March 9

          By the end of March 7th, I was at 61 trees out of 66 days.  By the end of the 9th, I was at 65 out of 68 - getting caught up!
          Rose and I went towards the river with the wheelbarrow and two cascaras.  I put both in close to the corner of our property and neighbors to the west - and pretty close to the river - 10 to 15 feet (and lots of blackberries) back.  I clipped blackberry vines to make a room.  One cascara is close to a hemlock I put in earlier, the other is by large spruces (not so much blackberry there) that G planted 5 - 10 years ago.  The spruces are about 15 feet tall.
          Then we headed up the hill with 3 more plants:  2 ninebark (Physocarpus capitatus) and a big leaf maple.  The ninebarks we have are from cuttings I've made from the bush in my big island flower bed, and the maple is a strong second or third year seedling from the maple in front of our house.  
           I planted the ninebarks by the small pond, to the east of it and uphill slightly.  Two smallish - 20 feet? - spruces and 2 alders grow there in a small naturally planted grove.  I put the ninebark in beyond the spruce shade, guessing they prefer sun.  Kruckberg says, "Look for this tallish shrub in open woods, along water-courses and in moist hedgerows . . . "  (Arthur 
R. Kruckberg, Gardening with Native Plants of the Pacific Northwest:  An Illustrated Guide.  Great book!)  Many sword ferns and some elderberry (Sambucus racemosa) grow in the spruce shade, an evergreen huckleberry to the western edge - one I planted.
          I ran out of steam, so didn't plant the maple - left it and wheelbarrow for another day.


          Back at the house, I got a call from L, who works for the county.  I had proposed to C5 (the child care center here in Hebo where I was on the board for 6+ years) that I'd do some planting on that (county) property last fall.  C5 drug their feet forever (Sept. to Dec.)  - well, they have a lot of other things going on! - but finally said okay for me to plant the strip beside the driveway into the center.  But then O said I should get Tillamook County approval.  More foot dragging, talk about needing County Commissioners to approve, etc.  E, from C5, then told me strip is C5, not county property.  
          I feel very much as if everyone is looking this gift horse in the mouth, far too seriously, far too long, for the nature of my simple request.  Marked contrast with W at the High School, who is happy to have me and S plant up there, very few questions asked.  He wants the landscaping native, and low maintenance.  No problem!  S and I are slow, but the two beds we've worked on so far - a 70 foot "rain garden" (drainage ditch for the asphalt parking lot) and a 15 x 10 foot area above the small patio in back of the school - we've weeded and kept maintained.  I only wish my available plants were larger, for more immediate impact. 
          Gordon's Environmental Science class had adopted the big, steep terrace in back of the main high school classroom area.  They've terraced it, straightened the new cyclone fencing (put in without adequate attention to the ground that's supposed to hold the fenceposts), and planted a few ferns.  They're working with wood to hold the terraces in place, that G has scrounged.  They'll plant (I hope I can help!) the plants from the Yamhill County SWCD and some Cascara, elderberry, redosier dogwood, and others that we've started here at home.  Weed control (cardboard mulch with PUD chips or straw to cover) will be paramount with the small size of most of the plants.  The salal, for instance, are sturdy but only 2 - 3 inches tall.  They could easily be smothered - or trampled by students as they work!
          Anyway, L of the county and I worked things out on the phone today.  I may plant, but I have to:
          1) Know where the property boundaries and any easements are, and stay within - or without - them.
          2)  Not plant in ways that stop people from seeing any signs or the cow statue that's to be erected.  Also not obscure drivers' vision.
          3)  Graduate my plantings, so short plants (his definition of short is 12-18" tall - it will be a little hard for NATIVE plant material - maybe Kinnikinnick?) are close to Hwy. 101, and anything taller is further back, by C5's parking lot.  Again, keeping in mind drivers' vision.  And not shading too much the house of the folks who live right close there.
           4)  No other planting except along the river - i.e. not on parts of the property that a farmer (if the county finds a willing farmer) will mow for hay or pasture cattle on - and generate money for the county to help pay for property upkeep.  


          I don't know how many times, and to how many people, I've expressed these concerns - brought them up, addressed them.  However, I appreciate L's hard job of protecting the taxpayers' money - his job being to do things right, do things that benefit the property, enhance the investment, and not make mistakes that will require money and time to fix.  And he has to document every step.
          I'll try to plant there this week-end, probably only red osier dogwood, and definitely far away from the highway.