Cal Student Habitat Restoration Leader Handbook
Restoring Biodiversity on U.C. Berkeley’s Watershed Lands
Tim Pine Tyler Grinberg Lindsey Sanders
First Edition Fall 2009
0 Table of Contents
Introduction……………………….……………………………………….2 Chapter 1: A History of the East Bay Watershed Lands…….……4 Chapter 2: Aquatic Life in Strawberry Creek………………….…...7 Chapter 3: Native Plant Identification……………………………..10 Chapter 4: Non-native, Invasive Plant Identification……………17 Chapter 5: Invasive Plant Management Techniques………………25 Chapter 6: Native Plant Propagation and Reintroduction………28 Chapter 7: Recruiting and Organizing Restoration Volunteers for the Strawberry Creek Restoration Project…………..30 Chapter 8: Ensuring Future Management and Stewardship of Restored Areas………………………………………….…32 Appendix A: Restoration Event Checklist………………………….33 Appendix B: Tool Supply List………………………………………..36 Appendix C: Useful Reference Material……………………………37
1 Introduction
Imagine. The sailing vessel you are on emerges from a thick bank of fog and suddenly, brilliant October sunshine floods the white capped waters in front of you. Your gaze now rises to the eastern shore line where you see golden hills dotted with islands of shrubs undulating upward to a green fringed ridge-top covered in tall forests. Across the tableau are sinuous green corridors spaced every mile or so that draw the eye down the hillsides and back to the shore line tinted emerald by the nearly continuous carpet of lush marsh vegetation. The skies are full of life; flocks of birds of all shapes, colors and sizes wheel above you and off into the distance. Yours are among the first foreign eyes to take in this vista and the time is mid-16th century.
Now it is 1959. Your vantage point is the same but the view is starkly different. A brown and stinking haze nearly obscures the East Bay hills. The factories, buildings and homes are hard to make out across the grimy and oil streaked waters of the Bay. There are gulls wheeling here and there overhead but not much else in the way of visible bird life. The shoreline ahead is marked by columns of smoke rising from refineries and heavy industry; the smell of petroleum, garbage and sewage reaches your nose. Homes and business cover the hills now from north to south, and, but for patches of green here and there across the landscape, the most notable landscape feature is the mountain of garbage rising on the Berkeley waterfront and the grid of boulevards and streets that crisscross the hills beyond.
If you were able to travel back in time to join the crew of a European sailing vessel that was among the first to sail to what is now the San Francisco Bay’s “East Bay” you would gain an appreciation for the wildness and rich diversity of life that once existed in this confluence of fresh and salt water, and temperate climate, and located at the crossroads of a multitude of migrating species.
The biodiversity that once existed in California’s post-Pleistocene central coast was amongst the richest of all temperate habitats in the world. That diversity existed in relative post glacial equilibrium for the better part of 10,000 years while at the same time supporting a tribal existence of native hunter-gatherers. These early “Californian” inhabitants reaped the benefits of a wide variety of foods and building resources and, located in the temperate climate of the Central California coast, their culture flourished for thousands of years.
While humans have always strived to influence their environments to improve their survival odds, the degree to which they were able to do so was for eons limited by the slow pace of migration and even slower exchange of technological advantages. Thus it was the ability to cross the great oceans of the planet by sailing ship, in pursuit of resources and riches, which proved to be the triggering event in the rapid change in California’s natural habitats.
The large influx of European settlers to California, beginning primarily with Spanish settlement in the late 1700’s, also marked the start of permanent habitat conversion and loss due to introduced organisms, and destructive land uses; a loss of biodiversity that continues in California to this day but one that reached a modern low point by the mid 20th century. It is from that nadir that we are now trying to heal.
The science, and art, of restoring damaged natural habitats is a relatively young discipline. For until recently, the bulk of human work sought to tame the natural world, to extract all the riches
2 that could be had, and to re-make our surroundings into something less wild and seemingly safer. We have seen now that the planet is not an infinitely deep well to be drawn from with no consequence. We have also seen that the planet is not a bottomless waste pit into which we can through our detritus without end to have it disappear, out of sight and mind forever. The truths have become all too apparent and the alarm we feel over disappearing resources, species, and livable space is startling.
However, there is a way forward. In the last four decades, humans have learned a great deal about healing ecosystems and undoing damage. We have proved we can restore at least some measure of what was lost. It is a difficult task; it requires desire, political will, education and financial resources but it can work. Give the natural world a chance to heal itself by putting back the basis of the food chain that existed before, and often the healing will sustain itself— sometimes within the span of a human life or in many cases, even less time.
Today, with dire news of global evidence of our past mistakes becoming painfully apparent, there is a strong desire among many humans to take action to heal our immediate surroundings in a way that returns an almost instantaneous result for our efforts; both visible and sensual, in a way that voting for tougher environmental regulations or changing our personal behaviors is not. The strong desire for hands-on action finds no better outlet than restoring natural habitats within your own surroundings. The restoration of natural habitats is an endeavor that returns an almost immediate benefit to those who engage in the hard work of undoing the mistakes of past generations, and, with nurturing, provides a gift to the future of almost immeasurable value.
This handbook is intended to give guidance to those of the UC Berkeley community who wish, through the expenditure of their own sweat and determination, to make a difference immediately, to take back some of what was lost over the last several centuries of human influence from the lands now called University of California at Berkeley. Through this written resource, we hope you gain some of the whys and wherefores of natural habitat restoration, some techniques, and some methods that will help your efforts to restore lost habitats be as enjoyable and as effective as can be.
3 Chapter 1: A History of the East Bay Watershed Lands
Excerpted from the Guide to East Bay Creeks:
For most of the East Bay's human history, life revolved around local creeks as sources of water, food, and many other needs. Hunting, fishing, cooking, and drinking all depended upon a healthy watershed. But in the 20th century, Bay Area cities began importing water from the High Sierra, and the local creeks came to be seen as more of a nuisance than a necessity. People lost their intuitive connection to the watersheds they inhabit. Only recently has a deliberate effort begun to reawaken understandings once so obvious they needed no articulation.
The original East Bay residents, the Ohlone Indians, situated their villages near the mouths of creeks. In part, this was because of the abundant shellfish beds and other food sources located there. You can still find traces of that past in the piles of shells the Ohlones left near the shore. Shell Mound Avenue in Emeryville bears the name of a shell mound that existed at the mouth of Temescal Creek well into the 20th century.
Further upstream, the creeks were good places to wait for game, and the Ohlones fished for steelhead and salmon. They sometimes dammed creeks to irrigate small pieces of land. During spring and summer, the Ohlones gathered acorns in the hills and used creek water for leaching and cooking acorn mush.
When creeks quit flowing during the dry season, the Ohlones dug wells along their banks. They also built sweatlodges along creeks, working up a sweat in the heated huts and then plunging into the water to cool off. One such lodge gave Temescal Creek its name, temescal being derived from an Aztec word for sweatlodge.
When the Spanish built their missions in the late 1700s, they brought cattle and other livestock, which made the biggest single impact on the landscape before urbanization. Livestock caused enormous damage to creeks because cattle gather there for shade and water. Grazing denuded the banks, then trampling destroyed the streambed contour, eliminating shelter for fish. On the hillsides, grazing brought the decline of native bunchgrasses and led to erosion.
The damage grew worse after Mexico's independence. Lands were granted to the Peralta and Vallejo families, who worked their ranchos for profit and greatly increased herd sizes.
4 Another landmark transformation of the East Bay followed the discovery of gold in 1848, shortly after the United States took California from Mexico. In one year, San Francisco boomed from 500 residents to 25,000.
To build the new city, a logging frenzy followed in the San Antonio Forest, which once marked the headwaters of Redwood and San Leandro creeks. The trees, so tall they served as navigational landmarks for ships entering the Golden Gate, were reportedly 12 to 20 feet in diameter. The use of creeks as skid roads and the denuding of the hillsides resulted in erosion and flooding.
