Uncertain Future for Doug Firs
The Douglas-fir is probably the most iconic plant species in Oregon. It’s been our official state tree since 1936, and is one of the most common and important trees, both for wildlife and human use, in the state. That makes a study that came out this week in the Journal of Forestry especially concerning. The authors, including two researchers from Oregon State University, present data that Douglas-firs in the Klamath Mountains Ecoregion of southwestern Oregon are struggling more than ever under drought and climate change. They studied aerial as well as on-the-ground data and found what they call a “decline spiral”, a feedback loop where trees growing in the warmest, driest parts of their range are more and more susceptible to other pressures like fir-borer beetles. In the Klamath, they predict that the area covered by these vulnerable trees will only increase over time, leading to more tree death like the so-called “Firmageddon” event that killed over a million acres of forest last year.
Forests Vital for Pollinators and Crops
In brighter forest news, we continue to learn just how valuable trees are, even to non-forest ecosystems. OSU forest ecologist Jim Rivers, along with colleagues from across the country, published a study this week showing the role that forests play in supporting pollinators not only for forest flowering plants, but also for crops and plants nearby. The study is the latest to highlight the importance of forests beyond just plantations of trees. Healthy forests are home to a diversity and abundance of wildlife that influences all the land around the forest, including farms. They support pollinators not only with flowers for food, but dead wood and brush for insects to nest in. Hopefully, the knowledge that certain farms and other ecosystems benefit from having healthy, mature forest next door can help drive forest conservation in places where trees are sometimes seen as taking up valuable space for crops.
March 22: Inviting Beneficial Insects In
Speaking of pollinators, it’s not too early for gardeners and homeowners in the Willamette Valley to start doing their part to help insects survive and thrive this spring, summer and fall. Next Wednesday, March 22, OSU Extension Master Gardeners are hosting a webinar to help anyone with a space to garden to invite and keep beneficial insects. Speaker Cheryl Borden manages the pollinator garden at Mary S. Young State Park as well as her own backyard garden, and she will go over the major groups of beneficial insects in Oregon, what each of them need, and how we can help provide it. The webinar runs from noon to 1:00 pm on March 22, and is free with registration here. If you can’t make it live, video will be available two days later.
March 22: Finley Refuge Webinar
Also next Wednesday, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service biologist Jarod Jebousek will be giving a talk on hiking and conserving Willamette Valley wetlands. Jebousek is a wildlife biologist at William L. Finley National Wildlife Refuge, ten miles south of Corvallis, and has spent the last 20 years planning, building and restoring wetlands. His talk will highlight the different kinds of wetland at Finley Refuge, and the work that has been done to keep them healthy. The webinar starts at 7:00 pm on March 22, and is free with registration here.
By Ian Rose, a Corvallis based freelance writer for The Corvallis Advocate, Scientific American, Hakai Magazine, Civil Eats, and Oregon Capital Chronicle
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