Posts Tagged: bird
Water for Wildlife.
By Susanne von Rosenberg, UC Master Gardener of Napa County Most gardeners appreciate...
Garden of pollinator plants. (sierraclub.org)
Berries are important for wildlife. (bobvila.com)
Hummingbird and Monarch having a pollen snack. (content.yardmap.org)
Pollen and berries are great but pollinators and wildlife need water, too. (diynetwork.com)
So many great ideas! (pinterest.com)
And here is another one. (offgridworld.com)
Birds in the bath. (thespruce.com)
Butterfly water station. (quiet-corner.com)
Summer Garden Reflections.
By Susanne von Rosenberg, UC Master Gardener of Napa County Can you believe it's already...
Abundant vegetable garden. (pinterest.com)
Check irrigation lines and emitters. (thegardenerspot.blogspot.com)
Check spray spread of microsprinklers. (sprinklersystemstore.com)
Make notes on your calendar to reduce irrigation frequency as summer wanes. Any calendar will do, even your e-calendar! (calendarinspiration.com)
Audit the amount of water the lawn is receiving. (pinterest.com)
Shovel prune diseased or failing plants. (theplantguide.net)
Keep your berries for YOU with bird netting. (pinterest.com)
UCCE promotes nature as a way to improve wellness
Many Californians' well-being has suffered after months of sheltering at home amid the coronavirus pandemic. An antidote for the boredom, loneliness and uncertainty is spending some time outdoors, according to UC Cooperative Extension experts. It's a practice that renews the spirit and can easily be done while following social distance and face covering requirements.
A few 4-H youth camp programs have gone virtual, but for most 4-H members the annual trek to summer camp has been cancelled. 4-H Youth Development advisor Marianne Bird is encouraging 4-H members and families to get outside on their own.
“Being outdoors is something healthy to do,” Bird said. “Public parks are being used more and in safe ways. I see groups of people social distancing and eating lunch in the shade, bringing a lawn chair and sitting outside. Two weeks ago, I saw someone playing violin next to the American River bike trail.”
This month, Bird is teaming up with two colleagues for socially distanced camping for a few nights in the Sierra. They'll drive separately and sleep in separate tents, while they hike trails, swim in a lake and enjoy the night sky at least 6 feet apart. But even in her hometown of East Sacramento, Bird said she finds nature that promotes her well-being.
“I ride my bike on the American River trail. I see wild turkeys, jackrabbits and coveys of quail,” Bird said. “Walking in my neighborhood, I found a woodpecker home in a tree. Nature is everywhere, even in our urban environment.
UC Cooperative Extension assistant vice provost Katherine Soule conducts research on the benefits of outdoor activities. She and colleagues surveyed visitors at the Leaning Pine Arboretum in San Luis Obispo. Respondents said the garden visits wove together opportunities for learning, stress relief and relaxation, which enhanced the visitors' enjoyment of life, their self-awareness and their sense of belonging.
One participant mused, visiting a botanical garden “feels open, not cramped. In my mind, that's part of being outdoors. Outside you want to be free, open. I enjoy it.”
UC Cooperative Extension's California Naturalist program is including research-based information on the health benefits of nature exposure in its soon-to-be launched UC Climate Stewards program, according to Sarah-Mae Nelson, UC Climate Stewards Initiative academic coordinator. The pilot training program that begins Aug. 24 teaches volunteers to educate the community on climate change mitigation, adaptation and resiliency,
Trainees will learn about research conducted around the world that has documented the restorative capacity of nature, Nelson said. For example, a 2010 research project in Japan found that spending time in forests lowered blood pressure, cut levels of cortisol – commonly known as the “stress hormone” – and reduced pulse rate, among other beneficial health impacts.
Benefits were derived from visiting zoos and aquariums, according to a 2010 study in Japan and a 2015 study in England. Just working in the presence of potted plants reduced stress and increased productivity, found scientists in Australia. Researchers in the Netherlands discovered that simply gazing at photos with trees and parks can prevent and relieve stress.
“What's really encouraging to me as an educator and communicator is the evidence for zoos, aquariums and images as proxies,” Nelson said. “Right now, with the situation with COVID-19, people can't access nature as readily. And, looking at the diversity, equity and inclusion aspect, some people don't have the financial or social capability to enter into natural spaces.”
Another study that is shaping the UC Climate Stewards curriculum, conducted in England and published last year, indicated that spending at least 120 minutes in nature provides a significant positive impact on mental and physical wellness.
“After 120 minutes, the participants felt less depressed and had an increased ability to deal with stressful situations,” Nelson said.
