Volunteers mix and divide the native plant seed for distribution on the slope. Dividing the seed into several equal portions helps assure that the seed will be spread evenly across the project. Team Stream seed specialist George Smithson distributes seed by cross sowing a section of the hillside Some of the heaviest work of the day was moving rice straw into place and spreading it on top of the inoculum and seed. The straw will provide shade and protection, and perhaps most importantly, will temporarily absorb nitrogen from the soil to keep weeds from gaining a head start over the natives. In later months the straw will decompose and release the nitrogen slowly for use by the native plants.
Livestock provide a time-honored method of pressing seed and straw into the soil.
Tenaja residents Dick Pierce and his son Craig rode back and forth across the straw for much of the morning. Hoof prints form catchments that will hold rainwater and encourage quick germination of native seeds. The Great Tenaja Tractor Pull. For an update on the project, click here . For more information on mycorrhiza, please visit mycorrhiza.net , maintained by the suppliers of the mycorrhizal inoculum used in this project.