Recognizing oaks from gestalt features – especially scrub oaks – can seem like an impossible task due to hybridization. Have you experienced the frustration of looking at leaf and acorn images online that never quite fit with that special oak you’re trying to identify?
If you crave the knowledge and training to more deeply understand what characteristics define each oak species; join consulting arborist, Alison Lancaster, as she dispels myths and frustrations during a guided study of the oak species growing on our property.
This botanizing workshop includes an informative walk & talk through the Theodore Payne Foundation's gardens, nursery, and wildflower hill trail. Followed by laboratory time inside a classroom setting looking at plant specimens, where we'll discover the hidden world of oak leaf trichomes under microscopes.
A great class for anyone wanting to learn more about this important California keystone species.
Resources:
Oaks in the Urban Landscape by Larry Costello, Bruce Hagen, Katherine Jones – UC ANR
Illustrated Guide to the Oaks of the Southern California Floristic Province by Fred M. Roberts, Jr.
Alison Lancaster has been a consulting arborist in Southern California since 2016. She focuses her work on helping Angelenos act as thoughtful and responsible stewards of their trees. She has an AS in Wildland Resources and Forestry from Citrus College and a BA in Political Science from UC Irvine. She began her career as an intern at City of Pasadena Urban Forestry, then transitioned to training and working as a consultant for five years before opening her own business. Since then she has earned her Registered Consulting Arborist qualification, was elected to the Western Chapter ISA Board of Directors, and received the 2019 WCISA Young Professional Award.
Find her at alca-llc.com
Credentials:
ASCA Registered Consulting Arborist #770
ISA Board Certified Master Arborist WE-12464B
AS in Wildland Resources and Forestry, Citrus College
BA in Political Science, UC Irvine