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In This Issue
Upcoming Events
June Workshop:Conducting a Neighborhood Street Tree Inventory
Tree-mendous Volunteers
Overlook Tree Pruning Social Club
Birds, Bikes, & Brews
Get Involved In the Portland Fruit Tree Project
Learning to Identify Portland's Street Trees
Does your Neighborhood Have a Tree Steward?
Welcome Portland's New Elm Monitor
Quick Links
 
Upcoming Events
 
 
Overlook Tree Pruning Social Club
Wednesday, June 9
7:00 p.m.
2150 N Killingsworth
Overlook Logo 
 
 
Great Blue Heron Week
June 2-13 &
Birds, Bikes, & Brews
Bike Ride 
Friday, June 11
Great Blue Heron Brochure,  Courtesy of Audubon Society of Portland
 
AGreat Blue Heron Brochure
 
 
National Get Outdoors Day
Saturday, June 12
in Vancouver, WA 
National Get Outdoors Day 
 
 
Explorando el 
Columbia Slough
Saturday, June 19
Columbia Slough Watershed Council 
 
 
Friends of Trees
I-205 Pedalpalooza Ride
Thursday, June 24 
Friends of Trees
 
 
June Workshop: Conducting a Neighborhood Street Tree Survey
Saturday, June 26
 
 
 
North Portland
Sunday Parkways
Sunday, June 27th 
Sunday Parkways
 

 #
June Workshop:  Conducting a 
Neighborhood Street Tree Inventory
 
What:   Conducting a Neighborhood Street Tree Inventory
Where: TBA
When:  Saturday, June 26th,
            9:00 am to 12:00 pm
 
 
A street tree inventory can provide your neighborhood with essential data for planning stewardship activities, such as species and size distribution, available planting spaces, and maintenance needs of trees in your area. Inventory data can also be used to quantify ecosystem services provided by trees, such as air quality improvement and stormwater retention.

During the workshop learn to conduct an inventory using paper forms or a handheld computer. Participants will practice collecting data, including tree species, diameter at breast height, and a tree health rating. Learn to correctly determine where street trees can be planted using City guidelines working around utilities, meters, and traffic signs. Opportunities to work with staff to complete a local tree inventory and neighborhood stewardship plan will be discussed.

The workshop is free but advanced registration is required.
 
Participants are encouraged to dress for the weather and to bring their favorite tree identification book. Books will be available to borrow.

Prerequisite: Identifying Portland's Street Trees workshop or adequate knowledge of Portland's street tree species.
 
 
To register by phone or email:
Contact Autumn Montegna at 503-701-7622 or autumn.montegna@portlandoregon.gov
  
Submitted By  
Angie Disalvo, Botanic Specialist I
Portland Parks & Recreation / City Nature / Urban Forestry  
Tree-mendous Volunteers
 

Mark and Bryan
Photograph by Angie DiSalvo, (left - Mark Wensel, right - Bryan Burch)

Mark Wensel and Bryan Burch are 2009 Neighborhood Trees Steward graduates and the first two Tree Stewards in their neighborhood, Sylvan-Highlands.  Their enthusiasm for trees and fun and bright personalities make them a joy to work with.  Mark and Bryan have attended many of our Neighborhood Tree Steward Workshops.  They recently helped to assess the condition of several heritage trees in their neighborhood.  They haven't stopped there! Both Mark and Bryan, now the president of the Sylvan-Highlands Neighborhood Association, have spent hours organizing and preparing for a planting at East Sylvan middle school.  The planting will be held this fall on Saturday, October 23rd. 
We appreciate all their hard work and are very lucky to have them as volunteers. Thank you both!
 
Submitted By
Autumn Montegna, Urban Forest Outreach Specialist 
Portland Parks & Recreation / City Nature
Overlook Tree Pruning Social Club 
 
What:     Overlook Tree Pruning Social Club
Overlook LogoWhere:   2150 N Killingsworth St.
When:    Wednesday, June 9th 7:00 pm
 
The Overlook Pruning Social Club continues to prune young street trees for safety and structure. Currently the club has pruned trees at over 78 houses in the Overlook Neighborhood. The next club meeting is Wednesday, June 9th at 7:00 pm at Atomic Pizza 2150 N Killingsworth St., where we will prune trees on South of Killingworth St. from Interstate to Denver Ave.
 
If this is your first time pruning please come to our basic pruning class offered at 6:30 PM. Anyone can help so grab your pruners (our use ours) and join in the fun. To register, contact Karl Dawson at 503-823-1650 or karl.dawson@portlandoregon.gov . 
 