Soon afterward, in 1852, the City of Oakland incorporated. Simultaneously, an informal community established itself at the mouth of Strawberry Creek in what became Berkeley. Called Ocean View, the community had, as an early economic enterprise, a gristmill that used water from the creek. Hayward and San Leandro sprang up alongside creeks in the 1860s, using local water from dams and wells for homes and small industry.
East Bay urbanization leaped forward following Oakland's establishment as the transcontinental railroad's terminus in 1869. Sensing future demand, Anthony Chabot started the East Bay's first centralized water system in the late 1860s, with Lake Temescal as the first reservoir. Chabot later used hydraulic monitors (water cannons), which he developed for gold mining, to carve out a canyon in San Leandro Creek, creating the reservoir named Lake Chabot.
With urban development came the gradual destruction of creeks and marshes. Dramatic examples are the tailings of Chabot's hydraulic excavation and the enclosure of an arm of the Oakland Estuary to create Lake Merritt. About the same time, the young University of California dammed Strawberry Creek for a small water system, and downstream in Ocean View the water level in wells dropped. Thus began the first big battle between hill and flatland residents over water rights.
After the turn of the century, the Bay Area took the final leap away from dependence on its own watershed. San Francisco built the Hetch Hetchey system in the Sierra Nevada for water, and the urban East Bay followed suit with Pardee Reservoir. The largest cities joined forces in 1923 to form the East Bay Municipal Utility District (EBMUD). For the first time in the human history of the East Bay, local creeks seemed irrelevant to survival.
Early plans for East Bay development called for preserving the East Bay's creeks as ribbons of riparian parkland. These would have been assets to the neighborhoods and would have allowed the creeks room to shift their courses without causing property damage. Unfortunately, the necessary land was never acquired. Urbanization during the 1920s and 1930s spread right up to the creek banks, absorbing the greenbelts.
By this point, people had lost their connection to creeks as necessary for survival; they came to regard them more as threats or nuisances to be controlled. With urban encroachment, the streams encountered a number of problems. Dumping of automobiles, shopping carts, yard wastes, et cetera blocked the streams, reducing their capacity to carry runoff. Pavement and roofs increased runoff, which increased flooding, which caused creeks to change course, which damaged buildings built too near the creeks. Early sewers fed into the creeks. Even after sewers were
5 separated from storm drains, urban runoff brought street grime and toxics into the creeks. So many creeks became health hazards.
To address these problems, East Bay cities and Alameda County formed the Alameda County Flood Control District. Together, they built various public works projects, including storm drains, flood control channels, concrete walls, and dams. These structures efficiently carried runoff from the hills to the Bay, minimizing property damage, and dealt with the dumping and pollution problems by isolating people from the creeks.
Even as the creeks were first being buried, early groups formed to recognize their value and fight for their preservation. Annie Maybeck, wife of architect Bernard Maybeck, helped found the Hillside Club in Berkeley, which urged road builders to follow the contours of the landscape and keep at least some creeks open. But most of the creeks of Oakland and Berkeley continued to be converted into flood control structures, without regard for aesthetic or ecological values. This disregard has spawned a rapidly growing urban-creeks restoration movement, which advocates recognizing and valuing our connection to the watershed we inhabit, and incorporating wildland resource values into flood-control and creek-restoration projects.
Pollock, S., S. Hall and C. Richardson. 2008. Guide to East Bay Creeks. The Oakland Museum of California. Oakland. California. USA.
6 Chapter 2: Aquatic Life in Strawberry Creek
When observing a riparian community, it is important to notice the intricate relationships between organisms in that community. Terrestrial plant species along riparian corridors help to maintain ideal temperatures, turbidity levels, dissolved oxygen concentrations, and species indexes within nearby streams. Tree species such as Redwoods (Sequoia sempervirens) provide invaluable services to stream systems. Their high, thick canopies act as buffers for the entire stream ecosystem. Shading inhibits growth of invasive species and maintains stream temperature, which allows for higher dissolved oxygen levels to stimulate healthy growth. In heavily canopied areas, algal growth is directly inhibited due to low levels of light penetration. Redwoods are also especially adept at bank stabilization, which decreases stream turbidity to create healthy conditions for aquatic communities.
Two other native tree species found in our local watershed adept at bank stabilization are the Big leaf maple (Acer macrophyllum) and Coast live oak (Quercus agrifolia). The leaves of these tree species have relatively high surface area and are susceptible to bacterial growth, providing a great food source for stream invertebrates.
Another key relationship among native species in riparian corridors is a natural system of checks and balances by which the entire stream community can suppress the emergence of one particular dominant species. This system supports biodiversity in the area. This is possible through thousands, if not millions, of years of co-evolution with neighboring plants, insects, mammals, bacteria, and fungi. All of these organisms functioning amongst one another comprise the natural systems observed today.
When humans enter a natural community, they disrupt the intricate relationships between the organisms living there, most often in negative ways. A few negative human activities include the dispersal of invasive plants into previously uninfected areas and the addition of undesirable nutrients and waste products.
The Impact of Invasive Plants on Aquatic Life Invasive plants often out-compete and disrupt natural systems. Stream invertebrates which feed on leaf litter inputs from trees don’t often respond well to changes in their diet, caused by a change in the canopy cover. The local example of this can be observed in the Grinnell Natural Area’s Eucalyptus grove. Although Eucalyptus is adept at bank stabilization, its leaves do not provide the same nutritional value to the stream system as the Coast live oak and Big leaf maple leaves. Eucalyptus leaves have a small surface area and contain a toxin which inhibits herbivory and bacterial growth.
Trees provide needed shade to streams which inhibits algal growth. When ivy outcompetes native trees, algae populations increase with the increased light availability. Algae are very invasive organisms which inhibit aquatic diversity, shifting the stream organism composition and lowering stream benthic macroinvertebrate (BMI) diversity.
Another detriment witnessed when tree species are out-competed by invasive plants is bank collapse. Where strong roots once prevented banks from eroding, only shallowly rooted ivy vines
7 remain. This bank collapse increases creek turbidity which decreases available oxygen levels. When this happens, you see a decrease in biodiversity and stream velocity.
The Impact of Pollutants on Aquatic Life
1. Nitrates A common gardening procedure is the application of fertilizers (both organic and inorganic). These fertilizers all contain one common nutrient essential for plant growth—nitrogen. When these fertilizers are employed excessively, there is a high likelihood of nutrient runoff reaching nearby stream systems. When these nitrates reach the stream system they cause many problems, the first of which is the exponential growth of algae. This process is referred to as an algal bloom.
Although the notion of stimulating algal growth may not appear to be detrimental to aquatic life, long-term algal growth will essentially “suffocate” the majority of organisms found in streams. This process is apparent through the concentrations of algae covering rocks and dominating pools. This algae decreases stream velocity which in turn decreases dissolved oxygen levels and conductivity. After some time, the nitrate runoff is depleted and the algae begin to dieback. These diebacks increase concentrations of carbon in the water, creating a more acidic, poisonous, and turbid environment for many aquatic organisms.
2. Phosphates Phosphates enter aquatic systems primarily through runoff produced by cleaning solutions. Cleaning solutions are generally composed of alkaline solids or liquids. Manufacturers add high concentrations of phosphates to these solutions, in the form of sodium tripolyphosphate, to balance out this alkalinity. When excess cleaning solutions are used, the left over alkaline solution is released into nearby aquatic systems.
Phosphates can be harmful to stream ecosystems through the inhibition of plant growth and aquatic organism development.! The removal of keystone organisms greatly increases the survival rate of more tolerant baseline species (able to survive in very nasty conditions). This survival leads to the ultimate decimation of the system and reduced water quality.
