Spring is Here

March 20^th marked the first calendar day of spring, and this year nature is willing to follow along. Temperatures have warmed from the cold, snowy February weather. The hills are starting to green and soon wildflowers will be blooming. The sun peaks through the clouds and warms the air.

Balsamroot

Picking a calendar day seems an arbitrary way to start a season, and it is. We choose to set our seasons by the solstices and equinoxes as a convenient way to mark the changing of seasons. Luckily we live in an area that they happen to coincide fairly well. But if you head north or south of our latitude the seasons start to follow a different path. I doubt spring in Alaska has really started yet, nor is winter a measly three months long. Head south to the tropics and the overall temperatures rarely change. Seasons there may be more accurately described as wet/dry. Head far enough south into Australia or South America and the seasons are opposite of ours. As we head into spring they head into fall.

Yellow Bell

Spring around Wenatchee is an amazing time of year. The hills lose their brown or yellow color they sport much of the year and show off their lively green. Green represents growth in the shrub steppe environment, both annual and perennial. Spring is often the only time of year there’s enough moisture available for plants to grow and thrive in our climate. The combination of melted winter snow and spring rain provides enough moisture for plants to survive the rest of the year in this two to three month period.

Buttercup

Not only do plants use spring as a time to grow. They also use it as a time to flower. One of the easiest to spot is the balsamroot, which sports large yellow flowers that seems to blanket portions of the hillsides. Lupine is quite prominent as well, featuring tall stems covered in purple flowers. Look close enough at your feet while walking between the sagebrush and you might notice yellow bells, bluebells, lomatiums, and buttercups.

Besides the prominent flowers are a variety of grasses. Much of the bright green you see comes from their spring growth. Most people consider grass a staple of lawns, requiring constant moisture to survive and thrive. That’s not the case. Native grasses thrive in our environment with no watering by us necessary. Even when the grass has lost its fresh, green look come June and July it’s still alive. Simply waiting to sprout again come the following spring when there’s plenty of moisture.

I encourage you to go out and enjoy the shrub steppe during the spring. In my opinion it’s the only time to truly appreciate the great variety of life present. Come summer and fall all that will be left is a dry, brown hillside with little shade to get out of the sun. Enjoy it in the spring when it’s still cool and the hills are alive and colorful.

Plant Structure

 Plants exhibit great variety. Cacti in the deserts, pines in the mountains, water lilies in a pond, and wheat in a field. Yet among all these different types of plants there are basic structures shared by nearly all of them. Almost all plants have a root system and a shoot system. Root systems are composed of roots (obviously) and shoot systems are composed of leaves and stems. Regardless of the overall morphology (form and structure) of a plant they all rely on these structures to survive and thrive.

Roots serve a few purposes. They anchor the plant in the ground. Roots allow redwoods to grow hundreds of feet into the air. They provide the support that keeps riparian vegetation from washing out during a flood. Roots also provide the entire plant with water. Roots pull the water out of the ground and transport it to the rest of the plant through its vasculature system. Roots are also responsible for the uptake of nutrients that the plant needs in large and small quantities.

Stems represent the (generally) aboveground structures that leaves sprout from. Stem structure is composed of a series of nodes and internodes. Nodes are the point where leaves sprout. The internodes are the space between. Stems have two types of buds present. (A bud is the point where new stem growth occurs.) A terminal bud represents the growth point of a stem. Usually a terminal bud is located at the furthest point along a stem or branch. An axillary bud is located between the leaf and the stem at the node. Axillary buds have the potential to form lateral stems, or branches. Rhizomes are a type of underground stem that travel under the surface and sprout up away from the original plant. Strawberries spread through rhizomes. Even though rhizomes grow under the soil they are not roots.

Leaves grow out from stems and for most plants are their primary site of photosynthesis (the process by which plants convert sunlight into energy). However, some plants, such as cacti, have modified leaves into needles, so most of their photosynthesis is carried out in the stems. Flowers evolved from leaves into the great variety we see today.

