Some old friends and I belong to a book club called BMC

blacks morning crew book club

these days, aside from Overstory and The Flowering World of Chinese Wilson

we are reading and discussing John Steinbeck

I like that his stories take place near the coves harbors breakwaters that I know well

and that the towns are meaningful to me with names like Salinas, San Ardo, King City, Castroville, Monterey and Moss Landing

this entry here was inspired by the log of the Sea of Cortez, his collecting trip down to the Golfo de California with Doc

This is a basic introduction to this fantastic group of animals:

 

 

 

The following document was given to me

by botany graduate students from San Francisco State University,

in collaboration with students from University of San Francisco

and botanical garden nursery volunteers

they asked that I

push it out into the world

like a cork topped glass bottle on the sea

When I read it

I was uncertain of its veracity

so I went to talk to the old curators

the old docents and volunteers

and the old society staff

and checked it out as best as I could

they said yes its true, the botanical garden will not be the same place in a few years

this is the direction that it is going

they also said

“nothing can be done about it.  most botanical gardens are doing the same thing.”

“botany is a dead science.  there are few economic incentives to drive further exploration, taxonomy, and collection.  Count how many botany majors there are this year in our classes, less than a handful.  theres simply no jobs for botanists.”

“the only thing that matters is what happens after you die, this is all an illusion”

I agree with these old time plant gurus, and see the wisdom in their ways.  the study of flowers is no longer as important, as relevant, nor as essential, as it once was.  What is in your heart and mind and spirit, at every moment, trumps the material world.

So please.  save your strong emotions for another topic.  no letters, no protests, no indignant speeches, rallies, and marches.  Sit back, be like a plant dreaming in the sun, anchored in the earth.  Just go out and be in the world of plants, and know that tomorrow, they may be gone.  Say hi, enjoy their presence, notice how they are all so unique and different and special, and know that change is the only constant in nature.   Give thanks, for it is they that have created the world that we live in.  The air, the marshes, the forests, the valleys, the food.  Homes, fuel, life itself.  Plants are the producers, we are the consumers.

Sorry kids, y’all gonna be living in a little sadder world than the one we grew up in.  You will not know your kindred relatives or recognize your brothers and sisters who are animals and trees.  But, this has been coming down the pipe lines for a whiles now…. nobody cares, all that matters is…

Here is the document submitted to me.  Rest in Peace:

—————————————————————————————————————————————–

San Francisco Botanical Gardens                      November 1, 2019

Plant casualties in living collections

The casualties in the past two and a half years +  are as follows:

Beds 48N and 48G. The grove of some 50+ yew trees Taxus baccata that created the ceremonial circle in the redwood grove.  Accession XY-2642 likely sixty to seventy year old specimens.  Cut down completely.  No more circular enclosure for the benches and podium.

Bed 53G. Tetradium daniellii, a large tree in the Rutaceae family, the bee bee tree, approximately 60 years old – cut down.  The only one mature specimen in the garden. Not rare, but the only one of its age and kind in a public space in San Francisco.  Replaced by Bergenia, Acorus, and ferns.

Bed 4B. Thujopsis dolabrata and Chamaecyparis lawsoniana.   The Thujopsis was the largest and oldest of six Thujopsis plants in the garden.  Both 60 year old +.

Bed 48O. Across from the succulent and cactus gardens.  A collection of mostly Australian plants.  Everything cleaned out except for one transplanted grass tree.  The bed was seeded with California annuals like Phacelia and California poppy in the winter of 2018.  Now it is a dried out meadow with Ehrharta erecta grass and Echium fastuosum seedlings.  Some of the older specimens lost were:

Banksia media 1978-0171.  41 years old.

Banksia sphaerocarpa.  1978-0172.  41 years old.

Banskia spinulosa 1973-0629.  46 years old.

Beschorneria albiflora 1973-0622.  46 years old.

Cassia artemisioides.  1977-0048.  42 years old.

Leptospermum liversidgei.  1971-0332.  48 years old.

Glandularia peruviana.  1975-0202.  45 years old.

Peumus boldus.  1973-0141.  46 years old.

Three of the five total species of Kunzea at SFBG were in Bed 48O.  Kunzea baxteri, K. pomifera, and K recurva var. montana.

Xanthorrhoea macronema, age unknown.  The only X. macronema in the garden.