3. Oil (sludge from street runoff) Many urban creeks, Strawberry Creek being no exception, are located within close proximity to heavily trafficked roads. Due to the topographic layouts of riparian zones, rains carry pollutants emitted from automobiles across impermeable pavements, through nearby soils and ultimately into water ways. One common automobile effluent is oil, which can suffocate stream organisms. This input increases turbidity, decreases conductivity, and negatively impacts plant growth.
Determining Water Quality One method by which restoration leaders can test water quality is through chemical testing. This involves either testing water samples in a laboratory environment or using appliances directly in the stream’s current. There are a couple of distinct advantages to this method of observation with the foremost being that you can identify which respective polluting compounds are found in
8 solution. In addition to individual identification, you can also detect concentrations of these compounds for distillation purposes.
When you employ a chemical method in water quality testing, you also run a large risk, based on the fact that you are only testing the water at one particular moment, with almost no derivable history. This is due to nature of constant flow in streams, but is less of a concern for testing lakes and ponds. Biomonitoring A fairly new and popular method for determining water quality is a survey of aquatic life. Scientists have found that particular species are more insensitive to adverse conditions while others are only found in pristine conditions. Therefore, you can determine the water quality of an aquatic system by indentifying aquatic organisms and determining how tolerant particular species are of pollutants in their environment.
For creeks, this is widely practiced on the invertebrate level in studies known as Benthic Macroinvertebrate (BMI) surveys. In these surveys, invertebrate samples are collected along predetermined, representative riffles and evaluated for tolerant/intolerant species richness. If high proportions of sensitive taxa such as Ephemeroptera, Plecoptera, and Trichoptera (EPT) are present then the creek’s water Is considered high quality.
One benefit of determining water quality using biomonitoring is that the information you observe reflects the creek’s water quality over time. Harmful pollutants are often washed downstream by the time sampling occurs. Biomonitoring tests the effects pollutants have on an aquatic system when they were introduced.
9 Chapter 3: Native Plant Identification
A native plant is one which occurs naturally in an area, or has been there for such an extended period of time that it has become ‘naturalized’ with other native vegetation. Essentially, native plants are those which grew in an area before European arrival. These plants have become highly specialized to the areas they grow in, co-evolving with other local animals, fungi, and microbes. The preservation of native plants is important for many reasons: • Source of food and shelter for native animals • Aesthetic quality to the landscape which cannot be matched by a monoculture of invasive plants • Local plant biodiversity • Development of new medicines and industrial products: the greater the plant diversity, the greater chance of making a new scientific discovery. Primary Source: CNPS 2009
Aesculus californica California Buckeye
Distinctive identification features • Erect single or multi-stemmed small tree; mature trees grow to 12-30 ft and 4-6 in around; short trunk with many branches; crown is flat to rounded and very broad • Leaves: deciduous, opposite, palmately compound, 5-7 serrated, oblong leaflets, 3-6 in long • Flowers and Fruits: flowers are pinkish white and bloom May to July as multi-branched flowers which can reach 1 ft in length; fruits are pear-shaped leathery capsules, 2 in long
Growing conditions Woodland and foothills tree, can also grow in riparian areas and on hot, dry slopes.
Range Grows primarily along the Pacific coast west of the Coast Ranges in California, but can also be found in the Sierra foothills and the Tehachapi Mountains
Other interesting facts • Individuals can live to be 200 years old • All parts of this tree are toxic to humans and wildlife • Native Americans ground up the seeds to stun fish and ate the mashed, leached seeds • Male and female trees exist Primary Source: Stuart and Sawyer 2001 Photo Source: Plant Oregon 2009
10 Umbellularia californica California Bay
Distinctive identification features • Erect, single or multi-stemmed medium sized tree; mature trees grow to 30-80 ft; crown is rounded and conical • Leaves: evergreen, alternate, leathery, elliptical in shape, 2-6 in, upper surface dark green, lower surface light green • Flowers and Fruits: yellowish flowers in small clusters at base of leaves; fruits begin green and turn purple when mature • Bark: brown and broken into exfoliating scales
Growing conditions Found in forests and woodlands, this plant sprouts vigorously at elevations below 5,000 ft and grows on a wide variety of soil types. It is shade tolerant.
Range Found in Western California and southwest Oregon.
Other interesting facts • Crushed leaves emit a strong peppery aroma and are commonly used in cooking. • Used by Native Americans to treat headaches and as insect repellant. Primary Source: Stuart and Sawyer 2001 Photo Source: Mactavish 2006 Acer macrophyllum Bigleaf Maple
Distinctive identification features • Erect, single-stemmed tall tree; mature trees grow to 100 ft; crown is extensive and domed • Leaves: opposite, simple, deciduous; blades palmate, 5-lobed, course edges, largest are 14 in long • Flowers and Fruits: flowers are yellowish green and found in long clusters; bloom April to May; fruits are samaras covered in stiff hairs, wings diverge at oblique angles • Bark: dark and deeply fissured
Growing conditions Prefers riparian areas below 5,000 ft
Range From Alaska to California (excluding the Central Valley)
Primary Source: Stuart and Sawyer 2001 Photo Source: Ratamera 2007
11 Quercus agrifolia Coast Live Oak
Distinctive identification features • Erect, single stemmed, medium sized tree, mature trees grow 30-80 ft tall, short trunk with many crooked branches, crowns are dense and rounded, with foliage reaching the ground • Leaves: evergreen, simple, alternate, leathery, oval, convex; blades 1-3 in long, spiny-toothed with rounded tips; upper surface dark green, lower surface pale green • Fruits: acorns with brown egg-shaped nuts 1 in long, caps enclose about one quarter of the nut • Bark: thick with broad ridges, dark gray
Growing conditions Grows best in woodlands and chaparral, but also common in riparian zones on lower elevation slopes. Prefers well drained soils below 5,000 ft. Shade tolerant.
Range Pacific coast from Northern California down to Baja California. Primarily found on the coast side of the Coast Ranges, but also found near streams in the Central Valley
Other interesting facts • Fires resistant due to thick bark and sprouting ability • Acorns provide food for wildlife, and were eaten by the Native Americans Primary Source: Stuart and Sawyer 2001 Photo Source: Littell
Heteromeles arbutifolia Toyon
Distinctive identification features • Shrub or small tree, mature tree grows to 15 ft tall and 15 in around • Leaves: alternate, evergreen, leathery, blades are glossy and elliptical, 204 in long with toothed margins • Flowers and Fruits: flowers are white in flat-topped clusters; fruits are pomes that are red or yellow, 1.4 in diameter
Growing conditions Common in woodlands and chaparral regions, also occurs in foothills, found at elevations below 4,000 ft
Range Common throughout Western California as far east as the Sierra Nevada foothills
Primary Source: Stuart and Sawyer 2001 Photo Source: Bon Terra Consulting 2004
12 Corylus cornuta californica California Hazel
Distinctive identification features • Erect, multi stemmed shrub or small tree, mature plants grow to 6- 12 ft tall, !-1 ft in diameter, crowns are rounded with many branches • Leaves: deciduous, simple, hairy, soft, round, 2-4 in long; doubly serrated edges, upper leaf is dark green, lower leaf is light green • Flowers and Fruits: hairy catkins up to 3 in long appear in the spring, followed by small red flower clusters; fruits are round nuts in a papery husk
Growing conditions Occurs primarily in riparian mountainous areas along streams and in most, shady sites under canopy cover
Range Pacific Coast from Canada down through California.
