September 2023 Photo Post

Tolt MacDonald State Park Watering in the Heat

Squad provided much needed watering relief to native plantings near the Snoqualmie River at Tolt MacDonald State Park. King County Parks has been enhancing the native forest at this park for some years, it’s a Squad favorite! Fortunately the hose made watering the vine maples, rose, ninebark, salmonberry and more much more luxurious than pulling buckets from the River as we’ve done in the past. Of course the River makes for the perfect after dip at the end of forest trail walk.

Tolt MacDonald Park, King County Parks

Blog on holiday! Back next time.

UPCOMING EVENTS for the Homeschool Stewardship Squad
(2nd Thursdays & 4th Wednesdays 11:00a)
(4th) Wed 6/23 - Cottonwood Corner, Green Tukwila Partnership, RSVP here
(2nd) Thurs 7/8 - Pritchard Island Beach, Lk WA, South Seattle, GSP *swimming*
(4th) Wed 7/28 - (stewardship/swim location TBD)

Tansy Weeding Along the Snoqualmie River.

UPCOMING EVENTS for the Homeschool Stewardship Squad (2nd Thursdays & 4th Wednesdays 11-2)
Thurs 9/12: Belmondo Reach, Renton, KC Parks *swimming/salmon*
Wed 9/25: O’Grady Natural Area, Enumclaw, KC Parks *salmon*

Squad had a spectacular summer day at Tolt MacDonald Park on the Snoqualmie River with King County Parks. After giving the lazy black bear a wide berth on the trail, we walked through the woods to a sweet swimming spot on the river where we tackled noxious tansy. Not everyone got to see the bear, but it was an exciting first for squad!

King County lists two species– tansy ragwort / Jacobaea vulgaris and common tansy / Tanacetum vulgare as noxious. We prioritized clipping seed-heads before they could wind disperse the seeds, also pulling up the stocks if practical. The seed-heads had to be thrown away in a trash bag. Other interesting species to see included a toad in the pond created by a river offshoot being cut off, which also held small fish! The mellow river was a delight after a warm day of work.

Noxious Weeding in the Chinook Bend Natural Area on the Snoqualmie River

Chinook Bend Natural Area in Carnation was a new site for Squad; being a twenty year-old restoration site, it was gratifying to see how lush and established our own stewardship efforts may look in the future! King County Parks was given the land from Nestle who had purchased it from local dairy farmers. Prior to restoration, the majority of the site was just pasture, now it is resplendent with native vegetation, many paths, wetland features and a pond–all along the Snoqualmie River.

Our task was to target the noxious weed tansy ragwort / Jacobea vulgaris, a regulated weed that is toxic to livestock in particular & also humans. Additionally, we passed large stands of noxious common tansy, a different species entirely which looks a bit more ferny, it is less appealing for livestock, though also toxic. We kept an eye out for poison hemlock (one of several troublesome weeds in the carrot family) and pulled it out with gloves on, make sure you know how to identify it. We saw a bullfrog, herons, eagle and handled a plump garter snake.

The river was fun to play in until the thunder rolled in. This is a neat quiet spot to enjoy the river and walk the wild trails. One volunteer’s employer matched the service hours at a donation of $25/hr! Very cool, don’t forget to log your hours if you have a matching program.

tansy ragwort

poison hemlock

probably: a non-native bullfrog