Sunday, March 31, 2019
Seattle Times Pacific NW article on the Die-off
Seattle Times journalist Sandi Doughton and photographer Erika Schultz have published a magnificent article on the regional sword fern die-off. Their grasp of the science, the historical context, the social interactions, the politics and complexity of grassroots activism - is, in so many ways, skillful, on point, and insightful. They tell our story better than we ever could.
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Intriguing...
ReplyDeleteHello, Yes, wonderful article on the fern die-off. As a Master Gardener and a Green Seattle Steward (Burke-Gilman trail), not to mention a native Seattlite (since 1962), I was fascinated by the article. After a little bit of research myself, it might be worth mentioning the hotter summers... Every plant has it's weaknesses, and yes, the sword fern seems like a tough native, but over a period of years, maybe the moisture level in NW forests has not built up enough to get through the drier summers?? Just a thought. - thank you, Bj Hedahl bjhedahl@hotmail.com
Hi bj, Thanks for the comment. I don't think hotter summers are the decisive factor. They quite possibly play a role, but here are a few things which, I believe, suggest that the role is minor:
ReplyDelete1) The UCSC Pitterman lab has studied drought effects upon sword ferns through years of severe California drought, much worse that what we have seen. They report that ferns recover when the rains return, but that repeated drought will kill them. Our weather has been less of a departure from normal than what California has seen. I have observed ferns (at Fort Worden, for instance) which were initially judged to be victims of the "Seward Syndrome" but which are now, after 2 years of good rain, in fine shape again. We see ferns die even in wet years - and die relatively quickly - and die permanently.
2) The Seward Syndrome often spreads radially, at about 100 feet a year, in wet years and dry. This seems like the spread of a pathogen: successive year after year spread, to contiguous regions with the same weather regime - this does not seem to indicate heat or drought as the proximal cause.
3) Another version of the same reasoning in 2, above: we see the die-off appear now widely throughout the region, mostly limited to low elevations, but with no apparent correlation to local variations in temperature or rainfall.
Do you these arguments convincing?
Hi Paul, I read this article with interest and now I'm afraid what I thought was an after-effect of the heavy snowfall may be this problem. I live on Vashon Island and I don't see any hotspots recorded here on your map. Have you heard from anyone here yet? I would like to send you some photos. Thank you for your work on this. Kathryn
ReplyDeleteHi Kathryn,
DeletePhotos and maybe video would be most welcome - thank you. I am preparing a new version of the regional map which displays images in the site-specific popup, along with any text and history you can contribute. We can update over time as well.
You are right: no reports yet from Vashon. It's plausible that the die-off could appear there, so reports would be very nice to receive.
Links to photo and video - youtube, google photo, Flickr, apple - would be easy for me to use and display. But full photos are a fine optional also.
- Paul