On a chilly morning in early December an energetic group of volunteers and a tool-laden group of regular Crystal Springs Partnership members assembled at the chain link gate to the service road that runs between the Union Pacific Railroad tracks and the Eastmoreland Golf Course to plant twenty-five potted native trees (15 red alder, 5 black hawthorn, and 5 Pacific crabapple) and a similar number of Pacific ninebark live stakes. Both the trees and the protective wire cages were courtesy of the "Salmon Sanctuary" designation that the Crystal Springs Creek watershed received from Portland City Council in September of 2017, which came with a $5,000 grant to benefit salmon habitat restoration in the watershed. Hopefully other watersheds in Portland will soon follow.
A few of us gathered early by the planting site and awaited the rest who walked down the road with the supply of snacks and hot coffee. Once the essential liability waivers were signed we began with the work of planting the trees.
The holes were (pre)dug by volunteers on November 18 in decidedly less chilly weather, and so we had a pretty pleasant morning removing the trees from their pots, freeing their pot-bound roots from their circular habits, and integrating them with the soil of their new creekside home. A few of the holes had to be drained of the rainwater that had pooled in them during the previous weeks so that the trees would not have waterlogged roots which might prove fatal to them.
Mulch was supplied by the PP&R staff at the golf course.
In fact, there is a perpetual mound fifteen feet tall a dozen yards from the planting site, the residue of trees brought down by storms and disease from all over the golf course. This was applied around the young trees to prevent erosion and to retain soil moisture in the summer. Wire cages were erected and staked to protect the trees from beavers.
In fact, there is a perpetual mound fifteen feet tall a dozen yards from the planting site, the residue of trees brought down by storms and disease from all over the golf course. This was applied around the young trees to prevent erosion and to retain soil moisture in the summer. Wire cages were erected and staked to protect the trees from beavers.
Lastly the live stakes were trimmed with the bottom end sharp and the top blunt, and then pushed into the soil at an angle to maximize the length in contact and so facilitate root development. These were Pacific ninebark and black twinberry, two native shrub species that grow well from cuttings and are not as attractive to beavers as others.
Much thanks to all our volunteers who's hard work made this happen, and to the City of Portland that provided the grant money, to the Johnson Creek Watershed Council for their support and technical advice, and to the staff of the Eastmoreland Golf Course who are always willing to help protect and restore the part of the watershed that they are stewards to.
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