stewardship of streamside areas.

Farming and Water Conservation at Oxbow Farm. July 16, Carnation
Explore how a working farm integrates water conservation, cover cropping, and climate smart farming to maintain productive agricultural operations.

All tours are FREE. Registration is required. Contact Madeline Cooper at [email protected] with any questions.

Learn more and signup, visit:

kingcd.org

King Conservation District promotes sustainable uses of natural resources through responsible stewardship. Our vision is to be recognized as a leader in achieving community based stewardship of lands within our service area, with economically and environmentally sustainable working lands, vibrant a....

06/02/2026

Beavers provide many important ecological benefits for water quality and salmon populations. Their activity, however, can cause headaches for landowners and land managers. Compromises and adaptive management can help keep beavers on our landscape while resolving beaver conflicts. On this tour we will show examples of different coexistence practices that can benefit land managers who are dealing with beavers. We will hear from Beavers NW and the Snoqualmie Valley Preservation Alliance, who provide resources to promote beaver coexistence and help land managers deal with drainages issues on their lands. There will be plenty of time for question and answers as well.

We will provide hearty snacks and water. Please bring a water bottle and shoes for a 1/2 mile walk along a path through the wildlife area.

Sign-up or learn more at kingcd.org/events

05/30/2026

Join us for free lead and arsenic soil testing at our SoilSHOP event at Midway Covenant in Des Moines!

Puget Sound has a rich history of land and industry - but industrial practices from long ago may have had unseen lasting impacts on our soils and waters today.

For nearly a century, a Tacoma-based copper smelter, operated by the Asarco Company, spread lead, arsenic, and other heavy metals into the air. This is now known as the Tacoma Smelter Plume, or TSP. Over time, those compounds settled into the soils around Puget Sound, where they remain to this day.

In the spring & summer of 2026, KCD and the WA Dept of Ecology will be coming to local community gardens in parts of the region that may have been exposed to the TSP, and testing soils on-site free of charge.

If you live in a possibly affected area and wish to have your soils tested, or if you wish to learn more about the TSP and its effects, please join us at the third 2026 SoilSHOP series, happening at Midway Covenant's garden. We are also offering free compost - please bring a container if you wish to take some home.

The Des Moines event will be a little different than other SoilSHOPs - other health & environment-focused organizations will be joining us, such as Recology, the WA Dept. of Health, and more! They will have resources for you to check out as well. Plus, bring your children to enjoy a free lunch, a bouncy house and other kid-friendly activities.

The final event of the 2026 SoilSHOP series will be in July, at the Vashon Island Strawberry Festival.

Sponsored by KCD with funding from WA Dept of Ecology.

Join us for free lead and arsenic soil testing at our SoilSHOP event at Midway Covenant in Des Moines!

05/28/2026

Get some peace of mind this May and plan for the dry months of summer by learning how to prepare your home for wildfire season! Wildfire risks increase as we move away from our rainy season and into our drier months. There are simple steps you can take to protect your home, family, and neighbors and minimize your risk of wildfire.

Here are a few tips for keeping your house safe from wildfire this summer:

-Hardscape the perimeter of your home—sorry garden beds!

-Clear debris from gutters, roofs, and beneath your deck or other structures—it can act as kindling

-Install screens in vents and crawlspaces to prevent debris build-up or ignited materials from entering

-Prune vegetation back from structures by 30 feet—a lit branch can act like a bridge to your home for fire

Need technical assistance with your home? Plan for wildfire season by requesting wildfire mitigation services (link in bio):

kingcd.org/wildfire

05/28/2026

Pests can be one of the most challenging aspects of successful gardening, especially for gardeners who want to use environmentally friendly methods. At this tour of City Soil Farm we will discuss how managing soil and water in your garden relates to pest management, and how to support our garden allies, beneficial insects! KCD and City Soil Farm staff will share information and strategies they use to reduce the impact of garden pests. We will have hearty snacks, and plenty of time to ask questions and share knowledge.

