SOD-SUDDEN OAK DEATH: A Threat and an Opportunity

While Sudden Oak Death, SOD, takes its name as an analog to the terrifying killer of human infants, in fact the course of this botanic infection is not sudden (though the death of an infected oak may appear sudden to the untrained eye) and oaks in general are not the end goal of the pathogen (only some oaks are susceptible, including the Coast Live Oaks of our East Bay ridgelands). The recent devastated forests of Marin County were overwhelmingly comprised of trees we call "Tan Oak", which, botanically speaking, are not oaks at all. Nevertheless, dead and down Tan Oaks compromise the entire environment of which they are a mainstay, and engender a greatly magnified fire danger. We certainly do not want this scenario to play out in the East Bay hills among our vulnerable, signature Coast Live Oaks. (For an excellent article on the destructive potential of this pathogen, follow this link: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2011/03/30/BAG11ILPL5.DTL)

At this time, there is no "cure" for SOD, but both treatments and strategies exist which may be employed to arrest or to slow the progress of the disease. In the East Bay we know positively that the pathogen is present, but we do not have a reliable or comprehensive assessment of its location except to say it has been identified in a small portion of Tilden Park and also in Huckleberry Regional Preserve.

On April 30-May 1 we have a unique opportunity to advance our knowledge of the local situation. Working with UC Berkeley’s Dr. Matteo Garbelotto (http://www.cnr.berkeley.edu/garbelotto/english/index.php) and the California Oak Mortality Task Force (www.suddenoakdeath.org), community organizations including Friends of Five Creeks, Friends of Sausal Creek, California Native Plant Society, and the Garber Park Stewards are seeking volunteers for a “blitz” survey of infected host plants--mainly California bay laurels. Volunteers will need to register on line at http://sodblitz.eventzilla.net to: 1. Attend a free one-hour training session and get survey materials, 1:30 PM Sat., April 30, on the UC Berkeley campus in Room 159 Mulford Hall [near Oxford & Hearst--campus map available at http://berkeley.edu/map/ ] AND 2. Look for infected leaves at locations of their choice or suggested by organizers. Volunteers return suspect samples to an on-campus drop box by 5 PM Sunday, May 1. The Forest Pathology Lab will publish results in a couple of months.

We think five or six volunteers can cover virtually all of Garber Park's 13 acres. If we can accomplish this degree of inspection we would have a valuable indication of the health of the Park. Tested information about the wildland trees in the urban neighborhood would also be very helpful. Please consider setting aside the time to participate and register promptly. If you have questions, contact the Garber Park Stewards or follow the links in this article.

The Stewards wish to thank Susan Schwartz, President of Friends of Five Creeks and long-time champion of wildland areas within our towns and cities for taking the lead in organizing and coordinating this event.

EARTH DAY IN GARBER PARK

Date:  Saturday, April 16    Time:  9 a.m.- NOON

Where:  Evergreen Lane Entrance

The Garber Park Stewards invite you to our second annual EARTH DAY event in Garber Park.  For folks who came last year, much has changed including the sunlighting of our springs and creeks, the substantial improvement of our Loop Trail, and the commencement of native restoration at our entrance hillside.  For volunteers who have not yet visited John Garber Park, Spring in all its manifestations will greet you.

We have a varied menu of activities for this EARTH DAY:

     For weeders and eco-academics alike, we will maintain, document, and weed our hillside restoration beds near the Evergreen Lane entrance, including Fireplace Plaza.

     For weed bashers and invasive plant warriors, we will continue our labors among the Himalayan Blackberry and focus heavily on the Cape Ivy near Horsetail Meadow and the Springs.

     For those who are especially concerned about Sudden Oak Death, Lech Naumovich, Botanist, will pre-survey Garber Park to help us identify areas and trees which we might test in the upcoming Sudden Oak Death (SOD) Blitz on April 30-May1. 

Maintenance at the Restoration Site

Today we focussed on our Hillside Restoration Site at the Evergreen Lane Entrance.  We weeded the planting beds and began eradication of the Cape ivy and Poison Hemlock that are trying to take over the area between the planting beds.  Lots of good news:  the plants ALL seem to be healthy, and the False Solomon’s Seal is blooming!  And, lots of new ferns and some native blackberry are emerging on the hillside.  Fireplace Plaza also received some much needed TLC.

Next Workday in Garber Park:  Earth Day on Saturday, April 16 from 9AM-Noon.  Meet at the Evergreen Lane Entrance


     

MARCH 19, 2011 GARBER GALLERY

Looking past the sturdy limbs of the Coast Live Oak at the Evergreen entrance to Garber Park.


