By Thembi Borras
Trillium ovatum is in bloom and the story of this species is worth sharing. Trillium ovatum can be found in moist coniferous forests and may be identified by an erect naked stem that supports 3 showy leaves in a single whorl subtending the equally showy 3 petal flower, the color of which begins white and ages to pink then purple. They are a long lived perennial, in fact you will not recognize them per this description until age 15.
In the first year the root radical develops, in the second year the cotyledon develops. One leaf emerges annually as the rhizome develops between ages 3 and 15. At age 15, 3 leaves emerge and the plant begins to flower. The rhizome of Trillium ovatum, also called a corm is a solid underground storage organ that accumulates annual scars that can be counted. Trillium ovatum as old as 72 years have been identified in our area, in the Eastern United States a closely related species of Trillium ovatum as old as 105 years has been identified.
The seed dispersal biology adds to this fascinating story. A mature plant produces seeds, to which a swollen oil rich body, called elaiosome, is attached, which attracts ants. Ants collect the seeds and transport it back to their underground nest, where they eat the elaiosome. The seed is ready to germinate having been cleaned and planted by the ants.
I was told this story in a presentation by Botanist Eric Jules during a Special Forest Products workshop in September of 1999. In the same presentation I also learned that after clearcutting, the survival of Trillium ovatum sharply declines, which it was suggested is, in part, due to the disruption of this cycle. It is thought the deer mice population increases. The deer mice eat the seed before the ants secure them.
April 30, 2006
April 23, 2006
A Proposal to Process Hardwoods at the Masonite Facility
During the course of researching the subject of converting tanoak to energy, the efforts of developer Chris Stone were brought to my attention. I asked Chris to convey his proposal.
Chris Stone writes, "My efforts are focused on saving the Masonite site in Ukiah from being converted to a big box shopping center. Masonite in Ukiah once processed up to 500,000 tons of wood fiber annually. Reactivation of the facility to produce a fabric fiber called Lyocell, brand name Tencel, principally from tanoak would be a County wide boon. Hardwoods are preferred because they have significantly higher cellulose content as compared to softwoods. Lyocell production utilizes an amine to dissolve cellulose in a closed loop process, which has received environmental recognition in Europe. Lyocell is currently being produced in Mobile Alabama, Grimsby UK, and in China. Total annual world production is about 200,000 tons and is utilized in high value apparel as well as nonwoven products, medical wipes and hospital gowns. The fabric industry forecasts a worldwide demand of 700,000 tons by 2020.
How can a decommissioned facility in Ukiah California stay globally competitive? One part of the answer is the abundance of tanoak in Northern California and the ability at Masonite to directly convert wood fiber to Lyocell. All other major Lyocell production facilities worldwide rely upon the pulp market for their supply line. Single site conversion of wood fiber to Lyocell, based upon $60.00 per ton delivered price, achieves a 33% supply line advantage over pulp market rates. Couple this with the capital cost advantage the Masonite facility represents and you have a positive answer to the question of competitiveness.
If production achieved 500,000 tons annual wood fiber processing then about 500 new jobs would be created. Additionally, the Masonite boiler feed water could be supplied from the Ukiah wastewater facility. This would represent approximately 950 acre feet of wastewater consumption, one third of the wastewater being discharged into the Russian River annually.
A new process that converts lignin, the other major component of wood fiber, which in pulp production is not much more than a waste stream, to biodegradable polystyrene will soon see commercial development. Scientists working in this field project that within ten years lignin will also be a source for polyester materials. In the face of oil scarcity, it only seems prudent to preserve and utilize facilities that possess the capacity to convert wood fiber into the products that will be lost when oil runs out."
I continue to be intrigued by Chris Stone's proposal for several reasons, the foremost of which is having an outlet to which small diameter tanoak could be sold at a reasonable price.
To communicate directly with Chris, his email is seastone@starband.net.
Chris Stone writes, "My efforts are focused on saving the Masonite site in Ukiah from being converted to a big box shopping center. Masonite in Ukiah once processed up to 500,000 tons of wood fiber annually. Reactivation of the facility to produce a fabric fiber called Lyocell, brand name Tencel, principally from tanoak would be a County wide boon. Hardwoods are preferred because they have significantly higher cellulose content as compared to softwoods. Lyocell production utilizes an amine to dissolve cellulose in a closed loop process, which has received environmental recognition in Europe. Lyocell is currently being produced in Mobile Alabama, Grimsby UK, and in China. Total annual world production is about 200,000 tons and is utilized in high value apparel as well as nonwoven products, medical wipes and hospital gowns. The fabric industry forecasts a worldwide demand of 700,000 tons by 2020.
