http://ucanr.org/sites/UCCNP/Oak_Conservation_Blog/index.cfm?blogrss=47428&utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS%2BFeed Oak Conservation Blog en-us UC ANR http://cyber.law.harvard.edu/rss/ Mon, 20 May 2013 00:45:11 PST Mon, 20 May 2013 00:45:11 PST UC ANR The next meeting of the Northern California Prescribed Fire Council will take place on April 25-26 at the UC Hopland Research and Extension Center in their brand new conference center. The Northern California Prescribed Fire Council (NCPFC) is a collaborative group of scientists, land managers, tribes, NGOs, and other organizations and individuals interested in issues surrounding the use of prescribed fire. The goal of this diverse coalition of scientists and managers is to “increase......
]]> Tue, 12 Mar 2013 09:21:37 PST http://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=9488&utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS%2BFeed standifo@berkeley.edu(Richard Standiford) http://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=9488 As part of the celebration of the Beijing Forestry Univesity’s 60th year anniversary, we presented a paper, entitled, “Valuing Forestland Environmental Services: A Case Study for California’s Oak Woodlands” at their symposium on Forest Economics. The abstract of the paper is shown below. ABSTRACT California’s oak woodlands cover 10 percent of the state, and provide important environmental services. This paper presents analytical approaches for assessing the......
]]> Tue, 11 Dec 2012 14:18:13 PST http://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=8874&utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS%2BFeed standifo@berkeley.edu(Richard Standiford) http://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=8874 Firewood movement is one way in which invasive plant pests and diseases can be transferred from one location to another, often resulting in devastation to natural resources. In an attempt to more effectively plan for and mitigate against potential threats to California’s urban and wildland forests, this document analyzes what is currently known about firewood movement into and within the State. Known Risk Roughly 99.8% of California’s land area is located within 50 miles of a......
]]> Fri, 07 Sep 2012 11:49:24 PST http://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=8281&utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS%2BFeed standifo@berkeley.edu(Richard Standiford) http://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=8281 ]]> Thu, 06 Sep 2012 13:35:10 PST http://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=8276&utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS%2BFeed standifo@berkeley.edu(Richard Standiford) http://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=8276 The 5th Sudden Oak Death Science Symposium, held in Petaluma, CA June 19 – 22, 2012, brought together researchers, regulators, land managers, and industry representatives from throughout the world working on Sudden Oak Death (SOD), Phytophthora ramorum (the pathogen known to cause SOD), and other related forest and nursery pests. The Symposium included 52 talks and 25 posters from top researchers around the globe as well as a “SOD: Biosecurity Concerns and Forest......
]]> Mon, 25 Jun 2012 14:44:22 PST http://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=7794&utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS%2BFeed skolding@berkeley.edu(Sophie Kolding) http://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=7794 The Sudden Oak Death (SOD) epidemic in East Bay Park District forests dominated by coast live oaks, Quercus agrifolia, and bay laurels, Umbellularia californica, presents major management challenges. Coast live oaks play a disproportionately large role in these forest ecosystems even when they are not the dominant overstory tree species. There are no other tree species in these forests that support as many other organisms (insects, bird, mammals, and fungi) as well as produce high......
]]> Fri, 15 Jun 2012 15:35:27 PST http://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=7683&utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS%2BFeed skolding@berkeley.edu(Sophie Kolding) http://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=7683 The goldspotted oak borer (GSOB; Agrilus auroguttatus) continues to attack and contribute to the high mortality of tens of thousands of oaks in San Diego County and the threat to oaks throughout southern California remains a considerable concern. In effort to inform professionals who are responsible for the stewardship of oaks and oak woodlands, a series of workshops has been offered in six southern California counties in which oaks may be at risk: Ventura, Los Angeles, Riverside, San......
]]> Tue, 29 May 2012 14:24:26 PST http://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=7592&utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS%2BFeed skolding@berkeley.edu(Sophie Kolding) http://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=7592 Most of the oak woodlands in California are privately owned. The major use of Oak Woodlands is for grazing, primarily for beef cattle. The ranching industry plays an important role in maintaining a sustainable, culturally meaningful, and ecologically rich landscape (Huntsinger and Hopkinson, 1996) in our oak woodlands. Of the many challenges facing ranchers, droughts can be severe. The great drought of 1862–1865 wreaked havoc on the state and the cattle industry (Burcham, 1957). Since that......
