CA friends...I AM SO SAD!!!!!

I am inconsolable! I live by a canyon side, where hundreds of birds can be seen and enjoyed everyday. Well, this week, SDG&E started CUTTING DOWN ALL TREES at the top of the canyon! There are 100ft tall Eucaliptus trees there, where I used to enjoy seing the hawks rest on.

I pleaded with them, went up there with them, showed them the birds, talked about the wildlife....NADA! Some of you have seen pics of my garden...if I look up the hill now, instead of trees and birds, I see houses I had never seen before!

Now...part of the canyon is still on my property, and they said I can plant anything up to 20ft tall at maturity. So when I'm done crying (I'm not done yet) I intend to plant:
a) shrubs that will grow quickly and screen those ugly homes at the hilltop
b) trees that will eventually grow to 20ft so hopefully the hawks will come back

I obviously am looking for plants that will provide for wildlife, be it shelter or food. I have irrigation up there, but wanted something that will do ok without too much supplemental water once established.

Please help me hide the ugly new view and give the wildlife what they have lost!
Roberta

Roberta, please consider putting natives in there. The birds and animals will love you for it, and they will take care of themselves once established. I've heard we are going to be losing more and more of our beautiful lilac covered hills soon. Talk to Las Pilitas, Tree of Life Nursery, Native Sons - anyone who sells natives - about what will grow fast and help wildlife.

We've planted a lot of Catalina Ironwood (Lyonothamnus floribundus) trees and we're really please with them. They are CA natives, though not San Diego, of course. They grow fast to about 30 feet and are evergreen. There are lots of other trees to consider, too, that would be more fire resistant than eucalyptus.

I'm so sorry this happened. Did they say why they were cutting everything down?

Oops, just noticed the 20ft height restriction. That can be overcome, I'm sure.

This message was edited Feb 12, 2009 3:45 PM

There is a power line up there on a City easement....they were saying the trees "could break or fall" on those @^%$^& lines...so instead of pruning every year, they were now just going to take them all down!

Yes, you are totally right on getting natives, that's what I am looking for. God I am so sad !!!

If they just chopped them down, won't they come back? Or I wonder if they kill the stumps? Much as I don't like eucs, taking down all those trees is a shame. DH will be furious. He won't even let me get rid of the ugly cactus on our lot!

Either LP or Tree of Life could give you good advice, I'm sure. If you want to hire someone for a plan, I know a great natives landscaper.

I understand there is a way to take cuttings from my strawberry trees and they only grow about 20 foot tall, and they do provide both habitat and forage for the smaller birds. I was told by the soil conservation people that they were natives. If you are interested, I'd be happy to help you out. Just LMK. ^_^ I can collect seed too! I am sending you a photo I took of mine dated 12-23-08.
Pity you can't place a "Nesting" post somewhere. It would basically be a platform for the hawks to nest in, but would need to be tall enough so they could see the surrounding countryside for game. Perhaps a local bird club, or college would be interested in helping out.
I'm so tired of seeing rooftops instead of the fields and trees that we used to have. I feel your pain.
Walk In Beauty!
SingingWolf

Yeah - it's so much better to cut down a mature grove of trees than to underground a GD power line (that could start a wildfire if it DID snap)!

Arbutus unedo (Strawberry Tree) is not native, but is also not invasive and a good drought tolerant tree-shrub. I would recommend a 'believed' cross of this tree (unedo) and the Arbutus menziesii (Pacific Madrone - or Madrona if you are from Washington State!), the later of which is a native of the West Coast of the US and lower Sierra Nevada foothills. This cross is Arbutus x marina. I have one growing in my front yard, and I absolutely love it. It is evergreen, has a nice red bark, and has leaves slightly larger than those of the unedo. The reason I don't recommend the Arbutus menziesii (the native one) is because it is exacting in its requirements - it needs the perfect placement (excellent drainage), and non alkaline water until it is established.

Another good, tall, evergreen screen shrub (native) would be the Heteromeles arbutifolia, or Toyon. This is the large shrub that gave Hollywood its name. Birds LOVE the red berries in the winter, and it provides a lot of natural cover for wildlife.

Coast live oaks would be fantastic as well, but they are SO SLOW!

At my school, we got a grant from Tree People in Los Angeles to help green up our very urban campus (in L.A.). We decided on planting mostly natives and most definitely drought tolerant species as we had very few areas with irrigation. The Toyon were the most prolific plants, and were so beautiful until the District landscapers sheared them into little boxes. They are surviving in little squares of open clay earth amid great swaths of asphalt, and they are thriving. Very worthy plants. They can get up to 25 feet, but would take a long time to get that tall. They grow fast to about fifteen feet, then slow down.

We also planted a lot of California Sycamores, which have grown fast with a little irrigation. They are, however, deciduous. We planted some Coast Live Oaks, and some Valley Oaks. Both of these Oaks are very slow growing, and we would have chosen faster growing trees to create more shade canopy for the kids during recess. If I had my druthers, I would have planted more sycamores. The season that they are in leaf is basically when you need it!