Plants have three main types of tissue. Most of these tissues are present in all plant structures, but their function and morphology varies from the roots to the leaves. The three types are ground, vascular, and dermal tissue.

Dermal tissue is all the tissue on the outer layer of the plant. This tissue is responsible for protecting the plant from physical damage and pathogens. Leaf dermal tissue helps regulate the loss of water and the intake of CO₂. Root dermal tissue helps capture water and minerals in the soil. Non-woody plants are covered in an epidermis. In woody plants the epidermis is replaced by periderm in older parts of the plant.

Vascular tissue is responsible for transportation of materials within the plant. The flow usually goes from roots up to shoots, and from the shoots down to the roots. Xylem is the vasculature responsible for transporting water and dissolved minerals and nutrients throughout the plant. Phloem is vasculature responsible for transporting organic nutrients that are produced in the photosynthetic areas of the plant (generally the leaves) and to the roots or sites of new growth.

Ground tissue is all the other tissue in the plant. This tissue is responsible for most plant functions: photosynthesis, storage of nutrients, growth, and support. Ground tissue in the leaves is mostly responsible for photosynthesizing. Ground tissue in the stems, branches, or trunk is responsible for much of the plant support. Ground tissue in tree trunks is often dead and is strictly there to support the outer part of the trunk that is still alive and filled with vascular tissue.

When it’s broken down to the basic level a plant is built from three basic structures: roots, stems, and leaves. These three structures are composed of three types of tissue: ground, dermal, and vascular. These six things make up the basics for almost all plants. That’s amazing when all the variety of plants are considered. 

Plant Diversity

This week I want to start a series of articles spanning the next few months delving into the world of plants. I've written briefly about different species of plants, their uses, and some of their importance in a healthy ecosystem, but now I want to dive into the different structures, types, and functions found across them. Most people understand that trees, bushes, grasses, ferns, mosses, crops, and flowers are all considered plants. While many of these look vastly different from each other they share many common visible structures and internal mechanisms. This week I’m going to start with an overview of the variety of plant classes in the hopes of giving a basic intro.

Moss (Bryophyte)

Hornwort (Bryophyte)

First, let me provide a definition of a plant. Plants are embryophytes. The name comes from the way they protect and nurture the embryo inside the parent structure. This definition excludes algae and other things that may have been included with a less specific definition. Most plants are terrestrial (living on soil), but some species have evolved back into the water (such as water lilies and duckweed). All are complex, multicellular organisms. All plants are non-motile (they can’t move). Photosynthesis is their primary means of producing energy, but a small number are parasitic. Plants also display an alternation of generations between a haploid gametophyte (a multicellular generation with a single set of chromosomes) and a diploid sporophyte (two sets of chromosomes present).

Quillwort (Lycophyte)

Clubmoss (Lycophyte)

Plants can be further divided into two groups, those reproducing and spreading through spores: bryophytes (liverworts, mosses, and hornworts), lycophytes (clubmosses, spikemosses, and quillworts), and monilophytes (ferns and horsetails); and those reproducing and spreading through seeds: gymnosperms (conifers, cycads, gnetophytes and ginkgoes), and angiosperms (flowering plants). Plants can also be divided into those with vascular tissue (specialized tissue in the plant the transports water and nutrients around): lycophytes, monilophytes, gymnosperms, and angiosperms; and those without specialized vasculature: bryophytes. (Don’t worry about understanding the ins and outs of plant reproduction or tissue yet. I’ll make sure to cover them in detail in later posts.)

Fern Frond (Monilophyte)

Horsetail (Monilophyte)

Bryophytes include mosses, hornworts, and liverworts. They are grouped together based on their lack of vascular tissue, and are therefore referred to as non-vascular plants. However, they do not form a monophyletic group (a group made of an ancestor species and all its descendants). Instead they are more likely a paraphyletic group (a group made of an ancestor species and its descendants minus one or more monophyletic groups). In this case they are made of embryophytes minus the tracheophytes (plants containing vascular tissue). Bryophytes lack true leaves, stems, and roots. They are among the most primitive of land plants. They require almost constant moisture to keep from drying out as they lack many features that more advanced plants use to keep from drying out.

