Larry About to Wade Into Fields of Oxalis
We had a super turnout on the Stairs today, with a reward at the end in the form of a BBQ hosted by Christian Byza. Many bags of weeds are now waiting for pickup! Thanks everyone! Photos of Bratwurst, Morgan communing with the weeds.
Filed under Jungle Stairs Phase III, The Mad Gardener
Took a walk along the stairs today, Thanksgiving Day, and spotted Gerda extending the rail painting job that she and a few dedicated others started about a month ago. A big thanks to Gerda from us all!
Filed under Jungle Stairs Phase III, The Mad Gardener
On Saturday Nov. 5 Marc and Jennifer Mondfrans did some planting on the west side to take advantage of the coming rain. They were joined by Fermi Photino, their charming Labradoodle. Newly planted and set up with irrigation are three more coffeeberrys plus an additional six Hummingbird Sages. And thanks to the California Native Plant Society, we will have more plants to get into the ground on our Nov. 13 workday.
Filed under Jungle Stairs Phase III, The Mad Gardener
Here’s a candidate for a pre or post workday excursion: On Saturday -Sunday, November 12 – 13, 10am – 4pmThe San Francisco Botanical Garden will be hosting a November Plant Sale. There’ll be multiple varieties of California Natives for fall planting plus blooming Salvias, Correa, Helleborus, hardy Herbs and Pelargoniums. Venue is the Plant Shop adjacent to the Bookstore, located by the Main Entrance to the San Francisco Botanical Garden near 9th Avenue and Lincoln Way.
Filed under Jungle Stairs Phase III, The Mad Gardener
We at 22nd Street Jungle Stairs mourn the loss of our friend and colleague Pierre Hurter, who died suddenly on May 27 at the age of 68. Warm, witty and wise, he was among our group’s most valued members, always willing to take on responsibility, always there when needed. He combined a suite of practical talents with a keen interest in the world that made him an engaging conversationalist. Working alongside Pierre at Jungle Stairs was something all of us looked forward to.
Born in Geneva, Switzerland in 1953, Pierre came with his family to Milwaukee, Wisconsin when he was 5 years old and later moved to Southern California. After enlisting and serving in the U.S. Army, he went back to school to finish his degree as a civil engineer with a focus on land surveying at California State University, Fresno. He became a licensed land surveyor in 1992.
Pierre built a long career at PG&E, relishing the opportunities his job afforded for getting to know the Golden State. Loving the outdoors, he truly enjoyed his work. In later years, he oversaw a large territory that stretched from San Luis Obispo to well north of San Francisco. He retired from PG&E in 2014 after thirty years of service.
But what he did for a living did not define Pierre.
An expert scuba diver and world traveler, he wrote a regular column for the San Francisco Reef Divers’ monthly newsletter. In April he described a recent trip he and his wife Gerda made to Egypt and the Red Sea. It’s a chatty account, filled with all kinds of asides, both joking and serious. Reading it is like listening to Pierre talk.
At one point he drolly observed, “The breakfast buffet was stellar, who doesn’t like pickled herring with yogurt and cucumbers for breakfast…no really?” Some paragraphs later up pops a quote from Mark Twain: “Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow- mindedness…Broad, wholesome, charitable views of men and things cannot be acquired by vegetating in one little corner of the world all one’s lifetime.”
In yet another column Pierre described the dark, deep reaches of the ocean. “It’s odd when you stop to think about it, for all of our technology and curiosity as a species, we are only scratching the surface, literally, of the ocean.”
In addition to his contributions to Jungle Stairs and the San Francisco Reef Divers, Pierre volunteered at the San Francisco-Marin Food Bank to lessen the food insecurity that afflicts many Bay Area residents. He tutored elementary school students for the Reading Partners AmeriCorps program. Helping young children was important to him because he vividly remembered not speaking English when he arrived in the U.S. and having to learn the language quickly when he entered first grade.
Pierre also volunteered on the SS Jeremiah O’Brien, one of only two fully functional Liberty Ships that took part in the D-Day invasion. Never having had any experience working on ships, he liked to joke that he was good at following directions. He is remembered by his co-workers as a “real shipmate.” Last but not least he was an active board member of the Friends of Noe Valley, where he and Gerda have lived since 1993. “Being on the Board, “he commented, “is an opportunity to give something back to a neighborhood that has been good to us.”
Indeed. Giving back to his neighborhood and his city was what Pierre was all about. Like a giant tree that falls in a forest, his passing leaves a gaping hole that will take a long time to fill. We extend our deepest sympathies to his lovely wife Gerda, who is also a member of our group as well as the San Francisco Reef Divers and the Friends of Noe Valley.
Filed under Jungle Stairs Phase III, The Mad Gardener, Uncategorized
Just returned from a trip to SoCal. Because of the drought, compounded by heat, the landscape was scary brown—for the most part. A glorious exception was the Antelope Poppy Reserve near Lancaster, CA where we found lacy phacelia carving rivers of blue through fields of orange poppies.
