Wilderness Calls by Paul Berensmeier
Marin County Parks Integrated Pest Management
There is this Place
Have you ever heard a rodent scuttle in your ceiling? Found a yellowjacket nest buzzing in the ground? Had unwelcome weeds spring up in your vegetable patch? Marin County Parks takes care of pest management at 148 sites. This includes the county jail, public libraries, parks, and picnic areas. We’ve seen it all!
There is this place . . . where hills touch heavens . . . sur- rounding the people. A place to return to . . . a place of rest . . . when you crest the mountain ridge to enter . . . see the setting sun on the beautiful golden rolling hills . . . breath that sigh of relief as you descend and enter this Valley . . . this place we call home. This is a place the people created . . . cared for . . . in a special way . . . protected . . . for the people . . . the salmon . . . all beings. This place is respected . . . held dearly . . . loved . . . held for future generations. In this place there are no buildings on the ridges . . . it looks pris- tine. A historic building has been saved . . . restored to a Community Center for the people . . . the elderly . . . the children. There is a place here . . . for everyone. Yes . . . there is such a place . . . a place of love . . . a place of caring . . . a place hearts return to . . . a place called home. And . . . we live here! So each morning he rises with the predawn . . . the time of prayer. He slips quietly out . . . respectfully . . . greets the new day. He looks up . . . quarter moon . . . morning star . . . first rays of golden-red light. He gives thanks . . . to our ancestors . . . to family . . . to life . . . to love . . . to our Valley. He looks out over pristine Valley ridges . . . remembering those who worked tire- lessly to preserve this place . . . grateful for what has been given . . . gifted . . . our place . . . our home.
To manage these uninvited guests, Parks uses the least toxic methods possible. This is called Integrated Pest Management, or IPM. The County’s IPM Policy requires putting non-chemical methods first. It requires minimal use of pesticides, and even taking no action. This can mean tolerating dandelions rather than spraying with weed killer. The Integrated Pest Management Commission, composed of nine Marin residents, oversees these efforts. The commission presents an annual achievement award to local IPM heroes. These individuals and organiza- tions lead the way in promoting reduced pesticide use. They educate and share their knowledge in Marin and beyond. 2024 IPM Award winner Sanzuma Farms has converted school gardens into producing farms. Founder Lori Davis has taught many students how to grow food without pesticides. She also educates local farmers who practice IPM about selling crops to Marin schools. Learn more about Sanzuma at sanzuma.org. 2024 IPM Award winner Oscar Lucario is a landscaper, designer, and land manager. He has over 20 years of experience in organic sustainable maintenance. Oscar revitalizes private and public gardens to boost resil- iency to a changing climate. This includes building pesticide-free habitat for native, medicinal, and edible plants. This habitat also benefits bees, other pollinators, and beneficial insects. Oscar currently works for the City of Sausalito. He is also an advisor and educator, teaching about ecol- ogy in English and Spanish. You can help! Don’t be so quick to reach for the poison or chemical killer. Take an IPM approach to your own home and garden. Stop, think, and protect ecosystems by choosing the least toxic pest control alterna- tive. YardSmartMarin, at yardsmartmarin.org, offers residents informa- tion on how to get started. Toxic chemicals in our homes and yards can seem like a quick fix. But using less toxic solutions often has more endur- ing and positive effects.
Dirt First by Will McQuilkin
The potato is a humble, but essential tuber. It originated in the Peruvian Andes, and has grown into one of the world’s most important vegetables. Potatoes are associated with the masses
due to their ability to easily navigate wars and tax censuses by hiding under- ground from collectors - the Robin Hood of the plant-world! Best of all, they are positively easy to grow. When planting potatoes directly into your garden, it’s best to purchase certified seed potatoes from a trusted supplier. Seed potatoes are grown with the express purpose of planting, so they are never treated with sprout-inhibitors. Potatoes from a grocery store also work well, but be aware that they may have been treated with inhibitors, or harbor pathogens that can harm your garden’s health.. If you opt to use store-bought spuds in your garden, consider containing them in a burlap sack, bucket or other container to prevent the spread of any disease they might carry. Once you have your preferred starters, let them sit in a cool, dry, dark place until they develop “eyes.” Eyes are the start of sprouts that will eventually develop into the potato’s aboveground foliage. Once you identify the eyes, you can use a knife to divide each potato into ~1-inch thick slices (aka “slips”), ensuring that each slip has at least two eyes. After you cut the potatoes, you can leave them to dry for a day or two to prevent rot. While your slips dry, prepare your growing space by inverting a bed, or digging a roughly 6-inch deep trench. Potato beds are fun, because unlike most other veg- etables, they effectively grow in a furrow, rather than a traditional bed-top. Once your bed is prepped it’s time to plant! Place your potato slips 6-inches to 1-foot apart with eyes facing up and backfill the trench with soil. As your potatoes grow they’ll send up a green sprout that grows into a tomato-like vine. When the vine grows to about 6-inches tall, you can “mound” the plants by heaping soil up around the vine, burying it so that only 3-inches of the green growth remains aboveground. This helps encourage more underground growth and shields the tubers from sunlight, which will cause them to turn green and inedible. You can follow this hilling with another, roughly 3-weeks after the first. Potatoes like 1-2 inches of water per week while they develop. Once you start to notice yellowing on the vines, you can taper the water to help prevent under- ground rot. Once the vines are completely withered, it’s time to get a digging fork and unearth the beautiful round spuds. I like to insert the fork into the soil about 6-inches from the vine and work my way in, to avoid accidentally piercing any of the crop. Lastly, cook and enjoy! One of my favorite potato dishes is “Potatoes au Gratin” - a cheesy potato dish and a surefire crowd-pleaser. Feel free to look up a recipe and prepare your Robin Hood spuds in whatever way you enjoy most.
The photo is of the 2024 IPM Achievement award winners: • Lori Davis: Sanzuma • Oscar Lucario: landscaper, designer, land manager, and educator
SGV Community Center Stone Soup Page 17
Made with FlippingBook - Share PDF online