Primary Source: Stuart and Sawyer 2001 Photo Source: Morrison
Rubus ursinus California Blackberry
Distinctive identification features • Plant with vines which grow to 20 ft long; vines have thin prickles throughout • Leaves: semi deciduous, compound, 3 leaflets, 1-3 in long; upper leaf dark green, lower leaf pale green • Flowers and fruits: flowers are white in small clusters; fruits are blackberries, black, shiny, edible, best pickings found in July • Stems: flexible, round, hairless, may be slightly waxy, slender prickles
Growing conditions Grows at elevations lower than 5,000 ft in most all environments besides the desert, particularly forest, woodland, and open habitat.
Range California (exception: southeastern CA) Primary Source: Stuart and Sawyer 2001 Photo Source: Nekko Information Systems
13 Rubus parviflorus Thimbleberry
Distinctive identification features • Erect shrub, can grow 6 ft tall • Leaves: deciduous, simple, palmately lobed, 2-6 in long, 5-7 lobed, heart shaped base, covered in soft hairs • Flowers and Fruits: flowers white or pink in small clusters of 4-7; fruits red when mature, raspberry-like, edible
Growing conditions Found primarily in moist areas under tree canopy, but can grow in most areas. Found below 9,000 ft. Often occurs along forest edges.
Range California west of the Coast Range and through the Sierra Nevadas and their foothills. Not found in the Central Valley or southeastern desert.
Other interesting facts • In the Sierras, stems can rarely survive the cold winter and may remain near ground level Primary Source: Stuart and Sawyer 2001 Photo Source: Baskauf 2005
Achillea millefolium californica California yarrow
Distinctive identification features • Plant with an un-branched stem, 1-3 ft tall • Leaves: grayish-green, • Flowers: small, daisy-like, white, form in flat or domed clusters of 3-4 in
Growing conditions Meadows and below 13,000 ft, often founding close proximity to forest ecosystems
Range California and the Pacific US
Primary Source: Las Pilitas Photo Source: Larner Seeds
14 Eschscholzia californica California poppy
Distinctive identification features • Upright, annual or perennail flower, alternative-branching foliage 1-1 ! ft tall • Leaves: green-grey, feathery, divided into lobed areas • Flowers and Fruits: pale yellow or orange, 4 petals, cup-shaped, one flower grows per plant; open only in the sunlight; blooms February-September
Range Southwestern US and northern Mexico
Growing conditions Meadows and open areas below 6,500 ft, prefers full sunlight and sandy soils
Other interesting facts • All parts of the plant are toxic to humans if eaten • Drought tolerant • California state flower Primary Source: Encyclopedia Britannica 2009 Photo Source: Heilman
Nassella pulchra Purple needlegrass
Distinctive identification features • Perennial grass • Leaf: blade, from 6 in-2 ft in length
Growing conditions Found in chaparral, grasslands, and oak woodlands
Range Northern California to southern Baja California
Other interesting facts • Drought tolerant—roots hold a large amount of water at one time, also making it partially fire-resistant • Before European arrival, was the dominant species of native bunchgrass in California
Primary Source: Hickman 1993 Photo Source: Witham 2004 References
15 California Native Plant Council [CNPS]. 2009. Native Plants,
Encyclopedia Britannica. 2009. California poppy,
Hickman, J.C. (ed). 1993. The Jepson Manual: Higher Plants of California. University of California Press. Berkeley and Los Angeles, California, USA.
Las Pilitas. Achillea millefolium,
Stuart, J.D. and J.O. Sawyer. 2001. Trees and Shrubs of California. University of California Press, Berkeley and Los Angeles, California, USA.
Photo Sources Baskauf, S.J. 2005. Leaf,
Heilman, G. California poppy,
Larner Seeds. Achillea millefolium,
Littell, J.V. Coast Live Oak (Quercus agrifolia), winter, Prince Road, Redwood Regional Park, < http://www.bahiker.com>
Mactavish, M. 2006. Mountain View Cemetary, Oakland—baby bay laurel tree,
Morrison, P. A young hazel,
Nekko Information Systems. Blackerries thrive in Northern California,
Plant Oregon. 2009. Aesculus California—California Buckeye,
Ratamera. 2007. Bigleaf Maple, < http://www.flickr.com/photos>
Witham, C.W. 2004. Nassella pulchra; Purple Tussockgrass,
16 Chapter 4: Non-native Invasive Plant Identification
California is a diverse state with a variety of habitats caused by the differing climate, topography, and geology between regions. This allows for an incredible diversity of native plant species throughout the state. However, these diverse regions also provide opportunities for non- native species to infiltrate ecosystems. Fortunately, less than 10% of the 1,045 non-native species in California are invasive.
Invasive species are the second largest threat to native plant biological diversity worldwide. They have a competitive advantage in invaded ecosystems due to a lack of natural restraints. Invasive plants often have negative effects on native habitats, altering nutrient cycles, hydrology, sediment deposition, fire regimes, and erosion patterns. Invasive plants can outcompete native plants for resources, suppress native species recruitment, alter community structure, degrade and eliminate native habitat, and provide food and shelter for unwanted non-native animals.
Invasive plants are generally characterized by having short juvenile periods, short intervals between seed crops, and small seed mass. They are able to enter into communities after large natural disasters (such as floods and droughts) which upset community dynamics before native plants can reestablish themselves. It is important to remember that in performing invasive plant removal, the goal is not to harm the invasive plants, but rather to provide a better habitat for the establishment of native species.
Primary Sources: Randall et al 1998, Scott and Wilcove 1998, Bossard et al 2000, Roques et al 2001, Rejmanek and Richardson 2006
Acacia dealbata Silver Wattle Acacia
Distinctive identification features • Erect, large tree • Leaves: silvery and hairy, 1-2 in long, opposite compound with 10- 25 pairs of leaflets • Flowers: bright yellow, small and round, 25-30 found in a bunch
Place of origin Australia
Best growing conditions Common in disturbed areas off roadsides, grows best at elevations higher than 1,500 ft.
Primary Source: Hickman 1993 Photo Source: Taylor 2002
17 Aristotelia chilensis Chilean wineberry, Macqui berry
Distinctive identification features • Erect, medium sized shrub or small tree, multi-branching at base, mature trees grow to 10-13 ft • Leaves: evergreen, glossy, oval-shaped with a pointed tip; upper leaf dark green • Flowers and Fruits: flowers are small, star-shaped, yellow-greenish; fruits are small, black or purple berries • Young shoots and stalks have a reddish color
Place of origin Chile
Best growing conditions Prefers areas with sun or light shade Primary Source: Patagonia Plants 2009 Photo Source: Mariena 2004
Eucalyptus globulus Common Eucalyptus, Blue Gum
Distinctive identification features • Tall, single-stemmed, straight tree, grows 150-180 ft • Leaves: opposite, waxy, blue, sickle-shaped; young leaves are oval shaped and have square stems • Flowers and Fruits: flowers are short, 1-flowered, yellow- white fuzzy appearance; fruits are blue-gray, 4-ribbed, ring around the upper rim, produced abundantly • Bark: sheds in long strips, leaving smooth yellow areas against rough gray bark
Place of origin Australia. Came to California as an ornamental tree in 1853. Continually planted for timber and fuel through the 19th century
Best growing conditions Prefers Mediterranean regions. Primarily planted along the coast in California. Grows in small groves near grassland habitat, can also be found in urban areas. Requires well draining soil.
Other Interesting Information • Considered the most dangerous tree worldwide for spreading fires due to spread of stringy bark material during the fire, carrying the burn to other areas. Primary Source: Bosard et al 2000 Photo Source: Star and Star 2007
18 Hedera canariensis Algerian ivy
Distinctive identification features • Spreading perennial vine • Leaves: dark green, leathery, 1.5-4 in long, 3-5 lobed • Vines: can grow up to 100 ft in length, remain low to the ground but have adventitious stems which may climb up vertical building walls and trees
Place of origin Native to the Canary Islands, Portugal, the Azores, and North Africa
Key invasion strategies • Vegetative reproduction: roots are produced from stem nodes, allowing for re-sprouting from clippings and easy mobility through transport of stems by water and animals. • Has the ability to entirely take over a section of forest, blocking native shrubs and wildflowers from space and sunlight availability. • As an evergreen plant it photosynthesizes all year long, increasing growth.
