Critters on the Urban Landscape: Forest Park

This sounds like an interesting evening for any Portland nature lover.  I hate to miss it but I'll be out of town.  If you go, let us know how it was.

From Henry Miller, via the Salem Statesman Journal's Get Outdoors blog:

On May 4, John Deshler, a wildlife biologist, and Barry Sims, a forester, will talk about the creatures that go bump in the night, and during the day, at Portland’s Forest Park, from  northern pygmy owls to raccoons.
The two are guest speakers at the final session of the Discovering Wildlife speakers series sponsored by the Oregon Wildlife Heritage Foundation.
The presentation is at 6:30 p.m. at the Billy Frank Jr. Conference Center at the Ecotrust Building in Portland’s Pearl District, 721 NW Ninth Ave.
Admission is free, but registration is required.
Contact: (503) 255-6059.

Volunteers Needed: Audubon Sanctuary and Forest Park

Some great opportunities to help out with habitat restoration and trail maintenance in the Audubon sanctuary and Forest Park...

By Molly Hottle, The Oregonian

The Audubon Society of Portland is planning a volunteer work day in its sanctuary in Northwest Portland for the day after Earth Day.

The society's upcoming Together Green Volunteer Day will be held from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, April 23 at the sanctuary, 5151 N.W. Cornell Road.

Seventy volunteers older than 14 are needed, and children younger than 16 must be accompanied by an adult.
Refreshments and breakfast will be served before the project begins. The society will provide the tools and lunch. To sign up, contact Deanna Sawtelle via email or call 503-292-6855.

The Forest Park Conservancy is also planning two work days in Forest Park for the month of April.(4/16 & 4/22)

Tryon Creek Trillium Festival: April 2-3

Pollen | by p medved on Flickr

Originally published March 30, 2011

It's Spring, which means wildflower season is upon us!  

Trilliums are one of the most spectacular wildflowers in our area, and a great place to see them right now is Tryon Creek State Natural Area. 

by the Oregon State Parks Team:

Tryon Creek State Natural Area is a prime place to see trillium blooms. And this year’s cool, wet weather has filled the park with white blossoms.

You’ll be delighted with the setting for the 31st annual Trillium Festival, April 2-3. The festival runs 10 a.m.-4 p.m. each day and features a native and hardy plant sale. Join a guided hike along the trails to see the trilliums in bloom.  Hikes begin at the nature center at 10:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m.
 
You can also buy art for your garden and goodies from the Trillium Market. The sales support the Friends of Tryon Creek and its volunteer interpretive program.

More info:

• Oregon State Parks Go Guide
• Friends of Tryon Creek

Update: April 2nd, 2011

We went over to the Trillium Fest this afternoon, and enjoyed a little live music on the porch of the Nature Center, overlooking the woods.  I picked up a couple new native shrubs from the plant sale, and we had some tasty fry bread tacos.  They've got some great garden art for sale, too.  The shuttle from Riverdale High School came by every 15 minutes, so parking was a cinch.  Even the weather cooperated for us, and only started sleeting when we were leaving.

The forecast looks like it might be drier tomorrow, so head on over for day two of the Festival!

A few pics from today...

Where to?

Music on the Porch

Native Plant Sale

Fry bread tacos and Hand-dipped corn dogs!

Trilliums - the Stars of the Show

Well-used snag

Celebrate National Wildlife Week - March 14-20

Ever heard of National Wildlife Week?  I personally had not, but thanks to the National Wildlife Federation, I found out in time to read up and make some plans.

The scoop from NWF's website:

About National Wildlife Week

Held annually since 1938, National Wildlife Week is NWF’s longest-running education program. Even celebrities such as Shirley Temple, Walt Disney and Robert Redford have joined National Wildlife Federation to commemorate this unique event.
National Wildlife Week is a signature event of NWF’s Be Out There™ campaign, an initiative to connect families and communities to nature, raise healthier kids, instill a conservation ethic, and inspire a life-long appreciation of wildlife and the environment.

Read more about it, and find related activities (even download a different poster each day of Wildlife Week, each featuring nine wildlife species) at NFW's website.

How will you celebrate?

• Watch the animals at the Oregon Zoo receive St. Patrick's Day presents?
• Attend a talk on the endangered wildlife trade, presented by WildAid at the Oregon Zoo?
• Keep an eye on the Red-tailed Hawks nesting in downtown Portland, via KGW's Raptor Cam?
• Attend a free birding field trip, hosted by Audobon Society of Portland volunteers, at Tillamook Bay?

If you participate in any of these activities - or do anything else to celebrate National Wildlife Week -let me know how it goes!

Learn about Naturescaping, Using Oregon Native Plants

Have you ever thought about trying to incorporate more native plants into your landscaping?  It's a great way to conserve water and reduce the use of chemicals, because native plants are already accustomed to growing conditions in our regional environment.  They also provide food and shelter for native animals, and provide other benefits as well.

Over the last 3 years, I've completely re-landscaped my yard using almost entirely native plants.  I'm going to be writing about that project and some of the plants I've used in later posts, but for now I just wanted to mention the East Multnomah Soil and Water Conservation District (EMSWCD), and a couple of the resources they offer.

It can be a little challenging to find a good variety of native plants from any one source, but EMSWCD holds an annual native plant sale where you can get native ground covers, flowers, shrubs and trees.  The sale has unfortunately already happened this year, but why not register for a free Naturscaping class offered by EMSWCD, and be ready with a landscape plan for next year?

Event description (from EMSWCD):

Explore the core concepts of naturescaping, pollution prevention, and introduces attendees to watershed connections, native plant identification and site planning principals in this introductory workshop.

This workshop introduces the concept of naturescaping. We also explore:
• time and maintenance savings
• reduction/elimination of water and chemical use
• increasing and improving wildlife habitat
• watershed stewardship
• basic site or project planning and many other great gardening tips

This FREE workshop is being held on Sunday, April 3rd.  EMCSWCD offers additional workshops, on this topic and others - like how to make a rain garden.  Check out the full schedule of events here.

"Birds of a Feather" Art Exhibit Benefits Portland Audubon

From Audobon Portland:

Featuring images of birds and their habitats
The Caswell Gallery celebrates Spring with an exhibit dedicated to birds — and will donate 10% of the “Birds of a Feather” exhibit sales made during March to Audubon Society of Portland’s Wildlife Care Center, just in time for Spring’s  baby bird season!

Join us at the artists’ reception on March 4 (Friday), 5pm–9pm, for fine wine, appetizers, and live music with guitarist-vocalist Ron Hughes.

The gallery is located at 201 W. Historic Columbia River Hwy; hours are Mon to Sat 10am–5pm, and Sunday Noon–5pm. 

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