Carrie Drevenstedt Development Database Coordinator
Rhett Walker Development Associate
Linda Wilkin Preserve Manager
Sophie McLean Native Plant Specialist
Mia Riddle Nursery Manager
Martin Schenker Restoration Field Crew Manager
Elana Denver Restoration Field Crew
Rachel Ray Restoration Field Crew
Silas Bohen Restoration Field Crew
Keith Brooks Assistant Land Steward
Mission: To protect and restore the natural landscapes of the Ojai Valley forever.
STAY CONNECTED WITH THE OVLC: OVLC.ORG
By including the Ojai Valley Land Conservancy in your estate plans, you can help protect the beauty of Ojai for generations to come. A bequest is a simple way to support the OVLC in the future while retaining control of your assets during your lifetime. By making the OVLC a beneficiary of your will, trust, retirement plan, life insurance policy, or financial accounts, you ensure your values will be passed on.
The real beneficiary, of course, is Ojai.
FROM THE DIRECTOR
One of my personal heroes is the late, great Edward O. Wilson. In addition to being the father of the field of conservation biology, Wilson was also a two-time Pulitzer Prize winning author and professor/mentor to a legion of noteworthy biologists who quite literally shaped conservation practice.
At the ripe age of 87, Dr. Wilson published Half Earth: Our Planet’s Fight for Life. The relatively short book is a clarion call for conservation of fully one-half of our planet’s lands and waters. Dr. Wilson sets forth a very self-serving rationale for his call to action by observing that humanity relies on the “biosphere” as the engine for all life on Earth. What Wilson points out is that from a global perspective, the biosphere (the collectivity of all organisms on Earth) is a miniscule (and relatively poorly known) fraction of the mass of the planet, but it plays a critical role in maintaining carbon and nitrogen cycles, the atmosphere, our oceans, and life itself. He also highlights the cracks in the system as a rationale for preservation at heretofore unseen scales.
It should be pointed out that California and the nation have both acknowledged that land protection preserves ecosystem services that support all life and therefore have adopted a goal of protecting 30% of lands and waters by 2030. Some of this will be through stiffer prescriptions for conservation management of agency lands. Land trusts are also playing an important role in preserving private lands.
Despite Dr. Wilson’s incredibly finessed writing, which maintains a sense of optimism in the face of the Anthropocene’s (the age
of Man) cacophony of bad news—insect apocalypse, biodiversity collapse, climate change, ocean acidification—it still can be hard to feel a sense of personal agency that does anything to meet the challenge. What can one do besides support their local land trust?
As you will read in this newsletter, we can individually support biodiversity by “rewilding” our homes and yards. Collectively, if we “Rewild Ojai” by removing non-native plants and planting species that co-evolved with the other organisms in this little corner of our biosphere, we can make a difference. We have big plans to enable the creation of “micro-habitats.” By expanding our nursery capacity and providing guidance on the how, where, what, and why of “rewilding” one’s own little patch to native plants, OVLC hopes to promote the restoration of native pollinators and the other insects that represent a critical part of our biodiversity.
It should be pointed out that Ojai’s rural nature and the neighboring immense Los Padres National Forest provide awesome landscape context that complement the benefits of what each of us can do. I hope that the following pages will inspire you to Rewild your land and support biodiversity and climate adaptation in Ojai.
Tom Maloney, Executive Director
It was a beautiful, dusty, late-summer day, and I was walking with my father and stepmother along Rice Road, the ridge of the Ventura River Preserve. I was trying to explain my new job at OVLC. My family is environmentally conscious, but they aren’t very familiar with native plants or habitat restoration. These things live in nature preserves, away from most people’s daily lives, something you visit and enjoy but leave there.
