Union Bay Natural Area

March 16 2007

Dispatch from a Blue Tube Forest

If you've walked through the Union Bay Natural Area lately, you may have noticed a new patch of "blue tubes". These tubes mark the latest in the restoration efforts in the Union Bay Natural Area, a 74-acre site just northeast of Husky Stadium, and one of the best wildlife areas in town.

The "blue tubes" are protective shields around young trees recently planted by 32 students in ESRM 473 Restoration Ecology class, taught by Professor Kern Ewing. Students in this class got on-the-ground experience in restoration through planting more than 400 trees on this site as part of their class work.

"Students come out here to participate in restoration even when it's snowing. It's more than an assignment to many of them. It’s exciting to be a part of a restoration effort that is continually uniting students and the land,”
said Amy Lambert, Teaching Assistant for the class.

For Professor Ewing, the combination of cardboard, heavy mulch, and blue tubes to protect young plants from rodents and summer droughts "smells like victory". A national expert in ecological restoration techniques, he has been involved in experimental projects in the Union Bay Natural Area for 15 years. The area has a colorful and not altogether savory history, and was a garbage dump for many years before it was capped and dedicated for a nature preserve.

According to Ewing, in this spot ten years ago, the blackberries were so high that they touched overhead on either side of the trail. Only intrepid visitors would venture down the path through the "tunnel of blackberries" that connects the neighborhood of Laurelhurst and the current UW Botanic Gardens Headquarters with the sports fields north of Husky Stadium.

A vigorous program of mowing and restoration began to combat blackberries and other invasive plants, and restore native plants on site. The use of cardboard and heavy mulch helps to protect plants from drying out during dry summer months, in addition to suppressing weeds.

Three thousand surplus tree collars--the blue tubes--were donated by the City of Seattle. They act as mini-greenhouses, as well as protecting young plants from hungry rodents and weed-whackers used in maintenance.

"This summer it will start to look like a forest here" said Ewing, of the trees opposite the newly planted area. Those trees, a combination of native deciduous & evergreens planted four years ago, are now reaching overhead, and will soon shade out the sun-loving blackberries. The many species of birds and other wildlife that visit this site will undoubtedly appreciate the trees as well.