Change is constant and sometimes overwhelming, but if you focus on little things, occasionally you can have a positive impact.
An international corporation has purchased two of our local shopping malls and for the past 5 years, or more, they have been working on a project to create a shopping "Village" with a network of walkways and mixed use areas that would connect the two remodeled malls. Many long-time residents of our suburb were up-in-arms. The increase of traffic and people was not welcome.
I went to the planning meetings that were open to the public and I must give credit to the local city counsel office and the multi-national corporation for giving the local residents an opportunity to speak.
From the very first meeting I realized this change was coming. Whether I liked it or not, a shopping "Village" was going to be built. What could I do to make this change more ecopositive? I've seen similar projects by this owner in other areas of the city and the world. They usually are well laid out with beautiful landscaping. But one thing stood out to me, the landscaping was sterile; there were no native plants.
At that first meeting comment boards were put up around the auditorium with ideas pre-printed on them. We were all given stickers to express our priorities for the items that were important to us, green for positive, red for negative. We were encouraged to add ideas as well. I walked up to the comment board with the heading "Landscaping" and I wrote "Native plants that will be drought tolerant and provide habitat."
As I wrote, someone beside me said, "Yeah, why not?" If there was going to be new landscaping, why not restore habitat for birds and butterflies with native plants. I watched the green stickers of support multiply. This was an ecopositive suggestion with no downside.
I stayed on the mailing list and any time opinions were solicited I continued my mantra, "Native plants in landscaping."
The project has been through many transformations and slowed with the economic situation, but yesterday I saw a full page add in a local paper titled "Sustainability at the The Village, Coming Soon!" Change is moving forward. There were three bullet points on the page. The third one started "Native landscaping..."
There are little victories in making a positive difference. When it is an ecopositive difference all living things benefit.
What recycling/rehabilitation project is larger than reestablishing the Los Angeles River as a living river? In the last two weeks the U. S. Environmental Protection Agency has declared that the Los Angeles River is a waterway deserving of the protection of the Clean Water Act–in other words a real river.
For all of my life the Los Angeles River has been confined between concrete walls. But in recent years we have seen sections of the river reclaim its freedom. In forgotten corridors vegetation has flourished, wildlife has returned.
Many L.A. residents who have relocated here from the east regard the Los Angeles River as a glorified storm drain. They cite flooding in the 1930s and use it as evidence that the river only flows seasonally and is "dangerous." But if they would look back in history a little bit further, they would realize that there were human settlements along the river long before tract homes were built and agricultural lands were sectioned off. The native people and the Spanish lived here because there was water and they built on higher ground up from the meandering and somewhat marshy river because they respected the natural forces that caused the waterway to fluctuate seasonally.
I grew up in West Hills (when it was still Canoga Park) along Bell Creek, one of the three small streams that start the Los Angeles River. Though wild in the hillsides, the creek was cemented in by developers once it met the valley. Still, was a place where you could find tadpoles and raccoons. Though it trickled in the heat of summer, Bell Creek always flowed. Local folklore tells of a Native American village that stood here at the base of the foothills above the flood plain of the central part of the valley.
Leonis Adobe in Calabasas is built along Arroyo Calabasas which joins Bell and Chatsworth Creeks to form the River (just east of Canoga High School). At its beginnings this stream has been cleaned of debris in recent years and bubbles freely past the ranch house built in 1844. That is until it flows into Los Angeles County, where it too is confined in concrete. Topanga Mall is actually built over it.
The first house that my husband and I lived in was in Van Nuys along Bull Creek, another tributary confined by the Army Corp. of Engineers. This stream was contained so that Van Nuys Airfield could be built. In the last two years, the lower section of Bull Creek, just before it joins the river, has been rehabilitated. If you want to see what our waterways could have looked like prior to the paving of the San Fernando Valley visit Lake Balboa Park and stop at the dirt turnout before you reach the lake area. Walk along newly liberated Bull Creek and you will be surprised at the wildlife. This island of habitat is home to ground squirrels and desert cottontail rabbits. The sandy cliff banks are perfect nesting areas for swallows. Ducks and herons thrive.
