West Side Re-Planting
Oct. 29-30th, 2021
Dozens of volunteers with Friends of Columbia Park came out on Oct.29th and 30th and helped Portland Parks & Recreation re-plant the entire western border of Columbia Park with over 500 new shrubs and plants.
This transformational landscaping project, which spans 525 feet along Woolsey Avenue, was made possible by a generous grant from the Portland Garden Club and funds from Friends of Columbia Park. The design included a diverse mix of native and ornamental shrubs, groundcover, and herbaceous perennials such as red flowering currant, evergreen huckleberries, native raspberries, American witch hazel, and fuschias. This dense mixed planting will provide habitat and forage for pollinators and wildlife as well as beautiful winter foliage for year-round color and greater drought tolerance for the warmer summers.
This landscaping effort was more than just a beautification project (although it already looks great!). The original rhododendron, camelia, and viburnum species that previously formed Columbia Park’s western border were suffering from phytophthora, a soil-borne pathogen that infects mostly trees and woody plants and causes a killing root rot to take hold. Since phytophthora can survive for years in the soil, the best remedy is to remove the diseased plants and install a variety of plants that are resistant to this pathogen.
Many thanks to Portland Parks and Recreation (PP&R) Horticulture North Zone team led by Johnathan (Johnny) Fain, who coordinated the effort and removed the diseased plants; to Portland Garden Club, whose generous support made this botanical beauty possible; to Rachel Burden and Mary Englund, our dedicated Friends board members who led the grant writing and volunteer coordination; and of course, to all of our wonderful Friends of Columbia Park volunteers who came out to get their hands dirty!
Interested in projects like these? Stay tuned for future volunteer and learning opportunities, as FOCP will be leading tours and future projects to weed and maintain our new plantings in 2022.
This transformational landscaping project, which spans 525 feet along Woolsey Avenue, was made possible by a generous grant from the Portland Garden Club and funds from Friends of Columbia Park. The design included a diverse mix of native and ornamental shrubs, groundcover, and herbaceous perennials such as red flowering currant, evergreen huckleberries, native raspberries, American witch hazel, and fuschias. This dense mixed planting will provide habitat and forage for pollinators and wildlife as well as beautiful winter foliage for year-round color and greater drought tolerance for the warmer summers.
This landscaping effort was more than just a beautification project (although it already looks great!). The original rhododendron, camelia, and viburnum species that previously formed Columbia Park’s western border were suffering from phytophthora, a soil-borne pathogen that infects mostly trees and woody plants and causes a killing root rot to take hold. Since phytophthora can survive for years in the soil, the best remedy is to remove the diseased plants and install a variety of plants that are resistant to this pathogen.
Many thanks to Portland Parks and Recreation (PP&R) Horticulture North Zone team led by Johnathan (Johnny) Fain, who coordinated the effort and removed the diseased plants; to Portland Garden Club, whose generous support made this botanical beauty possible; to Rachel Burden and Mary Englund, our dedicated Friends board members who led the grant writing and volunteer coordination; and of course, to all of our wonderful Friends of Columbia Park volunteers who came out to get their hands dirty!
Interested in projects like these? Stay tuned for future volunteer and learning opportunities, as FOCP will be leading tours and future projects to weed and maintain our new plantings in 2022.