A nearly stationary, high-pressure system parked atop western North America for several days, blocking
the easterly flow of weather systems typical for our region, forcing warm air downward and preventing sur- face heat from escaping into the upper atmosphere. This exceptional heat dome of parched, stagnant air remained trapped over northwestern North America for less than a week but pushed temperatures in Lyt- ton, British Columbia, to 121°F, the highest tempera- ture ever recorded in Canada, and to highs of 108°F in Seattle and 116°F in Portland, Oregon. These oven-like temperatures, in combination with profoundly low relative humidity, meant little evaporative cooling as well, further contributing to punishing high surface temperatures and desiccated soils. More than a year later, many of the scars and casualties of the daunting heat dome of 2021 remain.

Download John J. Albers’ and David Perry ‘s article published in the Conifer quarterly 

After a brief presentation by both the AMVG and the ERCPS describing our respective organizations and how we can all work towards environmental sustainability, we will show the film “The Biggest Little Farm”, This movie chronicles Director John Chester, his wife Molly, and their dog Todd as they attempt to turn 200 acres of land outside Los Angeles into a sustainable farm. The couple document their quest to work in harmony with the land as well as ward off pests, predators and wildfires to protect their crops and animals.

Simply click on the link below to get more information about this movie and to purchase your tickets:

https://www.givsum.com/opportunities/april-2023-virtual-movie-night-fundraiser-0a864bb81

If you would like to see the movie trailer for this wonderful film, please use the link below:

https://www.swank.com/performing-arts-centers/details/57831-the-biggest-little-farm?bucketName=Movies%20&%20TV&movieName=The%20Biggest%20Little%20Farm&widget=FILM-RESULTS-undefined&showTrailer=true

So, pop up some popcorn, grab your favorite drink, and join us for a fun and informative night of movie-watching – all from the comfort of your own home!!

You can read a review published by Conifer Quarterly.

This past week I heard a strange high-pitched whistling noise coming from the top of a tall Douglas-fir on Hilltop Vista, behind the gazebo and looked up to see a majestic, adult bald eagle with its brown body and distinctive whitehead, neck, tail, and bright yellow, large, hooked bill sitting on the very top of the Douglas-fir. It takes between four and five years for the eagles to develop these key identifying features. Juvenile bald eagles are primarily brown from head to tail with some mottled white and brown feathers on the wings and tail, while the hooked bill is gray. For more than one hour my wife and I looked at the bald eagle perched on top of the Douglas-fir until a crow started to harass it, probably defending its territory. The adult bald eagle with an estimated wingspan of six to seven feet flew out of the Douglas-fir, along with two juvenile bald eagles, soaring and gliding the waves of wind and then left the area. Thankfully, my wife was able to promptly take a picture of the flying eagle with her cell phone.

Although bald eagles have made a major comeback since being listed as endangered in 1976, they are still a threatened species that requires protection of their habitat for feeding, nesting, and roosting. Bald eagles primarily feed on fish, waterfowl, small mammals, and dead animals. Thus, we need to continue to protect and restore our declining fisheries, particularly salmon species, a favorite of the bald eagle. As population growth and development continue in our Northwest region, we must be vigilante in protecting our wetlands and shorelines. For the bald eagle’s nesting and roosting needs, protection of old growth forest, and our urban forest containing tall, mature trees such as our venerable Douglas-firs, is essential.

I would like to share some more information about the garden region we call Hilltop Vista where the eagle was spotted. It sets at the top of a southwest hillside, making it the highest section of Vista Gardens about 250 feet above the lowest section, the Lentz Garden, yielding great views of the saltwater, the Port Washington Narrows, and greater Bremerton area to the southwest. Hilltop Vista is only suitable for drought-tolerant plants as it receives no supplemental water except what nature provides. It contains a shelter belt and privacy barrier of primarily native plants on the three sides of Hilltop Vista that border adjacent properties. The native trees include Douglas-fir, western red-cedar, western hemlock, and shore pine. I also planted the native shrubs Pacific wax myrtle and tall mahonia. The slow growing, long-lived oaks, our native Garry oak, Oregon’s Sadler oak, and California’s canyon live oak, were planted for the benefit of future generations to observe and enjoy. A variety of drought-tolerant conifer cultivars were also added, along with selected plants native to southeast Australia, such as the especially ornamental and adaptable Ovens wattle (Acacia pravissima) with its masses of soft, yellow, honey-scented, late winter flowers, and bottlebrush (Callistemon species), with its unique red cylindrical summer flowers resembling a bottle brush.