To experience what marshy wetland areas were like and the myriad of birds that lived there, visit Sepulveda Basin Wildlife Area. The surrounding grasslands, just slightly elevated above the wetland, feed a variety of native sparrows and finches visiting in the winter. These areas are flooded following storms, just as they should be, so the grasses can grow in the silt enriched soil.
Travel down the Los Angeles River beyond Burbank and you will come to areas where you can see the ground water bubbling up in the channel. In some areas it is lifting the concrete. The natural river is trying to return. Embracing the Los Angeles River.
Yes, applying the Clean Water Act is going to mean that each of us as individuals is going to become legally responsible for what runs off of our property and into the river. If you needed more than ethical and health reasons for limiting pesticides and herbicides sprayed on your property, this is it. For me, I'm excited. I have always loved the Los Angeles River, even when it was nearly dry. It could become the green heart of our city if we can all come together and find the positive thread that connects us together, the Los Angeles River.
For more on the recent status change of the Los Angeles River visit our local state representative, Julia Brownley's webpage.
Part of having a sustainable garden is trust. Trust that if you offer nature the opportunity to create balance that the predators will help control the species that can be pests.
Realistically, balance has to be nurtured.
For example, this egg cluster was laid by a preying mantis last fall. She produced two foamy masses with eggs (that I know of). One on a grape vine and one on the wisteria. When I pruned both of these vines during the winter, I made the conscious choice not to prune the section of vine with the egg cluster.
If I hadn't been paying attention, I would have clipped off these twigs and tossed them in the green bin. I would have lost 50-100 potential garden guardians. The preying mantis is an important beneficial insect, eating a wide range of garden insects. Besides, the female who laid these eggs visited a class that I taught on insects. When I released her back into the garden she laid this egg mass and I promised her I would watch after them.
The more you know about the beneficial creatures and plants in your garden, the more likely you are to identify their needs and offspring. Give them a helping hand by proving native plants and you will helping to restore a natural balance in your home ecosystem.
I don't spray any insecticides in my yard. Instead I provide a safe place for natural predators–mantises, beetles, salamanders, lizards, spiders, bats, birds and more.
Is my trust in nature's balance founded? The proof will be revealed in how successful my veggie garden is this year. Any bets?
It is an amazing thing. I can stand in my kitchen in the San Fernando Valley and eat a bite of lunch while watching a desert cottontail munching on a blade of grass and a young southern California alligator lizard hunting a bug. Both of these creatures are about fifteen feet away from me, albeit on the other side of the glass window.
I live in one of the world's largest cities, but this morning 10 species of native birds were in my yard:
In another month as the migratory birds start passing through, that number will increase dramatically. All kinds of avian visitors will drop in for a day or for the winter.
This morning western fence lizards, adults and juveniles, were hunting insects. An anise swallowtail butterfly was laying eggs on the citrus trees and a tiger swallowtail stopped in for a snack.
What is truly amazing is the same thing isn't true at my neighbors' across the street. Their grass may be green and thick, but few native creatures live there. Our yard didn't start out this way, we have gradually introduced more native plants and added available water to our yard. We are an oasis of habitat in the city.
If you gaze out the window of your car or house and think, Los Angeles is a pretty green place? I challenge you to look at a satellite photo. The green you see is the Santa Monica Mountains and protected land. Photos from space reveal that the greatest area of land in Los Angeles is comprised roof tops, streets, asphalt school yards and parking lots. None of these provide habitat for beleaguered wildlife.
Now, the Station Fire has scorched large tracts of wildlife habitat in the Angeles Forest (just north of Los Angeles). Animals large and small are searching for new areas to find food, water and shelter.
But, every year the city expands and evicts similar numbers of plants and animals. It doesn't have to be that way. A yard can be habitat for wildlife. A narrow strip of land around a parking lot or a school can be planted with natives to provide shelter and food. It might take a little work and a change of priorities, but it is worth it. Every year our species list increases. I don't have to turn on the television to watch a "nature show," its happening right outside my kitchen window.
