California Native Plant Society - East Bay Chapter Meetup

This is an online presentation that will take place via Zoom. PLEASE NOTE: Registration via Zoom (not just Meetup) is required. Register at: https://cnps-org.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJUtcuitrTMuGNM5StojZMG0tLaPfpiMBUcR Between January 1 and October 1 of this year, over 8,100 California wildfires have burned well over 3.9 million acres, about four percent of the state’s total area. In these fires, more than 7,500 structures were destroyed, and tragically, 30 people lost their lives. Landscape contractor Greg Rubin’s home county of San Diego has been hit by many major firestorms in recent years, but the homes surrounded by landscapes his company installed did not burn. Greg has studied and implemented groundbreaking approaches to landscape design and installation that emphasize the need to emulate California’s unique natural environment in built landscapes, rather than work against these ecological adaptations. In this presentation, he’ll share how he takes advantage of natural ecological processes to create successful fire-wise landscapes using California native plants. Greg followed an unusual path to become a landscape contractor. Years of experience as an aerospace engineer enabled him to understand the thermodynamics of fire in the landscape and to develop a landscape design technique that provides beauty, greenery, and a degree of fire resistance. His technique caught the attention of the U.S. Navy, which awarded his company a five-year research project to study fire resistance in native landscapes. The results are now published, and Greg will discuss them in this presentation. Greg Rubin is the owner of one of the largest native landscape contractors in the state, California’s Own Native Landscape Design in Escondido. Greg is co-author (with Lucy Warren) of two best-selling books from Workman Publishing: "The California Native Landscape" and "The Drought Defying California Landscape" (https://www.workman.com/authors/greg-rubin). He has made frequent appearances on television and radio and written articles for numerous publications. In 2018, he was chosen as Horticulturist of the Year by the San Diego Horticultural Society. Remember, Zoom registration is required to attend this online event. Registration information is here: https://ebcnps.org/events/using-native-plants-for-fire-resistant-landscapes-2020-10/

Join Janet Gawthrop and other volunteers restoring Huckleberry Park in the Oakland hills. Please note that you may be exposed to poison oak during this event so if you are sensitive to it you may wish to consider another event. ***** We meet year-round at 9:30 am on the 3rd Sunday every month to remove invasive plants by hand from Huckleberry Park, one of the very few botanic preserves in the East Bay Regional Park system. Several plant communities thrive in Huckleberry Park, including live oak-bay woodland and maritime chaparral, which has several species unusual plants now threatened by development. At the turn of the last century, maritime chaparral grew in much of the Oakland-Berkeley hills, but decades of real estate development consumed most locations of this plant community. Now, you can find maritime chaparral only at Sobrante Ridge, Huckleberry/Sibley parks (adjacent), and Knowland Park in the Oakland city parks. Unlike more typical, inland chaparral communities, maritime chaparral adapted to take advantage of additional moisture from summer fog and relatively mild winters. Blooming season at Huckleberry Park often begins on New Year's Day, with the pink or white dangling urns of brittle-leaf and pallid manzanitas (Arctostaphylos crustacea and A. pallida). In February, yellow flowers of western leatherwood (Dirca occidentalis) join the late bloomers of the manzanitas, and about forty species of mosses and liverworts put on their greenest, most leafy display in February and March. Vascular plants flower on into spring, with huckleberries and madrones (Vaccinium ovatum and Arbutus menziesii) adding more dangling, pink urns in the heath family to replace the bloomed-out manzanitas. Fruits from these plants support an unusually large variety of migrant and resident birds. Unfortunately, exotic landscaping plants, such as French broom (Genista monspessulana), now edge the margins of Huckleberry Park, while cape ivy (Senecio mikanoides) and periwinkle (Vinca major) have gained a foothold in the park interior. Our crew aims to remove these invasive landscape imports with a minimum of disturbance, so that historic native plants can fill in the small voids left by weeding. Park staff provide support in the form of tools, gloves, water, and snacks--just be sure to return to the parking lot at 1 pm if you need to return borrowed tools or gloves. ******* Thanks to Ken-ichi Ueda for the photos ******* Rain? We go out in mist or light rain, but heavy rain cancels. Huckleberry Park has steep slopes and potential erosion problems, so the dividing line is there enough water on the ground to turn soil to mud? If yes, we simply meet again at the 2nd Saturday of next month. Light rain softens the ground, and actually makes work easier. When in doubt, I go up to the parking lot so no one is left wondering. ******* Public Transit: • Take AC Transit line 33 from downtown Oakland, Lake Merritt area or Piedmont. ******* As with any outdoor activity, there are inherent risks in participating. By attending the event, you agree that you are 100% responsible for your own safety, health and well being.