Lycophytes are represented by clubmosses, spikemosses, and quillworts. They still reproduce primarily through spores, but they have vascular tissue, and therefore; leaves, roots, and stems. They are more advanced than the bryophytes.

Monilophytes are made up of ferns and horsetails. They reproduce through spores, have vascular tissue, leaves, roots, and stems. They are the closest relatives to the seed plants.

Welwitschia 

(Gnetophyte, Gymnosperm)

Ginkgo (Gymnosperm)

Gymnosperms are composed of four different groups: conifers, cycads, gnetophytes and ginkgoes. Gymnosperms are more advanced than the previous groups because they produce seeds instead of spores for their primary reproduction. Gymnosperms are known as naked seed plants because their seeds are not enclosed. Even though they’re typically in cones for general protection, the seed itself is not encased. Conifers are made up of many common and important species including pines, firs, cedars, and junipers. They represent many of the largest plants on earth. Cycads generally have stout, woods trunks with a crown of leaves at the top. They can be confused with palm trees, but they are not closely related. Gnetophytes have some characteristics, such as vessel elements, not found in other gymnosperms. Ginkgoes are represented by one species of plant, Ginkgo biloba, and have been present on earth for millions of years virtually unchanged.

Quaking Aspen (Angiosperm)

Rose (Angiosperm)

Angiosperms make up everything else. They are the most common plants, representing some 250,000 species on earth. They have flowers, vasculature, stems, roots, leaves, and enclosed seeds. Orchids, maples, oaks, roses, apples, grasses, and many other common plants are all angiosperms. It’s important to keep in mind that not all flowers are showy and easily noticeable. When’s the last time you looked at a field of grass and pointed out its flowers? I assure you they are present, and when I get to the post on flowers I’ll cover it in much more detail.

Of course this is just the tip of the tree when it comes to all the fascinating aspects about plants. I realize that not many things are explained in detail here, but that’s not really the point for this post. The importance here is to understand the great diversity found in the world of plants. They started as very simple organisms, basically land versions of green algae. From there they evolved up to giant redwoods and flowering roses. There are many common characteristics, of course, but also a great deal of differences in them. Over the next few months I hope to introduce and explain features found in plants, and explain the differences. 

Daylight Savings?

The new Month brings us fully moved out of our old office in the Wenatchee-Okanogan Forest Headquarters and into our new office in the top floor of the Wenatchee World building. There are still a few boxes that need to be unpacked and a few cables that still need to be plugged in, but we're just about up and running. The last week of February was crazy busy as we finished packing, loaded the moving truck, drove to our new office, unloaded the truck, and drove back for another load. Everyone at the office pitched in to help wherever they could, and we were able to get through the bulk of the moving in just a few days. Most of us are happy to be in downtown Wenatchee. There are more services and amenities around us and some of us have shorter commutes as well. Visit our webpage to view all of our new contact information.

Daylight savings time is this weekend, so come Sunday we’ll have an hour less of daylight in the morning and an hour more in the evening. There are various reasons why it was originally proposed and implemented. When “daylight savings” first began it was thought to save on power by giving people an extra hour of light in the evening. Essentially an hour that people were generally up that they now didn't need to use lights during. Whether there’s any power savings from it is inconclusive. Some say yes, others say no. Data can be used to support both arguments. Personally I don’t really care about the power savings. I really like the extra hour of light after work. But on the other hand, I don’t like losing the hour of light in the morning. (I may be getting up too early if I notice the light in the morning at this time of year.)  Regardless of how we feel about the change it’s coming.