But that wasn’t all.
Within our view field were solar farms that had paved over areas once resplendent with poppies and phacelia. We are clearly at the beginning of a massive solar push across the living landscapes of the state. But why do this when the built landscape already has so many places for solar panels? Why sterilize soils that –because of the life they now support–serve as lockboxes for atmospheric carbon?
Filed under Jungle Stairs Phase III, The Mad Gardener
Jungle Stairs has a no-longer secret admirer. Check out this post by Matt Charnock of the Bold Italic.
Filed under Jungle Stairs Phase III, The Mad Gardener
Here’s the second installment of the article about Eco-Patches published by Pacific Horticulture. Interesting that the Field Collective also used sheet mulch, which they were able to cover with bark mulch. Sheet mulch is a good thing. Our burlap-covered sheet mulch, ugly as it was, has improved our weed control to the point that we can dare add some bunch grasses and low growing groundcovers.
California fescue, a tall bunch grass that likes partial shade, should be at home dancing down our western slope. Ditto for woodland strawberry, which likes shade and has edible berries. In fact, woodland strawberry has already shown that it likes the west side. Beach strawberry, mentioned in this article, is partial to sun, so Larry Madsen is trying it out on the east side with little plants he’s grown up in pots. Beach strawberry prefers to grow in sand, but since our slope is so steep, it may find areas of fast drainage that will be to its liking.
Horticulture.https://www.pacifichorticulture.org/articles/the-potrero-hill-eco-patch-part-2-of-2/
Filed under Jungle Stairs Phase III, The Mad Gardener
Daniel Swain’s outlook for the coming rainy season is far from optimistic. But we can always hope. https://weatherwest.com
The NMME is currently pointing rather strongly toward a drier-than-average winter and spring in California. (NCEP/NOAA) SOURCE: Weather West
Filed under Jungle Stairs Phase III, The Mad Gardener
Filed under Jungle Stairs Phase III, The Mad Gardener
Our multi-talented plant designer Todd Gilens has a wonderful exhibition that’s just opened near South Lake Tahoe. It was commissioned by the National Forest Foundation and will be on display through November at the Taylor Creek Visitor Center.
Here’s what Todd has to say about his project:
“Reading Forest started in 2017 as a very open request to communicate forest changes in the Lake Tahoe basin. The resulting installation is forty circular drawings, like a grove of trees, digitized, printed on slip-resistant materials, and adhered to the pavement across a 10,000 square foot area and path network. The artwork was created in conversation with the Lake Tahoe West Restoration Partnership, a collaborative effort to restore the resilience of forests, watersheds, and communities on 59,000 acres of Lake Tahoe’s west shore. The installation was funded by a grant from the USDA Forest Service and is in place through November, 2021. Borrowing scientists’ method of reading tree rings to understand the past, my drawings hold phrases from science, anthropology, poetry, and other sources, as if trees have thought of them over many years’ time. But are the trees talking, or is it our human insights and preferences projected into them, like disturbances that heal over time? Part visual and part literary experience, visitors browse the drawings as they walk along the paths, making their own connections between natural and social processes. ”
www.nationalforests.org/regional-programs/california-program/reading-forest-artwork
www.toddgilens.com/readingforest
tahoequarterly.com/arts/exploring-a-forest-one-word-at-a-time
Filed under Jungle Stairs Phase III, The Mad Gardener
One of the pleasures of getting out to weed is discovering new things.
Remember the two toyons that we planted not long ago?
Well, they’re both budding out and soon will be in bloom. Maybe we’ll even get some bright yellow-orange berries around Christmastime.
There are also little groups of Clarkias coming up all over the place. After they bloom, they’ll reseed themselves everywhere.
On the east side I spotted two young silver bush lupines, which must have sprouted from seeds dropped by parent plants that long ago disappeared. Next year they should put on a spectacular show.
Filed under Jungle Stairs Phase III, The Mad Gardener
One of our favorite plants on the western slope is Ribes sanguineum, the red-flowering currant
It’s done well, so it seems like a good idea to plant more of it.
To that end we’re now trying our hand at propagation from stem cuttings.
Recently Pierre Hurter took home three cuttings.
So far at least, they seem to be doing well.
Funny since Pierre’s always said that he has a black thumb.
Looks like his black thumb may be turning green.
Filed under Jungle Stairs Phase III, The Mad Gardener
Can’t believe it’s time to get out on Collingwood Hill again, but May 2 is the first Sunday of the month. Always there’s weeding to do, but there will also be a special demo of the process involved in making stem cuttings. It may be that the stems have not yet reached the softwood stage, in which case we’ll have to wait another month. But this is a great way of propagating deciduous shrubs like our spectacular Red-Flowering Currant. Here’s a useful How-To from Fine Gardening:
Filed under Jungle Stairs Phase III, The Mad Gardener
The Annie’s Annuals catalogue describes this flashy bloomer as one “ginormous geranium.” Needing little irrigation, happy in sun or shade, it sprouts from seeds during the winter rains, taking two years to grow large enough to bloom. At that point the mother plant dies.
