Willow Planting on Mt Hood
Hurry up and secure a spot for our willow planting on Mt. Hood!
Among the many things we survey for on our beaver habitat survey field days, woody food is among the most important. While beavers eat a lot of herbaceous food during the summer, woody food is always an important part of their diet particularly in the winter when herbaceous foods are less available. They’ll often store fresh branches in front of their lodge so they can munch easily without going too far from home. Without this woody food, they’re less likely to survive and thrive during the harsh cold months.
Many of our survey sites are lacking beavers favorite woody food species- willow. If we can bring willow back to these areas, we greatly increase not only the habitat suitability for beavers but may find that beavers find their way back to the areas on their own!
Everyone is welcome and no experience necessary! Our willow planting days will be moderate to high physical activity days with plenty of stepping over logs, wading into wetland areas and carrying tools and heavy buckets of willow stakes. We’ll collect willow stakes from nearby, ensuring we only plant local willow that is adapted to the area. After collecting and transporting the stakes in buckets, we will use a piece of rebar to make a small hole in the ground and then stick our willow stake into the hole. This is not only super easy and efficient but disturbs the soil as little as possible.
We will all meet at Gateway/NE 99th Ave. at 9 am. Make sure to meet us at the entrance to the parking garage on NE Multnomah! From there we will coordinate carpooling to our secondary location, Harvest Market in Estacada, in the northwest corner of the parking lot. If you would prefer to meet us at Harvest Market and not at Gateway, please email Meg@bark-out.org ahead of time. At Harvest Market, I will share the coordinates for our final destination, and we will caravan together to the site. At the final site, we will share safety info, talk about the site and the plan for the day and then head into the field for some willow planting! While in the field, we will stop frequently for breaks, water, snacks and lunch. We will work for approximately 4 hours and return in time to be at the Gateway/99th Ave. Park and Ride between 5 and 6pm.
Bring: Warm layers, rain gear, water, snacks/lunch you can eat in the field and dry clothing/footwear for the drive home. We will supply rubber boots and waders (limited sizes so register early!), work gloves, tools, light snacks and coffee.