I scanned our surroundings. All around us, the street was overhung with non-native plantings. I stepped into a fragrant curtain of “California” pepper tree (Schinus molle — a colloquial misnomer, these trees are native to the Peruvian Andes), and began my spiel. “Ninety percent of plant-eating insects are specialists, meaning they can only eat the plants that they co-evolved with. So I can walk head-first into this mass of pepper tree foliage and have no fear of getting spiders in my face or caterpillars in my hair.” I came out of the tree. My parents looked confused.
Just next to the pepper tree was a young California live oak (Quercus agrifolia). It’s small leaves were covered in spider webs. A moth flitted around. A caterpillar munched a leaf. The oak teemed with life. The contrast was striking. “Do you know what 96% of birds feed their young? Bugs. So what happens when we add more native plants to our landscape? More bugs, more birds…more LIFE.” We examined the little oak and let its big implications sink in.
So what is this new program? Rewild Ojai is OVLC’s new initiative to engage people to plant natives at home.
“Wildness is a necessity.” - John Muir
When we add native plants to our landscaping, we create habitat, and when we create habitat, we become invested stewards of our own lands.
Our stunning native plants are adapted to our specific climate. They do magic tricks like send incredibly deep tap roots into the ground, helping store groundwater and reduce erosion. They have evolved to thrive in our drought/flood cycles. They support life in a way that no “drought-tolerant” non-native plant can.
Natives are necessary!
They have evolved alongside our native wildlife species, providing a diverse range of food and forage throughout the year. In Ojai we have around 200 bird species, 64 bee species, and 168 moth and butterfly species, all of which depend on native plants for survival. Creating habitat in our gardens connects us to our surrounding wild landscapes and increases the likelihood of survival for our precious local fauna. We hope that you will take the next step to becoming a steward of your land and make Ojai a better place for people and animals alike. To learn more, visit rewildojai.org.
See you in the garden!
Mia Riddle, Nursery Manager
READY TO REWILD?
Rewild Ojai offers three levels of engagement to help you invest in habitat creation:
Rewild Starter Native Plant Kit
New to native plants? Native Plant Garden Starter Kits will be available at the Fall Native Plant Sale and through our webstore. The kits include plants selected for your specific needs, a small garden sign, native seeds, and a subscription to special gardening resources.
“This notion that we’re separate from nature is what’s killing us. We’re totally dependent on nature. We have to learn to live together because we need ecosystem services everywhere, not just in parks and preserves.” - Douglas Tallamy
Rewild Certified Gardens
Excited about your native plant-filled garden? Get it certified through our Rewild Garden Certification Program. Join the program at rewildojai.org, and use our checklist to evaluate your garden’s effectiveness as habitat. The checklist addresses native plant composition, invasive species, sustainable gardening methods, and safe wildlife practices, all of which, when combined, can make a real difference for your local fauna. Once you become certified, you can order your snazzy garden sign to display and help others in your community learn about this exciting and easy way to build climate resilience in your own backyard.
Rewild Ojai Private Lands Restoration
Ready to Rewild? There are many ways we can help. Residents interested in large-scale restoration projects on their properties may inquire about contract-grown local native plants and creative solutions to restore working lands.
Orchard conversions, seed farming, and oak woodland and wetland restoration all make a sizable and lasting impact on Ojai’s sensitive ecology. Be a part of the solution to the challenges of fire, water supply, and habitat conversion facing our fragile local ecosystems. Learn more about Private Lands Restoration.
More resilient. More biodiverse. More interesting. More wild. Your garden can be so much more. Plant natives. Rewild Ojai.
This November, OVLC is celebrating Native Plant Month to highlight the vital role native plants play in our local ecosystems and our community. The Ojai Valley is currently experiencing landscape-scale shifts in our oak woodlands, chaparral, riparian, and agricultural lands. While climate change is a global issue, climate resilience requires a local strategy. Restoring ecosystem functions of native habitats will support the system’s ability to rebound from these extreme climate events.
Join us at one of our Native Plant Month events highlighting the importance of native plants and how they benefit our local ecosystems and strengthen our community’s resilience to climate change.