Topics include:
Maintaining soil heath, and its role in supporting resilient gardens
Promoting beneficial insects in the garden
Evaluating pest damage to identify pests and solutions
Non-chemical pest control options
Deciding when and how to use chemical control options

Visit kingcd.org/events to sign-up today!

05/27/2026

KCD and King County are excited to invite Enumclaw residents to the Creekside Community Gathering on Saturday, May 30th from 1 to 4 pm at the Foothills Trailhead in Enumclaw. This event will be a casual opportunity for landowners, community leaders, King County staff, and local organizations to connect outside and welcome summer on the Plateau. The purpose of this event is to share local resources, provide an opportunity for the community to share their experiences, ask questions, and celebrate the local waterways of Enumclaw.

Join us for free food, activities, and raffle prizes!

•Connect informally with neighbors
•Celebrate the volunteer restoration efforts on Boise Creek and the value of our local waterways
•Ask questions, share your experiences, and build relationships with community leaders and organizations
•Participate in kid-friendly activities such as seed ball making
•Enjoy raffle prizes, including two tickets to a Marymoor Live concert of your choice!

Event Details:
Date: Saturday, May 30
Time: 1:00–4:00 PM – This is a drop in style event. Please join us for as long or as little as you can.

Location: Foothills Trailhead at Highway 410 & SE 456th St., Enumclaw WA.

*Additional parking is available across Highway 410 at the Enumclaw Nazarene Church. *The Church is generously allowing parking for this event only. Please do not use this lot for future trail access.

Help spread the word! We look forward to connecting with the Enumclaw community.

05/26/2026

Beavers provide many important ecological benefits for water quality and salmon populations. Their activity, however, can cause headaches for landowners and land managers. Compromises and adaptive management can help keep beavers on our landscape while resolving beaver conflicts. On this tour we will show examples of different coexistence practices that can benefit land managers who are dealing with beavers. We will hear from local organizations who all provide resources to promote beaver coexistence and help land managers deal with drainages issues on their lands. There will be plenty of time for question and answers as well.

We will provide hearty snacks and water. Please bring a water bottle and shoes for a 1/2 mile walk along a path through the wildlife area.

05/22/2026

The de Steiguers of Vashon Island teamed up with KCD's Small Lot Forestry Program to restore the native understory of their six-acre forest on Vashon’s eastern coast.

While a large portion of the forest on the de Steiguers’ home was in decent health, the northern portion had been overrun by non-native laurel and English holly. These fast-growing invasives are quick to outcompete native understory vegetation, depriving them of vital resources. Dense patches of laurel and holly had crowded out the understory of the bigleaf maple and Douglas fir stands and were contributing to poor forest health, including incursions of tree rust, affecting the health of significant stands of Evergreen Huckleberry.

They had already begun the effort to restore his forest and, with support from KCD, focused on removing the invasive understory species and replacing them with native plants. The first step in the restoration was to lightly thin the Douglas fir stand to enable more sunlight to reach the understory, reducing competition for light. The holly, laurel, and other invasives were then removed, opening space on the forest floor for natives to be planted.

Native vegetation was planted in early spring to enable the plants to establish a healthy root system and give them a head start on recolonizing the forest. Planting these native plants aids in overall forest recovery as each species re-establishes its seed bank during spring and summer, supporting new native plant growth in future seasons.

The de Steiguers’ forest recovery project was an excellent opportunity for the KCD Small Lot Forest Program to use many of the tools in its forestry stewardship toolbox. Assisting the de Steiguers with thinning, invasive removal, and native planting enabled them to make an important contribution to supporting the forest health of Vashon’s eastern coast.

Learn more about KCD's Small Lot Forestry Program (link in bio):

kingcd.org/rural-forestry

05/20/2026

May is Wildfire Awareness Month! Get some peace of mind this May and plan for the dry months of summer by learning how to prepare your home wildfire season.

KCD is here to help. Find out more, visit:

kingcd.org/wildfire