The Real Dirt

By Kim Schwind, UC Master Gardener of Butte County, April 5, 2019 In recent months there has been disturbing news about the decline of the Western Monarch population. The North American Monarch Butterfly (Danaus plexippus) is a familiar and charismatic insect.

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...

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...

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...

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.