NATIVE PLANT MONTH EVENTS
FALL NATIVE PLANT SALE
Saturday, November 4 I 9am—12pm
Inspired by Native Plant Month? Do you want to Rewild your yard? Come to our Fall Native Plant Sale! We will be selling some of our favorite droughttolerant plants and a variety of wildflower seeds for you to grow at home in your garden. By joining our Rewild Ojai effort you are helping increase biodiversity and strengthening our community’s resilience to climate change.
NATIVE SEEDS: SUPPLYING RESTORATION
FILM SCREENING AT POCO FARMS
Friday, November 10 I 6—8:30pm
Join us at Poco Farms for a screening of Native Seeds: Supplying Restoration. This film intertwines the efforts of seed collectors, farmers, researchers, and land managers as they work to scale up the native seed supply in the face of growing restoration demands. Stick around after the film for a panel discussion with restoration experts in the local community to explore how these compelling stories relate to restoration in the Ojai Valley.
NATIVE FLORA WALK
Saturday, November 18 I 9am—12pm
Celebrate Native Plant Month with a Native Flora Walk led by OVLC’s Native Plant Specialist, Sophie McLean. Delve into the intricacies of plant taxonomy, ecological relationships, and learn about which native species are best suited for your yard.
COMMUNITY RESTORATION DAY
Saturday, November 25 I 9am—12pm
Bring out the entire family and join the OVLC for a Community Restoration Day. OVLC’s Restoration Team will talk about the history of the restoration site, the importance of our restoration efforts, and provide tips on how to help restore native ecosystems at home. Then, we’ll roll up our sleeves and get a little dirty for the day’s festivities. Families with young children are encouraged to attend.
MORE EVENTS ARE COMING... VISIT OVLC.ORG/CATEGORY/EVENTS
RESTORATION KEEPS GROWIN’!
Restoration has grown a lot lately—in the coming months, we are focused on engaging the community through Rewild Ojai, laying the foundation for watershed-wide Arundo donax eradication, and kicking off new restoration projects at the Ventura River Preserve and Steelhead Preserve.
We’re gearing up for a big year in restoration and building capacity to support this growth. In our previous newsletter, we introduced OVLC’s new Nursery Manager, Mia Riddle, and Field Crew Members, Martin Schenker and Elana Denver. This time around, we are excited to welcome two new Field Crew Members, Silas Bohen and Rachel Ray, and to announce that Martin Schenker has been promoted to Restoration Field Crew Manager!
With his deep passion for native plants and extensive experience in Arundo removal, Martin is already making strides, planning our new restoration sites, and leading our fall Arundo removal projects on San Antonio Creek and the mainstem of the Ventura River.
OVLC Restoration Field Crew Manager Martin Schenker surveying invasive Arundo ( Arundo donax) on San Antonio Creek.
Silas Bohen Restoration Field Crew
Rachel Ray Restoration Field Crew
$2.05 MILLION TO KICK-START
WATERSHED-WIDE ARUNDO ERADICATION
OVLC was recently awarded a $2.05 million grant from the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE) to kick start our efforts to completely eradicate invasive Arundo ( Arundo donax) from the Ventura River Watershed!
This grant will enable OVLC to begin treatment on 20 acres of Arundo identified across Lion Creek, San Antonio Creek, and the mainstem of the Ventura River. Grant funding will also enable OVLC to implement an Early Detection-Rapid Response program to monitor all prior treated areas and target regrowth immediately to prevent new infestations. Importantly, we will be working in partnership with dozens of riparian landowners to provide access for treatments, but also assist with neighborhood outreach as part of our watershed-wide strategy.
In the past two years, OVLC has raised over $1.1 million in grant funds to lay the foundation for eradicating Arundo from the Ventura River Watershed. We conducted initial treatment on 20 acres across San Antonio Creek and the mainstem of the Ventura River, used drones to map the spatial distribution of Arundo throughout the entire watershed, and we are now using this mapping to inform programmatic permits for removal at the watershed scale. Funding from CAL FIRE will enable us to immediately put these permits to work.