It’s interesting to look at how the time change affects different people. For many of us that work a normal 9-5 job or some variant thereof the change is nice. We can get more done outside on any given day, or have more time to go out and enjoy the sunshine. For the agricultural based communities or cultures the change is less noticeable. Their daily schedule is governed by the daylight present. They could care less about the “hour” when that light comes. They’re still going to be up with it and out in it until the sun goes down.

Another interesting thought is that the natural world doesn't care about our time standards. One sunrise is the same as any other to a plant, deer, or fish, even if it changes by an hour to us. Most of nature runs off the sun cycle and the temperature changes that come with it, so animal and plant activity levels depends on the time of year and the amount of light or, for nocturnal creatures, the amount of dark. Think about someone going hunting, they don’t get to go hunting at a time that’s convenient for them. If an animal is most active at dawn the hunter better be out at dawn, whether the clock reads 4:30 a.m. or 7 a.m.

This post hopefully makes you think about how we run our lives off a clock, but the rest of nature doesn't. We put so much pressure to set deadlines, but a tree grows when there’s enough light, water, and warmth. A deer goes foraging when the sun comes up, it doesn't care if it’s at 5 or 7. 

Algae

Pond scum. Most likely so thick because of fertilizer runoff.

Algae are found the world over, generally aquatic, but not always. They thrive in warm water and cold water, saltwater and freshwater. Most are photosynthetic—same as plants—using sunlight to power chemical reactions used to create carbohydrates. They range from small, single-celled organisms up to large kelps over a hundred feet in length. Green, red, and brown algae are prominent, but they are by no means the only colors. Algae exist on every continent on earth, and live in every climate.

Algae are not a single clade (a clade is a group comprised of an ancestor and all its descendants). They didn’t evolve from one common ancestor. They arrived at the present day from different evolutionary paths, but they shared enough common characteristics that they were combined into a single group, though a solid definition of an alga is hard to come by.

Since we live in a landlocked county I feel that discussing oceanic algae is not pertinent to this blog, so I’m going to focus on those found in freshwater ecosystems. (This will also help limit the length of this blog.)

Algae provide important functions in many ecosystems. They are often the primary producers in an aquatic ecosystem. Primary producers are at the bottom of the food chain. Algae are eaten by larger organisms such as zooplankton, which in turn are eaten by fish, which may be eaten by larger fish, and so on up the food chain. Algae allow fish to thrive and thus allow us to catch fish for both food and sport.

Most of the algae that people might see around the region in rivers, creeks, streams, ponds, lakes, etc. are generally green algae. (The green color gives it away.) They’re by no means the only algae present, they’re just easily noticeable. The green algae are those most closely related to plants, and are the group from which plants emerged from.

Algae can be a good indication of the overall health in an aquatic system. Algal growth is dependent on several factors: nutrient availability, light level, pH, temperature, etc. Any one of these can limit algal growth, but the most important one is nutrient availability. Increasing the nutrients available in a waterway will increase the number of algae present. This can lead to algal blooms, which can be unsightly at best and harmful at worst. Many of these blooms are the direct result of human impacts on the environment. Over applying fertilizer to fields, orchards, and lawns can be washed into nearby waterways. Livestock manure can make its way into creeks running through pastures. All of these can lead to algal blooms. Best way to control algal blooms? Control the nutrients leaching into streams, lakes, and rivers.

A look at the variety of saltwater algae.
Generally called seaweeds.

While being ecologically important algae are also useful for many other things. Many types of seaweed are used as food. Agar is derived from red algae, and is used as a thickening agent in petri dishes and many types of food.

Algae can also be used as a pollution control. They can treat sewage by removing many of the toxic and harmful components. Algae “scrubbers” can be used to clean water by pulling out the excessive nutrients present. They can also be used to capture the fertilizer runoff from farms before it enters water systems. These algae could in turn be used as fertilizer on the same fields.

Algae may provide the best option for biofuel production for a variety of reasons. Algae are fairly easy to grow and can be grown in areas unsuitable for other plants. They can be grown using wastewater and sewage. Algae have faster growth rates than land plants because their structure is so much simpler. 

