First
Progress Report
July 1986–Dec 1987
University of California Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources
Cooperative Extension
February 1988
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SYNOPSIS OF 1987 ACTIVITIES
UCCE specialists are refining techniques for planting oaks.
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Numerous field meetings, tours, training sessions, lectures, etc. were initiated by all the Natural Resource Specialists, as well as many other Specialists and Farm Advisors for the purpose of educating lay persons and professionals on all aspects of hardwood management, protection, and enhancement specifically oriented to the goals and objectives of the IHRMP.
A major field day was held in May 1987 at the San Joaquin Experimental Range Field Station in Madera County where the outstanding experts in hardwood range ecology were invited to discuss new and old research findings related to hardwood rangelands. Advisors and Specialists from throughout the State attended the two-day meeting.
Several educational and research projects directly related to the goals and objectives of the program were continued, initiated, and/or completed during the year. A partial listing of the more significant activities follows.
Applied Research:
Research is being conducted on best management practices for encouraging cut trees to stump sprout.
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T. Adams, UCCE Wildlands Specialist, continued his four-year study of white oak regeneration funded by the Environmental License Plate fund for a total of $27,000.
T. Adams and J. McHenry, UCCE Weed Scientist, received a three-year, $13,000 grant from the UC Integrated Pest Management Program (IPM) to look at alternative strategies for controlling weedy vegetation around oak seedlings.
T. Adams and K. Rice, Assistant Professor of Range Science (UCD), received a one-year, $11,000 grant from the Public Service Research and Dissemination Program, UC Davis, to study the interactions between oak seedlings and annual vegetation, and to determine whether a temporal partitioning of soil water exists among these competing plant species.
A statewide study looking at stump sprouting of blue oak was initiated by the Natural Resource Specialists under the leadership of D. McCreary. It is designed to examine if sprouting is affected by geographic location, time of harvest, or stump height. The study also incorporates demonstrations of some useful management practices.
N. McDougald set up a field study in Madera County using photo points to validate guidelines found in the hardwood manual.
Grasshoppers can be important sources of mortality for oak seedlings
(Photo by R. Gross)
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A study was initiated by R. H. Schmidt to learn how to identify specific damage characteristics caused by certain rodents when feeding on acorns. Funding came from the Renewable Resources Extension Act (RREA).
T. Salmon, UCCE Wildlife Specialist, initiated a pilot study to examine small mammal depredation on acorns. He found that a big game repellent was ineffective against reducing acorn depredation using three planting techniques.
T. Scott and others at the UC Riverside campus are in the process of mapping the distribution of Engelmann oak.
T. Scott and J. McBride, Chair, Department of Forestry and Resource Management, UC Berkeley, are collaborating on a study of Engelmann oak to determine if age structure can be correlated to different management programs.
R. Logan received RREA funds to study Eucalyptus cold tolerance as part of the effort to determine if that species can substitute for oak as a firewood product on hardwood rangelands and other lands.
Screens are very effective at excluding grasshoppers from newly planted seedlings.
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Several studies were initiated by D. McCreary to examine artificial regeneration strategies for blue and valley oaks. These studies examined acorn collection and storage, nursery culturing methods, and planting and protection techniques.
R. Standiford, UCCE Forestry Specialist, W. Weitkamp, San Luis Obispo County Farm Advisor, and W. Tietje assessed blue oak growth rate on a 100-acre tract in order to develop sustained yield scenarios for firewood cutting.
New Surveys:
Calaveras County Farm Advisor D. Irving determined the extent and location of hardwoods in the County and sent a detailed questionnaire to a sample of residents asking them to share their opinions about the future of oaks in their area. Over 40 percent responded. Results are currently being tabulated.
Readers and users of the UC hardwood manual titled Preliminary Guidelines for Managing California’s Hardwood Rangelands were surveyed to evaluate the manual's effectiveness in causing change in management practices. Published results of the study indicate that respondents felt the manual presented the material well and that it had good potential for causing positive changes in future hardwood management practices.
W. Tietje received a RREA grant of $5,000 to develop a survey to determine attitudes and perceptions of local officials and land-use planners about issues affecting hardwood range under their jurisdiction. Results from the survey will be used to develop educational materials for this targeted audience.
S. Doak, a consultant, in collaboration with all the Natural Resources Specialists, developed a database of oak woodland owners having property in Butte, El Dorado, Madera, Mendocino, Monterey, Placer, Riverside, and San Diego counties. The database will be used in the survey of those to receive UCCE’s publication Living Among the Oaks.
New Publications/Educational Materials:
An upgraded version of the Program’s newsletter Oaks ’n’ Folks was produced by R. Schmidt, Editor. Mailing list currently exceeds 500 readers, twice that of the first issue sent in March, 1986. Two issues were published in 1987.
A brochure describing the Program was published and distributed statewide under the leadership of W. Tietje. It explains the program’s main purpose and tells readers how to get information.
Four audio-visual and video presentations were contracted to the UC Applied Behavioral Sciences Department. These presentations are: 1) Oak Regeneration in California, 2) Explaining the Hardwood Manual, 3) An Actual Case History Using the Hardwood Manual, and 4) A Program for Conserving Hardwood Rangeland. Scripts by McCreary, Passof, Passof, and Tietje, respectively.
An eight-page, four-color publication was written by S. G. Johnson, a freelance consultant. Titled Living Among the Oaks, it is designed for landowners having small parcels of oak woodland who need information to protect and enhance their resource. The publication will be mailed to 10,000 of these landowners in 1988, including a questionnaire similar to the one in the Calaveras study, asking their opinions about oaks.
W. Tietje is editing a newsletter tided Hardwood Habitats for the Central Coast Region.
W. Tietje also received a RREA grant of $3,100 to develop a wildlife-habitat brochure for the central coast counties that focuses on the hardwood range ecosystem.
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