The study and science of plants.
Knowland Park might be the City of Oakland's largest park--about 500 acres--but it's mostly known as the home of the Oakland Zoo. We visit the park with some native plant advocates who have their own fine-tuned sense of Knowland's beauty.
Spring is a great time to visit Mount Wanda near Martinez. We took a tour with ranger Thad Shay, and there's a couple more chances for you to do the same!
For some flowers, bugs, and (of course) skunks, strong BO is a good MO for survival. Remember that the next time you’re dealing with smelly gym socks!
The vernal pools of Jepson Prairie are transformed by winter rains and spring blooms: The dry plain gives way to muddy ponds, then concentric rings of colorful wildflowers. Don’t miss the show!
When Caltrans had to make good for destroying some woodlands along a road, they wanted to plant a few trees at Bouverie Preserve in Glen Ellen. Preserve staff suggested a holistic restoration instead, and now high school students are pitching in.
Lifelong Bay Area resident Stephen Edwards has run the botanic garden in Tilden Park since 1983. Well-versed in geology as well as botany, Edwards says, "My main goal in life is to improve the botanic garden without harming its delicate, historic character. The garden still sweeps me away."
You know you're a true Californian when you learn to prefer February flowers to snow shovels.
Longtime television anchorwoman Wendy Tokuda now spends many days in the East Bay hills, finding endangered manzanitas and communing with pileated woodpeckers. All because of her obsession with an invasive weed called French broom. And her years of effort are paying off.
They say California is the land of fruits and nuts, which wouldn't be so funny if it weren't also partly true. But our native nuts--acorns, hazelnuts, and more--are central to life for both plants and wildlife, and they deserve some respect.
Lech Naumovich, conservation analyst for the California Native Plant Society's East Bay chapter and founding director of Golden Hour Restoration Institute, says if he's not outdoors half the year, then he's not doing his job as a botanist. He says you can't have a long-distance relationship with nature.
Independent, nonprofit environmental journalism connecting people with nature in the San Francisco Bay Area.
