Category Archives: Environment

Spring and Garlon at Twin Peaks

Posted on February 28, 2010 by webmaster

This morning, Twin Peaks was radiant. Not the view from Twin Peaks, which is always amazing: the flowers. It was splendid with drifts of oxalis and mustard, california poppy and lupine, iris and calendula, all set against a vivid green … Continue reading →

Posted in Environment, Herbicides: Roundup, Garlon | 8 Comments

Old Growth Forest on Mt Sutro

Posted on February 25, 2010 by webmaster

Some months ago, we got into a discussion with “Jimbo” about old-growth forests, in the comments section of the front page of this website. (Scroll down to see the discussions.) At the time we said: “As for old-growth, I don’t … Continue reading →

Posted in Environment, eucalyptus, Mt Sutro Cloud Forest, nativism | Tagged , , , , , | 3 Comments

Dusk in the forest (with owls)

Posted on February 22, 2010 by webmaster

We walked up into the Sutro Forest on a peaceful bird-filled evening. A few outside noises drifted in. The trees were full of the tweets and trills of bird-sounds,  but the creatures themselves, evidently looking to settle in for the … Continue reading →

Posted in Environment, eucalyptus, Mt Sutro Cloud Forest | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

“Nature in the City”: Tree-huggers vs Tree-killers

Posted on February 19, 2010 by webmaster

Recently, we posted a reader’s note about a talk from the organization called ‘Nature in the City’ (NC) on the “urban forest.” (Those are NC’s quote-marks; they apparently don’t believe in urban forests). NC is the parent organization of the … Continue reading →

Posted in Environment, eucalyptus, nativism | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 11 Comments

Low Fire Risk and the “Historic Trail”

Posted on February 9, 2010 by webmaster

I attended a meeting called by Parks and Rec this evening, to discuss opening access to the forest at 17th and Stanyan in Cole Valley. This the black dotted line in the map below. [ETA: The map was distributed at … Continue reading →

Posted in Environment, eucalyptus, Maps, Meetings, Mt Sutro Cloud Forest, Neighborhood impact, Sutro Forest "Fire Risk" | Tagged , , , | 11 Comments

Erroneous “Facts” from “Nature in the City”

Posted on February 2, 2010 by webmaster

A few days ago, under the auspices of Shaping San Francisco, ‘Nature in the City’ (NC) offered a public talk on the “urban forest” (their quote-marks, they don’t appear to believe in urban forests).  NC is the parent organization of … Continue reading →

Posted in Environment, Meetings, nativism | Tagged , , , , | 4 Comments

Native Plants and Neurotoxins

Posted on January 29, 2010 by webmaster

It appears that Native Areas in San Francisco are again linked to toxic herbicides. We’ve posted earlier about Twin Peaks and Garlon/ Roundup. This time, it’s Imazapyr in Stern Grove. Imazapyr is sold under the brand name of “Habitat” when … Continue reading →

Posted in Environment, Herbicides, nativism | Tagged , , , , | 11 Comments

Twin Peaks in Bloom

Posted on January 10, 2010 by webmaster

Twin Peaks is covered with wildflowers. Right now, it’s mainly the white clusters of sweet alyssum (Lobularia)… But the yellow oxalis (oxalis bes-caprae) is beginning to flower, too, and soon there’ll be drifts of it all over the mountain… [ETA … Continue reading →

Posted in Environment, Herbicides: Roundup, Garlon, nativism | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

‘Heartbreakingly Beautiful’ Trees

Posted on December 28, 2009 by webmaster

Almost as though in response to our item about the Chron’s indifference to trees, the 27th December issue carried Tom Stienstra’s marvelous piece about the Peters Creek redwood grove, which passes the “blindfold test.” “What is the Blindfold Test? Imagine … Continue reading →

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Tree-friendly? New York Times vs SF Chronicle

Posted on December 26, 2009 by webmaster

Yesterday’s Bay Area section of the New York Times carried an article on trees that was both sad and refreshing. Sad, because it talked of tree-destruction – which seems to have become a California Thing. Refreshing, because it actually appeared … Continue reading →

Posted in Environment, nativism, Neighborhood impact | Tagged , | 2 Comments

Global Warming & Quarter-mile relocations

Posted on December 24, 2009 by webmaster

Someone drew my attention to an article in today’s San Francisco Chronicle: “Global Warming to Keep Animals, Plants On Move.” The story was about a study from a scientific team from Cal Academy of Sciences, UC Berkeley, and Carnegie Institute … Continue reading →

Posted in Environment, nativism | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Trees, Copenhagen, and Climate Change

Posted on December 22, 2009 by webmaster

Carolyn Blair, Executive Director of the SF Tree Council (contact details below), added a comment to this website yesterday mentioning an article about the meeting at Copenhagen. We felt it deserved a separate post. “Did anyone see this important article?” … Continue reading →

Posted in Environment, eucalyptus, Mt Sutro Cloud Forest | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Trees, Copenhagen, and Climate Change

Hairy or Downy Woodpecker Song?

Posted on July 6, 2009 by webmaster

Last week, walking in the forest, I heard what at first sounded like frogs. I listened more carefully, and realized it was a woodpecker of some kind. I’m a birder of more enthusiasm than expertise, and I usually need my … Continue reading →

Posted in Environment, eucalyptus | Tagged , , , | 5 Comments