Best growing conditions A common feature in forests near urban areas. Can be supported by a wide range of soil types from basic to acidic and waterlogged to very dry. Prefers at least partial sunlight.
Other interesting facts • The ivy vine represents its juvenile stage which can last up to 10 years. At a mature age the ivy forms a shrub which produces white flowers and purple fruits. • Once in the upper canopy, vines can shade out deciduous foliage, leading to a cyclic process as more foliage dies out and there is more sunlight available for vine growth. The added weight of ivy covered in water and frost can make trees more vulnerable during strong winds and rains. • Shallow root system. Primary Source: Bossard et al 2000 Photo Source: Sita 2007
19 Vinca major Periwinkle
Distinctive identification features • Spreading perennial vine • Leaves: dark green, waxy, 2-3 in long, opposite along stem • Flowers: purple, bloom from spring to fall • Non-flowering stems lie flat along the ground, flowering stews stand erect up to 1.5 ft tall (about knee height)
Place of origin Originally from southeastern Europe and northern Africa, Periwinkle was brought to the US for use as an ornamental landscaping groundcover.
Key invasion strategies • Vegetative reproduction: roots are produced from stem nodes, allowing for re-sprouting from clippings and easy mobility through transport of stems by water and animals • As an evergreen plant it photosynthesizes all year long, increasing growth
Best growing conditions Moist Riparian zones—does not grow well in dry soil or direct sunlight. Primary Source: Bossard et al. 2000 Photo Source: Trnkoczy 2004
Malva neglecta Common Mallow
Distinctive identification features • Annual plant • Stem: low to ground, thin, densely hairy • Leaf: blade 1-3 in, 5-7 obscure lobes • Flower: pale purple or white, ! in wide petals, 3-6 per axil, blooms May to October.
Place of origin Eurasia
Best growing conditions Prefers disturbed regions lower than 8,000 ft.
Primary Source: Hickman 1993 Photo Source: McKenzie 2006
20 Medicago polymorpha California burclover
Distinctive identification features • Annual broadleaf legume • Leaves: oblong, characteristic clover-like shape • Stems: up to 2 ft long, often trail along the ground, can become erect in thick stands • Flowers: yellow, small, form in clusters near the stem ends • Seed: bur; several tan colored oval seeds inside
Place of origin Southern Europe
Best growing conditions Does poorly on low fertility soils, such as granitic, sulfur deficient, and dry soils.
Other interesting facts • Often planted and eaten by livestock in fields—very nutritious and can cause livestock to bloat Primary Source: UC IPM 2008 Photo Source: McDonald 2008
Stellaria media Common Chickweed
Distinctive identification features • Annual garden weed • Leaves: light green, !- " in long, arranged opposite, normally smooth in texture • Stems: run along the ground, peaking upward at the ends where flowers appear • Flowers: white, 5 deeply lobed petals (appear to be 10 petals), alone or in small clusters
Place of origin Native to Europe
Key invasion strategies • Vegetative reproduction from stem nodes
Best growing conditions Thrives in the shade and cool weather Primary Source: Robbins et al 1951 Photo Source: Kingdom Plantae 2006
21 Sonchus oleraceus Annual sow-thistle
Distinctive identification features • Annual plant, grows 1-4 feet high • Leaves: prickly, green to greenish-blue, initially form a ground based rosette then grow upwards, lower leaves are stalked, divided into broad-toothed and spiny segments with last segment the longest • Flowers: pale yellow
Place of origin Native to Europe and Asia
Key invasion strategies • Spreads by seed carried by the wind
Other interesting facts • Taproot Primary Source: Robbins et al 1951 Photo Source: Rignanese 2007
Ehrharta erecta Ehrharta, Panic veldt grass
Distinctive identification features • Perennial grass (appearance similar to crab-grass) • Stems: ascend from a common base near the ground, branching, 12- 24 in tall • Leaves: flat blade, 2-5 in long, >.5 in wide,
Place of origin Arrived in the San Francisco Bay from southern Africa in the 1930’s as an adventive grass.
Key invasion strategies • Vegetative reproduction: roots are produced from stem nodes. • Seeds are also spread by the wind and can spread very quickly in wildland areas.
Best growing conditions Does not seem to show preference for habitat—found in both shady and exposed habitats in a variety of soil types. Primary Source: Bossard et al 2000 Photo Source: Bors 2009
22 Bromis diandrus rigidus Ripgut brome
Distinctive identification features • 6-30 in tall • Leaves: blade 1-3 in wide, rough margins, generally soft • Inflorescence: blooms April to June • Spikelets: compressed, rough, lower glume 1-veined, lower glume 3- veined
Place of origin Mediterranean Europe
Best growing conditions Found at elevations lower than 6,000 ft. Prefers open, generally disturbed areas. Primary Source: Hickman 1993 Photo Source: Charters 2005
References Bossard, C.C., J. Randall, and M.C. Hoshovsky. 2000. Invasive Plants of California’s Wildlands. University of California Press, Los Angeles, California, USA.
Hickman, J.C. (ed). 1993. The Jepson Manual: Higher Plants of California. University of California Press. Berkeley and Los Angeles, California, USA.
Patagonia Plants. 2009. Aristotelia chilensis,
Randall, J.M, M. Rejmanek, and J.C. Hunter. 1998. Characteristics of exotic flora of California. Fremontia 26: 3-12.
Rejmánek, M & Richardson, D.M. 1996. What attributes make some plant species more invasive? Ecology 77: 655–661.
Robbins, W.W., M. Bellue, W.S. Ball. 1951. Weeds of California, California Department of Agriculture, Sacramento, California, USA.
Roques, K.G., Conner, T.G & Watkinson, A.R. 2001 Dynamics of shrub encroachment in an African savanna relative influences of fire, herbivory, rainfall and density dependence. Journal of Applied Ecology, 38: 268-280
Scott, J. M., and D. S. Wilcove. 1998. Improving the Future for Endangered Species. BioScience 48:579-580.
University of California, Integrated Pest Management Program [UC IPM]. 2008. California burclover,
23 Photo Sources Bors, M. 2009. Ehrharta erecta, < http://calphotos.berkeley.edu >
Charters, M.L. 2005. Bromus diandrus,
Kingdom Plantae. 2006. Chickweed,
Mariena. 2004. Aritotelia chilensis “Maqui”,
McDonald, G. 2008. Bur Clover, < http://calphotos.berkeley.edu >
McKenzie, S. 2006. McKenzie Landscaping: Common Mallow,
Rignanese, L. 2007. Sonchus oleraceus, < http://calphotos.berkeley.edu >
Sita. 2007. Hedera,
Star, F., and K. Star. 2007. Blue gum,
Taylor, D. 2002. Acacia dealbata, Silver Wattle, < http://calphotos.berkeley.edu >
Trnkoczy A. 2004. Vinca major: Bigleaf Periwinkle, < http://calphotos.berkeley.edu>
24 Chapter 5: Invasive Plant Management Techniques
Key Steps in the Management of Invasive Weeds
1. Establish restoration goals The first step is to decide what area needs restoration. With limited funding, this can sometimes be a difficult task. Places where structured teaching and learning takes place, like colleges and universities, are often a good place to start. Sometimes the best option is to choose an area with high biodiversity (currently not largely impacted by invasive species) and protect this area from future invasion (state and national parks are a natural system within which to implement this aggressive defensive proposition and already, policies and practices are in place that do exactly that).
Next you must decide what past state you would like to restore the area to—this could be as far back as the last ice age or as recently as before the industrial revolution.