For that reason, the 120-minute threshold number for nature exposure will be part of the UC Climate Stewards' approach to reduce the effects of traumatic stressful experiences, like those brought on by climate change concerns.
To prepare Californians for wildfire in oak woodlands, UC ANR offers teachers training
Reposted from the UCANR News
California's most destructive wildfire year on record was 2018, with devastating fires occurring in Northern California oak woodlands. From 2015 to 2017, six of California's 20 most deadly and destructive fires in history occurred in these areas. The communities living in oak woodlands, which had been mostly spared from previous wildfires, were largely unprepared.
To prepare Californians to live with wildfire, Kate Wilkin, former UC Cooperative Extension forestry/fire science and natural resources advisor, and UC Sierra Foothill Research and Extension Center and Hopland Research and Extension Center community educators Alexandra Stefancich and Hannah Bird received a $100,000 Environmental Protection Agency Environmental Education grant.
In addition to delivering community workshops, the educators will offer online training for teachers this summer. The curriculum will be introduced by webinar on Tuesday, July 14, from 11 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. (PDT). Register online for this free webinar at https://bit.ly/firecurriculum.
“The goal of this project is to educate youth and adults about their natural ecosystems and how to reduce the risk of catastrophic wildfire,” Stefancich said.
Even before the current COVID-19 pandemic constrained activities, challenges arose: the federal government shutdown delayed the grant; a wildfire burned approximately two-thirds of the Hopland REC; Wilkin moved on from UCCE and Rebecca Ozeran, UCCE livestock and natural resources advisor, took over leading the wildfire education project.
Training kids, adults and communities
The team is educating children, adults and communities. Their three-pronged approach includes youth education for 500 middle school students and training for teachers; adult education through advanced training for California Naturalists; and community education by partnering with Fire Safe Councils in Butte, Mendocino and Yuba counties.
“One of the most exciting aspects of this grant has been the youth fire education component,” Bird said. “The grant has funded an adaptation of the US Forest Service's FireWorks Curriculum – first modeled for Rocky Mountains forests – to the California oak woodland ecosystem. This hands-on, place-based science curriculum aims to provide students an in-depth understanding of fire science. In working on this curriculum, the team wants to highlight the importance of not only oak woodland fire science, but the cultural history associated with fire on these landscapes.”
The grant allowed the team to work with local representatives from the Hopland Band of Pomo Indians, Kashia Band of Pomo Indians, United Auburn Indian Community and the Nevada City Rancheria to develop lessons shaped by the cultural value of fire as a tool and the long relationship between people and fire in California.
While developing the lessons, the team realized the importance of trauma-informed educational practices.
“Just five years ago, we often talked about wildfire theoretically, but now every student I speak with has their own experience to share,” Bird said. “It is important to give time in the lessons for the trauma experienced by our youth, and to educate them and encourage a sense of agency. These lessons focus on the positive! We don't spend time on things that we cannot change. We learn crucial concepts of fire science and build on them to make our schools, families and communities more fire prepared.”
Feelings about fire
The team piloted the new curriculum with more than 150 middle school students in Redwood Valley and Ukiah, just before schools closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Trialing the curriculum with students was really valuable,” Bird said. “These students have seen their communities affected by wildfire and it brings up many emotions for them.”
Students were asked to share their thoughts around fire at the beginning of the lessons and again at the end of the lesson series. Feelings of fear were replaced with feeling prepared and confident.
Before the lessons, students' comments about fire included, “Scary because I live in the mountains and my house is there, it could burn down.”
After the lessons, their comments included, “I felt positive about this, I feel that I know what to do, I think everyone should know how to prepare for fire.”
Pomolita Middle School students made an action plan for their school to help improve school fire preparedness. Students had hoped to present their plans to school administrators, but school closures due to the coronavirus crisis have delayed the presentation.
“Most of what we found at Pomolita school was really positive – the students do have a few suggestions that they hoped to share with the school administration,” Bird said. “Students also made an emergency contact plan and planned what they would like to have in a go bag for themselves and for their pets.”
Community educator Stefancich added, “This curriculum, aimed at middle school students, is ideal for any educator hoping to provide their students with more insight about the role fire plays in the ecosystem and how they can prepare for its eventuality. Each lesson is set up for the lay educator to be able to teach, so even without advanced fire knowledge it will be easy to use.”
The team continues to adapt the FireWorks curriculum for oak woodlands and expects it to be available at the FireWorks site https://www.frames.gov/fireworks/curriculum/overview by the fall.
Garden Gift Ideas.
By Denise Seghesio Levine, U. C. Master Gardener of Napa County It seems like just...