Arundo infestations are associated with a wide range of negative environmental impacts.
Arundo stands can grow up to 20-feet high, growing in dense monoculture stands that outcompete our native vegetation, consume massive amounts of water, alter river hydrology through increased erosion, contribute to flood hazards during storm events, and generate explosive fuel loads that contribute to wildfire risk.
CAL FIRE is especially focused on controlling this invasive species because it poses an extreme wildfire hazard. While healthy riparian corridors typically function as fuel breaks that change fire behavior, the biology and physical structure of Arundo facilitates the spread of large, high-intensity fires. Arundo is highly productive, meaning that it grows rapidly and forms tall, dense stands intermixed with large amounts of dead biomass, which can facilitate the spread of fire higher into the canopy and increase the risk of ignition by significant ember cast.
OVLC’s vision is to lead the valley’s response to climate change, and leading the watershed-wide effort to eradicate this noxious invasive species from the watershed is a critical component in our journey towards achieving this vision. While we acknowledge that the battle against Arundo will span decades, we are making significant progress toward that ultimate goal.
Vivon Crawford, Restoration Program Director
T-MOBILE VOLUNTEERS & AWARDS OVLC WITH MASSIVE CHECK!
On October 4, local T-Mobile employees came out to volunteer at OVLC’s Native Plant Nursery and on our restoration sites at the Ojai Meadows Preserve. Robert Lobato Jr., Market Manager, SMRA Sales at T-Mobile, not only organized the day of service, but also applied for a grant for $5,000 from T-Mobile’s Volun-T Grant Program to benefit OVLC. This was the first time any of us had seen a giant check, and we are still super excited about it! These funds will go toward much needed equipment and supplies for OVLC’s volunteer program. Thank you so much to Robert and T-Mobile for your hard work and generous donation!
As we move forward, we are excited to announce that our volunteer events are once again gaining momentum. With the unwavering dedication of individuals like the T-Mobile team, we are energized to expand our volunteer opportunities and engage even more community members in our conservation efforts. Your continued support, enthusiasm, and participation in these events are instrumental in protecting and restoring the open spaces we all cherish and love. We look forward to welcoming both new and familiar faces as we continue to work together to protect and restore the natural landscapes of the Ojai Valley forever.
FAREWELL, GREER!
GREER FAUST — FORMER OVLC NURSERY INTERN
In March of 2022, I had the opportunity to join OVLC’s Nursery intern program. Over the past year and a half I was mentored on a wide array of topics surrounding native botany and horticulture. I learned how to propagate from seedlings and cuttings, how to identify native plants, and how to really learn and listen from the natural world around me. This was an amazing opportunity to spark new passions, gain valuable experience, and participate in community outreach in an incredibly beneficial way.
Through OVLC, I was able to make valued connections and friendships, which enriched my life in more ways than I can count. Not only did I learn skills in horticulture and botany, but I also learned a lot about myself. The plants taught me that we too are constantly growing, evolving, and adapting to an ever changing atmosphere. Through connecting elements of my own life to what I was learning in the nursery, I learned how to heal, strengthen, and evolve. Just like plants, we need light, and in many ways that beautiful little nursery was my light. Most of my favorite memories at the nursery are simple: spraying each other with the hose on hot days, running around in the rain setting up for sales, or just pouring out about our lives while we cradled and transplanted new plant babies into the earth. They may be simple, but they were beautiful and will be cherished for the rest of my life. Sophie McLean, my boss and dear friend, made all that possible. She created an atmosphere that was nonjudgmental and full of love, she offered unwavering support and understanding, and for that I am eternally grateful. The wonderful thing about OVLC’s nursery is that any person that steps into that little world is so full of passion and spark, which then is fully transferred to our plants, who thrive in that environment just as much as we do.