I realize that this is a fairly simplistic look at algae. But the subject is far too large to adequately cover in a single blog post, so instead I aimed for a quick overlook of many things relating to algae to peak your interest. Hopefully it provides enough of an intro to make you seek out more information on algae. They are fascinating and an important part of many ecosystems. Their possible roles in helping solve some of mankind’s problems are also exciting.  

Happy Mid-February Friday

Happy Friday to everyone out there, and a Happy Valentine's Day to anyone that's into that sort of thing... This week is going to offer another short and sweet blog post as we're busy packing up our office in preparation for our move. Everyone in the office is generally excited for the move into downtown Wenatchee. It will shorten the commute for some of us and put us closer to many things in town we often make us of. I realize that on the other hand it may be viewed as a negative direction change because it moves us further from the citizens we serve along the Wenatchee River, Entiat River, and Lake Chelan. However, the added time is barely ten minutes, so it's not much of a change. And since we're moving we'll shortly need to change our phone numbers and email addresses. All our information will be updated on our website once we make the move in a few weeks.

The Native Planting 101 workshop was this last weekend, and I like to think that it went pretty well. The workshop lasted about four hours, and all four of our presenters did an excellent job with their presentations. The workshop would not have been possible without their donation of their valuable time and knowledge. We had a little over 30 people show up for the workshop, and the reviews I received afterwards were almost all positive. I'd like to thank everyone that showed up. Hopefully, they'll use the information to incorporate native plants in all their restoration and landscaping needs.

Today also marks the cutoff for our Native Plant Sale. Ponderosa pine, rocky mountain maple, and golden currant were very popular this year, and have mostly sold out. However, we still have many other options besides those three plants left if you want to try and sneak your order in before the deadline. Our pickup date for plants is set as April 5 from 10 am-1 pm. We also will be bundling the plants on March 22. Anyone that would like to volunteer on either of these days is welcome to do so.

That's all I have for today. Hopefully next week I can get back into my in-depth blogs on particular topics. Until then though this blog will have to suffice. I for one am looking forward to a long weekend, and I'm hoping many of the rest of you get to enjoy one as well.

Early February Observations

This week and, really, the whole month, bring busy times here at Cascadia. Many of us in the office are busy sorting and packing in anticipation of moving from our current location in the lower level of the Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest Headquarters and into new office space in downtown Wenatchee. Thankfully, I don’t have much to do with that until it comes time to load up boxes and equipment and then unload it again in our new location. (Americorps members get all the good jobs.) However, the Native Planting 101 workshop is also coming up this Saturday, February 8, and I’m rushing a little to finish up all the final touches for the workshop. With limited time something has to give, and so the blog this week is going to be a little shorter and less in-depth than normal. There won’t be much of a theme. Probably just some pretty pictures and a few observations.

How about that snow? I realize it’s not a lot, but it sure helps brighten up the landscape, bathing the hills in bright white with splotches of gray, brown, and green poking through. Every little bit of moisture helps. Hopefully it keeps up and we can avoid a dry spring, summer, and fall. Besides, winter is far too dreary without snow on the ground. It keeps everything looking clean and covers up the dirt and grime that coats much of the land during the winter and early spring months.

Hopefully this cold isn’t upsetting too many people. I was little surprised when it came on. That’s my own fault though because I don’t often look at the forecast. My theory being that the weather is going to show up regardless if I know about it or not. It’s amazing how much going from a high of 35 degrees down to a high of 18 degrees changes how it feels to be outside. Anything above 30 and I can usually leave my hands out walking outside. Now it’s almost too cold for them buried deep in my pockets. Any exposed skin can quickly go numb and ache with the cold. These cold days make me happy that I decided to grow a beard for the winter, and at times I wish it went further and covered the tops of my checks and nose. For those of you without a beard, I recommend a scarf if the cold bothers you.