But each flower produces a cornucopia of seeds, which helpfully self-sow across our hillside. And so each year the cycle begins anew. Geranium maderense makes a great filler for bare areas on our hillside, plus it’s easy to get rid of where it’s not wanted. What’s not to like?
Filed under Landscape Design Phase III, The Mad Gardener
The California Invasive Plants Council has assembled a useful illustrated guide to the worst weeds in California. https://www.cal-ipc.org/plants/profiles/
You’ll probably recognize many of our “friends,”‘ including Bermuda buttercup (Oxalis pes-caprae), various thistles and grasses and, of course, Algerian and English ivy.
But some of the entries may surprise you. I saw Lantana camara, on the list and immediately checked to see which species of Lantana we planted.
While Lantana camara holds the distinction of being one of the worst invasives worldwide, the species we have appears to be much better behaved. It’s Lantana montevidensis, from Uruguay. Whew!
Another plant on the list is the silverleaf Cotoneaster, which is a problem all over the Bay Area. But there are other species of Cotoneaster.
What a lot of people don’t realize is that Lantana and Cotoneaster are genus level categories that contain multiple species.
The same is true of Eucalyptus, a genus that has more than 700 species. Only three of those species –the blue gum, the red gum and the sugar gum –are on the California IPC “Do Not Plant” list.
“Invasive” is, of course, only a relative term. A plant can be invasive in one context but well-behaved in another. Two beautiful California natives–the California poppy and the Monterey pine–have run amuck elsewhere in the world.
Filed under Jungle Stairs Phase III, The Mad Gardener
This past Sunday, May 18, we planted two “Davis Gold” toyons, one on each side of Collingwood Hill. They are small now but in three years time they should be spectacular, both in bloom and in berry The red-berried variant is more common than the gold, but the latter is more disease resistant. Because the berries appear in late fall and continue into winter, toyon is often referred to as California Christmas Berry or California Holly. Its iconic presence in Los Angeles is what gave rise to the name Hollywood.
Filed under Jungle Stairs Phase III, The Mad Gardener, Uncategorized
Earlier this spring we started a major clean-up operation on a new addition to the southern edge of our western slope. The main objective was to thin out the tangle of overgrown shrubs that prevented sunlight from penetrating the canopy, a major barrier to creating a healthier plant community.
For weeks now Pierre Hurter and Ken Fisher have been wielding their chain saws while other folks have been using loppers and hand pruners to cut branches into manageable lengths. Earlier this week Eva Chang at San Francisco’s Department of Public Works arranged for a truck to pick everything up. A real team effort.
In fall, when the rains will hopefully start again, we will begin planting a combination of low ground covers and mid-height perennials and shrubs. These will not only look nice but will also help protect the steep terrain from the force of rain and wind. In places, the new area is severely eroded, a legacy that has been years, probably decades in the making. Stopping the loss of soil is therefore an urgent task.
Brush waiting for pick-up. May 11, 2021.
Filed under Jungle Stairs Phase III, The Mad Gardener
The California bush anemone–Carpenteria californica–is one of our state’s most spectacular flowering shrubs, as this photo from Mostly Natives Nursery shows. in 2018 we planted three on the west side of our hill. By now they should be approaching their mature height, with a mass of dark green leaves and swelling buds about to burst into bloom. Instead they look like a bunch of little sticks with just a few scraggly leaves.
Why? Now that I’ve dug one of them up, I know. The root zone is a tangled mass that traces out the shape of a one-gallon pot. That is, the roots are encircling each other rather than reaching out in all directions. It’s a lethal condition. In another year or two, the roots will become so tightly bound that nutrients and water will be unable to reach the leaves and branches.
We have two options. The first is to try to save the plants by slashing through their tangled root balls. That will afford them a chance to regrow in a healthier configuration. If the salvage attempt fails, however, then the only thing to do will be to dig them out and replace them, this time making sure the roots are not encircled before the plant goes into the ground.
Filed under Jungle Stairs Phase III, The Mad Gardener
A rather large coyote made an unexpected appearance in two backyards not far from our stairs. First it explored Pierre Hurter’s back deck. Then it dashed upslope. Here is a photo shot through Christian Byza’s kitchen window. The coyote is just below the lower branch of a big Monterey cypress, in the lefthand corner. It looks alert, with perked ears and eyes staring straight on.
Filed under Jungle Stairs Phase III, The Mad Gardener
Hi All. It’s been nice to get rain after all those dry weeks, with more on the way the first part of this coming week.