Not too long ago, Xanthorrhoea was well represented in the San Francisco Botanical Garden, especially so in Bed 48O. In Bed 48O, there were four species, nine individual plants, based on records from 2012 by past curator.  There was  Xanthorrhoea australis ssp. australis, X. macronema, X. quadrangulata, and an unknown Xanthorrhoea species.  Now, there is one transplanted plant left in Bed 48O, and another transplanted grass tree up with the succulents and cacti.  In the garden as a whole, records from 2012 show a total of eight species and 22 individuals.  A search for the remaining Xanthorrhoea in September of 2019 showed two young plants of Xanthorrhoea preissiii in Beds 60B and 64C, and two more young plants of X. preissii in Bed 64E and in Bed 58B.  Also, there is a clump of Xanthorrhoea species in Bed 75A which appears to be two or three individuals planted right next to one another, the label says 2012-0264A, so planted about 9 years ago.  None of these plants have the stature or the form acquired with time.  Gone from the garden are also Xanthorrhoea fulva, X. glauca, X. macronema, X. quadrangulata, and X. semiplana.  Overall, about eight individuals left, down from twenty-two.  Three Xanthorrhoea species left, down from eight.

Another example is the genus Banksia, which was well represented in Bed 48O.  In the garden as a whole, 2012 records indicate 34 Banksia members – three cultivars, two subspecies, one variety, and 28 species.    By chopping down all the plants in Bed 48O, the garden lost Banksia blechnifolia, B. burdettii, B. caleyi, B. media, B. menziesii, B. sphaerocarpa, and an unknown B. species.  Moreover, in the whole garden, over the past few years, the collection has lost B. aemula, B. baueri, B. ericifolia ‘Compact’, B. ericifolia ssp. macrantha, B. grossa, B. occidentalis, B. oblongifolia, B. occidentalis, B. ornata, B, praemorsa, B. prionotes, B. spinulosa ‘Schnapper Point’.  So from 34 Banksia species/cultivars/varieties/subspecies,  down to 15.

Beds 3A – 3R, Bed 5C.  Exhibition garden.  The entire Demonstration Garden was gutted to make way for the Exhibition and Wedding Celebration Garden.  There were many common plants in this area, and so the loss in terms of local biodiversity, rarity, and significance was not so great.  What was axed that was somewhat rare, old, or unusual were:

x Chiranthofremontia lenzii:  The featured plant on the SFBG website for June.

Jasminum azoricum.  Status was Rare.

Pittosporum erioloma.  Status was Rare. 

A collection of numerous plants in the Restionaceae family – African rushes. 

Beds OA, OB, OC, OD, OE, OG, OL, OV. Botanical garden nursery.

A large proportion of the potted plants of varying age classes collected and traded in from botanical expeditions to Asia, Mexico, South America, and Europe were thrown out by the current director in a clean out in 2017.  The identities and records are lost and were thrown out along with the plants.  Some of the specimens which show up in past records, but that are no longer in the nursery, are:

Lobelia excelsa OB4.  Status is Rare.

Lomatium insulare OA2.  Status is Rare.

Lotus crassifolius var otayensis OV.  Status is Rare.

Malacothamnus palmeri var. lucianus.  OA2. Status is Rare.

Miconia ravenii.  OG3.  Status is Rare.
Persea donnell-smithii.  OC1.  Status is Rare.

Pinus cembroides ssp. orizabensis.  OE1.  Status is Rare. 

Pinus maximartinezii.  OB1, OC2, OL8.  Status is Rare. 

Saxegothaea conspicua.  OC2, OD2.  Status is Rare.

Sidaldea stipularis. OA2.  Status is Rare. 

Trachycarpus geminisectus.  OL6, OLB.

unidentified Ceroxylon species from South America. 

Plants that were salvaged by nursery volunteers from the garbage, and that are not in the garden nor in the records of the 2019 SFBG plant finder data base include:

Cleyera japonica var. wallichiana SFBG XY-0201 A.  Pentaphylacaceae.  From Indian, Nepal and TIbet.