We are happy that our garden is contributing to provide a natural habitat for the wildlife of the Puget Sound region and hope you can visit this spring to explore the ever changing flora and fauna of this magical urban oasis.

The common name for Arbutus menziesii varies depending on where you live. We Washingtonians usually call it madrona after the Spanish name for the strawberry tree. Other Americans on the wet coast call it Pacific madrone or just madrone, while our Canadian friends to the north use the Latin name Arbutus.

The beautiful broadleaf Pacific madrone, with its showy orange to red peeling bark, is perhaps the most distinctive hardwood tree native to the west coast of North America, ranging from southwest British Columbia to southern California. It is well-adapted to the mild temperatures of western coastal areas of North America. It is both drought tolerant and drought dependent but has relatively low tolerance for shade, particularly in the northern regions of its range. While young seedlings do best in partial shade, as the trees get older, they have little tolerance for shade and do best in full sun. That is why several madrones in Madrona Woods are twisted or bent at an odd angle to maximize the amount of sunlight they receive. Madrones prefer well-draining, rocky, or gravelly, south, or west facing soils as their fine roots go deeply into the rocks to obtain water. Thus, madrones are excellent trees for stabilizing slopes and minimizing landslides. Madrone roots are associated with a network of mycorrhizal fungi, which facilitate nutrient and water transfer to madrone while the madrone provides the fungi with sugars through photosynthesis. The evergreen madrone sprouts new glossy green leaves in spring and two-year old leaves turn yellow or burnt orange and drop to the ground in summer. It produces large, drooping clusters of lovely, fragrant, creamy white, urn-shaped flowers in spring and bright red berries in fall, providing excellent food for birds and mammals. Pollinators, such as bees, butterflies, hoverflies and hummingbirds, feed on the flower nectar. The cavities found in both live and dead madrone trees provide excellent nesting sites for cavity-nesting birds.

The madrone is declining in some regions of Puget Sound, Including in Vista Gardens. The reasons for its decline are not completely clear, but multiple factors likely play a role. Sadly, a lot of large, venerable old trees in the Puget Sound region have been removed to make way for urban development. Madrone trees are particularly sensitive to variations in the environment as evidence by the large variation in the width of the madrone’s tree ring size. Fortunately, the madrones in Madrona Woods have not been subjected to soil compaction or other soil disturbance, but a change in soil drainage could be a plausible factor because of a new housing development on an adjacent hillside. Our very wet and mild winters and wet spring are not ideal for madrones, particularly in shady conditions. The trees are susceptible to numerous fungal diseases, including root disease, stem and branch cankers, branch dieback, leaf spots, and leaf blight. A variety of Insects then attack the weakest trees. The spindly, tall, and narrow madrones with thin shedding bark, characteristic of the trees now in Vista Gardens, appear to be more susceptible to canker disease. Cankers at the base of the tree reduces the likelihood that these trees will resprout once the top portion dies or is cut down.

Twenty years ago, the madrones in Vista Gardens were all alive (except for a very large old one), and for the most part, healthy. Now, cankers, leaf spot, leaf blight, and branch dieback, are all readily evident and six large madrones have died and others appear that they may succumb soon. When we first purchased this land, more than a hundred madrone seedlings were generated every year. These young seedlings were potted into biodegradable containers and made available for planting to the local community. Unfortunately, after a few years the number of seedlings began to decline, and they have continued to decline to the point that madrone regeneration has stagnated, and new madrone seedlings are no longer evident.