How can a decommissioned facility in Ukiah California stay globally competitive? One part of the answer is the abundance of tanoak in Northern California and the ability at Masonite to directly convert wood fiber to Lyocell. All other major Lyocell production facilities worldwide rely upon the pulp market for their supply line. Single site conversion of wood fiber to Lyocell, based upon $60.00 per ton delivered price, achieves a 33% supply line advantage over pulp market rates. Couple this with the capital cost advantage the Masonite facility represents and you have a positive answer to the question of competitiveness.
If production achieved 500,000 tons annual wood fiber processing then about 500 new jobs would be created. Additionally, the Masonite boiler feed water could be supplied from the Ukiah wastewater facility. This would represent approximately 950 acre feet of wastewater consumption, one third of the wastewater being discharged into the Russian River annually.
A new process that converts lignin, the other major component of wood fiber, which in pulp production is not much more than a waste stream, to biodegradable polystyrene will soon see commercial development. Scientists working in this field project that within ten years lignin will also be a source for polyester materials. In the face of oil scarcity, it only seems prudent to preserve and utilize facilities that possess the capacity to convert wood fiber into the products that will be lost when oil runs out."
I continue to be intrigued by Chris Stone's proposal for several reasons, the foremost of which is having an outlet to which small diameter tanoak could be sold at a reasonable price.
To communicate directly with Chris, his email is seastone@starband.net.
April 9, 2006
Beyond Human Influence
By Thembi Borras
A road in which I have an interest recently became impassable due to a slide blocking it. In 2003, the same road had been upgraded to the tune of $35,000. The work encompassed reshaping (outsloping with rolling dips), upgrading wet crossings, improving drainage and installing rock in a few key locations. Soon after, I went out to walk the slide.
The story begins 600' upslope from the improved road in grassland. In the grassland, an unstable area is now clearly defined by a crack in the ground in the shape of a horseshoe that is 300' wide and 600' long. Approximately 4 acres of the hillside is moving, upon which clumps of redwood trees are now leaning. Near the upper margin of the unstable area is the headwaters of a swale, 15' by 30' of which became active within this much larger land feature. The watercourse that connects the swale to the fish bearing watercourse below became a high speed highway of liquefied soil. The watercourse passes through three culverts under three roads, a legacy logging road, a driveway and the improved road. The first culvert immediately plugged with a slug of sediment that could not be dug out. Fortunately the watercourse did not divert and stayed in the channel, the second culvert plugged but was subsequently cleared before it reached the third culvert that plugged with the liquefied soil. The bulk of the liquefied soil is now sitting on the improved road. Now as far as I could tell there was no direct human cause for this event. At least there was nothing obvious. There is a possibility that past road building activities or logging may have collapsed soil pipes or caused compaction that may have contributed to a change in drainage that in turn contributed to the activation of this feature.
The moral of this story is that although you may spend $35,000 dollars to prevent sediment from reaching the creek simultaneously improving the road, an occurrence beyond human influence can in the space of hours or minutes deliver as much sediment as you saved and block the road until further notice. However, there are questions you can answer when planning road placement to avoid inherent instability. Do you absolutely need the road? Can you gain access to your destination from the ridge, thereby having to cross fewer watercourses? Can you tie existing stable legacy road cuts together? Can you locate the road on gentle ground at a gentle gradient? Can the road be located in forest soils, which are typically more stable then grassland soils?
A road in which I have an interest recently became impassable due to a slide blocking it. In 2003, the same road had been upgraded to the tune of $35,000. The work encompassed reshaping (outsloping with rolling dips), upgrading wet crossings, improving drainage and installing rock in a few key locations. Soon after, I went out to walk the slide.
The story begins 600' upslope from the improved road in grassland. In the grassland, an unstable area is now clearly defined by a crack in the ground in the shape of a horseshoe that is 300' wide and 600' long. Approximately 4 acres of the hillside is moving, upon which clumps of redwood trees are now leaning. Near the upper margin of the unstable area is the headwaters of a swale, 15' by 30' of which became active within this much larger land feature. The watercourse that connects the swale to the fish bearing watercourse below became a high speed highway of liquefied soil. The watercourse passes through three culverts under three roads, a legacy logging road, a driveway and the improved road. The first culvert immediately plugged with a slug of sediment that could not be dug out. Fortunately the watercourse did not divert and stayed in the channel, the second culvert plugged but was subsequently cleared before it reached the third culvert that plugged with the liquefied soil. The bulk of the liquefied soil is now sitting on the improved road. Now as far as I could tell there was no direct human cause for this event. At least there was nothing obvious. There is a possibility that past road building activities or logging may have collapsed soil pipes or caused compaction that may have contributed to a change in drainage that in turn contributed to the activation of this feature.
