|
A Family Affair: Leaving A Legacy In Cold Creek
Knowing the history of an area contributes to a sense of place. In early 2004, Mountains Restoration Trust (MRT) will complete the purchase of a 15-acre site in the Cold Creek West Preserve that was once part of 200 acres owned by Anton and Anna Weber. With the help of Los Angeles County, MRT will acquire the property that was passed down to his daughter Anna Marie Weber. The parcel includes a portion of Cold Creek and beautiful craggy terrain. Anton Weber purchased 160 acres in 1907, and his wife Anna bought 40 more acres in 1916 from the General Land Office through the 1820 Law of Selling Public Lands. This program was one of a variety of laws encouraging settlement of western lands that the United States acquired from Spain, France and other countries. In 1946, the General Land Office and Grazing Service merged to form the Bureau of Land Management (BLM). As the population in the west grew, BLM recognized the resource value of public land and withdrew most properties from the programs. Almost all the laws to transfer public land to private ownership have been repealed, including the Homestead Act of 1862 that was finally repealed in 1976. Understandably,
Anna Marie is concerned about the preservation of this parcel
that has been owned by only one family. We sat down and talked
about her father and her experiences growing up in Calabasas
in the 1950’s and 1960’s. Was he a little eccentric? He had so many interests and abilities. Father was very cultured. He could speak seven languages and played several instruments including the piano and zither. He was a taxidermist and an artist. He wrote a few film scripts and enjoyed political satire. And my father loved to dance. Did you live on the Cold Creek property? His first family lived for a few years in a one-room cabin in Cold Creek. With money he saved from working as a barber, Father bought the post office and store on the west side of what is now known as Old Town Calabasas. It was originally a stagecoach stop. The year he bought it, 1911, Father added a second story for living quarters. Over the years, he kept adding onto the building. I grew up in the 1950’s and 1960’s in the extended house/post office/hotel, although by that time, we rarely had guests. Father kept acquiring property. Some of what he sold became part of the Warner Ranch. Near the hotel, he purchased property that had sulphur springs. He wanted to turn them into a spa, but he never did. He was land rich, an entrepreneur; but money was not his aim. What happened to the cabin? The cabin was on a flatter piece of property that I sold to Jack Diamond when I was young so that I could go to Europe and sing opera. What was it like to grow up in a house/hotel/ranch/post office? In the early 1960’s, we would walk cattle over the newly-built Ventura Freeway to graze on our property on the other side. On Sunday, the beach traffic would back up and stall, so it was easy to get across near the water tower. Father also owned peacocks, pheasants and other exotic animals. He sometimes kept lions and tigers for a trainer named Koontz who had a wild animal farm. Near the house, we would often see wildlife -- foxes and deer. We often saw mountain lions taking naps in the middle of the day. You saw mountain lions near the town? Were you afraid?
What else do you remember about your father? Over 71 of Weber’s
original 200 acres are protected, the majority by MRT. MRT is working
to acquire an additional 100 acres. At Headwaters Corner, MRT plans
to include a history component to the interpretive center in the
house acquired by William C. Masson in 1897 as a homestead. Look
for a future article about this historic site.
