Prince William Forest Park

PRINCE WILLIAM COUNTY — Visitors staying at Prince William Forest Park’s Cabin Camp 3 this summer may notice small white flags scattered throughout the wooded landscape. Far from surrender flags, these markers represent the park’s latest effort to restore its historic cabin camps to their original, rustic charm.

Park officials are launching a revegetation project aimed at allowing the surrounding forest to naturally reclaim open areas around the camp’s historic buildings, which date back to the 1930s. According to Superintendent George Liffert, the process involves reducing mowing and encouraging native vegetation to grow in, helping the camp feel once again nestled within the forest rather than carved out of it.

TRIANGLE, Va. – Rangers at Prince William Forest Park are raising the alarm about Beech Leaf Disease (BLD), which is threatening one of the park’s most common trees.

In a Facebook post, the park reported that American beech trees make up about 20% of its tree population, with saplings accounting for 35%. But many of those are now showing signs of BLD, a disease caused by a tiny worm-like nematode that invades leaf buds. The infection leads to dark striping on the leaves and eventually causes them to shrivel and die—essentially starving the tree. Once infected, trees may die within five years, though older trees may hold on longer.