Hedgerow Farms: CNGA's 6th Annual Field Day at Hedgerow Farms

Hedgerow Farms hosted the 6th annual California Native Grasslands Association (CNGA) Field Day on Friday, April 19th. It was a sold-out event with over 130 people in attendance, including the many volunteers who help make the event happen. Thank you to everyone who attended and also thank you to the volunteers! A special thanks to the sponsors: Bay Natives, Delta Bluegrass, Dow AgroSciences, Pacific Coast Seed, and S & S Seeds.

It was a full day with two tours, lunchtime speakers, a visit to a nearby restoration site, and a social hour at the end with fantastic music from the Putah Creek Muckrakers (thanks!). Below are some of the highlights.

Walking Tour

The walking tours focused on small-scale restoration and landscaping projects and techniques. We walked through fields of milkweed, Asclepias sp., and spotted a monarch caterpillar on Asclepias speciosa. Monarch caterpillars feed exclusively on milkweed plants.

A monarch caterpillar on Asclepias speciosa. Photo by Phil Hogan

One of the stops highlighted several species that are often used when replacing traditional lawns with native, drought tolerant alternatives. These include Carex praegracilis and Carex pansa which look the closest to traditional lawns. We also looked at a native meadow which is more natural look.

Kimora Ward with native bee specimens.
Photo by Phil Hogan

Tour leader Andrew Fulks in a native meadow.
Photo by Emily Allen

Kimora Ward with UC Davis talked about native pollinators at another stop on the tour. She is with the Neal Williams Lab and is looking at which pollinator plants preform best in our area. She and her team are monitoring the pollinators that are visiting different native forbs, including plots on our farm. She has also been working on developing an ideal pollinator mix.

Straw Bale Tour

The second tour loop was a driving tour on straw bales to look at some examples of large-scale restoration projects. There was a stop at a roadside to view a hedgerow and roadside planting. We also looked at the contrast between vegetated canals and "clean" canals as well as a tailwater pond. Both vegetated canals and tailwater ponds improve water quality and reduce soil erosion.

Tour leader Chris Rose talking about a restored roadside with a hedgerow. Photo by Emily Allen

This tour spent a lot of time in a large restored area on the west side of the farm. The restoration on this site began in 1990. We have been using it for grazing, seeding and herbicide trails since then. The area has some Stipa (Nassella) pulchra, purple needlegrass, that are over 20 years old.

The straw bale tour going along a canal in the habitat area of the farm. Photo by Emily Allen

Richard King talking about rangeland management.
Photo by Phil Hogan

Richard King is a retired USDA-NRCS rangeland specialist. He spoke about the importance of managing rangeland for long-term health. He argues that more attention needs to be put on building the health of the soil to create healthier rangelands and that grazing can be a useful and beneficial way to manage native grasslands.

The habitat area. Photo by Emily Allen

Lunchtime Speakers

Bryan Young and John Anderson introduce the lunchtime speakers. Photo by Phil Hogan

John Greenlee talking about a sexy grass.
Photo by Phil Hogan

At lunch there were several featured speakers. John Greenlee works extensively with natives and naturalized plants in landscaping applications. He is the author of The American Meadow Garden: Creating a Natural Alternative to the Traditional Lawn. He highlighted several species and varieties he likes to work with, inclduing the "sexy" Bouteloua gracilis 'Blonde Ambition.'

Dr. Paul Aigner, co-director of the UC McLaughlin Natural Reserve, spoke about the unique challenges that come with managing sites with serpentine soils.

Rachael Long, Director of the Yolo County UC Cooperative Extension gave her annual update on beneficial insects and hedgerows.

Paul Aigner talked about serpentine soils.
Photo by Phil Hogan

Rachael Long giving her research update.
Photo by Phil Hogan

Field Visit: Citrona Farms

The afternoon field visit was to a restoration site that was seeded with native grasses in the early 2000s. The site was burned in September of 2012 and the native grasses have recovered very well. Dr. Drew Rayburn with UC Davis talked about his research on monitoring restored grasselands. He is monitoring many sites throughout Northern California including this one. He is also developing and testing new cost effective ways of implementing restoration in grasslands.