This fall I plan to attend UCSC majoring in ecology and evolution. This wouldn’t be possible without the resources and experience I gained at OVLC. I found new passions and unlocked some that had been dormant for far too long. It taught me to see the multifaceted greatness and beauty of our Earth, and to protect and stand for it in any way that I can. Now when I go on hikes, I am able to correctly identify native plants and explain how they interact with Ojai’s local ecology. This is a truly wonderful gift. In the past I’ve had the privilege to work and volunteer with PAX, GVP, Ojai Trees, and The C.R.E.W., and while all of those programs were wonderfully beneficial, nothing compares to what I learned from OVLC’s Nursery Intern program. That nursery is a gift to the community and all that get to be a part of it. It allows
students to really get hands-on experience and valued mentorship in a way I’ve never experienced before.
Though my time at the Nursery is waning and that in itself is bittersweet, I am overjoyed to know that I’m passing it on to interns with just as much of a spark for botany and an eagerness to learn from those around them. That, along with the amazing leadership in the Nursey’s program, is why I know that the nursery is bound for nothing but greatness. I am so excited to see how it “grows.” There is so much potential in that little plant heaven, and I’m more than thankful I got to play a part in it. I am so grateful to OVLC and the opportunities it’s presented to me. I can confidently say I am not the person I was when I first entered the program, and I am thrilled to be able to continue to pursue my passions sparked at OVLC at a collegiate level.
Thank you for everything, Greer Faust
VOLUNTEER PROFILE
DON JACKSON — OVLC VOLUNTEER
For those who have had the privilege of volunteering at OVLC, Don Jackson is a familiar and beloved figure. His involvement as a volunteer with the organization started circa 2008. Don most notably participated in nearly every outing during the construction of the Allan Jacobs Trail. At the age of 78, Don stands as a testament to the notion that age poses no obstacle when it comes to making a substantial impact through volunteering. We are proud to highlight Don’s contributions to the OVLC, in an interview he had with Preserve Manager, Linda Wilkin.
Hello, Don. Thank you for taking the time to chat with me today. Could you please start by sharing a bit about yourself? When did you move to Ojai? What kind of work do you do, and what are your hobbies?
I started volunteering with OVLC ten years ago, and I am a little slower than I used to be. Well gee, I guess my love of the outdoors started way back when I was a kid. I was a Boy Scout and that kind of opened the door. I was born and raised in the Lakewood Artesia area of Southern California. There were so many dairy farms there when I was a kid. A lot of Dutch immigrants had these dairies. It was an eye-opener to be around people with different ideas about things. I went to college in the 60s and the Vietnam War was going on. I studied political science and sociology. I wasn’t focused on the outdoors. If it hadn’t been the sixties, I probably would have studied biology or something of that nature.
So even in college, you were involved in activism and local action?
I was involved in anti-war protests. I went up to Berkley and was a part of the anti-war protests at Golden Gate Park and the Haight-Ashbury area. It was my hippie days, haha. My love of the outdoors really started more when I was out of college. I kind of dropped out and had an alternative lifestyle. I was living in Big Sur and fell in love with the landscapes in the region. The ocean, the rocks, mountains, conifers, and the redwoods as far south as you can see. I was the first person hired and the only person living on this old ranch right next to the Post Ranch. It was called the Ventana Ranch. Eventually it became a resort. I made some really amazing friends there. The place was magnetic. Artists and writers with a different outlook on life were all drawn to this area, and that was my first introduction to activism and local action.
Then I went to Wisconsin to visit a friend, and that’s where I met my wife, Christy. I ended up teaching school in the rural northern part of Wisconsin for a couple of years, followed by working for the Minneapolis Institute of Art. I would help organize artistic shows, and because my sister and mother were serious artists, this world wasn’t foreign to me.