Pterolobium punctatum.  SFBG 1998-0422.  Fabaceae.  From China and Laos.

and many more…

Overall. Other plants have been decimated either due to active destruction or careless neglect  over the recent years.  A comparison of paper based curatorial records from 2012 -2013 and the GIS Plant Finder of SFBG online records 2019 indicate the following trends for these sample genera:

Abies:  27 species/cultivars/varieties/subspecies in 2012, 22 in 2019

Erica:  42 species/subspecies/varieties/cultivars/hybrids in 2012, 26 in 2019

Fuchsia:  98 species/cultivars/hybrids/subspecies in 2012, 68 in 2019

Juniperus:  21 species/cultivars/varieties in 2012, 11 in 2019

Lonicera :  20 species/cultivars/varieties/hybrids in 2012,  11 in 2019

Lupinus  9 species/cultivars/varieties in 2012, 3 in 2019

Mimulus:  18 species/cultivars/hybrids in 2012, 13 in 2019

Monochaetum:  15 species/hybrids in 2012, 8 in 2019

Oenothera:  13 species/cultivars/subspecies in 2012, 3 in 2019

Passiflora:  50 species/cultivars/hybrids/varieties in 2012, 13 in 2019

Phlox:  9 species/cultivars in 2012, no results for 2019 ( no plants found/exist)

Quercus:  53 species/hybrids/cultivars in 2012, 45 in 2019

Ribes:  29 species/varieties/cultivars in 2012, 23 in 2019

Salvia:  255 species/cultivars/hybrids in 2012,  182 in 2019

Silene: 24 species/cultivars in 2012, 2 in 2019

Solanum:  14 species/cultivars/varieties in 2012, 1 in 2019

Tibouchina:  10 species in 2012, 6 in 2019

Vaccinium:  18  species/cultivars in 2012, 11 in 2019

Verbascum:  11 species/cultivars in 2012, 4 in 2019

Viburnum:  37 species/cultivar/hybrids in 2012, 17 in 2019

A similar trend is true for almost all taxa in the garden.  Diversity has been on the decline.

 

Here are two examples of curatorial practices:  sample pages from 2012 records,  and a cut and paste of the same taxon group from Plant Finder GIS San Francisco Botanical Garden 2019.

These are the pages for Erica from the old paper based database about six to seven years ago:

    Botanical name         Family     Origin # Bed number Rare? 

Compare and contrast.  A search for the genus Erica using the 2019 SFBG Plant Finder shows the following entries in this order.

 

These are the pages for Solanum from the old paper based data base:

A search for the genus Solanum in the 2019 Plant Finder yields one species:

Solanum aviculare

---

---

 

Its okay kids!  Remember that change is the constant.  Accept it.  Embrace it in all its facets.  Can’t go backwards, only go forwards.  Stay POSITIVE!!!

CHANGES IN THE BOTANICAL GARDEN OVER TIME   August 2019

PREHISTORY

well it’s been twenty four years

since I first stepped in the Strybing Arboretum and botanical gardens

and started weedin the area known as cape province south africa

its been twenty four years

since I was hired to work alongside

master Don Mahoney in the nursery

taking out the trash, cleaning the corrugated roofs of algae with a long brush

driving the loaded electric cart up and down, watering the plants

its been twenty four years

since I planted the shrubs and trees in the childrens garden out back

with little kids alongside digging

while the red tailed hawk tore apart a gopher on the pine tree overhead

kids screaming and full of excitement

its been twenty four years

since general King Sip took me on as an intern

and encouraged me in my horticultural pursuits

twenty four years

since I met my wife working in the garden

marrying in the garden

weeding and planting in the garden

twenty four years later

i am still here, doing the same ol thing

volunteering to

pulling out long vines of blackberry

sweeping the pathways clean

weeding the basin of prized specimens

amending the poor sandy soil

keeping the love alive

for plants

for people

BACK IN THE DAY

the curator was a botanist

the curator knew their plants and families

this is

very important for a botanical garden

botany, plant identification, an eye for the flowers

back in the day

there was a gentleman named Bian Tan

f _ _ _ing amazing that is how I can describe his skills

he be there in the office, going about his business, smiling

door is open

you just go right in like I got a question about this plant

he give you the name right away if it was the least bit common

or if it was some obscure weird creature from the hinterland tropics of asia or caribbean

he would look at it, look at it some more

and say

its this family, lets find it

and he would pull one of them tomes off the shelf, flip to the page, and boom

wow

let me emphasize this

what Bian possessed is accumulated over years and years and years

still today, no app can surpass this breadth or this complexity

of the natural world

he knew his families of flowering plants

he was kind and present and knowledgeable

willing to share

loved plants

Pictured from front left going clockwise:  Bian Tan of Botanical Gardens Conservation International and One with Nature; Betsy Flack of Western Hills Garden and Garden Conservancy; Richard G Turner Jr. of Pacific Horticulture; and yours truly.