Since we’re still running a rain deficit, I don’t want to wish next Sunday, our Feb. 7 workday, to be rain free. But assuming it is, as now seems likely, I hope many of you will be able to venture out.
At this time of year, there’s always a lot to do. But as Ken Fisher notes, weed growth is exponential. A weed pulled now saves an enormous amount of effort later on.
Now our work zone has expanded a bit, due to the exposure of additional area by two spiffy new fences that cut a straight line along the southern boundary of the western stairs.
You can read about the first fence in Marc Snyder’s recent post, “Farewell Door Fence!” The second fence, built by our Diamond Street neighbors, appeared just last week.
As their wood weathers to a silvery gray, the new fences should greatly enhance the looks of the western stairs.
Filed under Jungle Stairs Phase III, The Mad Gardener
22nd Street Jungle Stairs West underwent a major upgrade last month when the old “door fence” was replaced by a new redwood fence along the property line of 3975 22nd St. in December 2020.
Built around 1978 by Jack Smyth, San Francisco fireman, and his friend John Anastos, the fence consisted of a row of doors once belonging to the historic Hotel Oakland, which narrowly escaped demolition to become what it is today, affordable housing for seniors.
As the Hotel Oakland website notes, it once had “an elegant ballroom boasting Corinthian columns, oak-paneled grill room, and sophisticated dining room with spectacular chandeliers. The glorious lobby with gold-leafed, 30-foot ceilings made an immediate impression on the upscale guests.”
Among these guests were Presidents Wilson, Coolidge, Hoover and Roosevelt; Aviator Charles Lindbergh; Hollywood idols Mary Pickford and Douglas Fairbanks. https://www.hoteloaklandvillage.com/about-us/history/
The fence had charm and whimsy, but time had taken its toll. Thanks to Jo Schmidt and Sam Smyth and the Reuben Borg Fence Company for the new fence. By Marc Snyder
Among these guests were Presidents Wilson, Coolidge, Hoover and Roosevelt; Aviator Charles Lindbergh; Hollywood idols Mary Pickford and Douglas Fairbanks. https://www.hoteloaklandvillage.com/about-us/history/
Filed under Jungle Stairs Phase III
Walking down the western stairs on our regular Sunday workday I spotted a new yarn critter perched on a low-hanging branch of our buckeye tree.
Wonderful that neighborhood artist Huib Petersen has once again graced us with one of his creations. They are so much fun.
Photo courtesy of Pierre Hurter:
Filed under Jungle Stairs Phase III, The Mad Gardener
The first Sunday of the month is rolling around again. As always there are things to do on both sides of our hill.
Normally we would have postponed this workday due to its proximity to July 4, but this is not a normal year.
Please bring a mask and, if within 30 feet of anyone else, do put it on!
Filed under Jungle Stairs Phase III, The Mad Gardener
We will be holding the usual first Sunday of the month workday at the usual time–ie whenever folks start to show up, which is usually around 10 in the morning.
Since our last workday, San Francisco’s social distancing guidelines for outdoor activities have tightened.
Even outdoors we are now supposed to
— Wear a mask whenever walking or jogging within 30 feet of anyone not in our immediate household.
–Otherwise have a mask visible and handy so that it’s easy to slip on.
It is hot to work in a mask, so if you’re way out on the slope, feel free not to wear one.
For me just leaving the mask in place seems simpler than removing it and putting it back on multiple times.
And, of course, there’s no enforcement.
But I’ve become a big fan of mask-wearing as it’s an important key to getting the spread of Covid-19 under control.
Filed under Jungle Stairs Phase III, The Mad Gardener
This year Jungle Stairs is one of the gardens featured on the virtual tour organized by the Yerba Buena Chapter of the California Native Plant Society. Check it out!
http://cnps-yerbabuena.org/22nd-street-jungle-stairs/
Filed under Jungle Stairs Phase III, The Mad Gardener
Jungle Stairs East lies on the lee side of Collingwood Hill. It is as steep as West, with soil that’s also clay-rock amalgam, but unlike West it is sunny and wind-protected. Monterey pines and cypress once dominated the view-scape, but all died of disease. The plants we have chosen to replace them are cultivars or selections of native chaparral plants along with rock roses and olive trees, their Mediterranean cousins. All are suited to this challenging environment.
Among our show-stoppers is a large Flannel Bush with yellow saucer-size flowers. We also have a multitude of blue-flowering California lilacs, which are now spreading out and helping us with weed control. There are buckwheats, including rosy buckwheat, and several types of manzanita: Sentinel, Paradise and Sunset. Plus there are perennials like yarrow, blue-eyed grass and Douglas Iris. Among the plants we like best are the California poppies, which have sown themselves far and wide.
