Mar 22, 2021 | Watershed Science and Systems
by Denny Barnes, OLWC Board Member Pacific Yew (Taxus brevifolia) is a small inconspicuous understory tree. From 1993-2013, they were indiscriminately stripped from our forests to make the powerful anti-cancer drug Taxol. It took about six 100+-year-old Yews to make...
Mar 22, 2021 | Watershed Science and Systems
The Dirt on Trees Stephanie Wagner We love our trees! We love their shade, their graceful patterns against the sky, and how they store carbon to combat climate change. But where would trees be without their roots? The roots we cannot see but know anchor the beauty...
Dec 30, 2020 | Stewardship, Watershed Science and Systems
By Stephanie Wagner There goes another one! Ants in our bathroom! Teeny, tiny sugar ants waltzing along the bathtub. I am a huge believer in living with wildlife but I’m not sure I want to share my home with these outsiders. How can we live together and respect...
Dec 30, 2020 | Watershed Science and Systems
By Mary Ratcliff, OLWC Board Member Ruby-crowned Kinglet on a branch. Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons. In Lake Oswego, observing birds in winter can be fun as we have an amazing variety of birds that come to winter. In addition to our beloved...
Oct 28, 2020 | Stewardship, Watershed Science and Systems
By Mary Ratcliff, OLWC Board Member, and Volunteer The Overstory is, first of all, a story of trees. It is the story of the impact of humans on trees and the impact of trees on humans. Humans are an integral part of the story like the outcast biologist who discovers...
Oct 28, 2020 | Stewardship, Watershed Science and Systems
By Sharon Hawley, OLWC Volunteer My yards have always allowed me to “dispose” of leaves without banishing them offsite. I didn’t set out intentionally to make it so – but rather somewhat backed into behaviors that I now accept as a good way to handle the annual...