It is important to think of the new role the weed species will play in the system after restoration, as the complete removal of an invasive is difficult to attain. The goal of the management program should be to preserve a species, community, or local ecosystem.
2. Identify invasive species that require removal/management Manageable species are often easy to identify through simple observation of an area. This might mean identifying a species of concern already in an environment, or a species sitting on the cusp of invading, which must be stopped at all costs. Highest priority should be given to species that cause the most damage to natives and that can most readily establish themselves in new areas, or species which can be most easily removed.
Take a walk-through of the management site to identify major areas needing immediate management efforts. Google Earth is another cool technology you can use to view your area and see where management needs to take place (that is if your site is not under a canopy, of course). During this ‘mapping’ of your restoration area, it is also important to identify desirable native plants that may be in harms way during invasive removal.
3. Decide on a management technique There are many control options available for invasive management including manual removal, replanting of natives, prescribed burns, mulching, biological controls, and chemical controls. You should choose your management technique based on its effectiveness of removing your target species, funding available, and realistic potential of the technique (for instance, a prescribed burn may not be possible in an urban setting).
4. Implement your management plan Put your plan into action! Having a good inventory and invaded area map is invaluable in helping Restoration Leaders select an appropriate area for any given group of volunteers. For instance, a small group of a half dozen volunteers should be matched with an area where the labor of a few can make a reasonable dent in the species to be removed.
25 5. Monitor the effectiveness of your plan The follow through is very important to any management plan. All too often invasive management plans will be started and forgotten within a few months (after the first round of clearing perhaps), allowing the invasives to grow back rapidly once they are left unmanaged. Restoration efforts are a never ending project, and have to be continually monitored to ensure the suppression of invasive species.
6. Make necessary revisions to your plan—it should be continually evolving If your methods don’t seem to be working to control your target species, rethink your plan and consider adopting new management techniques to achieve your restoration goals!
Management Control Techniques
Prevention This is the best way to control invasive plant species! In fact, the California Department of Food and Agriculture places its highest priority on managing invasive species which are not yet established in California, and whose populations are limited. Typically, once a weed has entered an area, the only possibility of total eradication is during the early stages when the population is still small and poorly established. Prevention is best accomplished by: removing invasive seed sources, minimizing soil disturbance (and quickly replanting native species in areas where disturbance has occurred), washing equipment and vehicles that may carry seeds from one area to another, and public education about weed dispersal vectors.
Manual Removal Manual removal includes hand pulling of weeds as well as the use of hand tools and power tools to enable removal Manual removal is very labor intensive and often can only be used on small populations of invading species. This method is often used in situations where other removal methods are not appropriate, for instance in riparian areas near sensitive waterways.
Competition and Restoration This is a commonly overlooked management technique involving the reintroduction of dominant native seeds into an ecosystem and allowing them to reestablish themselves on their own. Seeds and cuttings should ideally come from a nearby location. This method is often used in conjunction with manual removal, involving the manual removal of invasive species and the immediate reintroduction of native species to allow them to establish themselves on the site before invasives are given the chance to regrow.
Prescribed Burns This method is particularly effective in areas that have traditionally evolved with fire. It can be used as a means to allow native fire-tolerant plants to regain ground, induce native seed dispersal, and eliminate dead vegetation and leaf litter. It is often used in combination with an herbicide, as the heat can enhance the potency of the chemical applied to invasive plants. Prescribed burns can be dangerous undertakings and should be conducted with the utmost caution by trained professionals in appropriate circumstances.
26 Mulching Mulching is the application of some hardy substance (straw, manure, wood chips, sawdust, black plastic film, etc) onto a surface to block sunlight and prevent invasive species growth. Mulching can be expensive, and has the potential of also blocking the growth of native species. Mulches should be checked to ensure they do not contain invasive seeds which could establish themselves in the chosen area.
Biological Control This involves the release of living organisms such as microbes, fungi, or animals to control an invasive population. Multiple releases may be necessary before the biological control organism is able to establish a stable population. Once the organism has established itself, it can remain as a control on the invasive species indefinitely. However, this can cause a problem if the organism begins to attack native plants once the invasive species has been subdued. For this reason, it is important to use organisms which are highly specific to the invasive species in question.
Chemical Control Herbicides can be very effective in controlling invasive plant populations. However, they pose many health and environmental risks and should be used with caution. Environmental risks include drift (into waterways and onto nearby native plants), volatilization, persistence in the environment, groundwater contamination, and biological defects. Application methods include spray (onto a large area of invasives), spot application (hand painted directly onto a plant), application by aircraft, cuts stems and stumps, single spot around a tree base, injection into bark, and soil spray before seeds have germinated. Application should always be preformed to minimize risk. Mixing a dye with the herbicide is a common technique to ensure the applicator knows where the chemical is being sprayed.
Specific tips for ivy removal along Strawberry Creek
• Whether pulling by hand or assisted by some mechanical means (weeders, levers, picks, shovels) the more successful you are removing as much of the root structure as possible, the less likely the invader is to resprout and reestablish.
• Perform most removal work in the winter/ early spring when the ground is moist making pulling easier and seed heads have yet to form.
• Take all vegetation that may re-root from fragments away from the site or at a minimum, isolate it completely from the soil using tarps or platforms.
• Have appropriate native plants ready to plant immediately following final site clearing to allow the best chances for successful re-establishment. The idea is to give the natives a habitat free of competition and to let them become dominant again if able.
Adapted from: Bossard, C.C., J. Randall, and M.C. Hoshovsky. 2000. Invasive Plants of California’s Wildlands. University of California Press, Los Angeles, California, USA.
27 Chapter 6: Native Plant Propogation and Reintroduction Congratulations, you have spent countless hours straining your back, loading green waste bins, and “Easter Egg Hunting” Ivy remnants. Now we have a fresh canvas on which we can paint the future of our natural areas on campus. This project is known as “Phase 3,” and it consists of planting native plants on campus. Once this is completed, UC Berkeley will have yet another natural history museum on its campus displaying how Oak/Bay woodland should appear.
Types of Propogation There are two types of native plant propagation. The first is seed propagation. This is the traditional method, and entails of directly placing seeds into beds in the nursery to allow them to germinate. Once they reach a large enough size, they can be transplanted out of their growing pots and into the ground. A common method is to sow many seeds into a large, shallow bed tray and after germination, replant only the successful sprouts into their own pots. This can be a more efficient method given the variability of seed germination. Replanting of emergent seeds must be done with care to prevent harm to the seedlings.
A second type of propagation is vegetative propagation. Whereas seed propagation employs seeds fertilized by two parents to create unique offspring, vegetative propagation creates identical individuals through asexual reproduction. Species that root easily are the best to use with this method. This process involves cutting stem sections, treating them with hormones, and inserting the stem into the soil until it takes root.
Utilizing Local Native Plants After removal of invasive plant species you will begin to notice that some native plant species are already recovering quite nicely on their own. This is due to the fact that they are no longer being smothered by competitors. A plant collection method that can be easily utilized in this situation is gathering seeds from these newly sprouting plants. This is a better option than purchasing native plants from nearby nurseries, due to the fact that local plants have evolved over thousands of years to their immediate ecosystem in the area that is now UC Berkeley. Collecting these seeds is far less labor intensive than any of the invasive plant removal, so breathe easy.
Seed collection from flowering plants requires some observation. After pollination, these flowers will start to shed their petals and grow seed pods in their place. This is where you come in. Seeds can be extracted from these pods, and planted in a controlled environment for optimal survival rates, but this will discussed a little later.
There are a wide variety of native grasses on the UC Berkeley campus, which are starting to prosper with the removal of competing invasive species. These are perhaps the easiest plant species to propagate for replanting around natural areas. These grasses grow in bunches which
28 can be split up individually and spread around campus. This same method can be used for any plant of which can thrive off of a single node—such as vines.