While we were living in Minneapolis, Christy was becoming one of the first female computer programmers. We were taking off into the wilds there. She introduced me to the water and trees of the North Country. It was really her thing. So, we ended up spending a tremendous amount of time in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness of northern Minnesota. When my parents were getting older, we came back to California. We started doing some really challenging things in the outdoors. We decided to start climbing the Fourteener Mountains in Colorado. We knocked out about fifteen of them! Then we hiked over a thousand miles of the Pacific Crest Trail from Mexico to beyond Tahoe. Spending time in the great outdoors was an important part of our lives to say the least.
We ended up moving to Simi Valley because my parents were there. I worked for a company owned by Boeing and Rockwell International Corporation, which made the main engines for the space shuttle and rocket engines. Every day I would have meetings with NASA and astronauts, asking how can we make these
engines more efficient. I did that for over ten years. This was in the 80s and 90s. At the end of the space shuttle program, I transitioned to working with Thousand Oaks School District. We had two kids, a boy and a girl. My son ended up being a wildlife biologist. He went to UCLA on a scholarship, and now he has his own little company based out of Carpinteria and Santa Barbara. He works with Edison to ensure that any endangered plants or animals are not affected by telephone poles and power lines.
After the kids left, I started volunteering because we hiked so much. We hiked all the time in Simi Valley, Thousand Oaks, and the Santa Monica Mountains. The old Backbone Trail in the Santa Monica Mountains was one of our favorites. I started volunteering in the mountains there. The old Peter Strauss Ranch was kind of like my headquarters. Then the Woolsey Fire burned through the area, burning the buildings at Peter Strauss Ranch, and that program ended. From there, I had heard about volunteering with the Los Padres National Forest. I volunteered for a couple of projects and there was a ranger named Heidi Anderson. My wife and I worked with her a lot! So much so that I became a Backcountry Ranger with the Los Padres Forest Association out of the Goleta/Santa Barbara area. We worked on the Channel Islands doing restoration and a lot of invasive species removal. Santa Rosa Island was really an eye-opener for me. The vegetation and the backcountry is just splendid. We volunteered with North Campus Open Space (NCOS) at UC Santa Barbara, restoring a damaged wetland on the north side of the campus. My son was working there and introduced me to restoration work. We did this for about 2 years, while he was employed there. We also volunteered with the Ventura County Senior Nutrition Gardens, off of Vineyard, near El Rio, for a couple of years, providing food for Ventura County Senior Centers.
Why do you consider giving back to the community and the environment to be important?
As human beings living on this planet we have to respect everything around us. Our goal is to live in unison with all other creatures, humans, animals, and everything that exists. I can remember being on Isle Royale. It’s a giant island in Lake Superior and remember hearing the wolves howl at night and seeing the gigantic moose on the trails. Like, well uh-oh! You know that’s when I really started doing a lot of trimming, brushing, and browsing. Clearing trails on Isle Royale National Park. We were hiking all over that island.
I had an old college mate. She was the head of her department at the University of Oregon. Then she lived in Castle Valley near Moab, Utah. Her name was Mary O’Brien. She was the head of the Grand Canyon Trust, and she was the head of southern Utah and northern Arizona. So, I worked on projects with her and we
In 1980, Don and his beloved wife, Christy, embarked on an awe-inspiring 1,000-mile trek along the breathtaking expanse of the Pacific Crest Trail.
would go up creeks to find beaver ponds. Her thing was trying to help maintain the water runoff in that plateau, and the beavers were there, to help them so they could build damns. We were counting how many dams and how many beaver lodges there were on the streams that were flowing into the Colorado River.
I’m interested to know how you first got involved with OVLC, and if you’ve noticed any changes since you began volunteering?
Well, it was mainly when I started volunteering with the Los Padres National Forest, and then I just somehow became aware of OVLC. I realized, “hey, there’s some good people here and they need some support.” I spent about seventy hours working on the Allan Jacobs Trail. We made a really interesting trail with great views. That was one of the biggest OVLC projects I’ve participated in. Then we made slight modifications to the trail where water was creating ruts, so we changed the trail a little bit; those kinds of things.