]]> Fri, 09 Mar 2012 16:01:57 PST http://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=7002&utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS%2BFeed skolding@berkeley.edu(Sophie Kolding) http://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=7002 Towards the end of January, an unusual phenomenon occurred in the Sierra foothills - some of the blue oaks began leafing out. While the vast majority of trees remained leafless, one could see occasional light-green canopies interspersed with their bare neighbors. This is unusual in that the earliest leaf-out most people recall observing doesn’t start until late February or early March. So what is causing this? Clearly the weather pattern this past winter has been very unusual in terms of......
]]> Mon, 27 Feb 2012 11:22:32 PST http://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=6901&utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS%2BFeed skolding@berkeley.edu(Sophie Kolding) http://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=6901 This year’s delayed “rainy season” in much of California has left many seasonal water sources for wildlife and livestock dry and kept many of the state’s water reservoirs low. If the “rainy season” progresses without rain we may find ourselves thinking about how we capture as much rainfall as possible not only in our soils but also in our ponds and reservoirs.  In other words, how do we manage our watersheds for maximum water yield? Vegetation affects the hydrologic cycle through......
]]> Thu, 16 Feb 2012 11:25:48 PST http://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=6844&utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS%2BFeed skolding@berkeley.edu(Sophie Kolding) http://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=6844 Author: Greg GiustiThroughout northern coastal California, a great deal of information regarding water quality and fish habitat is being amassed that potentially could change how people view and utilize stream corridors. However, it is widely recognized among the scientific community that stream corridors are an important habitat component for a host of vertebrate and invertebrate species other than fish. Unfortunately, the current fish-centric approach to riparian protection and restoration......
]]> Tue, 07 Feb 2012 10:43:35 PST http://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=6773&utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS%2BFeed skolding@berkeley.edu(Sophie Kolding) http://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=6773 This webinar will present a series of lectures on the concepts in the ANR publication, “A Planner’s Guide for Oak Woodlands” (UC ANR Publication 3491). The goal will be to create an awareness of the ecological, economic and social values of California’s oak woodlands, and some general planning strategies to ensure long-term conservation of this resource. The selected audience includes city, county, regional and statewide planners, environmental consultants, conservation organizations, land......
]]> Wed, 04 Jan 2012 13:17:42 PST http://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=6517&utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS%2BFeed standifo@berkeley.edu(Richard Standiford) http://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=6517 ]]> Thu, 10 Nov 2011 12:04:09 PST http://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=6160&utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS%2BFeed skolding@berkeley.edu(Sophie Kolding) http://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=6160 ]]> Tue, 18 Oct 2011 11:50:20 PST http://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=5987&utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS%2BFeed skolding@berkeley.edu(Sophie Kolding) http://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=5987 ]]> Mon, 12 Sep 2011 09:33:25 PST http://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=5738&utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS%2BFeed skolding@berkeley.edu(Sophie Kolding) http://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=5738 One would think that in the oak woodlands, the most important predators would be mammals such as mountain lion, coyote and bobcat. But new field research is discovering that the most important predator may be rattlesnakes in terms of overall biomass. Rulon Clark, an assistant professor at California State University at San Diego, and his team of eight graduate and undergraduate students, are studying rattlesnakes and their prey at one of the newest University of California Natural Reserves,......
]]> Fri, 19 Aug 2011 10:14:58 PST http://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=5562&utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS%2BFeed Jaime.Adler@berkeley.edu(Jaime Adler) http://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=5562 Public land managers and livestock operators often question whether or not open space management objectives including public access for recreation are compatible with livestock grazing. Public concerns ranging from the potential environmental degradation to fear of conflict have led some public land managers to limit or curtail the use of grazing on open spaces public lands. For example in 2009, officials from the City of Walnut Creek decided to end grazing in two parks based on park users’......
]]> Thu, 04 Aug 2011 15:59:44 PST http://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=5456&utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS%2BFeed Jaime.Adler@berkeley.edu(Jaime Adler) http://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=5456 Understanding the Role of History on California’s Oak Forests In his book The Destruction of California, Ray Dassmann (1965) chronicled the dramatic impact land-use practices have had on wildlife populations throughout California during the past 150 years. He articulates the impacts from the loss of wetlands, forest conversion and urban expansion on a number of economically important wildlife species.  In his book, he quotes an early California pioneer, A. B. Clark (1852) who recorded the......
]]> Fri, 29 Jul 2011 15:27:31 PST http://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=5386&utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS%2BFeed Jaime.Adler@berkeley.edu(Jaime Adler) http://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=5386 Introduction:Fire is an important part of blue oak ecosystems (See: Fire in California's Oak Woodlands). Although we recognize that fire suppression on oak woodlands has increased the fire return interval, there are only a limited number of studies documenting pre-suppression fire frequency (see McClaren and Bartolome, 1989; Mensing 1992). As part of a long-term blue oak thinning study in the Southern Sierra (see “Thinning Enhance Blue Oak and Interior Live Oak Acorn Production”), 49 trees......