So sorry to hear about the massacre. I have seen this time and again - even when they "prune" ficus trees here, it is shocking to this tree-hugger! I know it really hurts to see beloved groves come down. I watched them clearcut pristine, ancient Cedar groves in Washington State for years, removing habitat and polluting salmon streams below. I fought through activism for many years, until we finally got Clinton in office, then the Forrest Service made a 180, and stopped the carnage.

Feel free to call on me if you have any questions about other natives to try.

Jeff

This message was edited Feb 12, 2009 7:26 PM

You might want to consider some large shrubs. They grow faster than trees, and some of them, like the heirloom yellow cestrum, have a nice billowy shape that works well for a privacy screen. The cestrum's branches are too springy for most birds to land on, but smaller birds like it a lot, and the hummers adore it for food.

I don't have a good shot of it, but you can see its maximum height in this photo. The three trees here are a lime, behind it is a pink cestrum, then the yellow cestrum. It's 6 yrs old but got to this height by the 4th yr. Pretty much a carefree shrub, once established it's xeric and evergreen.

Oh, rob, I'm so sorry---I'm sure you are just devastated.
As for replacements, I also think Arbutus Unedo "Marina" might be a good choice.

Roberta, if you know anything about rooting cuttings, we can supply tons of Toyon cuttings or seeds. As Jungleman said, they grow quickly and make such good wildlife plants.

Yes, I have heard lots of people choose the Arbutus x marina over the native one and we have considered planting at least one also. So many plants, so little $$!

I'll be glad to help out with seeds and cuttings if you're into that - we have lots of Manzanita plants, too. Oh, and how about Blue Palo Verde (http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/go/97539/)? Beautiful trees and ours is loaded with seed pods.

Lots of ideas for you to think about.

That is a shame about your trees, but if you get some nice natives in there hopefully you'll have most of the birds back before too long--might take a bit longer to cover the view of the other houses though. You've gotten a lot of good suggestions so far, one more that I would add is Chilopsis linearis. You probably wouldn't want to plant it by itself since it's deciduous, but it could make a nice accent planted along with some evergreen things and it has really gorgeous flowers when it's in bloom. There are some types of Ceanothus that get fairly tall too--don't know if there are any that get to 20 ft, but there are some that can get at least 10 ft, maybe even a bit taller.

Guys, I am so touched by everyone's generosity and support, I almost started crying when reading your posts. Will write tomorrow, can't handle it now.

Ceanothus 'Ray Hartman' grows to 20' pretty quickly...other not so quick natives that you could use also would be Rhamnus and Abutilon palmeri. A fairly quick growing large shrub/small tree you might want to consider is Prunus ilicifolia...I have one and it is a great drought tolerant screening plant....it looks quite lush and green for a native that I never water. If you need help locating plant material in San Diego, drop me a pm at andymaycen@cox.net.

I've wanted to try a Prunus ilicifolia for some time, Andy. Good to hear a personal experience with it.

Thanks for setting me straight on the Strawberry Tree, Jungleman. Your knowledge is deeply appreciated. Stawberry tree is still available. Now I am wondering why the soil conservation guy told me that they were natives?
I only have two California Coastal Live Oaks seedlings right now. One will be planted to honor Lori Piestewa, and the other will be planted to honor Robert Dokka, but I will collect acorns this fall if you want them, Rob. Just let me know.
WIB,
SW

Strawberry tree is in the same family as manzanita, which I believe is a native.

And it's in the same genus as madrone which is also a native, so my guess is he just assumed all Arbutus species were native.

Hi everyone...today they were still going on with the massacre...I took my camera and took a picture of the last tall tree still stading there...it might not be there anymore when I come back from work.

Thanks you all so much for the great suggestions, and thank you for the offers....Singingwolf, your Unedo is simply stunning! Looks like I came straight from Eden. I would love to have cuttings/seeds.

Kathleen, I was looking for wildlife info on Laspilitas, and Toyon was highly recommended. I would love some cuttings/seeds, thank you. This weekend I'll check my propagation book and find out the best way to do it for those plants.

Ceanothus was also at the top of their list, and I saw it's available at my local nursery, so on my next paycheck I intend to get one or two.

There is a lot of room up there. So sad. Today when I looked up, all I could see was some guy staring at me from his balcony. This is where the tallest tree used to be, the one preferred by the hawks.

I would be absolutely devastated! The first thing I do on any property is plant for my own view, so as not to be at the mercy of those who'll cut everything down. I do understand the reasoning of the power company, but it breaks my heart anyway. I love eucs and am so glad that I planted many on our perimeter years ago. There is a 15 acre piece of land running down hill to the back of our property that was always citrus grove, however the lady who lived there was elderly and I figured when she was gone, we'd be looking at something we probably would NOT want to see. so 25 years ago I planted eucs from seedlings and I've never been sorry. I cut them back to shred for mulch, we get firewood from them and they've screened out what has now turned out to be more acreage added to Fallbrook Winery's vineyard....better than houses, but I still prefer trees and the nesting places they offer the hawks and other birds. We tend to get people who move down here and plant 'city' plants....I do understand that and the fire threat of large trees, but I cannot imagine living anywhere without large trees........I'm definitely 'sorry for your loss'!

