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50% survival rate for salvaged Madrone seedlings

11/4/2012

3 Comments

 
In April of this year we received a call regarding Madrone seedlings stored at WSU's Puyallup Research and Extension Center. These seedlings were left over from a research project and could be ours if we could use them. Don and I immediately jumped into our little red truck and off we went to salvage them. 
A big section of Julia's Gulch is Madrone/Douglas Fir habitat and was being taken over with scotch broom. YES! we needed and wanted these seedlings. Most were 10 to 12 inches high, some were a bit sick looking. We sorted through and chose 350 of the healthiest.
At our April 2012 work party Friends of Julia's Gulch planted and flagged all 350. This was not a prime planting season but we needed to quickly get them in the somewhat damp soil so they could develop a root system before the summer drought. We put the last one to bed and left crossing our fingers that a few might survive. To our amazement we have a 40 to 50% survival rate! 
No water (including a record 85 days of drought), no mulch, and yet new growth on about half of them! Thank you WSU.  
 When I get out there this coming Saturday I'll take some photos of the new growth on the ones that survived.
Heather
  
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Planting a madrone seedling
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Madrone seedlings salvaged from WSU's Puyallup Research and Extension Center
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3 Comments
Donald D Halabisky
11/4/2012 10:56:39 am

This is a great website.

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Meghan
11/4/2012 11:16:13 am

I love madrones. Would love to see some pictures of what they look like now. Can't wait to see what they will look like in 10 years!

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Chris
3/6/2013 01:43:06 am

Yea for the Halabisky's perseverance and love of nature for returning Julia's Gulch back to a beautiful and native park!

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