The Real Dirt

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The Real Dirt blog covers regional gardening issues from soil health to planting for pollinators; from fire resistant landscaping to attracting wildlife. Read all about it!

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Buckeye in Upper Bidwell Park by J. Alosi
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The Buckeye

March 22nd, 2019
Finding an Ecological Niche: A Three-Part Series on Selected Foothill Woodland and Chaparral Species, Part 3 of 3: The Buckeye By Laura Lukes, UC Master Gardener of Butte County, March 22, 2019 [Note: Buckeye (Aesculus californica), gray pine (Pinus sabiniana), and blue oak (Quercus douglasii) are t...
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Gray Pine Pinus sabiniana with gray green needles and huge cones, Wikipedia Commons
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The Gray Pine

March 8th, 2019
Finding an Ecological Niche: A Three-Part Series on Selected Foothill Woodland and Chaparral Species, Part 2 of 3: The Gray Pine By Laura Lukes, UC Master Gardener of Butte County, March 8, 2019 [Note: Gray pine (Pinus sabiniana), buckeye (Aesculus californica), and blue oak (Quercus douglasii) are...
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Blue Oak leaves and acorn shells. Photo by Eugene Zelenko.
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The Blue Oak

February 22nd, 2019
Finding an Ecological Niche: Selected Foothill Woodland and Chaparral Species, Part 1 of 3: The Blue Oak By Laura Lukes, UC Master Gardener of Butte County, February 22, 2019 [Note: Blue oak (Quercus douglasii), gray pine (Pinus sabiniana), and buckeye (Aesculus californica) are three species that t...
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Fireweed is one of the first species to colonize the soil after a forest fire, Wikimedia
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There’s Green in the Burn

February 8th, 2019
By Laura Lukes, UC Master Gardener of Butte County, February 8, 2019 It didn't take long. Soon after the first post-Camp Fire rains, there was green in the burned area. Along lower Skyway, a blanket of soft verdure overlay the harsh scars of incineration.
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Defensible Space, Zone 1-Home defense zone, Zone 2-Reduced fuel zone from Cal Fire
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Firewise – Fire Resistant Landscaping

January 11th, 2019
By Brent McGhie, UC Master Gardener of Butte County, January 11, 2019 Fire is a normal part of the natural environment in California, so if you live in the wildland-urban interface (WUI), it's not so much a question of if, but of when your home will be exposed to wildfire.
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