Mostly we are very pleased with how our plants have performed and the way the slope looks now, although we have lost some plants. A few were very young plants, not yet well established, but others died in their third year. The heat wave last summer seems to have provided the death blow, but they were showing signs of stress before then.
Among the casualties were a coffee berry and the Douglas irises that were planted along the upper corner of the staircase.One reason may be the death of the big Monterey cypress that used to shade them. For now we’ve sown Clarkia seeds to take advantage of the empty irrigation rings. This coming fall we will plant something more permanent.
California poppies, coastal variant, in bloom.
Filed under Jungle Stairs Phase III, The Mad Gardener
To say that Jungle Stairs West is a challenging site is an understatement. It is not only shady and extremely steep but also cold and foggy (in summer) and wind-scoured. Gusts here can top 50 mph. The soil consists of an organic layer atop clay and rock.
The staircase is flanked by established trees that either planted themselves or, in some cases, were purposefully planted. There are also younger trees and shrubs, including coyote brush, which were planted during an earlier phase of this project. In 2016 an expert arborist, the late Ted Kipping, assessed the health of the trees (many were in poor condition), then pruned them, which not only helped the trees but also opened up the canopy so more sunlight could reach the ground.
Having more sun has helped us establish new plantings. Among them, red-flowering currant, California bush anemone, evergreen currant, coffee berry, rosy buckwheat, Hummingbird sage. coastal wood fern, mock orange, snowberry, blue witch, ceanothus spp. The choices were made by our plant designer Todd Gilens, who specializes in native plants. At our request Gilens also included some non-natives, including the showy Chilean succulent, Calandrinia grandiflora.
A number of these plants are clearly flourishing. The red-flowering currants were spectacular this year. But along the southern boundary you can see three California bush anemones that are struggling. Just alongside, evergreen currants planted at the same time are doing splendidly. Why? We don’t know.
Filed under Jungle Stairs Phase III, The Mad Gardener
If you haven’t walked the Western stairs recently, you might want to.
The crochet artist of Diamond Street has a new installation at the entrance: A pink and yellow gnome (I think it’s a gnome) and two brightly colored mushrooms. The artist’s name is Huib Petersen; to learn more about him, see this 2018 article in the Huffington Post.
Filed under Jungle Stairs Phase III, The Mad Gardener, Uncategorized
A day ago, my niece was here visiting, and we paused to take a photo as we walked down the east side of Jungle Stairs. She captioned the photo with a poem by A.A. Milne.
Halfway down the stairs
is a stair
where i sit.
there isn’t any
other stair
quite like
it.
i’m not at the bottom,
i’m not at the top;
so this is the stair
where
I always
stop.
Halfway up the stairs
Isn’t up
And it isn’t down.
It isn’t in the nursery,
It isn’t in town.
And all sorts of funny thoughts
Run round my head.
It isn’t really
Anywhere!
It’s somewhere else
Instead!
Filed under Jungle Stairs Phase III, The Mad Gardener
Larry, Marc and I had a good day on our eastern slope. It was sunny. The soil was moist and pliable, and so we made a visible dent in the weeds. But there’s lots more to do. The upper southwest corner of East, in particular, needs help. Hidden amid the poppies (which we want) and the oxalis (which we don’t want) are thistles and dandelions that will soon go to seed. I saw and nabbed two dandelions in bloom, but there will soon be many more. So come out and weed when you can! Below, Plants in bloom on the eastern slope. Ceanothus Joyce Coulter, Fremontodendron californicum.
Filed under Jungle Stairs Phase III, The Mad Gardener
On Friday and Sunday, in advance of the atmospheric river headed our way, we got a few more plants in the ground, including Ceanothus “snowball” on the east side and creeping snowberry on the west side. The former, which will slowly reach circa 3 feet tall and 6 feet wide, should explode with fragrant white flowers in spring. The latter is more demure, a spreading ground cover with delicate pink blossoms followed by bright white berries that persist through wintertime.
Filed under Jungle Stairs Phase III, The Mad Gardener
Due to folks’ schedules, we’ve created a couple of additional workdays, which will help us make up for the fact that rain has so often prevented us from getting out on our hill. For those with flexible schedules, there will be a Friday workday on Feb. 22. There will be a Sunday workday on Feb. 24. And, weather permitting, there will be the usual workday on March 3, the first Sunday of the month. Sorry for all the last minute changes. Once the rainy season ends our workdays will become much more predictable.
Filed under Jungle Stairs Phase III, The Mad Gardener
Close-Up of Coastal Checkerbloom
Well, a month ago, I was impressed with 3 1/2 inches of rain in the space of a week. No longer. Over the past fourteen days, our little corner of San Francisco has seen more than 7 inches of rain, 4 inches of which fell in the space of just 48 hours! At least we’ve gotten a few more things planted, including a pair of Swan’s neck agaves and three graceful rushes, Chondropetalum tectorum. Massed far below, and visible from Diamond Street, are ten little checkerblooms, which will soon grow together to form a flowering ground cover. Flourishing everywhere are weeds, including a bumper crop of oxalis. So while our next official Sunday workday is March 3, if folks can get out there in the meantime, even for an hour, that would be a great help!