So that’s all I’ve got for this week, time to go back to preparations for Saturday’s workshop. Make sure to sign up for the workshop if you live in or around Wenatchee and Chelan County and have an interest in native plants. It’ll run from 12-4:30 PM at the Chelan County PUD Auditorium. Topics covered will include restoration, pollinators, yardscaping, and noxious weeds. It promises to provide lots of useful and interesting information.

Beavers

I was wandering around the woods the other day and came across a beaver dam. It wasn’t the first I’ve seen. It won’t be the last. It wasn’t even an impressively large dam either. I stopped though. I stared and I contemplated. I realized something. Beavers are cool. They construct. They shape and morph the world around them to meet their needs. Many animals simply react to the world. A deer runs when it feels threatened. It will wander around looking for food, never choosing one location as “home.” Of course other animals build dens and nests, and they may often return to them time after time. But they choose sites that fit what they need.

A beaver changes the environment around it to make a better home for themselves. They build dams to flood the area around their lodge in order to protect themselves. They build their structures using a mixture of logs, sticks, and mud. They gnaw a ring around a tree until it weakens enough to collapse. (Their teeth continually grow, making it a necessity for them to gnaw on something.) Once a tree is felled they set upon it and bite it into smaller, usable pieces. Dams are built from the bottom up. First, sticks are stuck into the bottom to provide a foundation. Next, they add sticks slowly raising the height of the dam. Mud is added to fill any gaps that might let too much water through. They continue this process of sticks and mud until the dam has reached its desired height and is strong enough to hold back the flow of water.

A beaver dam near human housing.

Beavers build dams for their own sake. But the ecological effects of these dams spread beyond them. Their dams provide a whole list of positive changes in an ecosystem. Let’s look further.

Beaver dams have the ability to flood their surrounding areas. Spreading water out over the landscape has the potential to create or increase the area of wetlands (basically an area that retains standing water throughout the year). Why are wetlands good? Wetlands are one of the most important types of ecosystem on the planet. They filter the water that comes through, removing sediment, excess nutrients, and other contaminants. Wetlands provide habitat for many species of plants, animals, insects, and bacteria. Many of which wouldn’t survive without access to wetlands.

Wetlands trap and store water. These are important effects. This helps control flooding by trapping water during periods of high flow, especially during spring snow melt. Later in the summer when the water flow drops this stored water is slowly released back into the stream system. In this way wetlands help lower the flow of water during high water times, and also raise the flow of water during low water times. They balance the flow of water throughout the year.

A crosscut of a beaver lodge. Beavers

build dams to create a pool of water deep enough 

that it doesn't freeze solid in the winter so they can 

enter their lodges all year round.

Flooded areas help recharge groundwater by increasing the surface area of water in contact with the ground. This increase in groundwater helps plants grow along the stream which in turn increases the stability of stream banks and decreases erosion.

Beavers create fish habitat. The dams slow the water down, allowing the fish to have an easier time swimming, and the pools are deep enough to not freeze. This provides winter habitat for certain fish species. (This slower water speed has added benefit of reducing streambank erosion.) The random assortment of sticks and logs in and around the dam provide protection for young fish from predators. Dams also catch plant material, which in turn can help increase the presence of aquatic insects, food for the fish. The increase of plant growth along the streambank helps shade the water. This helps keep the water cool for the fish in the hot summer.

Beavers gnaw around a tree fairly evenly
until it weakens enough to fall.

Trapped plant material plus any excess nutrients in the water can lead to increase in the amount of bacteria in the water. Bacteria usually seem like a bad thing, but in this case they’re doing a favor by removing excess nutrients in the water. Excess nutrients lead to an increase in algae present, which clouds the water. Fish prefer clear, cool water that’s free from algae and other growths. These bacteria can also metabolize some of the pollutants that may find their way into the water.

I often hear about the negative things beavers do. They remove trees near their water sources. While that is true, the damage can be mitigated by wrapping the trees with wire mesh. Also, many of their favored species of trees to use for dam building and for eating will resprout from their roots. So even if the tree is cut down by a beaver, a new one will often sprout from the roots. Beaver dams don’t block the passage of fish as much as it would seem. Many fish are able to jump over the beaver dams. Regardless of the direction they’re traveling.

