News

May 2010

For the second year, this spring we are supporting the efforts of Portland Parks & Recreation(PP&R) and the Bureau of Environmental Services (BES) to fight the invasion of garlic mustard, a noxious weed that threatens our native plants and therefore the animals that live and feed on them. This plant is on Portland’s Early Detection Rapid Response list (EDRR) which means it is in early enough stages of invasion that we have a chance of controlling it. See flyer below for more information.

The garlic mustard in Marquam Nature Park, Council Crest Park and along the right-of-way on Fairmount Blvd and some side streets, was sprayed in late April with an herbicide. In early May we should observe it wilting and dying. It is not necessary to pull GM which has been sprayed. When the garlic mustard that has been treated is obviously dying, and you see other GM thriving around it, then pulling those plants would be encouraged.

If you have GM on your property, please pull it out with the roots and bag it. Do not leave it in place, as the flowers may continue to go to seed and the seed is tracked by shoes and tires. There is a dumpster on Fairmount, at the Marquam Trail crossing, where you may leave your GM debris. If you do, please call me and I will give you the combination to the lock or I will go and put it in the dumpster myself. My phone number is 503-799-8435.

More information is available through this Skyline Ridge Neighbors link.

In May 2009, the City of Portland, Bureau of Parks & Recreation launched a new website: http://www.parkscanpdx.org/, that allows community members to report park concerns or compliments directly to PP&R. If you see trees down across the trail, broken stairs or bridges, or vandalism in the park, (or just have something nice to say!) please contact PP&R directly using this resource. See the article about the launch of the new program here.

As a founding member and core supporter, we are excited to see the progress of the West Willamette Restoration Project, a community-based effort to reverse the spread of invasive plants in our parks and neighborhoods. In the first three years of the program, WWRP far surpassed its goals. Volunteers have made substantial progress at Council Crest, while hired crews have removed tree ivy from inaccessible areas of Marquam Nature Park. In early spring '09, volunteers replanted natives in some of the areas that had been cleared of invasives.

One of the work sites is the trailhead at 12th and SW Gaines where the Homestead Neighborhood Association has adopted about 2 acres of Marquam Nature Park. Beginning with their first invasive plant removal work party in March 2008, members of this group have become stewards of this stretch of trail and have committed to improving the entrance to the park from their neighborhood. In February '09 a group of about 45 people planted over 370 trees, shrubs and ferns at the site. Our partners ar Portland Parks supplied the plants, tools and support staff to make this happen. The Full Circle Plant Sponsorship Program, the brainchild of Susan Jaeger of HNA, has been successful in engaging more neighbors in adopting and protecting native plants in the area.

You may be noticing more Backyard Habitat certification plaques displayed in SW yards. See the WWRP website at www.trlc.org/westwillamette for details on how to participate in this exciting program. As of January '09 the program has expanded citywide with the partnership of Audubon Society of Portland. Visit http://www.audubonportland.org/backyardwildlife/backyardhabitat for details.

On the trail front, work parties were held to repair a landslide on the Sunnyside Trail, to improve the grade on Broadway Trail and the stretch between Patton Rd and Hwy 26., and to improve drainage in other places. We also are working with the Park District to prepare an annual trail maintenance and improvement schedule, whereby Friends of Marquam and the Park District work together to maintain the trail network we all enjoy.

In the near future we also hope to announce plans for the development of an expanded trail system in the new addition to Marquam Nature Park, the 55 acres acquired by the City in 2004 southeast of Marquam Hill Road and Fairmount plus the 41 acre OHSU easement. Friends of Marquam led a community planning effort to design this system. We now are working with the Park district to finalize a budget and to determine funding sources.

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