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FoGR Letter to Sonoma BOS re:
Oak Woodlands Protection Ordinance

November 21, 2023 Sonoma County Board of Supervisors 575 Administration Drive Room 100 A Santa Rosa, CA. 95403 To the Honorable Members of the Sonoma County Board of Supervisors: Friends of Gualala River thanks you for the opportunity to comment in support of the proposed Oak Woodland Protection Ordinance, a critically important step in saving our wild oaks, one of …

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Thinking Long-Term: Why We Should Bring Back Redwood Forests

By John Reid, September 25, 2023 YaleEnvironment360 Published at the Yale School of the Environment [Excerpt:] Only 5 percent of the redwood forests that once stretched across coastal Northern California have never been logged. An initiative to restore these forests is gaining momentum, aided by research showing that redwoods store more aboveground carbon than any forest on Earth. Lyndon Johnson …

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Bigleaf Maple (Acer macrophyllum)

Family SAPINDACEAE In this article we celebrate bigleaf maple (Acer macrophyllum). Bigleaf maple is neither the tallest nor largest tree species in the watershed, nor the most abundant, economically valuable, nor longest-lived. It is beautiful, but then so are many other species of trees. Perhaps it’s best to say that it has scope, and to tell its story properly requires …

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Grand Fir, Lowland Fir, Stinking Fir
(Abies grandis)

Family: PINACEAE In many countries around the world, an evergreen tree is the symbol of the yule tide season, representing the spirit of hope in the deepest dark of winter. Among the species of conifers chosen as Christmas trees, grand fir stands out. Its lustrous dark green needles, citrus-like fragrance, and beautiful conical shape lend it an elegance that few …

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Mendonoma Sightings
Conservation Conversation

Did you miss Jeanne Jackson’s Mendonoma Sightings Conservation Conversation hosted by the Mendocino Land Trust on April 29th? If so, you’re in luck. Here is this wonderful presentation full of gorgeous photos of the wildlife and native plants along the Mendonoma coast:

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Video: A Walk in the Redwoods

Take two minutes to step inside the tranquil redwood forest that thrives in the Gualala River’s floodplain. Let the magical forest nurture and inspire you. You’ll quickly see and feel why Friends of Gualala River is working tirelessly to protect this majestic forest.

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Video – PRESERVATION RANCH: a first look at the unseen interior of the Gualala River

Video: Presentation by Annapolis naturalist and artist, Liam Ericson, with photographic slides and woodblock prints of his explorations of the eastern portion of the Gualala River watershed. Wandering up steep slopes and distant canyons, Liam discovered and photographed hidden groves of old growth redwoods, giant oaks, yews, and other trees as well as many species of wildlife. He will focus …

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June 7 Event – “Preservation Ranch: a first look at the unseen interior of the Gualala River”

Sunday, June 7, 2020, 4-5:15 p.m. via Zoom* Please join Friends of Gualala River (FoGR) online for a program by Annapolis naturalist and artist, Liam Ericson, as he presents photographic slides and woodblock prints of his explorations of the eastern portion of the Gualala River watershed. Wandering up steep slopes and distant canyons, Liam discovered and photographed hidden groves of …

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California redwoods are tops in carbon storage needed to fight climate change, nonprofit says

Gualala River floodplain

by Guy Kovner, The Press Democrat, May 4, 2020 [excerpt:] . . . Throughout their lives, the world’s tallest trees — Sequoia sempervirens, meaning “always flourishing” — absorb carbon dioxide, the most prolific heat-trapping gas, and permanently lock it up in their durable heartwood. Coast redwoods are “a critical ingredient in the fight against climate change,” said Sam Hodder, president …

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Native Trees and Forests of the Gualala River Watershed

1. Magnificent Bay Tree on Tin Barn Road

If we have ever taken a walk anywhere in our area and come back home without being able to name or describe a single tree, this article will make you think anew about the trees that surround us. Here, as well as on the Gualala River website, we learn why attending to trees and their differences makes us ever aware …