The negative effects we associate with beavers are more a matter of human perception than anything else. We look at what they do in a negative light because it interferes with what we want to do in an area. Decreases in the number of fish are more from human impacts than they are from a beaver dam blocking the stream. Fields flooded by a beaver dam may indicate that the field was too close to the stream to begin with. Plant enough trees that beavers prefer and they’ll probably leave your prized tree alone. 

Beavers are cool. There are so many positive benefits from their presence that it seems silly to not embrace them. Current beaver counts in North America range anywhere from 10 to 15 million, which is decent considering they were nearly wiped out for their pelts in the 19^th century, but that number is still a fraction of the nearly 100 million that are estimated to have been present at one time. Beavers are second only to humans in their ability to impact and shape their environment. Next time you see a beaver dam or lodge think about the positive impact of them on the ecosystem.

Plant Native Things and Watch them Flourish

As we near our Native Planting 101 workshop and the deadline for placing an order for the Native Plant Sale I felt it was good time to write a blog looking at native plants. Planting native can save you a lot of things. Time, effort, and money are probably the three biggest. I’ll take a look at a few different tasks involved in gardening and then explain how natives save you time, effort, and/or money for each task.

Watering is probably the most important chore when it comes to gardening. If you hand water this can be a long and tedious chore requiring you to daily visit each plant in the middle of a scorching summer. Natives require minimal watering on your part. Once established, native plants should survive primarily on water available on site without extra from you. (Of course this assumes you get the right plant for the right area. A native plant normally found next to a creek may not thrive on an exposed slope.) They’ve survived in this climate for hundreds of years without human intervention, so why would they need you to water them now? The first year or two they might need watering to establish a solid root system, but after that they’re good to go. Of course, if you have a sprinkler system you probably won’t notice a drop in your time or effort. However, in both cases you’ll save money using natives. No longer will you have to spend money to water plants. Natives don’t need your water.

Fertilizer is another big item. Natives don’t need fertilizer to flourish. They’ve grown in these conditions before, whether that’s a sandy slope with minimal nutrients, or the side of a creek with an overabundance of water. Find the plant native to those conditions and you won’t need to fertilize it. This will save you time, effort, and especially money. Fertilizer is not cheap, and it’s a task that often requires applications over and over again, year after year. Natives don’t need it.

Pruning or thinning in your garden can take up a large amount of time. Natives can cut down on the time and effort. Natives don't need constant pruning and thinning to grow healthily. They grow well if just left alone. Whereas introduced species may require pruning or thinning to maintain the health of the plant. Native plants will survive just fine if left alone.

Cascadia is still taking orders for its Native Plant Sale. We have availability on all 12 plant species, but some are selling faster than others. To make sure that you don’t miss out on any of the plants you’ve been mulling over buying make sure to order yours today! Visit our website for a brochure outlining some of the highlights of all 12 plants, or read the 3 blog posts that cover each of the 12 plants in a little more detail. First. Second. Third. Our deadline for ordering plants is set for February 14, so three weeks is all the time that’s left to order bushels of plants perfect for your landscaping or restoration needs.

Cascadia is also sponsoring a Native Planting 101 workshop on Saturday, February 8. We encourage anyone that wants to use native plants in their yard, or that’s just generally interested in native plants to attend. Our speakers will cover topics including restoration, yardscaping, pollinators, and weeds. All four of our presenters have presented at previous Native Planting 101 workshops and have plenty of useful and interesting information to share with you! Visit our website for more information and to RSVP.

Beware a Mild Winter

I grab my jacket and slide it on as I step outside. I walk a few paces and realize I’m already too warm. It’s halfway through January and the temperatures outside are hovering around 50^o. It’s only snowed in town a couple times all winter. The sun is shining, and it seems like spring is just around the corner. Too bad it’s not. Winter will be back. However, it’s still nice for a break, right? It may feel nice, but this weather is not without consequences. What might those consequences be? Well, let’s take a look.