Filed under Jungle Stairs Phase III, The Mad Gardener
We have had a LOT of rain, almost 3 1/2 inches of rain over the past 7 days according to the rain gauge on our roof. So it’s a good thing we made the extra push to get key plants into the ground.
The little Ironwoods on the eastern slope did have an issue with the combination of saturated soil and high winds—They tipped over! Marc and I just righted them and added some good (we hope) staking.
This weekend it seems best to let our slopes rest and dry out. After that? Our next official work day is Sunday Feb. 3, so hopefully we can get a bunch of people out then.
The preceding Sunday, Jan.. 27, and/or Thursday, Jan. 24, could become substitute work days —or even better, extra-work days– if they better fit folks’ schedules.
There’ll be a bit more rain over the next few days, but after Sunday a dry spell will set in, possibly quite a long one as per Daniel Swain’s California Weather Blog. For those who are interested here’s the link
This is not great news. We don’t want the drought-linked RRR, Ridiculously Resilient Ridge, to return. But at least we’ll be able to get some housekeeping done…weeding, sheet-mulching, more planting.
Filed under Jungle Stairs Phase III, The Mad Gardener
One of the newest additions to the topmost tier of Jungle Stairs West is soaproot, Chlorogalum pomeridianum. If you look closely, you should see the signature wavy leaves poking out of the soil.
We have three soaproot plants, each of which should soon put out slender wands of delicate flowers much liked by foraging bees. After dark the flowers may be visited by a hawk moth, an insect so large it can be mistaken for a hummingbird. As the name suggests, soaproot was used by native Americans as a cleanser. It is also edible, though by no means choice. For more see this article in Bay Nature Magazine.
Filed under Jungle Stairs Phase III, The Mad Gardener, Uncategorized
Today was beautiful and sunny. Pat Holleran was out on Jungle Stairs West, and so was I. Of course, Pat got a lot more accomplished that I did. I spent a lot of my time trying to dig a hole big enough for a 5-gallon shrub. I hit rock–I think it was rock–about a shovel length down, and, well, I gave up. Clearly I’ve got to work on my biceps!
To me, the most interesting thing was the dryness of the soil below the surface. It’s remained dry despite last week’s rains. Earlier I had been worried about compacting soil by digging. Well, the good news is that’s not a danger. The bad news is that, below the surface, a big swath of Jungle Stairs West is looking as dry as desert sand.
I don’t quite know what this means for our planting plans. What I’m thinking it means is what I’ve observed with the coyote brushes planted on the west side. Those drought-tolerant shrubs have taken a good 3 to 4 years to establish, maybe because their tap roots have had to find their way through a layer of hard pan or, more likely, fractured rock that lies beneath the fluffy top-coat of organic duff.
Amazing that there is such a huge difference between our two slopes. Jungle Stairs East is a very different place. And it’s not just a matter of how much more light and how much less wind it gets. The soil there is different too. And I”m starting to think that soil differences matter a lot….
Filed under Jungle Stairs Phase III, The Mad Gardener
I’m sitting indoors listening to the rain bands move through and thinking about how delighted our second Catalina Fernleaf Ironwood tree must be to be freed from its pot and able to stretch out its roots. If we get just an inch of rain, then the 3 ft. x 3 ft. area around the Ironwood will soak up 6 gallons of water, which is almost double the amount it gets from our weekly irrigation cycle. Here is the USGS Rainfall Calculator. If you want to monitor how much rain has fallen, you can check the nearby Collingwood Hill/Noe Valley Personal Weather Station
Filed under Jungle Stairs Phase III, The Mad Gardener, Uncategorized
On both the east and west side of Jungle Stairs the manzanitas we’ve planted have burst into bloom. Here is a photo of one of the Sentinel manzanitas. If you look closely, you might be able to spot the big bumblebee visiting a flower that looks a little like a cluster of light pink teardrops.
Today Ken, Pierre and Marc did heroic work getting the cotoneaster root ball cut down to size and then filling in the hole around it.
There are still stumplets above ground, but these will soon be hidden by plants growing around them.
When the wood dries a bit more, we can drill holes in the stumplets and fill them with a non-toxic powder that hastens decay.
That’s not all that happened today.
With the hole around the stump filled back in, the stalwart trio was able to plant the second Catalina Fernleaf Ironwood tree.
Great timing as it looks like the Bay Area is in for 6 days of soaking rain.
Speaking of the rain:
Looks like our workday will once again be rained out this weekend.
It’s annoying only because we have plants we need to get into the ground and, of course, weeds to pull. But the plants already in the ground are going to be really happy.