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Western Hemlock (Tsuga heterophylla)

1. A Young Western Hemlock (Center) Along the Main Stem of the Gualala

Family PINACEAE Sometimes the most interesting thing about a species of tree is where it occurs or, more precisely, where its occurrence ends. Such is the case with western hemlock, which reaches the southernmost limit of its 2000-mile range from north in Alaska to right here in the Gualala River watershed. Populations living at the end of a species’ range …

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California Buckeye (Aesculus californica)

1. Buckeye Tree in Bloom Along the Wheatfield Fork

Family SAPINDACEAE Life Cycle In the merry month of May the California Buckeye puts on its most magnificent display with candle-like white spires of flowers that fill the air with fragrance and make the trees impossible to miss even when they are tucked away in creek drainages and canyons and the edge of chaparral—their preferred habitats. [Photo: 1].   Like …

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Mendonoma Coast Wildflower Show – May 26-27, 2018

2018 Wildflower Show

10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Gualala Community Center See hundreds of beautiful local wildflowers! Botanists and other plant lovers available to answer questions. Plants, books, posters for sale. FREE Dorothy King Young Chapter California Native Plant Society

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California’s towering redwoods face uncertain future, report says

Gualala River Redwood Park, photo by Bob Rutemoeller

by Guy Kovner, The Press Democrat, May 1, 2018 [excerpt:] . . . At Armstrong Redwoods State Natural Reserve near Guerneville, the 308-foot Colonel Armstrong tree stands so tall that earthbound admirers can’t see the behemoth’s uppermost 100 feet. But it and the other old-growth redwoods of equal majesty are essentially relics, comprising a mere 7 percent of the 1.6 …

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Red Alder (Alnus rubra)

1. Mature Red Alders in Full Foliage

Red Alder, Pacific Coast Alder, Oregon Alder, Western Alder (Alnus rubra) Family BETULACEAE The red alder is one of two species of alder common to the Gualala River watershed’s riparian corridors. [Photo: 1] It occurs in the western portion where it grows along the lower reaches of the river and its tributaries. Further east in the higher elevations, red alder …

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White Alder (Alnus rhombifolia)

1a. White Alders Growing Along Buckeye Creek in the Soda Springs Reserve

Like the closely related red alder, white alder is a species that grows along the riparian corridor and shares many of its adaptations to streamside conditions. [Photo: 1a, 1b]     In general it occurs more inland from the coast and in more upland areas than the red alder whose occurrence tapers off farther east in the watershed. According to …

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California Bay Laurel (Umbellularia californica)

1. Magnificent Bay Tree on Tin Barn Road

California Bay Laurel, Bay, Pepperwood, Oregon Myrtle, California Olive, Spice Tree, Headache Tree (Umbellularia californica) Family LAURACEAE February is an excellent time to see flowering California Bay Laurel, though it can bloom as early as November and well on into spring. One of the more commonly occurring trees throughout the Gualala River watershed [Photo 1.], this evergreen hardwood species has …

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Coast Redwood (Sequoia sempervirens)

1. Coast Redwood Reaching for the Light

genus  Sequoia, family Cupressaceae (cypress) An Unparalleled Species The most iconic tree species in our region is the Coast Redwood. [Photo 1.] Its presence in the Gualala River watershed is deeply historic, it is a species central to the ecology and economy here, and it is perhaps the most remarkable tree species on earth. Redwoods are the tallest beings on …

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Introduction: Native Trees of the Gualala River Watershed

Gualala River riparian forest

INTRODUCTION TO A NEW FEATURE: NATIVE TREES OF THE GUALALA RIVER WATERSHED January, 2018 Trees are the predominant terrestrial feature of the Gualala River watershed. They account for the largest biomass in the watershed and cover a third of its nearly 300 square miles. How we think about them–their beauty, their importance to the natural systems of the planet, and …

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