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Fire management crews from the National Park Service are in the area Tuesday and Wednesday to start and manage a series of fires on 135 acres of meadows.
They'll be working in meadows along Route 23, known locally as Valley Forge Road, and along Gulph Road.
The point of this: Burn out invasive plants, which are encroaching on the habitat of native plants in the meadows.
"Re-introducing fire to the landscape ... helps us reduce the need to use herbicides," he said. "And it is also restoring a natural process to the landscape."
Parker says National Park Service firefighters are supervising the fires.
"Fire can be bad when it's uncontrolled and not managed, but fire is a good thing for the ecosystem and the environment when it's managed," he said.
Park officials say most trails, public roads and buildings will be open during the controlled fires, although some areas, especially around the statue of General Friedrich Von Steuben and trails to the Grand Parade Field, may be temporarily closed for short periods.
Parker says most roads and trails through the park will remain open, and the public is invited to watch at the Varnum picnic area and Artillery Park as well as the Maurice Stephens House parking lot.
He says if the weather and the wind cooperate, crews could be done by Wednesday.