The moral of this story is that although you may spend $35,000 dollars to prevent sediment from reaching the creek simultaneously improving the road, an occurrence beyond human influence can in the space of hours or minutes deliver as much sediment as you saved and block the road until further notice. However, there are questions you can answer when planning road placement to avoid inherent instability. Do you absolutely need the road? Can you gain access to your destination from the ridge, thereby having to cross fewer watercourses? Can you tie existing stable legacy road cuts together? Can you locate the road on gentle ground at a gentle gradient? Can the road be located in forest soils, which are typically more stable then grassland soils?
April 2, 2006
Planting Tree Seedlings
By Thembi Borras
For those of you still planning to plant tree seedlings, you probably know it is a little late in the season to be planting. The best time to plant tree seedlings in Mendocino County is at the beginning of the rainy season after 6" of rain has fallen. The idea is to plant tree seedlings as soon as the ground is wet enough to easily create a hole and at a time when the ground will remain consistently moist for several months while the seedling becomes established. Planting this late in the season may mean that in order for your seedlings to survive you will need to water them and or plant them in strategic locations so that they are protected from excessive sun and wind.
Once you have your seedlings, it is best to plant them right away or store them properly if you need to delay planting. In storage, you are trying to prevent the roots from drying out at the same time mold from forming, which requires a delicate balance of air circulation and moisture.
In addition to planting the seedling immediately, knowing how and where to plant will increase the chances that your seedling survives. Plant your seedling outside the drip line of existing trees, but opt for places that provide some protection from exposure. An excellent location is on the north side of a decaying log. Grass is a fierce competitor to seedlings, so if you plan to plant in grassland scarify an area down to bare mineral soil 12" to 24" in diameter, this buffer must be maintained until the tree is established. Although it is more important to pick the right spot, shoot for a distance of 8' to 12' between trees.
Make sure your hole is deep enough for the roots of the seedling to be fully extended. Then while holding the seedling fill the hole with dirt and tamp. Don't leave any air pockets near the roots. You can further increase the chance the tree will survive through maintenance, including removing competing brush and doing deep watering once every two weeks.
Go to http://www.fire.ca.gov/php/about_content/downloads/PlantingGuide2005.pdf for more information on planting. You can also go to http://www.fire.ca.gov/php/rsrc-mgt_statenurseries.php for information on purchasing seedlings from the State Nursery at Magalia.
For those of you still planning to plant tree seedlings, you probably know it is a little late in the season to be planting. The best time to plant tree seedlings in Mendocino County is at the beginning of the rainy season after 6" of rain has fallen. The idea is to plant tree seedlings as soon as the ground is wet enough to easily create a hole and at a time when the ground will remain consistently moist for several months while the seedling becomes established. Planting this late in the season may mean that in order for your seedlings to survive you will need to water them and or plant them in strategic locations so that they are protected from excessive sun and wind.
Once you have your seedlings, it is best to plant them right away or store them properly if you need to delay planting. In storage, you are trying to prevent the roots from drying out at the same time mold from forming, which requires a delicate balance of air circulation and moisture.
In addition to planting the seedling immediately, knowing how and where to plant will increase the chances that your seedling survives. Plant your seedling outside the drip line of existing trees, but opt for places that provide some protection from exposure. An excellent location is on the north side of a decaying log. Grass is a fierce competitor to seedlings, so if you plan to plant in grassland scarify an area down to bare mineral soil 12" to 24" in diameter, this buffer must be maintained until the tree is established. Although it is more important to pick the right spot, shoot for a distance of 8' to 12' between trees.
Make sure your hole is deep enough for the roots of the seedling to be fully extended. Then while holding the seedling fill the hole with dirt and tamp. Don't leave any air pockets near the roots. You can further increase the chance the tree will survive through maintenance, including removing competing brush and doing deep watering once every two weeks.
Go to http://www.fire.ca.gov/php/about_content/downloads/PlantingGuide2005.pdf for more information on planting. You can also go to http://www.fire.ca.gov/php/rsrc-mgt_statenurseries.php for information on purchasing seedlings from the State Nursery at Magalia.
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