Rob, if you can make it to the round-up, there will be plenty of people here with the know-how and we can make a project out of it!

Make sure you research the height on the particular Ceanothus cultivars you find before you buy them--there is a huge range of heights everywhere from groundcover to small tree/huge shrub so make sure you're getting one that has the height you want.

Make a call to Arnold's wife - she is a BIG conservationist - maybe she can help you save whatever is left!

Nancy Pelosi did it with her face !

Roberta, if you're considering evergreens, you might want to add an inner layer of various deciduous, as ecrane mentioned. I'd add to the list of those trees our native CA Redbuds, with the gorgeous leaves from green to red, with late season seeds and stunning bark. A multi-seasonal interest, but deciduous, of course.

I am so sorry to read that you've lost your screen. I can't imagine what it must be like to see your "neighbor" looking at you after being invisible previously. It must be awful.

In sadness,
Linda

I feel your pain RC...that is just so wrong on a myriad of levels.

Oh, yes, Redbuds and Flannel Bush (Fremontodendron), too!

Roberta, I just ran across the following site while cruising through the plant ID forum. You might want to check it out, girl! Some interesting specimens here, if no one has referred you here as yet.

And . . . check out those ENORMOUS bamboo. I mean, geeeeeez. Too big for you, but certainly impressive.

http://www.endangeredspecies.com/


Gotta go prune roses,

Linda

Hi everyone...for those who haven't see pics of my garden yet....this is how it was before the massacre. All I could ever see were trees, birds, and sky.

And this was last week. Today, they were chopping down the last two trees. Have you ever heard the sound of a large tree branch coming down? It's HEARTBREAKING.

Yes...I HATE that sound!

We had to take down a 50ft weeping willow and a similar-sized euc that were causing problems with our neighbor (both trees pre-dated the neighbor's HOUSE, let alone the neighbor...) But in the interest of preserving peace, I decided it was the only thing to do. It completely changed our yard---we can now see houses instead of nearly year-round greenery. The hummers and bees lost their spring forage in the euc, and we lost the shade.

I planted a tiny acer vitifolium in more or less the spot where the willow was, and the search for it is what got me started on DG, so something good came out of it. The acer will stay smaller and more manageable, and the fall foliage is just spectacular.

When you find the right replacements and get them planted, it will help.

We were shopping at Las Pilitas one day when one of their Sycamores decided to let go of a huge branch. It was like an explosion. They have no idea how old the trees are - they were there first!

Rob,
I can see now why you are so upset. How much of that slope do you own/control? Nothing is more heartbreaking than loosing a friend, whether it be a person, a tree or a pet.
The sound of tree limbs cracking and breaking isn't so bad except when the chainsaw is causing it. : (
We loose oak limbs every year and once a huge part of the trunk, but I didn't hear those, and I figure that is natures way of trimming away the dead wood. The rest of the tree is healthy and providing homes for a lot of birds, and probably a few squirrels too.
We'll help you get some of that privacy and habitat back. DG'ers help each other, I've noticed.
WIB,
SW

What a shame. I would think taking down all the trees will open your land up to a mudslide in bad rain. You still have a nice view though of all that blue sky! They are not going to build houses right to the edge up there are they?

I understand that sense of privacy that gets lost. Where I am we have houses all around us. First thing I did was plant trees all around the parameter to give us the illusion of privacy. In the spring my yard is so loud with all the birds. It is great!

I hope you get it all replanted soon!

I second Kell's notion. When I saw what they did basically to your land, I thought - how are they going to mitigate the soil erosion the dearth of trees will cause? Those Eucs sucked up a good bit of moisture with their wide spreading roots. Seems to me that your power company should pay for replanting - or at least half!

Look on the bright side: Isn't that the area where you were trtying to grow grass or ground cover in minimal sunlight ??? Maybe this will allow more sun to get in there and better your chances of growing something.

Yes, JD! Ground cover roses. LOL. They have them here now on the freeways and they are so pretty and supposedly easy!

And I believe I've read that lavender is a really good soil stabilizer---roses and lavender all the way up that slope maybe, with ceanothus at the top as a screen?

Ceanothus Tassajara Blue gets large and is beautiful. We put several in between our ironwood trees to provide a screen last year and they are blooming and growing a lot now.

Yes, you are all right, I am also concerned with erosion!
I have been doing a lot of reading on providing for wildlife and so far I have on my wishlist:

Ceanothus
Toyon
Arbustus Unedo

The City has a policy to replace any trees removed within the City, and SDG&E has agreed to give me one tree back. The arborist suggested an Acacia latifolia. He said it grows fast and is used by wildlife.

JasperDale, you have a good point, but unfortunately these trees were placed in a location where removing them will not make any difference on the amount of light I get...

To the best of my knowledge, acacias have brittle branches and lots of people are allergic to the blooms.