Global Gals Gathering May 25, 2023
Attendees: Alexis, Janice, Julie, Kim, Leigh, Megan, Sandra, Sharon, Suzanne
Inspirational woman: Rachel Louise Carson, writer, conservationist. She wrote 1962 book Silent Spring, and also wrote Living Downstream. Born in 1907, she passed in 1964 from cancer.
Speaker: Patricia Simpson
Vegetations Technician at Cabrillo National Monument where she manages plant placement, vegetation care, habitat restoration through out Cabrillo park. She is a self taught naturist starting with birding. I-Naturalist platform began in 2012. Individuals take photos of wild plants and bugs to post i-naturalist, and the data is used by scientists. Global database created by citizen scientists through crowd sourcing.
Patricia runs bee surveys at Cabrillo. She photographs bees and blooming plants to track native bees to compare year over year.
Global threats to native plants include climate change and biodiversity loss due to human development. Only 10% of marshlands remain in California. Small things we can doe at home: put native plants into your yard. the good news in Sn Diego is that canyons have not been developed allowing animals plants to survive in the canyons. We need more corridors for animals to move. Native plants in yards give a place for animals to thrive and move.
Favorite resources for native plants.
- Moosa Creek delivers plants to local nursery ie. Mission Hills Nursery.
- Qual Botanical (San Diego Botanic Gardens)to get ideas.
- San Diego Water Wise Garden in East County
Plants she likes: bladder pod, black sage (purple flowers) used for cooking, white sage, Cleveland sage. She reminds us not to buy white sage from farmers markets because plant could have been poached. Sharon like Toyan tree, California fuchsia, pineapple sage. And other plants that may work: snapdragon, pink rush rose, California buckwheat, rock rose. Throw seeds in your yard around October. For the first year, deep watering every months they they live on their own. A light misting system may work for ongoing growth. Think of your yard as a house with rooms where you want to move from room to room. i.e. tree canopy, patio surrounded by plants, wild area.