Nurturing Native

I have news to announce! The Northeast Slope Pepper Tree Gang has been ERADICATED. It took a few days of hard labor and 5 FULL yard waste bins, but they are GONE!!! Best part of it, I only fell twice with no major bodily harm! These saplings were growing off a “mother root” from next door. The mother root has been severed, the progeny removed and disposed! Now to keep them from coming back….. establishment of the eastern border, the DPZ, the DE-PEPPER TREE ZONE.

The interesting thing about these "shrub-trees" that I learned, pulling them out by their roots is just one big puzzle. If you go to pull them at once, you cant... BUT if you scrape at the soil and gradually pull them one at a time you will eventually get to the point where they just pop out. The roots work together to anchor the plant like underground vines.

This is not going ANYWHERE to pull it, but.... If I pull that top one out...

Then pull a side one out... two out..

Then a third, and before you know it the whole thing is out.
The roots are not deep, just entwined and anchoring each other.

The "Mother root" from which most of the shrubs radiated from

Unfortunately, where there is one “mother root” there is a whole generation wanting to be the next mother. The “mother root” was not deep, so hypothetically 4” deep edging along the property line should thwart (or at least slow down) future intruders. It is worth a try and will keep mulch in place if nothing else….

Also, the tell-tale “pink peppercorns” I went next door to find were COMPLETELY evident as soon as I started to take the pepper trees out. They were all I could see and they were EVERYWHERE!! I have been trying to pick them up, but there is no way I will get them all. Unfortunately, this disturbed bare ground now favors all those seeds germinating and making a new generation of pepper trees thugs. I went back to the IPC webpage to review managing this thug.

http://www.cal-ipc.org/ip/management/ipcw/pages/detailreport.cfm@usernumber=72&surveynumber=182.php

Reading through the information again I learned the seeds are not long-lived, only viable for about 5 months. Germination needs wet cool conditions, and occurs from November to April, with most germination taking place in January and February. If the pink seeds truly are ONLY viable for 5 months, I may have optimally timed the removal. Maybe, just maybe, very few seeds will still be viable come November and even fewer in their optimal germination period of January and February. I can hope, can’t I? Even if some seeds make it, the seedlings should be easier to pull and less disruptive to the slope if located early. I know what I am doing next Spring. Pepper tree hunting and pulling.

Meanwhile, DPZ or no DPZ, the soil here is now a HOT MESS! The necessary evil of removing these plants occurred… EROSION!! This area has the steepest slope of the hill, has both native and non-native soil present, and was recently disturbed, or by disturbed I mean I was slip sliding, trampling, and literally ripping roots from the ground for the last week. The poor area needs some erosion damage control fast. First, I am going to try to smooth it out just a bit (and remove some of the random plastic mesh clods of ex-sod dirt that is here…. we all make mistakes….. it seemed like the right place for it at the time). Then I will add mulch, lots of mulch. Mulch can help with weed control on the disturbed area and reduce erosion. Mulch will be my placeholder until November when I can repopulate this area with my first set of NATIVE PLANTS!! Yeah!!!

Whatever I chose for the northeast slope has big shoes to fill! Stabilize a slope, drought tolerant, pioneer species, fire wise as this is prime wildfire defensible space. BIG SHOES!! I am sure there is a plant out there.