 

BACK IN THE DAY

the nursery was full of happiness and joy

Dr Don Mahoney was in rare form

the eye of the storm

the host of the party

the arbitrator of all questions and disputes

plants or human related

that being questions of how to cultivate and grow a cloud forest rubiaceous bush

that being arguments that arose over territory and table space in the greenhouse

at the communal pizza and chips lunch

Don Mahoney was in excellent form

eating the burrito he has eaten religiously for some thirty odd years from gordo’s

all the volunteers would be crowded about the table

gossiping, laughing, but mostly asking questions

about plants

and Don, because he loved plants so

and spent all his days reading and potting up and watching the weather channel

knew the answers

and the volunteers were hilarious

mostly ladies but a few gentlemen

the median age was about 82 years old or so

Ora Walker grew the roses and passion vines

Ora had the hahah grin of a little girl

who bought a bunch of plants from home depot, to sell at our botanical garden plant sales

at double the price hahahaha

Ora had the grin of a green thumb

who accidentally grew cannabis in her san mateo county back yard hahaha

Then, there was Virginia Obrien of the shrub section with Chuck as a helper

Margaret, 90+ years old, who drove to san francisco from walnut creek for her begonias

in a little red nissan

Jean and her salvias

Liz and her trees and her attendant Jason

Nan and Jim of the rhodies, still of the rhodies

Margery Edgren who piloted the california native section of buckwheats and ceanothus

and many more

back in the day

the nursery was not well funded

was not state of the art

was janky around the edges, plenty DIY

the nursery was built in the coldest lowest part of the garden

the greenhouse roof was asbestos

the hoop houses were hand made of PVC frames, scrap lumber and 2-5mm plastic

the upper growing area was terraced with old logs and found concrete block

you would look at all of this and be like

“this is the grow area of one of the premier botanical gardens in the country?!”

back in the day

we had less frequent plant sales

we took cash from customers as they stood in line

receipts were written by hand

and we were happy to make 1500 dollars at a sale

1500 dollars !!!

fern section made 100 dollars, natives made 300, rhododendrons made 50

and so on

that is to say, we really did not make a whole lot of money

nevertheless

in spite of the less than ideal growing conditions

in spite of the lack of cash flow

we grew beautiful adapted strong plants in field conditions

we grew rare specimens and introduced them to the bay area horticultural community

The lines were long, but the mood was friendly

It was not a mad dash of gimme gimme gimme

It was pure joy

the volunteers were the heart the core of plant knowledge

the volunteers were the living libraries accumulated under hundreds of years of  –

soil and roots and petioles and perlite and dirt under the finger nails

we enjoyed watching plants grow and shared this passion

this love for sprouting seeds, elongating stems, and bursting flowers

BACK IN THE DAY

the botanical garden society was in thick with teaching and learning

thick i tell ya it was the center stage of all education activities

plants related

for San Francisco bay area

classes, conferences, visiting botanists, seed exchanges, field trips, travels abroad, plant doctor, newsletters, the works!

these names to me are legendary now, but likely forgotten

unless I jot them down

Kitty Fisher, Betsy Flack, Margaret of the bookstore, and Barbara Pitschel of the library

To me, Kitty was the best of the best, and exemplary of what it was like

back in the day

okay let me just get this out of the way first

she was black, she colored, not white

she started as a secretary at the botanical garden society staff

so she is no phd botanist, she did not get the job cause she got friends in high places

she was not brought in for the purpose of development and fund raising

she not one of them sit around and tell people what to do kinda person

she not one them bitter looking shut yourself in the office

one of them all day look at a computer person who is there because

it pays good, its a ‘job’, it a non profit

no no no, she was motivated by other forces

she was brought in to type and take notes and keep the office tidy

what was refreshing though was her attitude and soul

she had a purpose, she cared about plants and people

so with time and opportunity

she became in charge of the education department at the garden

and I would see her

copying the handouts for the instructors

making the coffee and tea for the students

cleaning up afterwards

early morning, late nights weekends

always organizing structuring and getting ready

for the next Dr Glenn Keator or Dr Frank Almeda or Dr Chen from Kunming Institute in China