]]> Mon, 11 Jul 2011 10:58:54 PST http://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=5309&utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS%2BFeed standifo@berkeley.edu(Richard Standiford) http://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=5309 Many blue oak trees in California foothills might be more accurately described as “silver oaks” this year. From a distance, they shimmer with a silvery halo. On closer inspection the outermost leaves are coated with a white to gray powdery fuzz. The cause, according to Doug McCreary of the Integrated Hardwood Range Management Program at UC Berkeley, is powdery mildew. Powdery mildew, a group of fungi that causes a white, flour-like growth on the surface of leaves, is common on roses,......
]]> Tue, 28 Jun 2011 11:24:53 PST http://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=5218&utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS%2BFeed Jaime.Adler@berkeley.edu(Jaime Adler) http://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=5218 To Register Click Here by June 24th! When: Thursday, June 30, 2011 9:00am-2:30pm. Please register by Friday, June 24th. Where: Avenales Ranch Road, Pozo, CA 93453, San Luis Obispo County . We will meet at the American Canyon Forest Service Campground Who: Anyone interested in research, education, management and conservation of oak woodland ecosystems. This includes landowners and managers, consulting range managers and registered professional foresters, community and conservation......
]]> Wed, 08 Jun 2011 15:01:04 PST http://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=5063&utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS%2BFeed Jaime.Adler@berkeley.edu(Jaime Adler) http://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=5063 California residents who  want to plant an oak tree or two on their property, often find it challenging, given our climate with irregular winter rains and no summer rainfall, to keep the newly-planted trees green and growing. A devise that has come onto the market recently is dubbed the “Groasis Waterboxx”. According to the website (Groasis.com) the Waterboxx has proven effective at “self-watering” new plantings, even in a truly desert climate. Recently, we started a trial to test the......
]]> Tue, 31 May 2011 13:55:31 PST http://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=4992&utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS%2BFeed Jaime.Adler@berkeley.edu(Jaime Adler) http://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=4992 A special offer for you! Oaks in the Urban Landscape: Selection, Care, and Preservation Written by: Larry Costello, UCCE; Bruce Hagen, CAL FIRE; Katherine Jones, Author On Sale NOW through MAY 31st on the ANR Catalog This publication offers a comprehensive look at the management of oaks in urban areas. As development moves into oak woodland areas, more and more oaks are becoming “urban” oaks. Oaks are highly valued in urban areas for their aesthetic, environmental, economic and......
]]> Wed, 25 May 2011 13:25:45 PST http://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=4948&utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS%2BFeed Jaime.Adler@berkeley.edu(Jaime Adler) http://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=4948 ]]> Fri, 20 May 2011 12:27:36 PST http://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=4913&utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS%2BFeed Jaime.Adler@berkeley.edu(Jaime Adler) http://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=4913 California’s hardwoods have so many virtues it is difficult to count them all.  Only recently scientists have come to appreciate the influence that living hardwoods exert on stream channel shape as the key to providing good habitat for all aquatic species, including salmon in coastal California streams. It is well known that wood in streams provides habitat for a broad range of fresh water species and can influence the shape of the stream channel and important ecosystem processes, such as......
]]> Fri, 13 May 2011 12:16:03 PST http://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=4859&utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS%2BFeed Jaime.Adler@berkeley.edu(Jaime Adler) http://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=4859 Two thinning studies in the southern Sierra Nevada resulted in enhanced acorn production. A thinning experiment evaluating three levels of stocking for blue oak (Quercus douglasii Hook. & Arn.) was initiated in 1994 near California Hot Springs, California in Tulare County. The goal of the thinning was to evaluate how oak canopy overstory levels affected individual and stand tree growth, forage production, grassland diversity, and oak regeneration. The control level for the unthinned stand......
]]> Tue, 03 May 2011 10:45:58 PST http://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=4780&utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS%2BFeed standifo@berkeley.edu(Richard Standiford) http://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=4780 ]]> Fri, 22 Apr 2011 12:15:41 PST http://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=4690&utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS%2BFeed Jaime.Adler@berkeley.edu(Jaime Adler) http://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=4690 ]]> Wed, 13 Apr 2011 13:58:18 PST http://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=4606&utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS%2BFeed Jaime.Adler@berkeley.edu(Jaime Adler) http://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=4606 ]]> Wed, 30 Mar 2011 14:24:22 PST http://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=4504&utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS%2BFeed standifo@berkeley.edu(Richard Standiford) http://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=4504