I think that I've probably given you the impression that we are ALWAYS doing crazy cool projects. While this is mostly true, we also spend significant amounts of time doing maintenance - a super important job that is routine enough that we forget to take pictures, even though we do it all the time.
Tens of thousands of trees and shrubs have been planted in East Jefferson county in a variety of sites along creeks where habitat restoration is needed. Many of these are planted in disturbed open areas - old fields by creeks with all sorts of intense invasives such as reed canary grass and blackberries. Most of what is planted starts out at a knee-high size at best, so they need all the help they can get to jump-start a new forest. That's where maintenance comes in. If we just planted and left, most things would die. So, most grants for projects include funds for several years of maintenance.
It's summer, and invasives and natives alike are growing, so it's the time of the season to try and fight back. We usually do this in a combo of brush-cutting circles around planted trees to eliminate competition, and then a couple of weeks later spraying herbicide around the same trees to ensure that nothing in that circle grows back, hopefully for most of the summer. Without the herbicide step, we would have to visit some sites a couple times a month to brushcut them, taking up time and gas.
We have done a few cool projects in the past few days though and I shall post the pictures as soon as possible. Also, look for us at the Rhody Parade in Port Townsend this Saturday...we'll be pulling Fin!
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