First, the lack of snow is a big problem. Yes, I love having clear roads as much as anyone else. The headache of waking up with six inches of new snow and realizing I’m going to spend an hour or two of my day shoveling/plowing just to clear my driveway and paths is not pleasant. Neither is dealing with slick roads and all the other people out on the slick roads. (Funny how everyone always thinks it’s the other person that’s the bad driver.) I love being able to travel the mountain passes with peace of mind.

So why is the lack of snow such a problem? We receive very little precipitation throughout the year. What precipitation we do receive mainly comes as snow in the winter months. That buildup of snow in the mountains provides a water source for the rest of the year. When spring arrives and the temperatures begin to rise in the mountains the snowpack starts to melt. This melt feeds creeks, rivers, and lakes throughout the spring and summer, and starts to taper off in the fall. Without winter snow the snowpack won’t build up. Without a proper snowpack water flows will be hampered.

What happens when there’s less water? Well, that’s what we call a drought. Water suddenly becomes a hot commodity. Let me list a few things that rely on water flowing from the snowpack: dams, crops, orchards, lawns, drinking water, animals, fish, forests, and water recreation. I could keep going. The point is when there’s not enough water available everything loses. First go the unnecessary items. You’ll be asked to conserve water by watering your lawns and gardens less (or stopping all together if it’s severe enough), showering more efficiently, etc. Next, farmers with newer water rights may have to water their fields and orchards less. Of course someone could keep pulling out water and further lower the water levels, but that starts to affect the fish. Less water means streams, rivers, and lakes have less area to swim in. Less water means that the water will warm up quicker and get hotter than normal. Fish like cool water. An almost afterthought to most of us is the forests. Our forests do most of their growing in the spring from the influx of water from the snowpack. The less there is and the sooner it melts off leads to dry forests earlier in the year, increasing the chance of and severity of forest fires. Less water in the rivers lowers the amount of power that dams can generate.

Starting to get the picture? Snow is necessary. We must embrace the winter in order to enjoy the spring, summer, and fall. Without the winter snow, the rest of the year may be miserable.

My second point revolves around this warm weather we’re experiencing at the moment. A warm, sunny day seems nice, and one or two might not be that harmful, but extended warmth can lead to problems. Why?

Most plants go into dormancy for the winter. That means they shut down most of their natural processes. They flood their cells with chemicals that protect themselves from the winter cold, and wait it out. Generally, they wait until early spring to start the growth process. But what triggers their growth? We label March 20 as the first day of spring because it’s the spring equinox. (Our seasons change on the equinoxes and solstices.) However, a plant can’t read a calendar and decide when to break dormancy by a calendar date. A plant breaks dormancy on external cues. Mainly cues involving temperature.

See where I’m going with this? If the weather stays warm for too long in the middle of winter the plants might be tricked into thinking it’s time to break dormancy. They start their new growth leading to tender new shoots and flowers. The weather then crashes back down to normal winter temperatures. The new plant tissue can’t handle freezing temperatures and therefore dies.

Field crops might not be affected by this at all. A farmer realizes that these warm temperatures aren’t sustainable, and therefore doesn’t plant anything until spring. But trees aren’t this smart. They start to grow and head towards blooming. When the temperature crashes the new buds are killed off. No blossoms that year, and thus no fruit.

A mild winter like this seems nice, one with a warm, sunny week in the middle of January, and only a day or two of snowfall in town. You may be reveling in the decent driving conditions and your snow shovel gathering dust in the garage. But you shouldn’t be. This lack of snow and warm temperatures are only going to cause much bigger headaches later in the year than a normal winter causes on its own. I’m hoping that the temperatures drop to normal and we get massive snow falls the rest of January, February, and into March. Otherwise it’s going to be a dry rest of the year. 

The numbers are starting to look up from previous measurements, but are still far below where they should be.