Turning
Back Over 200 years ago, European settlers brought domestic animals to the Santa Monica Mountains, and their over-grazing wiped out many native plant species, especially perennial grasses. These settlers also brought seeds from their gardens back home; and these seeds were dispersed through insects, birds and other animals. Non-native plants disturb a delicate balance that includes wildlife. Because they are not a food source, the invaders proliferate and crowd out native plants. Often native insects including butterflies, birds and foraging animals cannot use non-native plants for the food and shelter they need. Sometimes invasive plants pose a threat or even a danger to animals and humans. Yellow star thistle can grow in dense patches over three feet high. If horses eat this noxious weed in the spring before its spine comes out, the result can be nervous disorders and fatal brain lesions. In the fall, the spines can grow up to an inch long and can pierce clothing. In the 1960’s, star thistle covered just over one million acres in California. Forty years later, this menace covers more than 20 million acres. In Europe, native Arundo donax, a giant cane, is grown for making high quality reeds for woodwind instruments. The Spanish missionaries grew it in California for building materials. Invasive arundo can grow almost four inches a day up to 30 feet tall. To sustain this growth, arundo requires many times more water than native plants, thus shrinking creek level and habitat that provides sustenance and shelter for 80% of local wildlife. This weed is also a fire danger. Most native plants can endure cyclical fires, but overgown arundo generates too much heat killing native willows and sycamores growing nearby. Settlers grew castor bean plants for shade because it grows quickly and reaches heights up to 30 feet. The seeds are one of the world’s deadliest poisons to people, animals and insects; just one milligram of ricin, one of the main toxic proteins in the plant, can kill an adult. MRT realizes that acquisition is only the first step in the conservation process. Merely owning open space property does not ensure that its ecosystem will be a viable habitat for wildlife and a desirable place for recreation. The ecosystem must be sustainable, filled with a natural diversity of native plant and animal life. It is less expensive to manage, more pleasing to the eye, and resilient to natural cycles and seasonal change. As soon as MRT acquires a property, staff initiates enhancement and restoration projects with the help of volunteers. These projects, held throughout the year, give volunteers a sense of pride; teaches them about the importance of native habitat; and provides them with best management practices to use at home. For many projects, MRT works with Outward Bound Adventures (OBA). OBA’s mission is to provide nature-based education that promotes positive self-development, environmental responsibility and outdoor career exposure for ethnically diverse, low-income, at-risk, urban youth. It’s a win-win arrangement. For over six years, OBA interns have learned valuable job skills while MRT has gained reliable workers and supervisors for volunteers. At MRT’s new Headwaters Corner, staff has logged over 800 volunteer hours and worked on 11.5 acres with the help of OBA. Crews have removed arundo, Virginia creeper, vinca, mustard, thistle and tree tobacco. MRT has planted juncus, rushes, sedge, native bunch grass, willows and oaks with plans for an even greater variety in the coming years.
Since 1992, MRT has worked with California State Parks and California Native Plant Society on the Commemorative Oaks Program in Malibu Creek State Park. MRT staff, OBA and volunteers have planted two thousand oak trees and removed invasive arundo in Malibu Creek. The goal is to replace the beautiful but barren valleys with sweeping valley oak savannahs. In October and November of this year, MRT logged in over 528 volunteer hours covering more than 50 acres in Malibu Creek State Park. Volunteers have removed smilo grass, thistle, mustard, arundo, eucalyptus, tree of heaven, broom, periwinkle, English ivy and Mexican palms. To widen the stream corridors, or riparian areas, MRT has planted willows, oaks and walnut trees. Grasslands are the most damaged ecosystem and will take the longest to restore naturally. [See sidebar] MRT is also a partner with the National Park Service to restore and enhance the riparian area of Solstice Canyon Park in Malibu. “The National Park Service is pleased to have a local resource like MRT,” explained Woody Smeck, Superintendent of the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area. “We can rely on their first-hand experience and expertise to help our restoration efforts.” Stewardship projects are not limited to removing non-natives and
planting native species. Stream restoration is vital for a healthy
ecosystem and wildlife. Look for a future article about MRT projects
to restore Cold Creek that drains to Malibu Creek and Santa Monica
Bay, and Dry Canyon Creek, a headwater of the Los Angeles River.
A new approach to brush clearance is taking hold in the Santa Monica Mountains, California and other states. In the Cold Creek Watershed, MRT is removing non-native grasses and creating a meadow of native bunch grass in an effort to minimize fire danger and increase wildlife habitat. In the past, parklands within 200 feet of a structure must be cleared of native vegetation. Disking creates a visual blight as well as loss of topsoil during windy and rainy days. Disking also invites invasive weedy annual grasses with a short growth period that became extremely flammable in dry weather. “Native perennial bunch grass resists burning,” explains MRT Program Manager Jo Kitz. “Imagine that the non-native grasses are like a sheet of newspaper that burns very hot and quickly. Now roll up that sheet of newspaper and it burns more slowly like the bunch grass.”
