The Mountain Gardener: Fire and renewal
I regularly visit my burned parcel in Bonny Doon to monitor the progress of the redwoods and understory plants. It will take 30-50 years for the forest to regenerate, but it’s trying.
Amazing how Mother Nature takes advantage of voids. Succession plants like native Yerba...
Scotts Valley Community Christmas Tree honoring memory of Christopher Ow
By The Scotts Valley Advocates
The Scotts Valley Community Christmas Tree lit up on Nov. 27, continuing a tradition dating 30 years. The Scotts Valley Park Advocates felt strongly about the importance of supporting the installation of the tree lighting for the community given the...
The Mountain Gardener | Trees and Shrubs: Spring Survivors
Nature is amazing. No matter how heavy the rain or gusty the wind, flowering trees and shrubs haven’t missed putting on their much-awaited spring show. The nectar these flowers provide for bees and other insects is indispensable for nesting birds and the human spirit....
Enriching the Soil With Cover Crops
Every drop of rain that hits bare soil is destructive. Over 3,000 years ago the Chinese protected their soil from erosion and increased fertility by planting cover crops. Early Nile Valley inhabitants also practiced this method of agriculture as did first century Romans. Lupines...
Editor’s notebook: My grandma the food fighter
It’s not often I write about someone in my own family. As the editor of a newspaper, I have to be judicious about how I use space in the paper — and about 98 percent of the time, I leave my family out of it.
Community Traffic Safety Coalition releases 2014-2023 Crash Report
Community Traffic Safety Coalition (CTSC), a program of the County of Santa Cruz Public Health Division, has announced the release of its 2014-2023 Crash...