The Legacy of Phyllis Faber (Continued)

MALT board chair and owner of Toluma Farms, Tomales Farmstead Creamery, and Daily Driver. “Her legacy is the preservation of Marin’s natural beauty and will be appreciated in perpetuity.”

Born in New York City, Phyllis earned a B.S. in zoology from Mount Holyoke College and an M.S. in microbiology from Yale University, before eventually settling in California in the 1970s where she became active in conservation issues in the state.

Beyond her MALT legacy, Phyllis campaigned for the successful passage of the California Coastal Act and the establishment of the California Coastal Commission in 1972. She also chaired the board of the Buck Institute for Research on Aging and was a founding member of Marin Discoveries and the Environmental Forum of Marin and taught in the program for its 37-year-history. As a wetlands biologist, she monitored restoration projects in San Francisco Bay for more than 20 years. She also wrote articles and served as an editor for scientific journals including Fremontia, the journal of the California Native Plant Society.

To honor Phyllis, this spring we renamed our legacy giving circle in her honor: the Phyllis Faber Legacy Giving Circle. As one of the group's original co-chairs, Phyllis left a bequest to MALT, modeling the way for members of our community to make planned gifts via their wills, trusts, or other estate instruments — one of the most profound ways to help protect Marin County farm and ranchland forever.

Learn more by visiting: malt.org/legacy

Did You Know? Secrets of Marin’s Serpentine Soil

Outcroppings of serpentine rock are scattered across much of the Bay Area, a layer of applegreen to black earth that’s well-known for its incredible toxicity. With high concentrations of heavy metals, shallow depth, and often elevated summer temperatures, it’s difficult for even the most invasive of species to take root in the nearby soil.

With little competition for the ground’s meager resources, this soil type is home to a huge diversity of native plants well-adapted to the poor soils. Unadulterated by non-native grasses, serpentine soils are one of the best places to experience the spring wildflower bloom—showy displays of native flowers, some of which are found nowhere else on the planet.

Like small islands of native plant diversity, serpentine soils also offer critical habitat to a host of native and often endemic wildlife, including the endangered Bay checkerspot butterfly. It’s a bonanza of California native life and with spring underway, the show is just getting started.

Explore the serpentine soils of MALTprotected Leiss Ranch this spring. Find more information on the back cover.