Over the years with growth and increase in the numbers of big leaf maples and beaked hazelnuts, any viable seedlings would be in shadier conditions and in the presence of excess leaf litter from the big leaf maple leaves. These conditions are likely to enhance more fungal diseases and exacerbate the loss of seedlings from damping-off and the browsing of insect and other invertebrate herbivores. The changing climate could also contribute to the decline of our madrones in the Puget Sound region as we are experiencing warmer and dryer summers combined with mild, very wet winters and wet springs which can contribute to susceptibility to more fungal diseases.

 A warming climate is also altering the distribution and numbers of insects and wildlife that could negatively impact the health of madrones. Twenty years ago, there were native squirrels and chipmunks present, but now with a proliferation of the invasive eastern gray squirrel, we no longer see our native squirrel species. Also, the stripping of bark on the lower portions of trees is quite evident, most likely due to the activity of the eastern gray squirrel. Whether the eastern gray squirrels are doing damage to our beloved madrones remains to be seen, but I will be keeping a close eye on these invasive pests. In the past, fire contributed to the regeneration of madrone woodlands, but current fire suppression practices negate this potential regenerative strategy. Increased pollution that accompanies urbanization can also play a role in tree decline. However, I am thankful that we in Kitsap County are generally blessed with excellent air quality except when we experienced excessive smoke from the fires in California and Oregon. Thus, pollution is not likely to play a significant role in Madrone decline at Vista Gardens but could certainly be a factor in their decline in the more urban areas of Puget Sound.

My wife and I have decided to undertake the big challenge to restore Madrona Woods. The first step is to remove the large, dead madrones that pose a hazard to our visitors and then remove several of the large, big leaf maple trees. When possible, the lower portion of the trees will be left as a snag to be used by wildlife for shelter, food source, nesting, roosting, and perching. The large fallen trees will remain on the ground to provide habitat for decomposers and serve as nurseries for seedlings and other organisms. Next, excess underbrush will be removed, and the shrubs thinned out, particularly the beaked hazelnut, to allow more sunlight into the woodland. We plan to use some of the limbs from the trees and shrubs to make brush piles to serve as habitat for wildlife. Unwanted non-natives, especially the invasive English ivy and Himalayan blackberry will be removed. Woodchips will be added to the paths to minimize compaction of the clay soil. Seedling madrones will be planted in the more open spaces in the woodland, along with the selective addition of compatible plants with similar needs and mycorrhizal associations. Pictures of the various phases of the restoration will be taken and posted on the garden webpage.

The madrone, endemic to the Pacific coast, is an iconic species which has played an important role in our regional heritage. It has lived in Madrona Woods and other coastal regions for hundreds of years. To preserve Madrona Woods and all its ecosystem benefits we need to work harmoniously with nature and its surroundings to permit the conservation and sustainable management of madrones and their ecosystem. Protection and sustainable management of urban nature is everyone’s responsibility. Anyone who desires to help with the restoration of Madrona Woods or has questions or specific suggestions/comments please contact me at Info@albersvistagardes.org.

When my wife recently came home from a trip to the East Coast with a bad “cold”, the fear of COVID-19 really struck home. Home-bound, like many of us, I worried about her and missed the freedom to be with my family, friends, and the public. As both an author of books on sustainable gardening and medical researcher, I know well the vital role gardens play in greening our urban spaces and buoying human health and well-being, especially in times of uncertainty. As I hunker down at home, I find the garden a sanctuary that provides me solace and energizing respite from the strain of social isolation and disruption of my daily routine.

Our gardens soothe and rejuvenate us, taking our minds off our troubles and strengthening us for life’s challenges, new and old. Gardening connects us with the rhythms, sights, sounds, and oh yes, the smells of nature. Our gardens provide us with a personalized oasis within which we can relax and enjoy the wonders and beauty of nature. But they are more than just a personal oasis, they are an essential link to the broader ecosystem.

