Newsletter

<div class="ck-content"><h4>Don't be shy about Nandina</h4>A couple of weeks ago, I shared my evolving understanding of the dangers of Nandina, namely that its leaves and berries contain cyanide, and it kills birds.Since then I've been hyper-aware of Nandina shrubs, especially those heavy with berries. I've seen then in neighborhoods near my apartment. I've seen them in Carolina North. But the worst case I came across is on Franklin Street in Chapel Hill, where a property has a big, thick, long hedge of Nandina, with what must be 10s of 1000s of berries in them.Now, I could just moan and groan about the ignorance of people, etc., etc. Or I could take action. I took action. Which does not mean that I visited in the middle of the night and chopped down their bushes. That would be illegal, dangerous, and obnoxious.No, instead I did the following (and I am giving you the step-by-steps here to hopefully inspire you to do the same):<ul><li>Visited the <a href="https://gis.orangecountync.gov/orangeNCGIS/default.htm">Orange County GIS property map</a>, which identifies all plots of land and their owners, in Orange County. </li><li>Find the property on the map and click on it (warning: it's not as easy to use as Google Maps). Copy down the owner and address information (if their address is different from the property location, they are likely renting it out).</li><li>Download our <a href="https://docs.google.com/document/d/1g4xzBKH-ey2igpnV_nIuMZRF3akSPMyf/edit?usp=drive_link&ouid=108418272423724498185&rtpof=true&sd=true">Nandina letter</a>. It's a template; you will need to put in your name and contact info, and some other areas. Please read it through carefully and edit to your style and preferences.</li><li>Print and mail the letter when you've got it just the way you like it.</li><li>Wait and see if they will respond. I've sent at least a dozen letters like this (for Nandina or other invasives). I'd say my track record is a positive response to about 30% of the letters.</li></ul>About 10 days after mailing the letter, I got a wonderful voice mail from Leah telling me how much she appreciated my sending the letter. They were definitely going to get rid of the Nandina, but that would have to wait till the summer. In the meantime, they would pay someone to remove the berries.Victory for the birds! Victory for the planet!Give it a try, you really have nothing to lose.<h4>Now these flashbacks I like</h4>I was walking the Walnut Grove Loop at Brumley South with my dogs this week. As I walked through an area devoid of invasives (besides, sigh, the waves of dead stilt grass), my memory nudged me. The turn in the trail seemed familiar. A few of the trees rang some bells.And then I remembered where I was. Or, to be more specific, I remembered that a year or two ago, I was in this same location cutting away privet and multiflora rose and olive. It was a big mess of invasives, creating a closed-in feeling along the trail. I cut and painted, I pulled the trees away from the trail into piles. It was exhausting, hard summer work (not that I am complaining).And now: the piles have quickly decayed into small mounds, barely noticeable. The native trees are able to grow unencumbered. Hurray!This is part of the reason I try so hard to take before-after pictures at every event. We so quickly forget how it used to look, which is fine, but also it is nice to be able to remember all that we have accomplished, how much impact we can have in our two hour tree rescues.<h4>Very cool (literally): trees stalling effects of global heating in eastern US, study finds</h4>Another <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2024/feb/17/us-east-trees-warming-hole-study-climate-crisis">encouraging article</a> from The Guardian:“The vast reforestation of much of the eastern US [followed] the initial loss of large numbers of trees in the wake of European settlement in America. Such large expanses have been reforested in the past century – with enough trees sprouting back to cover an area larger than England – that it has helped stall the affect of global heating….In all, the replenished forests today cool the eastern US by 1C to 2C (1.8F to 3.6F) each year. The cooling effect is strongest on the hottest days in summer, when trees lower temperatures by 2C to 5C (3.6F to 9F), the researchers found.”Hurray, trees!Now, I must say that I also have some mixed feelings about this report. On the one hand, I am so happy that this reforestation efforts from decades past is now able to do so much good. On the other hand, I worry that it will reinforce the belief of so many people today that planting millions or trillions of trees will be some kind of solution to our crisis. Because there are also stories like <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2024/feb/15/ill-judged-tree-planting-africa-threatens-ecosystems-scientists-warn">this one</a>: “Ill-judged tree planting in Africa threatens ecosystems, scientists warn….Research reveals area size of France is under threat by restoration projects taking place in unsuitable landscapes.”Today, the absolutely clear #1 priority when it comes to forests is to stop cutting them down. We must save all the mature trees we can. To the extent that tree planting schemes act like recycling (<a href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/feb/15/recycling-plastics-producers-report">"They lied’: plastics producers deceived public about recycling, report reveals"</a>), giving humans a “cover” for continuing their destruction, they are bad schemes.And that is, in a nutshell, what you and I do when we remove invasives: we save trees!<h4>Another tip for stepping more lightly on our planet</h4>Several readers got back to me about the Skoy Scrubbers from last week, some to let me know they were already using them and loved them, others excited to try it.So what the heck. I will bestow upon you another thing I do to reduce my burden on our planet, in this case to reduce energy consumption: I do all my cooking on an <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/wirecutter/reviews/best-portable-induction-cooktop/">induction burner cooktop</a>.<div class="raw-html-embed"><img src="https://cdn.thewirecutter.com/wp-content/media/2022/09/portable-induction-cooktop-2048px-6402-2x1-1.jpg?auto=webp&quality=75&crop=2:1&width=980&dpr=1.5" height="200" length="500"></div>Yes, I have an electric (coil) stove, but I don't use it (or the over), so I've covered it with a big bamboo cutting board. Also, by the way, yes I have a dishwasher, but I wash my dishes by hand, and use the dishwasher as a drying rack. So as you can tell, I am kind of weird, but it works for me. Anyway, back to the induction burner cooktop.Induction is more efficient than electric coil or smooth cooktops, and way more efficient than gas (a fossil fuel). It heats water up incredibly fast. And since it runs off the grid (or your portable power stations; I have a couple of <a href="https://jackery.com">Jackery batteries</a> that I can recharge with solar panels), as the grid uses more and more renewable energy, so do you.If you've got a gas stove, I would definitely think very seriously about getting yourself an induction burner (or two, as needed; they're quite inexpensive). You can still use the oven when you need it, but you can use the induction burner for almost all your cooking needs. I love it!</div>Resources you might find useful:<ul><li><a href="https://shop.naisma.org/collections/buckthorn-blaster">Buckthorn Blasters</a>: safe, easy herbicide delivery system from the North American Invasive Species Management Association. Don't start cutting without them!</li><li><a href="https://nc-ipc.weebly.com/nc-invasive-plants.html">NC Invasive Plants list</a>: recently updated by NC-IPC, the NC Invasives Plants Council.</li><li><a href="https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/publication/AG259">Overview of different herbicides</a>: glyposphate, triclopyr and others - which should you use?</li><li>Volunteer for <a href="https://triangleland.org">Triangle Land Conservancy</a>: the biggest land conservancy group in our area. </li><li>Volunteer for <a href="https://ellerbecreek.org">Ellerbe Creek Watershed Association</a> (Durham): a wonderful group working hard to maintain contiguous natural areas along Ellerbe Creek.</li></ul>