September, 2016
In late August, the kids, the dog and I were lucky enough to accompany Sky Island Alliance to Aravaipa Canyon Wilderness to assist The Nature Conservancy in some restoration work. This was a great opportunity to learn about native grasses, history of cattle grazing, and about the Sonoran Desert/ Apache Highlands ecotone. It was also beautiful. Aravaipa Canyon is an isolated canyon with a perennial stream, high cliffs, and supposedly bog-horned sheep (though we did not see any). This is an 11-mile canyon in the Northern Galieros Mountains.We did see black-tailed rattlesnakes, a tarantula, a wind scorpion, a pocket mouse, and so much more!
Hundreds of little plugs of alkaline sacaton, Sporobolus airoides, and giant sacaton, Sporobolus wrightii got planted. We planted in a long plot that TNC had seeded in hay seed to produce a mixture of native and non-native grasses to produce hay. Mark Haberstich of TNC has worked towards using native grasses to feed cattle, and the cows seem to like it. We also planted the two spp. of sacaton in a wash further north where they are attempting to slow down and widen the water flow to allow for more water to stay in the ecosystem. The river experienced decades of overgrazing and driving right in the river. This helped to channelized the flow. When TNC acquired Cobra ranch in 2007 they were able to reduce the number of cattle on the land and begin to rehabilitate the river. They installed juniper posts back in 2012 in strategic places to slow down water and trap debris and sediment. The sacaton is hardy and can withstand flood conditions in the stream bed as well as desert conditions once it is established.
In late August, the kids, the dog and I were lucky enough to accompany Sky Island Alliance to Aravaipa Canyon Wilderness to assist The Nature Conservancy in some restoration work. This was a great opportunity to learn about native grasses, history of cattle grazing, and about the Sonoran Desert/ Apache Highlands ecotone. It was also beautiful. Aravaipa Canyon is an isolated canyon with a perennial stream, high cliffs, and supposedly bog-horned sheep (though we did not see any). This is an 11-mile canyon in the Northern Galieros Mountains.We did see black-tailed rattlesnakes, a tarantula, a wind scorpion, a pocket mouse, and so much more!
Hundreds of little plugs of alkaline sacaton, Sporobolus airoides, and giant sacaton, Sporobolus wrightii got planted. We planted in a long plot that TNC had seeded in hay seed to produce a mixture of native and non-native grasses to produce hay. Mark Haberstich of TNC has worked towards using native grasses to feed cattle, and the cows seem to like it. We also planted the two spp. of sacaton in a wash further north where they are attempting to slow down and widen the water flow to allow for more water to stay in the ecosystem. The river experienced decades of overgrazing and driving right in the river. This helped to channelized the flow. When TNC acquired Cobra ranch in 2007 they were able to reduce the number of cattle on the land and begin to rehabilitate the river. They installed juniper posts back in 2012 in strategic places to slow down water and trap debris and sediment. The sacaton is hardy and can withstand flood conditions in the stream bed as well as desert conditions once it is established.