Join Janet Gawthrop and other volunteers restoring Huckleberry Park in the Oakland hills. Please note that you may be exposed to poison oak during this event so if you are sensitive to it you may wish to consider another event. ***** We meet year-round at 9:30 am on the 3rd Sunday every month to remove invasive plants by hand from Huckleberry Park, one of the very few botanic preserves in the East Bay Regional Park system. Several plant communities thrive in Huckleberry Park, including live oak-bay woodland and maritime chaparral, which has several species unusual plants now threatened by development. At the turn of the last century, maritime chaparral grew in much of the Oakland-Berkeley hills, but decades of real estate development consumed most locations of this plant community. Now, you can find maritime chaparral only at Sobrante Ridge, Huckleberry/Sibley parks (adjacent), and Knowland Park in the Oakland city parks. Unlike more typical, inland chaparral communities, maritime chaparral adapted to take advantage of additional moisture from summer fog and relatively mild winters. Blooming season at Huckleberry Park often begins on New Year's Day, with the pink or white dangling urns of brittle-leaf and pallid manzanitas (Arctostaphylos crustacea and A. pallida). In February, yellow flowers of western leatherwood (Dirca occidentalis) join the late bloomers of the manzanitas, and about forty species of mosses and liverworts put on their greenest, most leafy display in February and March. Vascular plants flower on into spring, with huckleberries and madrones (Vaccinium ovatum and Arbutus menziesii) adding more dangling, pink urns in the heath family to replace the bloomed-out manzanitas. Fruits from these plants support an unusually large variety of migrant and resident birds. Unfortunately, exotic landscaping plants, such as French broom (Genista monspessulana), now edge the margins of Huckleberry Park, while cape ivy (Senecio mikanoides) and periwinkle (Vinca major) have gained a foothold in the park interior. Our crew aims to remove these invasive landscape imports with a minimum of disturbance, so that historic native plants can fill in the small voids left by weeding. Park staff provide support in the form of tools, gloves, water, and snacks--just be sure to return to the parking lot at 1 pm if you need to return borrowed tools or gloves. ******* Thanks to Ken-ichi Ueda for the photos ******* Rain? We go out in mist or light rain, but heavy rain cancels. Huckleberry Park has steep slopes and potential erosion problems, so the dividing line is there enough water on the ground to turn soil to mud? If yes, we simply meet again at the 2nd Saturday of next month. Light rain softens the ground, and actually makes work easier. When in doubt, I go up to the parking lot so no one is left wondering. ******* Public Transit: • Take AC Transit line 33 from downtown Oakland, Lake Merritt area or Piedmont. ******* As with any outdoor activity, there are inherent risks in participating. By attending the event, you agree that you are 100% responsible for your own safety, health and well being.

Join Janet Gawthrop and other volunteers restoring Huckleberry Park in the Oakland hills. Please note that you may be exposed to poison oak during this event so if you are sensitive to it you may wish to consider another event. ***** We meet year-round at 9:30 am on the 3rd Sunday every month to remove invasive plants by hand from Huckleberry Park, one of the very few botanic preserves in the East Bay Regional Park system. Several plant communities thrive in Huckleberry Park, including live oak-bay woodland and maritime chaparral, which has several species unusual plants now threatened by development. At the turn of the last century, maritime chaparral grew in much of the Oakland-Berkeley hills, but decades of real estate development consumed most locations of this plant community. Now, you can find maritime chaparral only at Sobrante Ridge, Huckleberry/Sibley parks (adjacent), and Knowland Park in the Oakland city parks. Unlike more typical, inland chaparral communities, maritime chaparral adapted to take advantage of additional moisture from summer fog and relatively mild winters. Blooming season at Huckleberry Park often begins on New Year's Day, with the pink or white dangling urns of brittle-leaf and pallid manzanitas (Arctostaphylos crustacea and A. pallida). In February, yellow flowers of western leatherwood (Dirca occidentalis) join the late bloomers of the manzanitas, and about forty species of mosses and liverworts put on their greenest, most leafy display in February and March. Vascular plants flower on into spring, with huckleberries and madrones (Vaccinium ovatum and Arbutus menziesii) adding more dangling, pink urns in the heath family to replace the bloomed-out manzanitas. Fruits from these plants support an unusually large variety of migrant and resident birds. Unfortunately, exotic landscaping plants, such as French broom (Genista monspessulana), now edge the margins of Huckleberry Park, while cape ivy (Senecio mikanoides) and periwinkle (Vinca major) have gained a foothold in the park interior. Our crew aims to remove these invasive landscape imports with a minimum of disturbance, so that historic native plants can fill in the small voids left by weeding. Park staff provide support in the form of tools, gloves, water, and snacks--just be sure to return to the parking lot at 1 pm if you need to return borrowed tools or gloves. ******* Thanks to Ken-ichi Ueda for the photos ******* Rain? We go out in mist or light rain, but heavy rain cancels. Huckleberry Park has steep slopes and potential erosion problems, so the dividing line is there enough water on the ground to turn soil to mud? If yes, we simply meet again at the 2nd Saturday of next month. Light rain softens the ground, and actually makes work easier. When in doubt, I go up to the parking lot so no one is left wondering. ******* Public Transit: • Take AC Transit line 33 from downtown Oakland, Lake Merritt area or Piedmont. ******* As with any outdoor activity, there are inherent risks in participating. By attending the event, you agree that you are 100% responsible for your own safety, health and well being.