We finally got a bit of rain making it a perfect time to pull French broom seedlings on the Fiscalini Ranch. We have quite a few coming in near the Trenton entrance. Most of them are under 12 inches, but we have a few that we must have missed before that are closer to 24” tall and blooming. They’ll set seed and keep the population going if we don’t get them out of there soon. We don’t want them ever to get to those 15 foot monsters we started with!
We are making progress! There are fewer and fewer broom seedlings every year. They are now a minor nuisance in at least one area - the first knoll on the Creek to Forest trail. I was able to pull them all in about 10 minutes this year. This is another area where they were enormous! We hired the California Conservation Corps to take them out about 10 years ago.
It shouldn’t take more than an hour to make a clean sweep of the broom, so we’re also hoping to spread some chips on the Forest Loop Trail. Wood chips keep the trails from getting too muddy in the winter, keep the dust down in the summer and protect the tree roots all year long. If you’re up for an hour of that that too, shovels, rakes and wheelbarrows are always helpful. Otherwise, gloves should do it!
Meet at the Trenton entrance at 9:00am, Saturday, March 17th. Snacks & water will be provided. RAIN CANCELS!!!! For more info, call (805) 239-3928 or email hslettel@calpoly.edu. Hope to see you next weekend!
