PITTSBURG — Amidst the sprawling panorama of Los Medanos School, a 2-acre gem thrives with life, rooted in its mission to protect California’s native vegetation and supply a sanctuary for college students.
Began in 1999 as a collaborative effort between school and college students, 90% of the Los Medanos School Nature Protect now consists of drought-tolerant vegetation which can be native to the state.
Nature protect caretaker Ricardo Black grasps a white sage plant whereas on the nature protect at Los Medanos School in Pittsburg, Calif., on Friday, Jan. 17, 2025. The character protect is about two acres positioned behind the faculty. (Jose Carlos Fajardo/Bay Space Information Group)
Ricardo Black, an alumnus who first volunteered in 2014, is the lead caretaker of the protect, positioned close to parking zone B, not too removed from the scholar union and school advanced. Black stated many vegetation are medicinal or culturally important and function important hosts for pollinators, birds, and different wildlife.
“We don’t really need to water them,” stated Black. “All we do is to take care of the species that are established, and we try to add more with the goal of increasing biodiversity.”
The protect has about 86 native plant species, together with some uncommon and endangered corresponding to Nevin’s barberry and the Antioch Dunes Buckwheat. Different species embody California rose, blue elderberry, white sage, and purple sage.
Black, an environmental soil scientist and graduate of the College of California, Davis, stated the protect was merely a garden earlier than it was remodeled into a various surroundings with native vegetation. Nevertheless, there are some elements of the protect that threaten the soil’s well being and native biodiversity.
Black stated invasive grasses, introduced in by Spanish settlers, had altered the pure stability, however issues went “downhill” after the Gold Rush period.
Ranching practices introduced fast-growing, drought-resistant grasses to feed cattle, stated Black, however these grasses outcompete native vegetation by sucking up important vitamins and altering the soil, making it tough for native vegetation to thrive.
“The original land stewards were the indigenous. They would use fire for stewarding the land (but) that was prohibited,” stated Black. “Over decades, we’ve had this massive buildup of stuff from lack of burning.”
He defined pathogens corresponding to sudden oak loss of life, believed to have originated in Asia, assault tanoak, coast dwell oak, California black oak, bay laurels, and others.
Black stated vegetation can act as “bio-engineers,” altering the soil for his or her profit. He stated invasive species which have altered the construction of the soil in Los Angeles performed a task within the devastation brought on by current fires.
Ranching practices introduced fast-growing, drought-resistant grasses to feed cattle, stated Black, however these grasses outcompete native vegetation by sucking up important vitamins, making it tough for native vegetation to thrive.
The invasive grasses overcrowd and stop daylight from hitting any slow-growing native vegetation. As soon as the summer season hits, the grasses dry out, creating extra pollen and rising hearth dangers, stated Black.
“We have massive biofuel (and) just with one spark could really trigger something. From a bigger perspective, with Los Angeles, you could see the direct effects of poor management that stem from decades,” stated Black. “This problem is not new. It started a long time ago from the ignorant land practice implemented.”
Nevertheless, invasive grasses usually are not the one culprits performing as hindrances for native vegetation. Black stated eucalyptus bushes, a plant initially from Australia and launched to California within the nineteenth century, are additionally discovered within the protect.
“I love eucalyptus trees, but they are complete ecological disasters,” stated Black. “Their (bark and leaves are highly flammable), and when it burns, they burn explosively.”
These bushes additionally shed branches and leaves “like crazy,” making a dense layer of flammable particles on the bottom.
“Nothing underneath (the eucalyptus trees) grows, except for more invasive plants because they are soil engineers,” stated Black. “They tend to be acidic and change the soil.”
Regardless of the challenges, Black and the Hyphae Membership, a student-based group, assist restore the protect and take care of the native vegetation there. They’re placing the eucalyptus logs to good use by rising mushrooms, turning an ecological downside right into a useful resource.
Nature protect caretaker Ricardo Black walks alongside a path via the character protect at Los Medanos School in Pittsburg, Calif., on Friday, Jan. 17, 2025. The character protect is about two acres positioned behind the faculty. (Jose Carlos Fajardo/Bay Space Information Group)
“It takes a lot of money to haul out these heavy logs. Mushrooms will break down the eucalyptus logs,” stated Black. “We drill holes in the logs, buy mushrooms inoculated with spores in them, and plug them into the logs.”
The mushrooms take a couple of yr or so to develop, however they might be edible and serve the twin objective of breaking down the logs after which be out there on the pantry for college students to make use of.
Pupil volunteers additionally work tirelessly to take away invasive vegetation and grasses, changing them with mulch to rejuvenate the soil and supply a greater surroundings.
“The mulch does many things. It keeps moisture, feeds the microbes, regenerates, and gives health to the soil,” stated Black.
However past its environmental mission, the protect helps college students who participate in its maintenance study hands-on classes about ethnobotany and sustainability. It additionally serves as an out of doors sanctuary for individuals who must take a breather.
With restricted sources, a lot of the maintenance depends on these scholar volunteers.
Ernesto Teran, a welding main and social media supervisor for the Hyphae Membership, stated he joined in 2023 to assist repair irrigation within the protect however has made mates alongside the way in which.
“I used to be a landscaper, so I am pretty familiar with it,” stated Teran. “We (students) come here, we just chat, and pull out the invasive grasses and try to build the sign for the preserve, which we probably will do this semester.”
Vandalism and price range constraints additionally pose further obstacles, however the protect receives a $300 donation every year from the faculty’s Variety, Fairness, Inclusion, and Belonging division to purchase native vegetation from nurseries in Berkeley and Oakland.
Rosa Armendariz, the division’s senior dean, stated the campus had began a group backyard close by as a part of a well being and wellness technique for college students, however that dwindled with the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We’ve been talking a lot to our professional development committee about bringing back more of a health and wellness focus,” stated Armendariz. “It could also embrace our focus on bringing indigeneity back into our conversations and making sure that we honor the land we’re on, the people still in our community, and the culture.”
An indication welcomes guests to a nature protect at Los Medanos School in Pittsburg, Calif., on Friday, Jan. 17, 2025. The character protect is about two acres positioned behind the faculty. (Jose Carlos Fajardo/Bay Space Information Group)