Article Submitted By 
Karl Dawson, Urban Forest Education Specialist 
Portland Parks & Recreation /City Nature
Birds, Bikes, & Brews 
 

Photograph by Jason Stenson. 2009 Great Blue Heron bike ride.
Blue Heron Bikeride

What:     Great Blue Heron Rookery Sunset Bike ride at the Slough
Where:   8400 N Denver Ave. (Kenton Yellow Line Max Sation)
When:    7:00pm - 9:00pm
 
Join Portland Parks & Recreation for a beautiful sunset bike ride of North Portland's hidden treasures, the Heron Lakes Golf Course and Columbia Slough Trail.   This 5.5 mile loop ride will explore the waterfowl of the Columbia Slough.  Join Elvira Stenson, City Nature's birder extraordinaire, and Karl Dawson, ISA certified arborist, to take a closer look at one of the largest heron rookeries in Portland.  The ride will wrap up at Pizza Fino in downtown Kenton (food and brews on own).  A helmet and reflectors or lights are required.  The ride is free and registration appreciated. To register, please contact Karl Dawson, at 503-823-1650 or karl.dawson@portlandoregon.gov.
 
Photo and Article Submitted By 
Karl Dawson, Urban Forest Education Specialist 
Portland Parks & Recreation /City Nature
Get Involved in the
Portland Fruit Tree Project (PFTP)
 

Portland Fruit Tree Project

Become A Tree Scout!
Do you enjoy talking with neighbors? Want to help register trees for harvesting? Become a PFTP Tree Scout! Tree scouts work in their own neighborhoods to register new fruit trees and to help PFTP keep in touch and conduct site visits with tree owners already registered. This is a fun opportunity to serve as a vital liaison between PFTP and fruit tree owners in your area.  We provide all necessary training and materials. You can expect to spend 1 to 2 hours per week on this volunteer position, which begins in June and ends in October, 2010.
 
Interested? Please send an email to katy@portlandfruit.org with 'Tree Scout inquiry' in the subject line. We will send you the position description and application form right away. 
Application deadline is Friday, June 4th.
 
Become a Harvest Leader!
Do you enjoy leading groups of people in fun, meaningful activities? Are you interested in leading harvesting parties this summer? Become a PFTP Harvest Leader! 
Harvesting Parties bring people together to pick fruit that might otherwise go to waste, and make it available to people in need. Harvest Leaders co-lead harvesting parties along with another volunteer. We provide all of the necessary training, materials, and support. You would be expected to commit to co-leading at least 5 harvesting parties between late July and late November.
 
Interested? Please send an email to katy@portlandfruit.org with 'Harvest Leader inquiry' in the subject line. We will send you the position description and application form right away.  Application deadline is Wednesday, June 30th.
 
Submitted By
Bob Hatton, Harvest & Stewardship Coordinator
Portland Fruit Tree Project
Learning to Identify Portland's Street Trees 
 
Although it was cold and rainy, nearly 40 people braved the weather to learn to identify Portland's street trees at May's Neighborhood Tree Steward Workshop.  Participants met in Irving Park and after a intriguing introduction by Angie DiSalvo, Botanic Specialist I, they hit the pavement with Urban Forestry Coordinator, Rob Crouch, to get hands on experience identifying trees.  Participants learned nearly 50 species and were encourage to take samples and begin their own herbarium.

Photograph by Angie DiSalvo. (Rob Crouch, Urban Forestry Coordinator, teaching tree identification skills.)
Tree Id Workshop with Rob Crouch

 
Submitted By  
Autumn Montegna, Urban Forest Outreach Specialist
Portland Parks & Recreation /City Nature
Does your Neighborhood Have a Tree Steward?
The Neighborhood Tree Steward program was started in 1997, previously know as the Neighborhood Tree Liaison program.  The program includes a series of classes where participants will learn all about trees and our urban forest including: tree biology, pruning, maintenance, rules and regulations, and much more.  The goal is to have our trained Tree Stewards be tree representatives of their neighborhoods and continue to help support and teach others about the importance of our urban forest.  The map below shows the number of graduated tree stewards in each neighborhood.  We will be offering the 2010 Neighborhood Tree Steward Training starting in September.  Stay tuned for more information in July's issue of Tree Bark.  

 
Neighborhood Tree Steward Map Created by Autumn Montegna
NTS_Map

 
Submitted By
Autumn Montegna, Urban Forest Outreach Specialist 
Portland Parks & Recreation / City Nature
Welcome Portland's New Elm Monitor

Yes it's true, Portland has a new Elm Monitor, Danielle FuchsDanielle has a degree in Forestry and Natural Resources from the University of California, Berkeley.  She has a worked as a forestry field technician in the Sierra Nevada, a crew leader at the Hubard Brook Experimental Forest in New Hampshire, and a snow and landscape researcher in Zurich, Switzerland.  Danielle has already started to monitor many of Portland's 3,000+ elm trees for Dutch elm disease.  If you have questions or would like to report a sickly elm, please contact Danielle at 503-823-8859 or pkelm@portlandoregon.gov.

Photograph taken by Angie DiSalvo (left - Danielle Fuchs, Elm Monitor, right - Autumn Montegna previous Elm Monitor looking for evidence of Dutch elm disease in the cambium tissue)
Danielle Elm Monitor

Submitted By
Autumn Montegna, Urban Forest Outreach Specialist
Portland Parks & Recreation / City Nature