keeping things rollling

keeping the care and love for the garden alive

with community involvement and

education

all heart

BACK IN THE DAY

working for the city as a gardener

even at the botanical garden

seemed a lot looser of a gig

sure there are some gardeners who

treated it like a slacker city job

get away with what you can

do the minimum possible

take extra long breaks and lunches

suck up to the supervisor to get extra benefits

sit on your phone

abuse the sick time and holiday time

play the system to their own benefit

but most of the gardeners

are in the botanical garden

because they love plants and love diversity

because they love frogs and hawks and spiders and the whole bit

because its not just mow and blow and pick up the trash

you actually get to grow plants and talk to them everyday

back in the day

the gardeners were respected for their plant knowledge and authority

the gardeners were the caretakers and the perpetual presence on the beat

the gardeners knew what sprinkler valves were working

the gardeners knew how to keep the magnolia in good health

a gardener knew what it took

to care for three thousand unique specimens in a six acre beat

the gardeners knew how to

maintain myriad of water features

care for and cull the sick and dying trees

how to pull three tons of pond weeds from the pond wearing waders

and not drown in the mud or pull a hernia in ones back

how to haul thirty tons of decomposed granite and not get hurt

shovel up shovel down cushman up cushman down

because of the vast scope of responsibility and skill required of a gardener

the botanical garden gardeners

back in the day

were given much independent authority to take care of their beat

as they saw fit

they were not pushed around at every turn

to do things that were not

actually taking care of the plants

(that is the job you know, a gardener)

back in the day

the gardener’s internal drive and love for the garden

was stoked by this trust

and encouraged by the management

as a result, the garden flourished

and people worked together

not because of an external cattle prod that forced cooperation

but because of a shared love for plants, and a work ethic

that demanded it

thank you to King Sip and Terry Seefield and Jake Sigg

thank you to Mike Corbin and Steve Drosos and Steve Merrick

thank you to Andy Stone and his chainsaw

thank you to Paul of the demonstration garden 

thank you to Walt

thank you to Sue rest in peace

BACK IN THE DAY

the managers were more relaxed

on the rec park side

the managers had field experience

field experience in working

working like with your hands and on your feet, well your brain too, but working working

not keyboard tongue sitting down working

not plantation boss slave driver working

the bosses came up from the bottom

the bosses once worked as an apprentice as a gardener as a supervisor as a superintendent

weeding planting watering blowing pruning picking up garbage raking

that made them more understanding

of the work that gardening requires

they knew the difficulty that comes with

getting up early, picking up human feces

the challenges of keeping your joints from breaking down due to repetitive labor

the importance of leading through action not just words

they had realistic expectations

of people and budgets

they understood the specialness

of an urban botanical garden in a metropolis like san francisco

they were more relaxed

grounded

and kind

you could see it in the sparkle of their eyes

in their down to earth body language

in the way they addressed you as an equal as a friend or even as a subordinate

they did not approach the garden

as an ego project

as a stock broker real estate developer

as another trophy to be had, a game to be played and won

as a war to be fought with tactic strategy and control

they approached the garden

with respect and love

BACK IN THE DAY

on the society side

the managers were more hands off

(the botanical garden is governed by the city – a public entity

in cahoots with the botanical garden society – a private non profit)

the society was responsible for the curatorial, education and community aspects

the city was responsible for the physical upkeep and maintenance of the garden

even back in the day

I hardly ever saw the society directors in the garden

this is because their primary focus is fund raising

so some of them

could care less if they were fund raising for

starving kids in africa or homeless in tijuana or disadvantaged kids in the ghetto

the issue at hand is money money money

flowers and kids and gardens are the backdrop and the hook

to raise money money money

and when the money doesnt come through, or you get burned out

or a higher better paying job comes up

or you get caught with your pants down corruption milking the public system

you go, you cut your losses and go

back in the day

the directors would change every few years or so

the development staff would change every few years or so

this is natural

if you dont love plants and dont love people who love plants

you will keep moving and moving and moving on

to the next green pasture

its just a job, remember, its just a job

BACK IN THE DAY

habitat gardening was looked upon in a positive manner

at the botanical garden

there was the recognition and smarts

that left patches of ground covers and weeds

brown seed heads and fallow ground and open sands

dense natural form shrubs and tree branches (their skirts) that touched the ground

remember the hundreds of quail that sought refuge here in the garden

the only best safest part of golden gate park?