Any visitor to the UC Berkeley campus often bears witness to our fervent population of Fox Squirrels. Although they can be frustrating by stealing the occasional lunch, they really are doing our jobs for us. These squirrels collect Oak seeds and bury them around campus. If you can work fast enough, and aren’t worried about retribution from squirrels, you can collect their buried seeds for propagation in a controlled environment.
Some species can be propagated either by seeds or vegetatively, and the decision depends on the objective of the outplanting project. Quaking aspen is a good example. Aspen seeds are very small and difficult to handle because they are enclosed in a ball of cottony material. Seeds can be cleaned relatively easily, but are generally sown manually into growth containers because of their small size. If the objective is to retain the physical characteristics of a specific ecotype or clone, however, aspen can be propagated vegetatively from root sprouts, which are rooted and then transplanted to growth containers.
Strawberry Creek Nursery Program On the UC Berkeley campus, native plants should be propagated in a controlled environment on campus. In the Wellman Courtyard, construction has already begun a shade house which will be used extensively in the re-introduction of native plants around campus. There is a group in charge of plant propagation in this nursery, and it is our hope that our efforts can be combined in the sense that we take their prepared specimens and plant them around campus.
Reforestation, Nurseries and Genetics Resources [RNGR]. The Container Tree Nursery Manual Volume 6: Seeedling Propogation,
29 Chapter 7: Recruiting and Organizing Restoration Volunteers for the Strawberry Creek Restoration Project
The majority of the restoration work done in the Strawberry Creek Nature Area is manual removal of Algerian ivy and periwinkle. Unfortunately, the University does not have a proper budget to employ grounds people to maintain the restoration areas. For this reason a large amount of volunteer labor is needed to ensure the success of the restoration project in the Grinnell Nature Area. This volunteer labor is provided primarily through UC Berkeley students and faculty.
So how do we get the ear of the students? What incentives can a restoration project provide to college students and faculty? Well, we already have your interest. Let’s take a look at some other outlets to look into for recruiting volunteers.
Environmental Groups Environmental groups are probably the best place to start looking for volunteers. Often, students with majors relating to the environment are especially interested in restoration work because it may relate to their future careers. The College of Natural Resources (CNR) is a good place to get the word out about volunteer events. The CNR office is located in Room 260, Mulford Hall. Try contacting the major advisors to get events posted on listserves out to students, or post a notice on the CNR bulletin board (with permission from the CNR office of course).
ES Advisor (as of 2009): Susan Kishi, [email protected]
Students are often more willing to volunteer in groups than independently, so student environmental groups may be interested in volunteering together. A group event can promote relationships and teambuilding within the group, and restoration work is very likely related to the group objectives. Try emailing major environmental groups such as ESSA (Environmental Science Student’s Association) and STeam (Sustainability Team) with opportunities for them to come out and volunteer.
Some classes also offer extra credit to their students for volunteering along the creek. Contact Professor Bill Berry to see if he is interested in offering this option to his students.
Student Groups Just because a group isn’t ‘environmental’ doesn’t mean they don’t want the chance to be active, pulling ivy in the great outdoors! Advertise your events through listserves to student groups across all fields—any group could be looking for an activity close to campus and find restoration work appealing.
Fraternities and sororities are required to complete community service hours each semester, and many are looking for places close to campus to complete these hours. We often have fraternities and sororities approach us looking to set up volunteer days. Make sure the Strawberry Restoration Project is listed on the volunteer opportunities list for the Greeks.
30 Volunteer Organizers There are a few websites associated with UC Berkeley which seek to bring volunteer opportunities and volunteers together. These include Cal Corps (calcorps.volunteermatch.org) and Volunteer Match (www.volunteermatch.org). Make sure that volunteer events are posted on these web pages to get the word out.
There is also an event hosted at UC Berkeley each semester called the Berkeley Project, which organizes student volunteers to participate in events around the community. The Berkeley Project has been very helpful in providing volunteers for the Strawberry Creek Restoration Project since it first began. For more information check out: berkeleyproject.org.
Advertising Opportunities There are plenty of informational mixers looking for organizations like the SCRP to provide information about restoration. Two events include: the Sustainability Forum (early Fall) and the Sustainability Summit (Spring). Both are hosted by the Chancellor’s Advisory Committee on Sustainability (CACS). Tabling on Sproul is also always an option to get the word out.
Some environmental classes also have speakers from student groups come in to talk about the work that they do. Contact Professor Bill Berry about speaking in his Environmental Science 24 class during the Fall semester.
Volunteers outside of UC Berkeley Anyone is welcome to volunteer on Strawberry Creek—not just Berkeley affiliated students and faculty. We often have teachers from Berkeley high school bring their classes up to the Grinnell Area to learn about habitat restoration. Notify local schools of this opportunity (including the number of elementary schools located in the Berkeley Downtown area, Berkeley Community College, and Berkeley High) of volunteer opportunities.
Other groups from businesses or organizations outside of Cal may also wish to volunteer. These groups are harder to advertise to, but we can always accommodate them for volunteer events.
Staff Sponsors The current faculty sponsors for the Strawberry Creek Restoration Project are Tim Pine and Karl Hans. They can be contacted as follows:
Tim Pine: [email protected] Karl Hans: [email protected]
Don’t limit your volunteer search to these ideas! Use your imagination to seek out different sorts of volunteers for restoration events!
31 Chapter 8: Ensuring Future Management and Stewardship of Restored Areas “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure,” the saying goes. This is as true for maintaining healthy natural environments as it is for our own health. Anyone that has invested hours of hard labor restoring a previously invaded habitat has a keen interest in keeping that habitat from reverting, if for no other reason than the desire to never have to work that hard again. A reality of California wild lands and urban open spaces today is the realization that one can never turn their back on habitat that has been painstakingly restored lest the relentless march of invaders take it over again. A restored habitat is a contract made with future generations of not just humans, but with the organisms that return with the newly restored food chain and it is a contract that is in force in perpetuity (or until some magic is available to permanently tame flora and fauna that would run rampant in our state).
While maintaining a previously restored piece of land or open space is less time and labor intensive than the initial effort of removing invasive species, it is still a great responsibility and requires the diligence and desire to keep what has been gained. Diligence in monitoring at frequent enough intervals to detect re-invasion or new invaders, and desire to ensure that the maintenance required actually gets done.
This then leads to a sometimes not-so-obvious thought: what if you cleared acres and acres of invaded habitat but lacked the wherewithal to maintain and manage the newly created space. It is important to match your resources, including diligence and desire, to your future obligations. One of the primary goals of the Strawberry Creek Restoration Program and the Student Restoration Leadership effort is to ensure that the years of hard labor that have returned a revitalized and biodiverse habitat do not get lost for lack of continuity, volunteers, or funds.
Leaders are encouraged to apply for grants or solicit gifts to support the future work of the Strawberry Creek Restoration Program. The need for tools, gloves, and other materiel is ongoing. Ideally, the goal of the restoration community on Campus would be to ensure future operating resources, independent of the University’s operating budget, through the establishment of an endowment. The Strawberry Creek Fund is an established means for donations to be directed to the restoration effort and should be mentioned to each group of volunteers. The Fund can be accessed through the Give to Cal webpage.
Finally, the SCRP should become the established charge of one of Cal’s student clubs or associations so that there exists another conduit for those seeking to volunteer on the Creek. Or, interested students could simply create the student organization that fulfills the goals of the SCRP. Sadly, the staff supported effort within the Office of Environment, Health & Safety to support the SCRP is not guaranteed and is under threat due to the current budgetary crisis. The best way forward is to create an ongoing and long lasting student tradition of creek stewardship.
