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Linn/Benton WSEP Program, Marys River Watershed
Tom Murphy, Master Watershed Steward, WSEP Class of 2002
[Note: Photos and graphics are ommitted from this version, but can be found in the .pdf version]
Being an active member of the Marys River Watershed Council, Tom decided that he wanted to contribute to the larger-scale watershed restoration effort of the Council by employing new management techniques on his own property. His idea was to make both a local impact on his property and a greater impact within the watershed.
Tom Murphy and his wife Ellen live on 40 acres in Benton County within the Marys River Watershed. Bull Run Creek runs through their property and is a salmon bearing stream. Being an active member of the Marys River Watershed Council, Tom decided that he wanted to contribute to the larger-scale watershed restoration effort of the Council by employing new management techniques on his own property. His idea was to make both a local impact on his property and a greater impact within the watershed. After thinking about the Council's Action Plan and his own natural resource interests and values, Tom's Master project began with 4 related goals:
In addition to Bull Run Creek running all year, the surrounding property is wet most of the year and consists primarily of open grassland. It also includes a constructed pond, a small patch of 50-year old Oregon white oak, and vernal pools - shallow, intermittently flooded wet meadows, generally dry for most of the summer and fall (Mitsch and Gosselink, 1993).
Tom began with much of his 40-acre property in livestock pasture. Since he wanted to first consider "passive restoration" techniques that he could apply toward meeting all of his ecological goals, his first objective was to lessen livestock impact on the stream and property by switching to rotational grazing and stream exclusion. However, after gathering information, he concluded that his property was too small and fragmented for an economical livestock operation that would work with his ecological goals. Although he received funding under USDA EQUIP (Environmental Quality Incentives Program) for construction of fences to keep the cattle out of the streams, he realized that a large amount of fencing would be required for a relatively small acreage, and that frequent flooding would make fence maintenance difficult. He then decided that livestock removal was the most effective solution.
After removing the livestock and consulting with Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), Oregon Department of Forestry (ODF), and Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW), the Murphy's enrolled in and were accepted for the USDA Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program (CREP). Enrolling in CREP qualified over 25 acres of streamside property for conservation dollar incentives, without incurring unreasonable costs for taxes. Without livestock or crops to handle, the Murphy's can now manage the property as a conservation reserve over the next 10-15 years. For much of the Murphy's property, Tom and the staff from NRCS, ODF, and ODFW developed a conservation plan that continued to use passive restoration. By removing all livestock, the hope was to let the ecological dynamics do their work by simply allowing the native vegetation grow where it had been previously suppressed.
To help along the first goal of restoring stream and riparian functions and processes for fish habitat, the plan was to "actively" plant trees along the stream in the areas that the livestock had frequented. Planting trees can contribute shade, bank stability, channel structure, and other functions to fish habitat needs. As a team, the group decided to plant several different species of willow cuttings (Salix spp) taken from the property and Red Osier dogwood cuttings (Cornus stolonifera) that were purchased. These near-stream seedlings were planted in 3 "tiers," or rows, running perpendicular from the stream. Some willows were planted in the channel, since they found some already existing willow rooted in the channel. As an experiment, they also planted white alder (Alnus rhombifolia) and black cottonwood (Populus trichocarpa) along the stream - two species that they knew were native and relatively water-tolerant, but had not seen evidence of along the Murphy's stream section. They also "experimented" with Oregon white oak (Quercus garryana), and Willamette Valley Ponderosa pine (Pinus ponderosa), which were both planted in drier areas further from the stream.
Tom considers this planting strategy, regarding both the species chosen and the spacing used, an experiment and lesson in small-scale adaptive management (Holling 1978). In other words, since Tom has not planted trees in his specific site conditions before, there are some uncertainties. There are also uncertainties and experimentation with planting the willow and dogwood in different moisture gradients along the stream (the 3 "tiers"). Tom will document the outcomes and "learn by doing," and he will build on his gaps of knowledge for application in future management techniques.
Three months after planting, the survival rate of the willow and Red Osier dogwood was 89%, which is very good. Maintenance and management includes surveys for plant survival and animal damage, replacing damaged plants, and hand removal of competing vegetation, which consists mainly of grasses and non-native blackberry. Maintenance and management of the rest of his property includes some patch mowing to maintain diversity in vegetation ages, and to mow around sprouting seedlings to help with competition control. Again, Tom considers the plantings an experiment and is documenting what he is finding and responding accordingly. For example, some initial, limited beaver damage has been noted, and Tom took measures to protect these individual seedlings. He might find that he will need to invest more in seedling protection.
Tom has surveyed and recorded the presence of vegetation and wildlife on the property since the beginning of the project. After a little over a year, one of the most significant changes he sees is that native vegetation that once was suppressed by livestock is now flourishing. Some newly noted vegetation on the property includes common camas (Camassia quamash); checker-mallow species (Sidalcea spp) hardhack, also known as Douglas' spirea (Spiraea dougasii); and Oregon ash (Fraxinus latifolia). Tom thinks these natives were present before but were suppressed by livestock impacts. Tom also notes an observational increase in the use of his property by deer, Great Blue heron, Wood duck, geese, and Mallards.
Over a year and several surveys later, Tom finds that although his project is a work in progress, the first phase went very well. His project will be one of several sites on a tour of watershed restoration and enhancement projects in the Marys River Watershed this spring (contact Sandra Coveny at 541-758-7597 for more information about the tour).
Any Master Watershed Steward wishing to contact Tom about his project may do so by calling 541-752-3076.
1. Definition of vernal pools taken from:
Wetlands, by William Mitsch and James Gosselink. 1993. Van Nostrand Reinhold
Press,
New York. 722 pp.
2. Adaptive Management taken from:
Holling, C. S., editor. 1978. Adaptive Environmental Assessment and Management.
John
Wiley, New York, New York, USA.
3. Nomenclature for plant names taken from two sources:
Manual of Oregon Trees and Shrubs, by Ed Jensen, Warren Randall, Robert Keniston,
and Dale Bever. 2000. Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon. 305 pp.
Wetland Plants of Oregon and Washington, by B. Jennifer Guard. 1995. Lone Pine
Publishing, Vancouver British Columbia. 239 pp.
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