Like many in the land conservation arena, I often use the term “land ethic” in discussing the vision and work of Save the Redwoods League and our partners. As the League approaches its 100th anniversary, I’ve been thinking a lot …
When we want to restore forests, it’s as simple as just planting some redwoods, right? You may be surprised to hear that the business of replanting a forest is a bit more complicated than that. When we work to restore forests, we try to make sure that the forests we rebuild are as close as possible to those that were lost — and there are also very practical reasons for doing so
Last week’s blog began, perhaps a little cavalierly, with the assertion that growing big trees may be the easy part of redwood forest restoration, and so far as it goes that’s a fair assessment. It also may be a little …
Well, they’re both part of a rapidly-changing world. It’s more than a little scary to watch the Winter Olympics this year and see the bare, snowless mountains in the background and the spectators in T-shirts lining the race courses. Scarier …
For decades, the rallying cry of conservation has been, “Buy land — they’re not making any more of it!” And since 1918, that’s what Save the Redwoods League has done: bought land to protect old-growth groves for future generations. Now, …
Last month, I explained the nuts and bolts of conservation easements, a super important tool in land conservation and one that we at Save the Redwoods League use often. This month, you can learn about what happens next: monitoring and …
Much has been said about the importance of old-growth redwood forests. Their superlative beauty, their mind-bending longevity, their capacity to sequester carbon, and their ability to inspire peace, awe, and contemplation are all reasons why our commitment to their protection …
Conservation easements are an incredibly important tool we use to help protect land. They can be confusing to understand, so my next few blogs will focus on different aspects of conservation easements to explain the concept and show why land …
Not many people know this, but I can trace my career as a redwood conservation scientist back to Strybing Botanical Garden in San Francisco. It was during a field trip to Strybing in 1998 that I sat and sketched plants …
When thinking of redwood conservation, the mind doesn’t naturally jump to a vast expanse of pavement. Save the Redwoods League is hoping to change that. We have just acquired the Orick Mill property in Humboldt County that includes 45 acres …
This year we mark the 70th anniversary of the death of John McLaren, one of America’s great park leaders. Born and raised in Scotland and trained as a horticulturalist, McLaren is responsible for much of the vision and construction of …
The Lost Coast is a destination for intrepid hikers who enjoy the rough and uninterrupted coastline of Mendocino County. If you’re one of them, I recommend you take some time looking underfoot next time you explore the wilderness to see …
RCCI’s nursery experiments and tree ring analyses are essential to understanding the past and future of the redwood forest, but it is the trees themselves that tell us about its present. By establishing 16 large plots in old-growth forests throughout …
Each year, we at the League are fortunate to be able to help shape and develop new knowledge about the redwood forest. Through our research grants program, we sponsor several teams of scientists who are working to answer a wide …
Conservation work comes in all shapes and sizes. Protecting, restoring, and sharing the redwood forest with the public is a broad mission, and we look to achieve it through a diversity of efforts. Sometimes the League’s projects are as obvious as …
Sometimes when I tell people about new research the League has sponsored, like this recent study describing the links between forest condition and salamander populations in recovering redwood forests, I get a look that I know means, “That’s pretty neat, but …
It’s not often that I hear about a creature more resilient than redwoods. After all, they grow faster, live longer, and reproduce more prolifically than just about any other tree. Be that as it may, some very small, unassuming creatures …
I grew up in Northern California and witnessed the inspiring recovery of an endangered species over the past few decades. As a frequent beach goer throughout my life, I remember it was unusual to see brown pelicans diving along the …
People are cloning the world’s oldest redwoods. Archangel Ancient Tree Archive is planting their clones en masse around the world in an effort to create robust forests of the future. They say these ancient clones will reverse deforestation across the …
Save the Redwoods League and our colleague land conservation organizations are tackling more sophisticated and more capital-intensive projects than ever before. We have learned that we can do this better by collaborating. One of the League’s most exciting and successful …
