GOOD NEWS ABOUT SCOTCH BROOM.

On June 7th of this year,  I blogged about the beautiful but invasive plant, Scotch Broom. Impossible to eradicate because the seeds can live 100 years. It has taken over the state of Washington and interferes with native plants. I copped a picture from a local newspaper:

It isn't a good enough picture to recognize the plant along the roadside, but even so, be aware that in our convoluted laws, we can't get a ban on selling this plant until it is proven a nuisance. By then, of course, it is too late. I put out a petition in June, hoping to get a change in that law and a congresswoman from Oregon responded saying she had a bill going through the state legislature to change that type of backward process in Oregon.

Now, the good news is, in nearby El Dorado County, a mite was discovered that attacks the scotch broom and could keep it in check. While good news, it hasn't happened yet, but remember, don't buy and don't plant scotch broom. Find a pretty yellow flowering plant that looks just as good. And, when you are in a nursery, remind your favorite nursery owner, if he'll voluntarily chose not to sell it and advertise the negatives of scotch broom and recommend a better plant.
Today, I hope to pick the last of my apples and clean up underneath them. It was a real treat to have a heavy rain and not have to carry bath water out to my plants.

I hope the people in the burn area have seen some good come from this rain, though I know some feared it would  cause mud slides and erosion. A big mess no one needs after this horrible fire.
Even so, let us not pretend we can or should control the weather. Every time man interferes with the natural order of things, we wind up with disasters. Well, maybe not every time.  Enough said.

CHANGE.ORG

Jim says I don’t rant as much when I’m on the road as I do when I get home.  Of course, he is right. I’m quite shielded from all of the muck going on in the world while we travel. It feels good. But, I return and quite happily get back in the fray. On the streets of Sonora Saturday, a woman told me her daughter was afraid to come to the protest for fear of someone seeing her,  reporting back to her boss,  and costing  her her  job.   I don’t have a job to lose, thus it is even more important that people like myself get out and make sure we don’t give our freedoms away and that we stand up for what we believe in.
My first real job, after high school, was at the Alameda County Jail.  My first day of work,  I was told I would have to remove the bumper sticker on my car. (It was my father’s car.)   The bumper sticker in support of Don Dillon running for mayor of Fremont had nothing to do with any County election. I was indignant at age 17 and full of  idealism. At home, Dad said, remove the bumper sticker, you need the job.  For this woman to fear for her job made me realize  we are not as free as we think we are and our freedom and rights have to be continually protected.
This is a long away around to get to Change.org, an organization that allows you to set up a petition about something you believe should be changed.  They will help you give your idea legs as you spread the word to your friends and they spread it to their friends, if anyone out there  thinks your idea has merit.
I’ve had this thought at the back of my mind for years. Why do we allow California Nurseries to sell non-native invasive species? I had a horrible experience with an Australian  pampas grass plant when I planted the Calaveras Community Studio Garden. It’s fronds are sharp like tiny razors and the pampas I planted began to spread into the nearest parking spot. Finally, no one could exit their car door without getting scratched. It even made tiny scratches on car paint. Our studio manager tried cutting it with a chain saw. It bucked the saw back at him and snarled the chain. We cut the fronds individually, a nasty job,  and poisoned it over a period of weeks. It couldn’t be dug up with shovels,  the root ball was so deep and fibrous. What a mess. And, worse, it seeded to a neighbor’s property.

When Jim and I drove the coastal route from Washington to California, I saw plantations of pampas grass, and parking lots and roadside banks where people have tried to mow them down with little success. Yet, we allow these monsters, beautiful though they are, to be sold by nurseries all over our state.

Another invader that has proliferated is Scotch Broom, again, beautiful, but invasive. They grow incredibly well without any native enemies to keep them in check, much like star thistle. Star thistle in its native Scotland has  a parasitic enemy that keeps it in check. It has cost Calaveras  County over a million dollars to control star thistle and it is still growing and needing constant treatment. Expensive.
Now that I’m done ranting, I’ve developed a petition through change.org to gather signatures for a petition that seeks to  make it against the law to sell non-native species in our nurseries.  Realize that it will cost us huge amounts of money to eradicate them when they get out of hand.  If you are like minded, please sign my petition.
http://www.change.org/petitions/the-state-of-california-oregon-washington-by-law-prevent-the-sale-of-non-native-invasive-species-by-nurseries

MOVING TO BELLINGHAM, WASHINGTON

We left Auburn about 10:00 a.m. hoping to miss  most of the traffic. That didn’t work out, but we did drive part of the way in the HOV lanes. We saw some trucks, in it,  we were two, buses, are fine. Then signage farther down the road made us rethink that and we pulled out of it. The signage isn’t quite clear when it comes to motor homes. It rained most  of the 120 miles to our destination, Bellingham.

Part of the “scenic” drive was in the congested areas as in this flora covered concrete…

…with that ubiquitous scotch broom decorating everything.

The stuff is really heavy in this part of the state. I guess I’m a purist and think there should be a program to eradicate the stuff. Inmate road crews could make short work of the stuff with consistent effort, at least slow the spread.

Roadside art form in concrete.

My own “art form” in the motorhome. I changed pictures in my one and only frame.

Took a nice 30 minute swim before dinner  and fell asleep reading a really good book. I don’t know why Jim gets such a kick out me sleeping while I read. I guess it’s because I don’t drop the book. Anyway, pretty silly.  Today, we’ll explore Bellingham.