k cooing k cooing as they raced throughout the menzies garden?

remember the hundreds of damsel flies that used to land on your fingers at the conifer pond?

the ones that laid their eggs on the water primrose?

remember the red legged frogs that hid under the wooden bridge, the hundreds of tadpoles that captured the imagination of children?

habitat

its the dense leafy tips touching another’s feathering canopy

its the unsprayed meadow of ripe seeds and humid understory of rhizomatous perennials

its the snag of a tree for the coopers hawk to sit on

the hollow of an agave stalk for the sap sucker to raise babies

habitat is magical and beautiful nature

I remember Barbara Deutsch the butterfly lady

she serenaded us with countless larvae and host plants

painted ladies swalllow tails checkerspots skippers alight aflight

in addition to the flowers

Barbara gifted us workers with burritos and an invitation to see her potrero hill serpentine outcrop

I sure appreciated this – thank you Barbara thanks for being here!

well, for those of you that do not remember or never learned this

know that clean and green

tidy and weed free parks

come at a cost

and I am not just talking about pesticides or hurt knees and shoulders

and a stress filled army sergeant like whip cracking control minded supervisor

the cost is the broken disjointed lack of connection to the lives around us

the cost is the lost of wonder and joy of discovery

the cost is a lack of tolerance and ability to see the beauty of the world

the cost is real, and we pay for it in subtle ways that ends in a condition called

soul suck

the cost is costing our kids, that is what it comes down to

the kids

BACK IN THE DAY

there were rules of engagement in the garden

these rules were posted

no picking the flower no pruning the trees

stay on the paths dont go in the flower beds

no active sports on the lawns and no bikes and trikes and things on the paths

and so on

the point of all the rules

is that a botanical garden is for the plants

a delightful spot for people to appreciate the plants

a place where trees don’t have to worry about their roots becoming compacted by stompage

a place where delicate and seldom seen shoots and bulbs can emerge unharmed

a place where you can meet plants from the other side of the world

there is plenty of space

in the rest of the park

for human centered activities

the botanical garden is for plants, pure and simple

you might even say that it is a temple for the trees

a church for the flowers, a synagogue for the birds and the bees

back in the day

everyone helped out

to make sure people followed the rules

back in the day

rules were rules

we weren’t afraid to call each other on it

we did not think discipline was a bad word

we did not think that rules are ‘negative’ and that we should always be ‘positive’

back in the day

people felt shamed and embarrassed if they broke the rules

they would not start yelling back at you and giving you the finger or pulling rank

in addition to breaking the rules

back in the day

they would not have that fixed uncaring gaze

they would not ignore you look right past you

as if you were not worthy

as if

the whole world was a screen the whole world was a phone

instead, they would look sorry, say sorry, and stop what they were doing

back in the day

people agreed and worked together

to protect the garden and its plants

for everyone to enjoy

BACK IN THE DAY

you did not cut things down, unless they were sick and dead and a danger to the public

if you wanted more planting room

there was plenty of stuff that died of natural causes, of fungal pathogens and beetles

of el nino storms and winter saturated wetness

the big coast live oak in the native cali garden meadow comes to mind

as does the redwood tree and big leaf maple by the nursery

another tree that fell

was the silver tree full of good seed in the south africa section bout year 2014

on and on, nature takes its own toll

over time over the years

you do not have to cut stuff down for no good cause

you could prune it hard, you could shape it

but you would not go start chopping chopping chopping

because it takes time to grow

because it is cool to see an old thick tree in the city

because time and age is not something that you can make or sell or speed up or slow down

because we are looking out for kids of today and the future

this is called being conservative, this is conservation

well to be fair, some directors did cut stuff down for control or for design

like that sixty or seventy year old healthy holly tree in the front of the county fair building

