There are various ways to prepare a site for planting, ranging from no site preparation to cultivation of all competing vegetation.

The primary goal of site preparation is to reduce competition from existing vegetation. Until a plant is well established, which can take two or more years, it has a difficult time competing for moisture and nutrients. This is especially the case with grasses and other herbaceous vegetation.

Replanting a forest stand requires very little, if any, site preparation. Forest environments are dominated by woody vegetation, not grass. Furthermore, forestland soils are rich in mycorrhizal fungi, which have a beneficial symbiotic relationship with woody plants, helping them more efficiently obtain moisture and nutrients.

Trying to get seedlings established in grassy areas present much greater challenges. However, there are plenty of options to consider. The option you choose largely depends on your willingness/ability to do regular maintenance, your ability to obtain and spread mulch, and how long you’re willing to wait until planting.

A common site preparation practice that anyone can do is scalping. All you do is remove a 2-3 foot circle of sod or other vegetation for each seedling, plant, and cover the bare soil with mulch. This is fairly easy, but it only deters the competing vegetation for a few months. By summer, the competing vegetation will begin to encroach into the mulch. However, in many situations, this all the head start your new planting needs to get established.

Another potential challenge posed by grassy areas is voles, mouse-like rodents with short tails. These pesky varmints have a nasty habit of girdling young seedlings. So, if you are planting in a grassy area, consider installing a cylindrical plastic plant protector around each seedling.

You can take this scalping approach to the next level by covering the entire area to be planted (assuming it is just herbaceous vegetation) with a thick layer of biodegradable mulch. This is commonly referred to as sheet composting, lasagna gardening, or sheet mulching (technically, all mulching is done in sheets). Cut the existing vegetation as short as possible and cover it with a 12-inch layer of mulch. If you add a layer of cardboard or construction paper down first, you can reduce the mulch depth by about half. You can do this around plants where the sod has been scalped away. Alternatively, you can treat an area and wait several months for the sod to die and decompose, and then plant.

Some stubborn weeds, like dandelion might pop up through the mulch, but they’re easily dug up. Rhizomatous weeds, like quack grass, Canada thistle and morning glory are much more problematic, and will require persistent treatment over months, if not years.

Another similar option is to use black plastic. Like sheet composting, the black plastic blocks out all the light, thus killing the vegetation. Using clear plastic, referred to as solarization, kills all the vegetation and even some seeds through heat energy from the sun. However, solarization is only marginally effective in our mild climate. Either way, make sure to seal the edges of the plastic by burying in order to keep light, critters and slugs out. Figure on at least three months of the plastic treatment, longer in winter.

A more intensive method of site preparation involves eradication of all the existing vegetation and seeds through cultivation. In farming parlance, this is known as summer fallowing. By repeatedly cultivating and allowing seeds to germinate over a period of a couple months or more, all the existing vegetation and most of the weed seeds are killed. This is best done in spring and early summer. Cultivation can also be combined with the plastic treatment.

2021 Board of Supervisor Election - Update

Announcement of Candidates

Three candidates have filed for the 2021 Clallam Conservation District Board of Supervisors election. They are Lori DeLorm, Robert Majure, and Nina Sarmiento. Click here to learn more about each candidate.

The election will be held in person on March 19, 2021 from noon to 8:00PM at the Armory Square Building in downtown Port Angeles, 228 W. 1st St. In addition to in-person voting, Clallam County registered voters can vote by mail; however, you must submit a request for a mail-in ballot before 4:00PM on February 26, 2021. Click below or call 360-775-3746 to submit your request.

Soil Testing

Due to COVID19, our staff continues to work primarily from home. We are not currently accepting soil test samples in our office; however, we have detailed instructions on our soil testing page on how to send a soil test and payment directly to the laboratory. The fee is $17 plus the cost of shipping the test(s).

When you receive your soil test results, feel free to contact us for help interpreting the results. Thank you for your patience during these unprecedented times. We look forward to resuming our soil testing services later in the year.

Seeking Volunteers

We need your help! We are teaming up with the Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe to offer some exciting volunteer restoration activities in 2021, including tree planting and weed removal events. Sign-up online to be added to our volunteer mailing list and we will email you registration details as events are further developed.

Fun fact: In 2020, 86 amazing volunteers helped us plant over 2,450 trees and shrubs along ¾ of a mile of streams. So far in 2021, volunteers have already planted 693 plants. We never would have achieved this without your help, so thank you volunteers!!!

WORKSHOP: Poultry 101 Webinar

Spring is around the corner, which means so is chick season. This webinar, designed for both new and experienced poultry owners, will cover a variety of poultry-keeping topics including proper care of chicks, housing, feeding, and tips for reducing mud and managing chicken manure.

When: Wednesday, March 3, 2021, 4:00-5:00pm

Where: Virtual workshop on Zoom.

Registration: CLICK HERE to register and receive an invitation to attend the workshop. If you aren’t able to attend the live workshop, check the box at registration to request the recorded presentation.

Forest & Wildlife Webinar Series

The Conservation District is partnering with the Department of Natural Resources Small Forest Landowner’s Office to offer a webinar series for Clallam County forestland owners. The series will explore a variety of forest management and wildlife topics. Our first three webinars are listed below.

Site Preparation & Vegetation Management

Monday, February 22 from 3:00PM to 4:00PM

Matt Provencher, with the DNR Small Forest Landowners Office, will discuss how competing vegetation can be detrimental to forest tree seedling establishment, reduce seedling growth and vigor and in extreme cases lead to seedling mortality. He will provide tips and techniques for managing competing vegetation to help give trees the best start possible. The presentation will also cover ongoing maintenance of competing vegetation through a young forest stand’s life. Local resources for forestland owners will also be covered during this webinar.

Tree Planting & Species Selection:

Wednesday, February 24 from 3:00PM to 4:00PM

Matt Provencher, with the DNR Small Forest Landowners Office, will cover how properly planning tree planting activities can lead to increased growth, vigor and survivability of tree seedlings. This presentation will focus on how to set seedlings up for success, building on the previous webinar’s topic of vegetation management and covering how to pick tree species and stock types appropriate for your site. Proper planting techniques will also be covered.

Protecting Forestlands from Animal Damage:

Wednesday, March 10 from 3:00PM to 4:00PM

Ken Bevis, DNR Stewardship Fish & Wildlife Biologist, will help landowners learn how to keep from uttering the all too common phrase “Dang it! Who Chewed my Tree?” In this webinar, Ken will talk about protecting young forests from animal damage, how to assess your forest for damage, the type of damage done by different species of wildlife, and some simple tactics to help deal with it.

Follow Us on Facebook

During this time of social distancing, Facebook has become a great way to reach out to our community. We encourage you to follow us on Facebook for articles and links to educational material and upcoming events. Click HERE.

Thank You Conservation Sponsors!