There are many other benefits for planting these native grasses. A meadow has a higher aesthetic value than a disked, raw dirt field. The nutrient value of native grasses is much higher than non-native grasses. To create an effective fire barrier, European grasses must be disked, or mowed two to three times a year. Native grass can be mowed once a year at a much lower cost. Non-native grasses have a root system of only two to three inches resulting in soil erosion that negatively impacts streams with excessive run-off and sedimentation. In contrast, native bunch grasses grow in clumps with roots two to three feet deep that help stabilize the soil. MRT collected seeds from Malibu Creek State Park and other state parks in the area. Los Angeles County Fire Department is growing seeds in 8,000 tubes at their Malibu Forestry Unit site on Las Virgenes Road. The seedlings must mature with enough root mass to survive planting without irrigation. During the winter months, MRT will work with OBA crews to plant the seedlings along brush clearance zones in Cold Creek Preserve between Stunt Road and Mulholland Highway. Weed barriers made from biodegradable paper sacks will mulch and protect the seedlings from invasive weeds. The seedlings are purple needle grass, the state grass of California. In future projects, MRT plans to work with foothill needle grass and deer grass. These perennial native grasses used to be plentiful throughout California’s foothills to the coast. Over two hundred years of grazing by European domestic animals killed much of these grasses. Cattle, sheep and goats tend to eat a plant down to mineral soil, killing the root system of the plant. “Why not implement fuel modification techniques that are effective, less costly and beneficial?” asked Ms. Kitz. “We can restore wasteland to beautiful native habitat that will support a variety of birds and animals. Our streams will be cleaner, and that will benefit wildlife and the beauty of our natural areas.”
“In human culture is the preservation of wildness.” - Wendell Berry One of the main questions the Mountains Restoration Trust has been asking itself over the years is, ‘Now that we have acquired beautiful open space that is rich in resource value, how can we ensure that we maintain it as a healthy, natural habitat for future generations?’ “What we realized was that ownership alone is not sufficient
to preserve natural habitat,” says MRT’s Executive Director
Steve Harris. “It is the folks who live next to our preserves
and those who enjoy them through recreational activities who have a
direct influence on the health of our ecosystem.” One of the trends that is occurring not only in Southern California, but throughout the United States is ‘urban sprawl,’ if you define urban sprawl as ‘residential development on large lots that are automobile dependent.’ Most people who move to the more tranquil rural areas come from the densely populated urban centers – and tend to bring their city-way-of-life with them. For example, for years, people in the countryside accepted the naturally occurring grasses. This now has changed to people purchasing sod, for instant gratification and because it is familiar. So MRT set out to design a model program that would be proactive in helping people realize the impact they have on the environment; empowering them with choices that are more habitat and wildlife friendly; and fostering a greater ‘sense of place’ by showing just how unique the area is in which they live. This model program could then be easily replicated in other parts of the United States. Three years in the making, the Resource Enhancement Program (REP) was launched in January 2003, thanks to funding provided by the Southern California Wetlands Recovery Project. MRT chose the Cold Creek Watershed as a model for the REP because it is one of three watersheds in the Santa Monica Mountains with the highest diversity of plant and animal life. Its 5,500 acres contains the most pristine year-round stream, as well as numerous rare plant and animal species not found anywhere else in the mountains. Los Angeles County has designated Cold Creek as a Significant Ecological Area (SEA). In excess of 45% of the land has been preserved to date. Cold Creek Watershed also includes the communities of Cold Creek and Monte Nido that have histories dating back to the late 1800’s when Cold Canyon Road was the only way to access this interior area. Homes in the watershed now number about 500. Cold Creek is an excellent example of how communities can have a lasting influence on a very healthy ecosystem. After all, it is easier and more cost effective to maintain and preserve land, than having to restore it. In this way, the Cold Creek Watershed expresses the best of both worlds – and is a great place in which to be proactive. Through providing information about local environmental issues, organizing unique activities and programs, as well as offering best management practices, MRT seeks to engage Cold Creek and Monte Nido residents and other important stakeholders, to help protect one of the most healthy and stable ecosystems in the Santa Monica Mountains. Since the program’s inception, MRT has launched two new programs in collaboration with other organizations, agencies and community leaders:
MRT has also implemented the following projects for REP:
Numerous new and interesting activities are planned for 2004, so watch
for announcements or contact (818) 591-1701 for further information.
Want to Join? Click Here For Details!
BOARD OF TRUSTEES David
Frith-Smith
STAFF The
Mountains Restoration Trust
Let
us hear from you....
|