relegated to the wood chipper by then director Scot Medbury

I still remember its clear no knots trunk and gleaming white wood cross section

but besides this

back in the day

there was very little ax work done

there was room for the trees

the trees were left to grow big and grow tall

the trees were left to flower in abundance and swirl their roots deep

the issue was not a better more improved shiny and new landscape able to host

a million visitors and two food trucks and a billion video icon likes subscribes

it was about the trees

back in the day

the trees

Change is constant in nature

change is the way

there is only one way

and it goes from here forward, it does not go backwards

back in the day

back in the day had its problems too

I am sure I left out some details

mistakes and omissions and interpersonal interactions that were not

totally harmonious

however

there are many good things from the

good old days in the botanical garden

which if not recognized documented understood evaluated and practiced

in the context of time and nature and the toil of humanity

will lead to a poverty of the senses

a despoiling of the garden as a paradise and sanctuary

destruction of peace and tranquility of the human mind

and make our children into

slaves and zombies

slaves to cold hearted stiff eyed task masters with no joy in their heart

slaves to the ego of data and cash and resume building

zombies of hard wired machines with no quivering soul

zombies to false visions and fake ideas and lies and more lies and more lies

that is why a garden is important

because it is true and full of life and requires intense constant work

to work in a garden

you have to be present

you have to be humble and knowledgeable

you have to be willing to listen, engage, learn, share, and work together

you have to have love

that is the most important ingredient of them all

the thing that surpasses all the others

love for plants and love for people

love

As part of the Landscape Design OH70A class, we take a field trip to see nature’s designs at work.  The place we go to is San Bruno Mountain.  It is close, it is ancient, and it reveals much about our landscape and our history.  We do the summit loop trail to learn about how what plants are adapted to the site, and in what kinds of combinations.  We talk about the importance of soil and drainage, and how all the forces interact to create the magnificent scenes we behold.    We check out the view of the surrounding cities.  Okay, here we go!

Startin’ off at the summit, you get a good plan view of the tip of this peninsula which comprises San Francisco north, Colma and Daly City to the west, Brisbane to the east, and South San Francisco to the south.

On the west side.  Alright, let’s pick out the main green features.  Theres ol’ Lake Merced, which was once salt water, part of an estuary that mixed with the sea.  The big green spaces are mostly all golf courses and cemeteries.  Theres a few little parks, but in town, most of the rest is houses and retail.  

Yup, thats about it until you go south towards San Mateo and Skyline and Crystal Springs reservoir where ridges of coastal mountains couple with old douglas fir trees.  Note the onshore wind and oceanic fog that influence the plant matrices and how they grow.

On the east side going north from San Bruno Mountain.  This is the more protected side of the mountain, veering towards shade as the trails start to point north towards downtown San Francisco.  There is the small town of Brisbane, its lagoon, and the dump site by the railroad tracks.  Green space wise, a little northeast of San Bruno Mountain is McLaren Park at 313 acres, and to the east of McLaren park you can see Bayview Hill and the dirt lot that was once Candlestick Park where the Forty-Niners played football.

North – you can see the forested hills at the tip of the San Francisco peninsula, the Presidio.  And a little to the left of that is a stretch of trees that comprise Golden Gate Park.  Marin Headlands  is in the distance.

Well the ecologists call em dominants in a vegetation community, some designers like to call them the bones of a design, or the structure.  Oftentimes these plants are evergreen and persistent.  They are plants that course throughout the landscape and give definition to the garden as a whole.  On San Bruno Mountain, in this coastal sage scrub community, the dominants are coyote Bush, California sage bush, monkey flower, lizard tail, and coffee berry. 

This is coyote bush and some lichen friends:

This is the sticky monkey flower in orange singing along with the lizard tail in whitish green, with a pinch of the coffee berry behind both of them:

Another neat way to fill the garden with plants is thinking about the space in various heights.  In ecology we would be talking about canopies and understories.  In permaculture design they are always going on about layers and probably stacking functions.  Designers will chime in about how the highs and lows make a garden dynamic and interesting.  So do not forget about the groundcovers that enjoy a little bit of shade from the shrubs above.  A neat plant on the summit trail sneaking underneath the coyote bush is yerba buena – a tidy little crawling mint.  It makes one great tea:

Hummingbird sage with its sweet leaf aroma and pink two lipped blossoms are a treat for any garden.  It also likes to wander under other plants on a north north/east facing slope.  This time of the year it is looking real real dry…

Sometimes, here and there will be a plant of a little larger stature that sticks out.  A designer might call it a focal point or an architectural specimen.  For reasons of space or water or light or all of the above, they are less frequent than the shrubs.  On the summit trail two plants seem to fit this description.  One is California wild lilac Ceanothus thrysiflorus that flowers in nice purple blue.  Thats it in the back there, without its famous blue blossoms.  In the foreground is one nice drift of the sword fern.  What lines!!!