A wood fern thriving in our Restoration Area.



The gorgeous colors of Spring at the Evergreen entrance.

Another Fun Day in the Rain

Where is the Himalayan blackberry?  Gone!
In its place snowberry, ferns, and cow parsnip.

It's raining so it must be a Saturday workday in Garber Park!  A stalwart group of three headed to the Harwood Creek area on the Lower Loop Trail.   The Himalayan blackberry bashers have been chopping away at the huge blackberry stand in this area since last fall, and have cleared the area along the creek from the Lower Loop Trail all the way to the Upper Loop Trail, freeing large stands of snowberry, ferns,  willows, and bay trees.  Today's task was to remove the last bit of blackberry growing amidst the snowberry, as well as the broom, poison hemlock, and Cape ivy that was only beginning to invade the area.  At the end of the day we looked up the hillside from the trail, smiling at what we have accomplished - we were looking at a hillside of snowberry, ferns, and cow parsnip.
Meanwhile, Mary was at The Restoration Site at the Evergreen Lane entrance conducting the first monthly photographic documentation of our recent planting on the hillside.  The plants are all thriving and enjoying these spring rains.  When we finally get a bit of sunshine we hope you will find time to come and walk the Loop Trail, enjoying Garber Park in its Spring beauty.

April Workdays:  Tuesday, April 2, 10AM-Noon, and Saturday, April 16 (Earth Day), 9AM-Noon.  We will be taking advantage of the soft ground to pull cape ivy, poison hemlock, and French broom, as well as trail maintenance and cleaning up the area around Fireplace Plaza.

A Glorious Day in Garber Park

The Garber Park Stewards had a rare day of sunshine for their Tuesday workday.  With Lech’s guidance we completed our Restoration Planting at the Evergreen Lane entrance.  We also had a special visitor, Rebecca Tuden, newly hired City of Oakland Watershed Specialist, who has been assigned the Measure DD project in Garber.  With Lech as our guide we had a most wonderful botanical walk through the park , introducing Rebecca to Garber, and observing the park in early Spring, with the buckeyes and big leaf maples budding, as well as the understory plants such as ferns, horsetail, and cow parsnip just beginning to emerge.  

We hope you can join us for our next workday, Saturday, March 19. Our planting completed we will once again turn our attention to eradicating the invasives, especially Cape ivy, French broom, and Himalayan blackberry.  As usual we will meet at 10AM at the Evergreen Lane entrance. 

  

RESTORATION PLANTING--A GREAT PARADE TO RAIN ON

   

Bob and Lech laying out the planting beds

Though we scheduled the planting of our hillside restoration project for Saturday, Feb. 19, in fact we started on the 18th because there was so much to do.   It was freezing cold and wet on Friday; the weather folks promised a mostly dry day on Saturday, but of course, the chilly, wet low pressure system outlived its welcome and made Saturday pretty miserable also.  None of us could show up for the bright sunny Sunday that followed, but seven of us did appear on Monday, Feb. 21, President's Day and we did finish the layout and planting.  Most important, we all had fun and finished each day with a great sense of satisfaction at a job well done.

Waiting to be planted

Stand at the Evergreen Entrance and you will see five separate restoration areas in which about 140 appropriately chosen native grasses, reeds, and shrubs have been planted to maximize their chances of survival and establishment.  We will watch them and document them throughout the year to observe which ones are the most comfortable and which ones do not particularly thrive. 

Our goal at the entrance hillside is to maximize the opportunity of increased sunlight on the 90 degree slope (made possible by the felling of the eucalyptus) to enhance the California Buckeye forest which occupies that area. As we have noted before, the Buckeyes are fast becoming a rarity in California and thoughtful conservation here in Garber Park might contribute substantially to their survival.  Attempting to restore a grassy, sunny hillside at the entrance has a long term function and a greater goal. 

Teamwork 

Our challenge of course is maintenance based on consistent documented observation – a challenge we are looking forward to as we continue with our twice a month stewardship days. 

Our next workday is Tuesday, March 1 @ 10AM.  We hope you will join us and watch our plants flourish.


For more on our restoration efforts see our January 30 blog entry-Restoration Begins

Special thanks to Lech Naumovich, Botanical, Conservation, and Restoration Consultant,
who worked with the Garber Park Stewards to develop the restoration plan.
His knowledge, energy, and enthusiasm as Team Leader was the primary reason
for our success.