If the rains skirt us for some reason, some folks could still get out on the slopes. Frankly, though, I’d rather have the rain.
Right now it looks like the next good weekend workday will be the following Saturday, Jan 12, and maybe Sunday the 13th, though for Sunday there are also showers in the forecast. Stay tuned.
Filed under Jungle Stairs Phase III, The Mad Gardener
Has anyone else noticed the big rootball that’s been sitting in the ground for months now? Today Ken, assisted by Lucas, Marc and Pierre, made significant progress in getting it chopped back to ground level. The winning technique included using a hose to get rid of imbedded soil and rocks and then attacking the woody stems with a variety of tools, including a chainsaw and an axe. Physically taxing, but we are now optimistic that, after one or two more sessions like this one, we will soon be able to fill in the hole and get on with planting.
Filed under Jungle Stairs Phase III, The Mad Gardener
The other day we were out on the western slope planting Mahonia or Berberis aquifolium var. repens, a creeping variant of Oregon grape, whose natural range extends from California up into British Columbia. Eventually we’re hoping to establish a cluster of six graceful evergreen shrubs, each 1 to 2 feet tall and as much as 5 feet across. Yellow flowers in spring, bright blue berries in summer, red-tinged foliage in autumn. (See photo below.)
But that’s not the end of the story.
On leaving, we noticed an interesting trio of tiny plants whose glossy, spiky leaves made them look a lot like holly. But no, as neighbor Rube Warren explained to me, these are also mahonias, offspring of a shrub he planted in his backyard quite a while ago. And now that I know it’s there, I can easily spot the parent mahonia peeking out over the retaining wall at the edge of Rube’s property.
After doing a little research, I’ve concluded that this plant and its offspring are so-called shiny leaf barberries, close relatives of Oregon grape but endemic to California. If they thrive, these little seedlings should slowly grow into shrubs that are maybe 3 to 6 or more feet tall and as wide. We’ve now flagged their locations so that we can monitor how they’re faring and maybe even — despite their spines — give them a little TLC. For more see the Calscape Berberis pinnata link.
Filed under Jungle Stairs Phase III, The Mad Gardener, Uncategorized
In late November or early December, after the first rains moisten the soil, we will be planting two Fernleaf Catalina Ironwood trees on the eastern slope. In preparation, Pierre and Ken have been whacking away at the huge root mass that’s in the way. Above is a photo of Ken out on the slope wielding his chainsaw. Below is a close-up of what the Ironwoods should look like in a few years time. In summer they will be covered with flower clusters between 4 and 8 inches across. Year-round their fern-like leaves will stay bright green; their rough, shredded bark, reddish brown.
Filed under Jungle Stairs Phase III, The Mad Gardener
How, you might wonder, did Jungle Stairs go about selecting its planting scheme? There were a number of criteria, beginning with microclimate. Thus, the west slope is not only quite shady but also exposed to winds that, at times, can exceed 45 mph. Not every plant can withstand such conditions. By contrast, the eastern slope lies on the lee side of Collingwood Hill. It’s also sunny, which makes it prime real-estate for many California natives and their Mediterranean allies.
With that as a starting point, our plant designer, Todd Gilens, picked a “palette” for each slope. In a very real sense, he “painted” our hillsides with shapes and colors that, in time, should evolve into an eye-pleasing tapestry.
“Plant palette” is a landscaping term. It refers to the overall look–the style–of a particular array of plants. Among the palettes familiar to Californians is the Mediterranean palette, with its gray-scale textures and soft pastel hues. Our palette, which is composed largely of plants native to California, could be considered an offshoot of its Mediterranean cousin, and, indeed, we do have plants of Mediterranean origin mixed in with the natives. Among the shared characteristics of these plants– as well as others from similar climate zones– is their extremely low demand for water.
In addition, the plants Todd selected have value to wildlife, especially birds and beneficial insects, from bumble bees and butterflies to parasitic wasps almost too small to see. For the insects we are setting a table of flowering plants plumped with nectar and pollen, as well as host plants for butterfly larvae. For the birds we are constructing a multi-course feast. As the fruit course, we are offering currants and coffeeberry; as the seed course, sages and California lilacs. And for the hummingbirds, we are providing nectar sources, among them, manzanitas and California fuchsias.
Already bumble bees have happily discovered the Phacelia we planted at the top of the eastern stairs. Soon, we hope, those who walk the staircase will find themselves nose to beak with a hummingbird. Day by day, it seems, our hillsides are becoming more alive.
Filed under Jungle Stairs Phase III, The Mad Gardener
Many people have noticed–and wondered about–the burlap we’ve been stretching across our two slopes. We’ve explained its purpose to individuals who’ve asked, but that’s left many others in the dark.
Here’s a short run-down of the whys and wherefores of the burlap and what’s beneath it.
