Issue link: https://imageup.uberflip.com/i/537438
The prolonged drought plaguing our state reminds us yet again that we should not attempt to alter the plant pallet of native vegetation that has adapted to the environment of our community. One look at the hills and valleys around us with the untended plants surviving without the hand of man should convince us which plants belong here. The most prominent is the California black oak (Kelloggii). These trees in our common areas were a cornucopia of gifts for our native residents. Acorns were made into soups, mush or breads. Medicines, tools, dyes and toys were made from oaks. Trees provided shelter for animals and materials for human habitats. All of this bounty came with little to no landscaping attention. In the fall, as Indians were leaving the high country, they would set fires underneath the trees to decrease disease, stimulate production of shoots, and facilitate acorn gathering by reducing grasses. Our landscapers avoid setting fires and attention to oak health is minimal. Black oaks start life as an acorn. The seedling develops a long taproot that penetrates the ground to at least a foot. This taproot will gather food and water for the adolescent tree. As the young shoot sprouts leaves and begins to grow, branches develop and leaves form. A fibrous root system then develops and the taproot no longer is the main source of water intake. Leaves are where the tree carries out photosynthesis to produce food. Leaves also regulate the plant's temperature through water evaporation and exchange various gasses such as oxygen and carbon dioxide needed or created by different internal processes. (Is this what Robert Frost meant by his poem "The Sound of Trees"?) Photosynthesis from the leaves and water intake from roots regulate tree growth. Water climbs up the inside of the trunk through capillary action, reaches the leaves and evaporates. Since this transportation system requires more energy as the tree grows taller, more photosynthesis producing leaves are required. More leaves require more branches and the canopy and roots expand to accommodate them. A healthy black oak will grow about one foot each year. As the tree grows and expands, lower branches no longer receive sunlight and are unable to produce energy. These branches atrophy and are removed by nature or our landscapers in the late fall. Black oaks require water in the spring as they leaf out for summer growth and then in normal years require very little irrigation during the summer. Since our hillsides are irrigated by sprinklers to sustain grasses and bushes and reduce fire danger, little water reaches the depth of the oak roots. In fact, during severe drought conditions arborists recommend deep watering (18-24") requiring four to six hours of continuous irrigation, which is impossible given the governor's watering schedules. The trees are closely watched for signs of stress and can be hand watered if necessary. There are openings for new members on the Landscape Committee and we need help to meet these challenges and opportunities. Applications are available at the Lodge desk. ~ Len Tavernetti 18 FOUR SEASONS BREEZE | JULY 2015 Landscape Committee Young oak on Trail C planted in 2008. Diagram of the oak's root system