Posts Tagged: san bernardino

Fall is a Great Time to Plant Trees

Fall is a great time to plant trees in our urban landscapes. Temperatures are cooler than summer and trees adjust to transplanting much better than during the heat of summer.

Why trees? Trees reduce surface temperatures of asphalt and other dark impervious surfaces by over 60 degrees F in inland cities during spring and summer. They also reduce energy usage and costs, enhance habitat and pollinator populations, absorb and store carbon dioxide, provide oxygen for our subsistence, reduce erosion, reduce glare and noise, add beauty to our neighborhoods, and enhance mental and emotional health.

I am appreciative to UCCE San Bernardino County Master Gardener trainee Alex Shippee for his graphic design wizardry, making a drab publication on planting trees inviting and appealing to read.

 

 

 

Have more questions about your trees? Contact the UC Cooperative Extension Master Gardener tree helpline in San Bernardino County. 22trees4tomorrow@gmail.com or our general telephone helpline at (909)387-2182 or email mgsanbern@ucanr.edu where your gardening questions can also be addressed. (You will also reach this website by following the QR code link above.)  We also have this handout available in Spanish.

"Trees for Tomorrow Start Today" Master Gardener Program Application for San Bernardino County Residents

Applications Now Being Accepted for the University of California Cooperative Extension Master Gardener Program “Trees for Tomorrow Start Today” Project.

University of California Cooperative Extension (UCCE) San Bernardino County is currently recruiting adults (18 and over) who are interested in becoming volunteers for our "Trees for Tomorrow" project. Complete training is provided online through a 50-hour Master Gardener training class taught by subject matter experts. Master Gardener volunteers will provide research-based information on the selection and care of heat, drought, and pest resistant trees and help our non-profit partners and community leaders enhance tree canopy cover in our most vulnerable neighborhoods. (To date, we are proud to have partnered with the Inland Empire Resource Conservation District, CA Climate Action Fellows and many non-profit organizations, communities, ESRI, and others to give away over 600 trees in the last year!)

Applications to become a UCCE Master Gardener volunteer for this project are open through August 31, 2022. UCCE Master Gardener “Trees for Tomorrow” Volunteer Application link: http://ucanr.edu/u.cfm?id=287

Questions about the application process or the volunteer opportunity? Contact UCCE Area Environmental Horticulturist Janet Hartin at jshartin@ucanr.edu

Why volunteer for this project? We are facing unprecedented times due to climate change and urban heat islands increasing temperatures in our communities. One of the solutions to a "cooler, greener, tomorrow" is through tree planting and proper selection and long-term care of heat, drought, and pest resistant trees.

Why trees? Shade produced by a single tree can reduce surface temperatures of asphalt and other impervious surfaces by up to 65 degrees F. Trees also lower air temperatures; enhance pollinator and wildlife habitat; absorb pollutants; reduce energy use and related costs (homes, offices, vehicles); beautify neighborhoods; absorb and store carbon dioxide; and provide many other ecosystem and societal benefits.

You can make a difference like never before enhancing tree canopy cover in our neighborhoods. Do you want to learn more about what UCCE Master Gardeners do for San Bernardino County residents and communities, find out what upcoming events they are hosting, or have them answer your horticulture questions Here's your pot of gold: https://mgsb.ucanr.edu/

 We are looking forward to hearing from you!

MG of SB County Tree

Trees cool urban heat islands

Trees for tomorrow 2021 Redlands Sports Park

IERCD, CA Climate Action Corps, and UCCE Master Gardeners have planted over 600 trees in under-resourced neighborhoods

The Top Ten Ways to Conserve Water in Your Landscape and Garden in San Bernardino County

1. Select drought-resistant plants that grow well in your climate zone and microclimate (sun, shade, etc.). Try these search engines:

SelecTree: A Tree Selection Guide (calpoly.edu) Plant Search Database  

Plant Search Database - Water Use Classification of Landscape Species (WUCOLS IV) (ucanr.edu)

For inland San Bernardino County: Home - Inland Valley Garden Planner

2. ‘Hydrozone': Place plants with similar water needs (very low, low, medium, high) together and water the hydrozones on different valves (or, if hand watering, water plants requiring the most water longer but not necessarily more often than other plants).

3. Make sure your irrigation system is operating properly (pressure, spacing, no weeds around heads, no broken parts, etc.).

4. Irrigate based on species and seasonal water needs (highest in summer) and soil type (sandy loam, clay loam, etc.).

5. Irrigate slightly below the current root zone depth of your plants to encourage deep rooting into cooler soil: - 6”-8” for annuals, perennials, and turf - 8”- 1' for shrubs - 1' or deeper for trees

6. Water early in the morning when soil evaporation is minimal.

7. Control weeds. They compete with your garden plants for water.

8. Spread and maintain 2-4” of mulch around garden plants and trees (3-4” for wood chips, 2” for pebbles, decomposed gravel, etc.) keeping it a few inches away from tree trunks.

9. Avoid over-fertilizing. Too much nitrogen creates weak growth and the need for more water.

10. If you have a lawn and still want to keep it, water based on the UC ANR 'Lawn Watering Guide': http://ucanr.org/freepubs/docs/8044.pdf

 

Contact a trained University of California Cooperative Extension (UCCE) Master Gardener in San Bernardino County for more help!  mgsanbern@ucanr.edu (fastest!) or:  (909)387-2182 (leave a message for a return phone call)

Invasive Trees to Avoid/Suggested Alternatives

Many previously “welcomed” urban tree species have outlived their stay, becoming invasive and crowding out other plants in our Southern California landscapes. You can help by avoiding planting these trees identified by various sources (including the California Invasive Plant Council) to be too aggressive and habitat/resource-depleting for further planting.