What you are looking at is “sheet mulch,” an effective, low-cost means of dealing with weed-infested areas. Often it’s referred to as the lasagna method of weed control. It consists of multiple layers or newspaper or cardboard laid down around new plantings.
Ideally sheet mulch would be invisible. On the flat, for example, it stays in place without a problem and can thus be easily covered by more attractive bark mulch. On the steep slopes of Jungle Stairs, however, the cardboard and newspaper quickly slide downhill. So in order to get our lasagna layers to stay in place, we had to pin them down with strips of burlap.
The burlap has another function as well: It provides a rough surface so that we can, we hope, get shredded bark to stick. The bark mulch will not only hide the sheet mulch but also make it more effective in retaining moisture and discouraging weeds. In a short amount of time the bark, along with the newspaper and cardboard, will decay and add organic material to the soil.
In the meantime, our ongoing battle with weeds has been eased, which frees us up to do more fun stuff, like the planting scheduled for this fall.
So far, at any rate, sheet mulch has been a big win for Jungle Stairs.
Filed under Jungle Stairs Phase III, The Mad Gardener
On Wednesday we began the task of removing the Cotoneaster on the eastern slope. Why are we doing this? Cotoneasters are all over, right? Well, that’s the problem. Certain species of these popular ornamentals– including the Cotoneaster at Jungle Stairs–are running amok in Bay Area wild-lands. Over time they can completely take over an area, elbowing other plants aside.
Taking out our Cotoneaster will do more than remove a nuisance. It will also open up a new vista across the slope and enable us to see the Fremontodendron we have planted just behind it. This big, showy shrub will soon become 15 to 20 feet tall and almost as wide. We all appreciate the fact that large plants, both shrubs and trees, often serve as visual blocks that frame the landscape or block straight-on views into neighboring houses. Our Fremontodendron is positioned to perform that role.
The Fremontodendron is a good choice, I think, because it appears to do very well in our area of San Francisco. There’s a big one at the corner of Castro and 21st Street whose saucer–size lemon yellow flowers I look forward to each spring. Earlier this year, in another part of the city, I caught a cluster– maybe there or four Fremontodendrons– at the height of their bloom. All I can say is, Wow.
Maybe the coolest thing about Fremontodendrons–in addition to Fremontodendron californicum, the genus includes the endangered Fremontodendron mexicanum and Fremontodendron decumbens— is their deep evolutionary history. As the Annie’s Annuals and Perennials catalogue informs us, Fremontodendrons are “one of the few survivors from 60 million years ago, when California was less mountainous & more tropical.” To put 60 million years ago in perspective, that’s just 5 million years after that big asteroid splashed down in the Gulf of Mexico and put an end to Age of Dinosaurs.
In losing the Cotoneaster, we do not want to make the hillside unfriendly to birds and other wild things. Bees, for example, love Fremontodendron nectar, which may help them fight off microbial predators. Plus many species of birds like to drink from its blossoms, which fill with rain-water in the wet season. We also are planting many other types of shrubs and sub-shrubs that bear berries and seeds birds like, including ceanothus, redberry and coffeeberry.
For more about Fremontodendron californicum:
Filed under Jungle Stairs Phase III, The Mad Gardener
A working definition might be an aggressively spreading plant that is not native to the area in which it is growing.
But that’s not entirely adequate, as the above photo shows. Neither Santa Barbara daisies nor pink knotweed are native here, and yet they perform admirably in certain spots, cascading over retaining walls and decorating sidewalk cracks.
I like to refer to plants like these as “useful weeds” because they are aggressive, tough and yet easy to control.
Certain native wildflowers, I’ve found, can also be usefully weedy. Every year, for example, the California poppies and Clarkias in my garden go to seed and pop up hither and yon. Yet it’s a simple matter to yank out the ones too many.
The bad actors, the so-called noxious weeds, are those that not only spread but also, once established, become a bear to remove. At Jungle Stairs, in addition to pokeweed (subject of an earlier post), we’ve got wild fennel, English ivy, French and Spanish broom, plus various thistles along with problematic grasses.
But the weed burden does seem to be much reduced from what it was. Dare I hope that we’re gaining the upper hand?
Filed under Jungle Stairs Phase III, The Mad Gardener
On Saturday Ken got busy and added this to the pickup pile! Thanks to Eva Chang at San Francisco’s Department of Public Works, it was all gone by early afternoon!
Filed under Jungle Stairs Phase III, The Mad Gardener
Just look at what our small but energetic team accomplished in less than two hours today! We are expecting a pickup from the San Francisco Department of Public Works Saturday morning. Miqdaad in the foreground, Madeleine, Gerda and Peter in the background. Jean Lee did some work too but had to leave early. Along the fence our collection of green waste , including heavy palm fronds and selective prunings from overgrown/collapsed Echium candicans and Aloe ciliaris.
Filed under Uncategorized
22nd Street Jungle Stairs 