Another focal point is the tree/large shrub that is always in the wet drainage along where two hills meet.  There you will find stands of red elderberry Sambucus callicarpa which was good for making flutes and clapper sticks and cigarettes and bows and all sorts of other things back in Ohlone days.  Thats them in a line with twiggy looking stick branches along a ravine where the water gathers. 

As always it is good to be attentive to small details and diversity.  We came across four species of ferns on the summit trail.  The clumpy sword fern.  The popping up here and there somewhat solitary feeling bracken fern.  A California Polypodium fern on the slopes gripping with furry feet into the dirt.  And around the corner up the road the Polypodium with stiffer leaves the one known as the leather fern.  Yes, in general, ferns like moisture.

There are two succulents that are easy to spot on the trail if you are paying attention.  Yup, succulent like euphorbias and cacti and jade plants and the like.  But these two have been on the mountain for oh say a few hundred or a few thousand years or so.  One is named stonecrop and is a host plant for the San Bruno Elfin butterfly.  It is here posing with the seaside daisy – a low drought tolerant groundcover with nice purple yellow flowers. 

The other succulent is named live forever.  It is really choice. Dudleya farinosa.  Farinosa like farina like white like flour.

The one plant that you must know if you hike in California is the poison oak plant.  This time of the year it is starting to turn red the leaves.  Leaves of three let them be.  If its shiny watch your hiny.  You are not likely to plant this in the garden because it gives most people rashes.  Plus it is not commonly available at the local nursery.

As a designer and gardener,  you want to make memorable plant scenes – combinations of plants that sit well with each other as they drink the fog and twirl in the rocks below.  Some verticals and motion coupled with a rugged yet delicate harmony.  This the the goal.  Try to mix and match woody shrubs with herbaceous evergreen perennials.  Repeating in a curved chorus.  These are a few samples from one of the most epic and ancient places in the San Francisco Bay Area:

Nutka reed grass and manzanita.  Down low is California blackberry and good ol yerba buena.

Lichen and douglas irs.  This one is a wild garden special.  Gonna be hard to replicate this one in a home garden.  Takes time. Time. And more time.

This here is one of my favorites.  Huckleberry and manzanita.  Tucked behind the rocks there is a nice fat clump of live forevers.  Hey this is why we go hiking!

Okay.  Nature is the master designer.  Be attentive and all the principles of design can be understood in the crystal filled canyons and fog drenched forms.  Enjoy San Bruno Mountain!!!

Heres the chalkboard notes for our day of hardscapes.  Stone patios, decks, retaining walls, pebble strewn riverbeds, brick walls, calculations of volume, and more…  The  standout concepts from the day are:

1.  Whatever you design is going to interact with the world and grow over time.  Swell and contract, erode and and settle, get swamped and drain.  So keep in mind the natural forces of water, wind, warmth and light, soils.  Do not forget about gophers and coyotes, rats and raccoons, wood rotting fungus and termites, as you lay down a layer of wood or stone or concrete over the earth.
2. A couple big catch words these days are Permeability and Sustainability.  Permeability is the ability of the landscape to breathe and allow water to penetrate infiltrate down down low to the groundwater and aquifer below, filtered through the soil.  Sustainability is a bunch of big question marks – what can we keep using without depleting?  At what rate can we cut things down or pump things out or burn stuff up?  What is the value of an intact primeval ancient river bed or forest?  How can we beautify the world through the design and construction of gardens?
3. When calculating the amount of hardscape materials needed.  Remember to always multiply using consistent same units.  That is to say, in estimating volume, multiple feet x feet x feet, not feet x feet x inches.  Also, use proper and correct conversion factors.  For example, 27 cubic feet is one cubic yard.  One cubic yard.  Even though at the stone yard they just always say ‘one yard’, it is one cubic yard.