Education "about"
and "on" the land
We provide hands on and on site learning opportunities in a lecture form as well as experience working the land. Some of the lectures include history of this land, environmental issues changing the land, management of the land, equipment use and safety.
A local church group from Rocklin learns about bark beetles.
Education
We are fostering environmental justice and climate resilience through demonstration/education/training:
We give presentations on climate response and our CRP program to various local organizations such as churches, high schools, our local jr. college, and environmental clubs.
We also conduct on site demonstration and training events with these same organizations.
Education from Placer RCD on using fire as a tool.
Hands-On Forestry Education and Management.
Bad Bugs & Good Bugs
The future of forests will rely on educating the next set of caretakers. In this case bark infestations on tree trunks left on the ground too long can be easily seen by the students in the picture to the left. If let to continue, these bugs will infect healthy standing trees in the area.
Then again...
Knowing when to leave nature alone is also important. Allen backed off trimming this tree (below) after noticing it was full of thousands of lady bugs which he wanted to promote. These lady bugs return every few years to the same area from hundreds of miles away and after multiple generations of lady bugs.
Understanding Forest Transformation through Assisted Migration.
The forest must transform to match the global warming problems. Trees that grew at high elevations can no longer survive the warmer climates like their counterparts at lower elevations. Knowing this helps us to prune and thin selecting for varieties that will survive in current and future conditions. It also helps us to plant varieties from lower elevations that will do best in these warmer high elevations.
Sierra College students on a field trip.
Working with our mill.
Our on site mill creates lumber as well as an education for students on the land. Hands-on experience with our sawmill provides a fun learning experience for those interested.
Farming education
We are promoting food sovereignty by increasing the food growing capacity in the low-Sierra mixed forests through the following:
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Niche irrigated gardens fed with local springs
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Dry-farmed orchard and row crop trials
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Experiments in native plant foods from the forest.
Prescribed Fire Education
Did you know that you clear a fire line "outward" before the fire is lit, and "inward" after it is lit? Did you know that pile burning is quite different from broadcast burning. Experts describe the whys and the hows, complete with the tools needed for the job in a hands-on setting.
