For Earth Day this year, I helped wrestle English ivy out of the ground in Oaks Bottom Wildlife Refuge. The clean-up event was organized by Portland Parks and Recreation, Willamette Riverkeeper, and the Oregon Surfrider Foundation. 

English ivy, Hedera helix, is an invasive plant here in Oregon and it can completely dominate large swaths of land, turning it into a monoculture devoid of native vegetation. The Oregon State Extension Service briefly explains the problem here: http://extension.oregonstate.edu/gardening/node/948

A very thorough description, by the Plant Conservation Alliance’s Alien Plant Working Group can be found here: http://www.nps.gov/plants/alien/fact/hehe1.htm

Notice the vegetation pile in the above picture- it is comprised of many small knots of English ivy. Uprooted vines are fashioned into knots in order to diminish the likelihood that the ivy could reroot itself while the abandoned pile is decomposing. 

While I was working I also came across many Fringecup plants, Tellima grandiflora, in all their fairytale splendor. On occasion when I looked up from my work, I could see Osprey nests in the transmission tower above. 

All in all, I had a lovely time enjoying a rare sunny day in Portland in the spring.

Willamette Riverkeeper: http://www.willamette-riverkeeper.org/

Oregon Surfrider Foundation: http://oregon.surfrider.org/

Portland Parks & Recreation: http://www.portlandonline.com/parks/