Five-year progress report on coast live oaks

I have been reporting for some time on the progress of seven ill coast live oaks in Fairfax, CA first treated with fire mimicry in November of 2004 (see here, here, and here). These oaks have been under the care of my friend and colleague Leith Carstarphen of Ecologic Landscaping. Alan Mart has also contributed his time and expertise in caring for these oaks.

After five years two of the oaks have succumb to sudden oak death, though not without a period of improved canopy health before their demise (see Sudden oak death). Today I would like to present repeat photographs of the five remaining oaks taken just a few days ago. I am pleased with the results. Readers can judge for themselves. (Please excuse my ill-fated attempt in some of the photos to match exposure levels).

There is one particular oak, case study no. 20041129.8, which tells an interesting story. I first chose this oak as a control tree since it was not initially treated. For two years the health of this untreated oak showed little if any change, as can be seen in the photographs below. Then as is so often the case the owner decided to treat all of the oaks, including this one, and after three years the oak is now showing modest improvement with fire mimicry.

Another important point – while the originally diseased oaks remain infected with sudden oak death, the non-diseased oaks remain uninfected. This is consistent with many other case studies showing that fire mimicry treatments may be particularly effective at stopping the spread of sudden oak death.

Encino heritage oak

I’ve often said that every tree tells a story. Well, there’s a heritage oak in Encino, California that has a story to tell.

As most of you may know the live oaks and tan oaks of California are dying off in large numbers as a result of stresses brought about by decades of fire suppression. Oaks are fire-adapted trees, meaning they benefit from periodic fires. The lack of fire has weakened the oaks and created conditions that encourage the spread of diseases such as sudden oak death.

The live oaks and tan oaks, however, are not the only species of oaks that are suffering. Valley oaks (Quercus lobata), blue oaks (Q. douglasii), Oregon white oak (Q. garryana), and others species in the white oak subgroup are, in places, experiencing heavy dieoff, yet are showing no signs of sudden oak death or bark beetle infestation. As it turns out the white oaks, too, are suffering from the effects of fire suppression. The good news is that these oaks, like the live oaks and tan oaks, are showing positive responses to fire mimicry treatments.

One of the largest oaks in Encino, California is situated next to the home of Robert and Lelia Maltzman. This heritage valley oak is estimated to be about 500 years old. In 2006 I examined the oak and found the soils to be somewhat acidic and the canopy of the tree was rather thin. Fire mimicry treatments involving healthy doses of calcium-rich AZOMITE minerals were then implemented and, three years later, the oak is showing some nice improvement in canopy health.

Below are photos of the Encino heritage oak showing the changes in canopy health three years post-treatment. Note the removal of one large limb for stress reduction. I was not involved in this limb removal and may have done it differently from an aesthetic perspective. But the arborist certainly had his reasons and after three years the tree seems to be faring well.

Encino heritage oak before and after fire mimicry treatments

Here is an article describing this heritage oak that appeared in the Encino Sun in 2007.

Ecological research backs fire mimicry approach

Science Daily is reporting on a new study that documents the importance of fire feedbacks in maintaining savanna woodlands. Fire feedbacks are the ecological basis for employing fire mimicry to restore the oak savannas here in California. While I don’t have much faith in the mathematical models that these scientists are using, it is interesting that they have come to the same conclusion I have reached based on my own, and others’, empirical studies.

From Science Daily (Oct. 29, 2009):

Trees Facilitate Wildfires As A Way To Protect Their Habitat

Fire is often thought of something that trees should be protected from, but a new study suggests that some trees may themselves contribute to the likelihood of wildfires in order to promote their own abundance at the expense of their competitors.

Upcoming workshop on tree and soil care at La Casa de Maria

THE HISTORY AND PRACTICE OF NATIVE TREE CARE

Saturday, October 10, from 9:30 am to 3:00 pm
La Casa de Maria Retreat Center, 800 El Bosque Road, Santa Barbara, CA

For thousands of years the native Chumash people tended the oak forests in the Santa Barbara. Now California’s oaks are endangered. Come for a workshop that will include presentations, time in La Casa’s oak woodland and a hands-on demonstration of tree care.

The Chumash used prescribed fire and other methods of traditional land management. To them, living on a living earth meant that the trees and forests were essentially organs of the planet. Keeping the trees healthy was fundamental for maintaining their quality of life.

Now-a-days, oaks and other trees are experiencing accelerated rates of decline in many parts of California, including the Santa Barbara area. A holistic view of the problem reveals that many of our aging trees and their soils are undergoing a major ecological shift brought on by changes in land management, especially fire suppression.

By revisiting the practices of the native people we are provided with an effective means of intervening in the decline of trees without the use of synthetic chemicals. Details will be presented on how fires and fire mimicry methods act to improve the fertility of soils and the health of trees. Results will be shown of case studies involving a suite of techniques to restore oak trees, including fire, mineral fertilizers, limewashing, brush clearing and mulching.

There will also be a presentation on the practical applications of the theories of agroecology that are now used in ornamental horticulture. By shifting from conventional techniques that utilize synthetic chemicals and pesticides to non-toxic organic products focused on improving soil fertility and insect ecology plant health is significantly improved.

This workshop will include a demonstration on traditional tree care using all-natural materials.

Lee Klinger, MA, PhD is an independent scientist and ecological consultant from Big Sur, with over 25 years of professional experience in the fields of biogeochemistry, forest ecology and soil science. He has held scholarly appointments at the University of Colorado, the University of Oxford, and the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

Corey Welles is the Plant Health Care Coordinator at Lotusland. He has seen dramatic improvements in the health of their plant collections since using agroecology based practices.