What do you find enriching about volunteering with OVLC?
Well, it’s giving back. When I started volunteering after I retired, I wanted to be in the outdoors, but doing something more than just going off and exploring places. Exploration has been a big part of my life, and I want to make sure other people have that experience too. To work on the trails was a great way to do that. It was that whole thing of giving back, and making the trails more accessible to people. When you volunteer it attracts people with good hearts and a good vision of what the world should be like.
Which hike on OVLC lands is your favorite?
I have so many that I hike often. A short one that I’m fond of is Luci’s trail. That’s a quickie!
We are going to be working on Luci’s Trail this fall and winter! Could you describe your experience doing stewardship volunteer work at the Ojai Meadows Preserve? Also, why do you think it is essential to restore preserved lands and remove invasive plants?
I live close to the Ojai Meadows Preserve. It is my backyard. I go there all the time and trim on my own (with OVLC’s permission) just to make sure it’s accessible. There are so many people that go there and I want visitors to have a positive experience.
Restoration is essential to protect the natural ecosystem that exists in a region for the sake of the health of the environment and our community.
“When I’m out here, it just lifts me up.”
Lastly, I would love to hear any thoughts you have on climate resiliency and local environmental action or any stories you want to share about your time volunteering with OVLC.
It has turned out that, at my age of seventy-eight, this is my primary focus. It will often come up when talking to people out on the trail that I volunteer with at OVLC. I will say it’s a great thing to do when you’re retired. A lot of people have lost the sense of what they will be doing when they are retired. I always suggest volunteering as an activity and to give back. We take advantage of the environment around us and yet we need to keep it in good shape. We have to maintain it. We have to take care of it.
If you volunteer, you will meet some truly amazing people—people who are genuinely good-hearted and have good intentions. This holds true for every organization, whether it’s the Forest Service, OVLC, or the Channel Islands National Park. You will encounter some truly great individuals.
Don, it has been a pleasure talking with you today. Since I have been with the conservancy, you have been a fixture and it’s always so wonderful to get to work with you.
Yeah, it’s been over ten years that I’ve been volunteering with the conservancy. I think I started in 2008 or 2009. Somewhere in there!
We appreciate you, Don. Thank you for all you do.
REWILD GARDENER’S GUIDE: WHAT TO GROW AND WHAT TO FORGO
Our incredible native plants are not only adapted to our specific climate conditions, they also co-evolved with thousands of species of bugs, birds, and butterflies. Imported plants and nursery cultivars just can’t compete! Here are a few recommendations to get you started:
Instead of Lion’s tail, plant Narrowleaf milkweed ( Asclepias fascicularis)
Instead of purple hop bush, plant Toyon (Heteromeles arbutifolia)
Instead of Iceberg roses, plant California buckwheat (Eriogonum fasciculatum)
Instead of Mexican sage, plant White sage (Salvia apiana)
Instead of Lantana, plant Golden yarrow (Eriophyllum confertiflorum)
Instead of Fountain grass, plant Purple needle grass (Stipa pulchra)
Instead of an Olive tree, plant Big berry manzanita ( Arctostaphylos glauca)
Instead of Salvia nursery hybrids, plant Purple sage (Salvia leucophylla)
Instead of Lavender, plant Chaparral bush mallow ( Malacothamnus fasciculatus)
We want to say thank you to our amazing OVLC community for joining us at our 9th annual Mountainfilm on Tour this year. We are so grateful to everyone who told a friend, attended, volunteered, donated, spread the word on social media, and helped make this year’s fundraiser a huge success once again.