Feeling stressed? Tending to plants, working the soil, breathing in the fresh air as you plant and weed and putter—all can alleviate the chronic stress caused by constant news updates about threat of the COVID-19 virus and the immense disruption it is bringing to our daily lives. Fresh air and welcome fun-filled physical activity in the garden are our friends in times like this. Think of the many ways they can help keep us grounded, reduce our anxiety, and restore our physical and mental well-being. Working in the garden is a perfect sort of social distancing. It is an ideal way to create friendly homes and havens for songbirds, pollinators and crawly things. And the colanders full of fresh fruit and vegetables that will be our labor’s result will help feed and sustain us, nourishing both our bodies and that aesthetic need to create beauty in the face of chaos.

Gardens also offer an important antidote to human-caused threats to our earth that predate this new virus: urban development, careless land use, invasive species, and climate change—all working together to create an existential crisis facing world populations. We know that climate changes are accelerating largely due to us, our continued use of fossil fuels to heat our homes, power our industries, fuel our automobiles and speed us through the air to our vacations in faraway places. We continue to release greater and greater amounts of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. One result of this is the substantial alteration of a healthy, sustainable distribution and composition of plant and animal species. Gardens can play an important role in alleviating these strains on the environment. Now, more than ever, we need to do what we can, garden by garden, to restore nature to our cities, creating and connecting sustainable oases that can endure over time without excessive watering, fertilizing, costs and maintenance. Sustainable urban gardens are resilient, adaptable, balancing nature’s needs and our human needs, now and into the future. I am encouraged by the power of sustainable gardens, created and maintained using sustainable gardening best practices, to help mitigate climate change.

Gardens can restore habitat, heal the damage to the land, purify the air and water, and detoxify environmental pollutants, and help mitigate climate change. Our garden’s trees, shrubs, and groundcovers offer food, shelter, and nesting sites for city-dwelling birds, mammals, amphibians and reptiles as well as pollinators, and their lively presence enliven our lives.

Trees block solar radiation from the ground, pavement and buildings, lowering the temperature of the ambient air, soils and impervious surfaces. Not only does this directly cool our urban community, it also reduces the need for air conditioning and fans and the factories required to produce them and the delivery trucks to transport them. This, in turn, reduces ozone-forming chemicals that trap other harmful compounds in the atmosphere in the well-known cycle that raises heat and impairs air quality and visibility.

Gardens also cool the air through transpiration, evaporation through the leaves of plants. Plants take up carbon dioxide during photosynthesis, converting it into oxygen which we need to breathe and sugars which they store in fruits, seeds and plant tissue, making woody plants the largest carbon storage place on land.  Plants, especially trees, absorb air pollutants: carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, and nitrogen oxides, as well as small airborne particles that pollute our skies and foul our lungs. Trees and other vegetation intercept rainfall, moderate storm flows, and absorb water-based pollutants that degrade our water quality and aquatic habitats.  Plants minimize soil erosion, particularly on slopes, anchoring soil with their roots, reducing soil compaction, enhancing water infiltration and lessening flood danger.

The coming of spring and our passing from one season into the next is a perfect reminder that we are in the early grip of a serious pandemic that will inevitably change us, our communities, and our larger society. But it will pass if only we will rise to the occasion, pulling together as a community and nation. The symbiotic nature of the healthy plant communities of our gardens can serve as a metaphor for us, enabling us to participate as members of healthy urban communities that take care of one another. It is so important right now to be good neighbors, to help one another.

Together we can all get through this difficult period. Channel your fears and anxiety about COVID-19 into action by getting out and working in the garden and exploring the wonders of nature as spring, and then summer, bring forth all their beauty. Each of us can participate in restoring our natural systems by caring for the land we live upon, preserving natural resources, reducing waste and using less fossil fuel. Dig your hands into the earth and hear what it is trying to tell us.  We can heal the earth and it can heal us.

-John Albers