For more information and to register online go to: www.lacasademaria.org

More coast live oaks on the mend

Here’s further evidence that fire mimicry treatments are helping our diseased oaks. In 2005 I began treatment of two sick coast live oaks (Quercus agrifolia) growing in acidic soils in Mill Valley, CA. Each of the oaks had thin canopies and bleeding stem cankers. The owner informed me at the time that UC Berkeley scientists had confirmed the presence of Sudden Oak Death (Phytophthora ramorum) in trees on the property.

The photos below show how, after four years, the oaks have responded to fire mimicry treatments. The first photo shows a nice recovery of the leaf canopy, and the second photo shows how well the oaks are able to fend off the stem cankers. Bleeding is seen to have completely ceased in one of the oaks in less than four years!


UC scientists and other Sudden Oak Death researchers, those who truly want to help the oaks – we should be talking. Comments, at least?

Using fire mimicry to treat early leaf senescence in California buckeyes

The buckeye (Aesculus californica) is a deciduous tree, low and broad in stature, that is endemic to California. Every year these trees extend their gratitude by offering up a harvest of enormous size nuts. The species is a vital part of the California ecosystem and ever so worthy of our attention. Some even believe that tending the buckeyes is a responsibility passed on to us by the native people, who for the past few thousand years have been tending California’s buckeye groves.

Buckeyes do very well in open forests and savannas, especially in places where fires have been allowed to burn. However, on unburned lands buckeyes are often seen to be in poor health. Where forests are overgrown and acidified the buckeyes are experiencing serious health problems, including stem failure, canopy dieback, and any numbers of leaf blights including anthracnose and sudden oak death.

One of the first symptoms of ill health in buckeyes is the early seasonal onset of leaf senescence. Several years ago an astute friend of mine began noticing that for several years the buckeyes near her home had been losing their leaves earlier than usual. She contacted me about the problem and I suggested we try fire mimicry, the same treatments that I’ve been using on the oaks.

After four years of ongoing treatment here are the results . . .

Coast live oaks responding to fire mimicry

The use of repeat photography to document temporal changes in trees and landscapes was one of the many fine techniques I learned from my PhD advisor Prof. Tom Veblen. He taught me the importance of replicating details such the lens focal length, sky conditions, and time of day. My photos don’t always live up to his standards, but it’s not for lack of trying.

Today I would like to show repeat photographs for several coast live oak trees that have been undergoing fire mimicry treatments for exactly four years. Much of the credit for these results should go to Demetrios Sgouros, Leith Carstarphen, and Daniel Brooke who were among the first tree care specialists to recognize the utility of fire mimicry techniques in helping the many sick oaks here in California.

California Agriculture paper on Sudden Oak Death: Can conclusions of treatment efficacy be made in trials where n = 5?

Earlier this year pathologists M. Garbelotto and D. Schmidt from the University of California at Berkeley published a paper in California Agriculture (a journal published by the University of California) in which they claim to have tested my holistic methods, and found that the application of “azomite soil amendment and bark lime wash was always ineffective, and did not reduce either growth or infection rates” of Phytophthora ramorum. Conversely, they report that “phosphonate treatments, legally registered in California to control sudden oak death, were effective in slowing both infection and growth rates”. They pretty much make it seem like it’s an open and shut case. But wait, there’s more.

KQED report on Sudden Oak Death: Fertilizing with minerals could have a “detrimental effect” on sick oaks

Reporter David Gorn recently wrote on the KQED blog about Sudden Oak Death, relaying claims by UC Berkeley researcher Matteo Garbelotto that the mineral treatments I use are “like giving a glass of orange juice to someone with a terminal disease”. Furthermore, Garbelotto says that fertilizing with minerals could have a “detrimental effect” on sick oaks.

I have two questions:

What is the basis for these claims (no sources are given)? Why did the KQED reporter not do a balanced story?  Why was I not contacted by the reporter about these claims against my work?

I know, that’s three – still if anyone can help provide answers to these questions please leave a comment or email me. Let’s not speculate on motives here, just the facts.

UPDATE (May 27, 2009): David Gorn appears to be responding to my request for sources of the above claims in his KQED science blog comment here. He offers no apology for the glaring lack of balance in his piece. As for the claims I questioned him about, he writes:

“California Agriculture is a peer-reviewed academic journal. The research of Matteo Garbelotto is summarized here: http://calag.ucop.edu/0901JFM/resrchNews01.html”

The paper he seems to be referring to is “Phosphonate controls sudden oak death pathogen for up to 2 years” [California Agriculture, 63 (1): 10-17].

I’ll discuss this paper with regards to claims of inefficacy in a post following this update.

With regards to the claim that my treatments could have a “detrimental effect” on the oaks, no data or evidence is given in this paper. So I’m still left wondering if the “detrimental effect” claims have any scientific merit or basis.

This is not merely an academic matter. It’s time to resolve these differences. We need to take what we know and start helping the trees and soils. Countless oaks are at stake.

Sudden Oak Death

In recent years a whole lot of attention has been paid to Sudden Oak Death, a stem canker disease (Phytophthora ramorum) that has sickened countless oaks in California. I, too, believe that Sudden Oak Death is a particularly aggressive pathogen that requires our careful observation and study. To be sure, I often inspect the sick coast live oaks and tan oaks here in Big Sur and at least half have bleeding stem cankers.

Sudden Oak Death casaulty in Big Sur

Still, there are many other problems I am seeing in these forests that cannot be attributed to Sudden Oak Death. Pines are becoming infected with pitch pine canker, sycamores are sick with anthracnose, bays are toppling from a root collar fungus, and redwoods are losing their tops. It seems that something larger is going on . . .