Thank you to all of our event sponsors: Ojai Valley School, Ojai Valley Inn, Shelter Social Club, Fiona Hutton & Associates, Jessie Hawkins at Morgan Stanley, Lorraine Lim Catering, Topa Topa Brewing Co., Stay Wild Ventures, Revel Kombucha, Ventura Spirits, Topa Mountain Winery, Flying Embers, Ventura Rental, Niner Wine Estates, and Bonny Doon Vineyard. Thank you to our business sponsor The Glassman Window Washing Company, Inc. for tabling at the big event. Thank you to all of our volunteers. This event would not be possible without you. Thank you to The Morning Yells for filling the big event with rockin’ music. Thank you to Maclovia for the bodacious tunes at Under the Open Sky. Thank you to DJ Zeke for supplying the photobooth. Thank you to Pro Outdoor Movies for providing the big screen. Thank you to Mike’s Technical Services for the high-quality audio service. Thank you to Bike VC for running our bike valet. Thank you to all of the wonderful virtual auction and raffle sponsors for donating some truly wonderful goods and experiences. Thank you to all of our food and drink vendors. Last but not least, a huge thank you to our special guests, Jojo Nyaribo and Chelsea Jolly. We had a blast celebrating Jojo’s thirteenth birthday at Under the Open Sky!
We are incredibly grateful to everyone who made this event happen and we can’t wait to do it again next year. Thank you!
Mountainfilm on Tour photos by Marc Alt
VENTURA RIVER SPONSORS
Las Palmas de Ojai
OJAI MEADOWS SPONSORS
Dr. David L. Garber, D.D.S
Lorraine Lim Catering, Inc
Patagonia
Topa Topa Brewing Company
STEELHEAD SPONSORS
High on Kennels
REI
The MOB Shop
SAN ANTONIO CREEK SPONSORS
Aqua-Flo Supply
BANDITS Bandanas
E3
The Glass Man Professional Window
Washing Company, Inc.
Herring Law Group
Ojai Valley Inn
Tonya Peralta Real Estate Team
PARKWAY SPONSORS
Alpha Stone Inc.
Broken Spoke Challenge/ Fast Green Racing
Firestick Pottery
Hammitt
Jim and Rob’s Fresh Grill
Kerry Miller Designer & Builder, Inc.
Latitudes Gallery
Laughing Dog Ranch LLC
McDaniel Insurance Services
Meiners Oaks Ace Hardware
Move Sanctuary
Ojai Valley Trail Riding Company
Pastel Society of the Gold Coast
SC&A Insurance Services LLC
Stay Wild Ventures
Swanner Physical Therapy
Tobias Parker - General Contractor
West Coast Air Conditioning
IN-KIND SPONSORS
bITvision
California 101 Guide
Custom Printing
Hutchinson and Bloodgood
Ojai Quarterly
Ojai Valley Directory
Ojai Valley News
Shelter Social Club/Rancho Inn
Double Your Impact
TAKE ADVANTAGE of your company’s matching gift program.
A matching gift means your contribution will go twice as far. Many companies will double (or sometimes triple) the value of their employees’ gifts to the Ojai Valley Land Conservancy. These matching gifts provide valuable funds as we work to protect and restore the natural landscapes of the Ojai Valley forever.
Some companies will still match your gifts even after you retire. To see if your company will match a gift to the Ojai Valley Land Conservancy, contact your company’s human resources department.
To donate today, visit our website at ovlc.org
SPECIAL ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
IN MEMORY OF
John Broesamle from Bill Norris & Judith Hale Norris
In honor, memory and with love and respect for all John has done for the Ojai Valley. from Barry & Chris Betlock
With deep affection, Dana Metz-Dwire
Michael Chambliss from The Shanbrom Family Foundation, Cindy Pitou Burton, The Fout Family
Robert Evans from Rikki Horne
Willoughby Johnson from Victoria Matthews
IN HONOR OF
Former San Antonio Elementary School Students
In honor of all the students who attended San Antonio Elementary School. from Kathy McAlpine
Jon Drucker & Lale Welsh from Anonymous
Daren Magee aka Real Fun, Wow! from BANDITS Bandanas
Rome, the big, black dog Good boy, Sit! Stay! from Paul Rudder