Invasive Trees to Avoid Planting

Athel (Tamarix aphylla)

Black Locust (Robinia pseudoacacia)

Blackwood Acacia (Acacia melanoxylon)

Brazilian Pepper (Schinus terebinthifolius)

Chinaberry (Melia azedarach)

Chinese Tallow Tree (Triadica sebifera)

English Hawthorn (Crataegus monogyna)

Peruvian Pepper Tree (Schinus molle)

Red Gum (Eucalyptus camaldulensis)

Russian Olive (Elaeagnus angustifolia)

Saltcedar (Tamarix ramosissima, T. gallica, T. chinensis)

Silver Wattle (Acacia dealbata)

Smallflower Tamarisk (Tamarix parviflora)

Tasmanian Bluegum (Eucalyptus globulus)

Plant These Instead

They are drought/heat resistant, low maintenance, and have no known significant pest or disease problems and are not currently overplanted). Find other suggestions here: https://www.cal-ipc.org/solutions/prevention/landscaping/dpp/?region=socal

African Fern Pine (Afrocarpus falcatus) (formerly Podocarpus elatior)

Cascolote (Caesalpinia cacalaco Smoothie®)

Desert Willow ‘Bubba' (Chilopsis linearis)

Fringe Tree (Chionanthus virginicus)

Island Oak (Quercus tomentella)

‘Maverick' Mesquite (Prosopis glandulosa)

Mulga (Acacia aneura)

Netleaf Hackberry (Celtis reticulata)

Pink Chitalpa (x Chitalpa tashkentensis 'Pink Dawn')

‘Red Push' Pistache (Pistacia x ‘Red Push')

Thornless South American Mesquite (Prosopis x Phoenix)

Benefits of Horticulture and Human Interactions

“To forget how to dig the earth and to tend the soil is to forget ourselves.” Mohandas K. Gandhi, World leader, political ethicist, lawyer

“Everything that slows us down and forces patience, everything that sets us back into the slow circles of nature, is a help. Gardening is an instrument of grace. ” May Sarton, Poet “

"May our heart's garden of awakening bloom with hundreds of flowers.” Thich Nhat Hanh, global spiritual leader and activist “If you have a garden and a library, you have everything you need.” Marcus Tullius Cicero, Roman philosopher

"The importance of encouraging our children in outdoor work with living plants is now recognized. It benefits the health, broadens the education, and gives a valuable training in industry and thrift. The great garden movement is sweeping over all America, and our present problem is to direct it and make it most profitable to the children in our schools and homes. — Van Evrie Kilpatrick, 1918, in “The Child's Food Garden”

As the above quotes so beautifully proclaim, interacting with nature, whether passively (viewing plants) or actively (gardening, etc.) offers many positive benefits. In fact, the link between horticulture and health and well-being has been scientifically documented for centuries. In 1812, psychiatrist, professor, and Declaration of Independence signer Dr. Benjamin Rush reported that patients participating in gardening activities had better mental health outcomes than non-gardening counterparts.

Many additional papers were published throughout the 1800's documenting benefits of active participation in gardening. More recently, positive links between simply viewing plants through a window or even on a television, movie, or exercise apparatus screen have been reported in peer-review journals. A groundbreaking study in this area was published in 1984 by environmental psychologist Robert Ulrich (Ulrich, 1984) who compared post-operative patients recovering from gall bladder surgery who had views of landscape plants to recovering patients who had the same surgery in the same facility with views of a brick wall. Patients with landscape views had fewer surgical complications, shorter hospital stays, required fewer analgesics, had better moods, and even fewer derogatory remarks by medical staff in their daily records.

Since 1984, dozens of other studies have documented similar positive outcomes resulting from both passive and active engagement with nature and plants. These include improved physical, mental and emotional health; environmental benefits; and community and societal benefits. Recent literature reviews that summarize these findings include:

- An overview of 77 peer-reviewed journal articles (Howarth, et. al., 2020) identified 35 positive outcomes linking physical and mental health and well-being to active and passive horticultural interactions. doi: https://10.1136/bmjopen-2020-036923

-A meta-analysis (Soga, 2016) of 22 studies identified several positive mental health outcomes related to gardening including mood, group cohesiveness, cooperation, pride, well-being, and more. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pmedr.2016.11.007 -

An overview of 45 peer-review studies (Shepley, et. al., 2019) identified links between properly designed and maintained urban green spaces and crime, gun violence, and the overall safety and cohesiveness of low-wealth urban neighborhoods. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph16245119

- A review of 120 papers (Crus-Piedrahita, et. al., 2020) reported public health benefits from urban horticulture activities in the global North. Thirty-two papers had a specific focus on social cohesion and/or social capital. https://doi:10.1016/j.glt.2020.10.001

-Alizadeh (2019) synthesized research regarding the environmental benefits of urban plants, highlighting their vital roles in combating climate change, cooling urban heat islands, providing habitat, removing air and water pollutants, enhancing soil health, and more. https://www.researchgate.net/deref/https%3A%2F%2Fdoi.org%2F10.1108%2FIJCCSM-10-2017-0179

Enjoy your garden!  Enjoy a day in nature.

 

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