32 Appendix A: Restoration Event Checklist
One Month Before the Event Write a brief description of the proposed event including some proposed dates and times and email draft to Tim Pine or Karl Hans at the Office of Environment, Health & Safety. They will either approve your proposal, offer conditional approval with stipulations (such as pending an inspection of the proposed area to be restored, mitigation of special hazards), or will offer alternatives if the proposed project isn’t feasible. Tim Pine: [email protected] Karl Hans: [email protected] Upon approval from EH&S, publicize your event by posting the description and pertinent information (what, where, when, etc.) on CalCorps, VolunteerMatch.org, Campus Calendar, College of Natural Resources, Integrative Biology, Landscape Arch., Environmental Engineering and related lists. Or, if you represent an organization that you hope to draw your volunteers from, publicize the event by making a presentation at a regularly scheduled meeting. Look at the list of Campus student organizations and seek out any that seem a likely fit, especially groups with an environmental or sustainability focus. Refer to Chapter 8 of this handbook for additional suggestions. Answer any inquiries and acknowledge sign-ups received via email, CalCorps, Volunteer Match and other. Begin keeping a tally so you can plan for needed materials such as gloves, tools, release forms, etc.
Two Weeks Before the Event Contact Theron Klos, Manager of the Grounds Operations, to arrange for large towable green waste bins you’ll need to put pulled vegetation in. Try to anticipate where the bins might go so that they are not blocking a footpath or roadway and that they can be positioned close to your event area. Theron Klos: [email protected] Begin monitoring weather forecasts for either rain events or high heat days. Plan to send out notices to update volunteers in the event of a cancellation or to advise participants on special clothing needs.
One Weeks Before the Event Send a reminder early in the week to any volunteers who have RSVP’d or send a general reminder out over the Creek list (contact list administrator Tim Pine, Tyler Grinberg, or Lindsey Sanders). In the reminder, mention appropriate clothing and footwear (long pants, loose fitting, sturdy closed toe footwear-boots are best, layers for temperature regulation and a hat), water bottle, and eyewear if needed with retaining strap or cord. Also remind volunteers to leave valuables at home if possible. Tyler Grinberg: [email protected] Lindsey Sanders: [email protected] Arrange for any motor transportation of equipment to the site (if needed, otherwise prepare to use human powered means to get the tools and gloves to the site).
33 Two Days Before the Event Visit site and inspect for hazards: debris, noxious pests (hornet/wasp nests), noxious plants (poison oak, stinging nettle, thistle, blackberry). Either remove hazards or clearly identify them and provide adequate zone of safety around them. Do not harass or disturb any apparent homeless people. Make a note of their presence and contact UCPD at the non- emergency phone number or email and let them know you will be working in the location where you noted the homeless person. Ask UCPD to visit the site and inform the person(s) there that restoration work will occur on the date you selected and that they should remove any personal belongings. Take an inventory tools and necessary supplies and replenish as needed.
Day of the Event Plan to be at the meeting point about 30 minutes before the published time. If possible, have a vehicle available nearby to lock volunteer’s valuables in. Wear your Restoration Leader attire or other identifying name tag. Have clipboard with Volunteer Waiver Forms (download from http://controller.berkeley.edu/riskManagement/forms/index.htm ) and several pens. Have name tags available for volunteers. When the majority of volunteers have arrived (generally 10 minutes after the published start time), introduce yourself and have any assistants present do the same. Give introductory remarks • Thank you for coming out today. • Describe what you will be working on. • Brief talk on history of the watershed starting with original human inhabitants and the influence of European immigration and importation of non-native organisms (both animal and plant). • Brief talk on how invasive species suppress native biodiversity and cause habitat loss. • Short history of the designation of the Campus Natural Areas (1969), the effort to first improve water quality (1980’s and 90’s) and the Strawberry Creek Restoration Program (2003). • Demonstrate how to remove whatever species you are focusing on and to do so SAFELY. Note hazards- muscle strains, scrapes, cuts, scratches, falls and slips, tool injuries, punctures by thorns, discarded needles, broken glass, rusty cans, insect stings, dust, poison oak and stinging nettle, importance of washing hands before eating or touching face, etc. • Show how and where to move, stack, pile, and load vegetation. • Tell volunteers what the break schedule is (5 to 10 minutes, every 20 to 30 minute work period). Say where closest bathroom and drinking water source is. If lunch is being provided say when and where and allow time to wash up before eating. Distribute gloves and tools. Remind volunteers that when using tools to make sure others are clear of the cutting point and that the tools should not be left on the ground where they can be easily stepped on, tripped over, or lost under vegetation. Put out at least one trash bag and one bag for recyclables. Have volunteers start to tidy up 20 minutes before the agreed upon ending time and gather tools together for an inventory. If any are missing, announce a tool search so the volunteers can help find the missing items.
34 Thank volunteers for their hard work and compliment them on the accomplishment. Encourage those who would like to continue working with the SCRP to join the Strawberry Creek email list or become a restoration leader themselves. Gather up gloves and tools; discharge any ripped gloves and separate very muddy or soiled gloves for washing. Place trash in or next to a Campus trash receptacle. You may keep any collected recyclables and redeem the beverage containers for cash (which may in turn be donated to the SCRP tool fund) or place them in a Campus recycling container.
Day after the Event Fill out Event Report sheet and send to Tim Pine in the Office of EH&S Send a “thank-you” email to your contacts either via the Strawberry Creek listserve or personally to the leader of the group or club you worked with to set up the event. Congratulate yourself on a job well done and enjoy your newly restored habitat!
35 Appendix B: Tool Supply List This list serves for groups of up to 30 volunteers 3 long handled loppers 3 root/ pruning saws (avoid flexible folding saws if possible; they tend to break, unexpectedly, when over flexed). 3 heavy duty weeders (any weeder selected should be made of hardened steel and constructed so that the shaft of the weeder goes all the way through the handle. Other, cheaper tools will break under the strain of established ivy roots) 3 burlap ground clothes (8’ by 8’) for ease in moving and loading accumulated vegetation 4 heavy duty 30 gallon lawn and leaf bags for trash and recyclables 1 roll of neon colored safety flagging tape to identify plants to retain or hazards to avoid. Use red-orange for hazards and yellow for DO NOT REMOVE. 1 rigid sided container (such as a plastic bottle) to contain discarded hypodermic needles and other small sharp objects 1 pair of textured cotton work gloves or better for each volunteer. Ideal gloves are the poly knit gloves that have rubber dipped palms such as the Atlas Fit brand. For thorny vegetation such as blackberry, a sturdy leather glove or double dipped abrasion resistant glove is essential. 1 first aid kit containing wound disinfectant (Bactine or similar), variety of adhesive bandages, fine point tweezers or needle for splinter or thorn removal, instant ice packs, eye rinse solution. 1 gallon jug of drinking water or water cooler, single use paper cups.
36 Appendix C: Useful Reference Material Bossard, C.C., J. Randall, and M.C. Hoshovsky. 2000. Invasive Plants of California’s Wildlands. University of California Press, Los Angeles, California, USA.
Evanosky D. and E. Kos. 2004. East Bay, Then and Now. Thunder Bay Press.
Hickman, J.C. (ed). 1993. The Jepson Manual: Higher Plants of California. University of California Press. Berkeley and Los Angeles, California, USA.
Pollock, S., S. Hall and C. Richardson. 2008. Guide to East Bay Creeks. The Oakland Museum of California. Oakland. California. USA.
Reforestation, Nurseries and Genetics Resources [RNGR]. The Container Tree Nursery Manual Volume 6: Seeedling Propogation,
Stuart, J.D. and J.O. Sawyer. 2001. Trees and Shrubs of California. University of California Press, Berkeley and Los Angeles, California, USA.
Willes, B. 2005. Picturing Berkeley: A Postcard History. Gibbs Smith Publisher.
37