Articles by Watershed staff Restoring wild lands teaches us lessons for our back yards, sustainability is not enough Vashon Beachcomber October 14, 2008
Michael Laurie
At first it was just the sound of a splash, then a wiggle, then a Coho salmon coming up the middle, the middle of Shinglemill Creek, seconds before the chill chased us all away.
She stopped and stunned us, shimmied a while in place and then slipped upstream. She reminded us that we are all connected to something very mysterious, breathtakingly beautiful, and very far ranging in time and space.
Salmon have been returning every fall to spawn in Vashon streams for thousands of years. When they die the pieces of their bodies become part of the life in over 100 different species of winged insects, sleek critters and leaf curling plants. The salmon weave our world together with strands of food and energy from thousands of miles away.
Unfortunately some of our land use actions are unweaving that beautiful ecological tapestry. One of the areas where things are becoming unwoven is the Grand Canyon of the Shinglemill. The Grand Canyon is a steep eroding drainage that was caused by someone re-directing the drainage on their land. The erosion in the Grand Canyon has been leading to excess amounts of silt being deposited in the Shinglemill at the worst time of year, in the winter. Winter is a bad time for this silt to be deposited because it often covers up and smothers the eggs just layed by the returning salmon.
I participated in one of the Land Trust restoration work parties in the Grand Canyon. The work consisted of creating terraces in the drainage to slow down the flow of sediment laden water. The terraces were created by pounding short branches into the ground about 18 inches apart and then weaving other branches and material perpendicular to the stakes. And finishing off with planting trees and shrubs whose roots will hold onto the soil. The Land Trust staff and volunteers are making steady progress at restoring the Shinglemill Grand Canyon.
This approach of terracing steep land to protect it from erosion has a track record of over 40 centuries in some parts of Asia. In the book, “Farmers of Forty Centuries” F. H. King relates his travels in Asia in the early 1900s. He discovered some plots of land on steep slopes that had been farmed for thousands of years partly due to terracing the land to protect it from erosion.
I restored a small slide area on our property a few years ago. I hammered in 4 foot long fruit tree branches and then wove in 4 – 8 foot long fruit tree branches. Then I layed in burlap bags. Next came compost and native soil. The final step was planting a few native plants and letting other native plants arrive on their own. Two years on, and several big winter storms later, looking at the spot it is hard to tell that it was once a troublesome place.
While we may not all have an obvious or extreme source of erosion on our property, even more subtle stormwater runoff can contribute to problems. According to the Partnership for Puget Sound, the state agency with the lead in restoring Puget Sound, stormwater runoff from the lands adjacent to Puget Sound are the main source of pollution in the Sound.
Most of us have one or more small sites that would benefit from being restored closer to their pre-development stage, to better control stormwater, reduce soil erosion and to restore native plants, birds, and insects. In many cases this involves removing the invasive plants and planting native plants. Of course it is not so simple as just sticking some Inside Out Flowers or Native Strawberries in where Ivy used to run crazy.
It is important to pay attention to the soil and sun conditions in the place we want to restore. You should choose native plants that are known to grow well in those conditions. Some good clues can be obtained by looking at what native plants are growing in similar places on your land and around the island.
Restoring our Vashon land is not just about repairing erosion prone places. It also includes removing invasive plants like Ivy, Herb Robert, and Himalayan Blackberry. At our property we have replaced a lot of the shade tolerant invasive plants with Wild Ginger, Trillium, Evergreen Huckleberry, Snowberry, Native Strawberry, Oregon Grape, Bleeding Heart, and many others. If you are not sure which plants are native and which are invasive I encourage you to visit the following web sites:
* Washington Native Plant Society web site to learn more about natives, http://www.wnps.org/.
* The King County Native Plant site is very good for guiding you along in choosing which native plants are best matched for conditions at your home, http://green.kingcounty.gov/GoNative/Index.aspx
* The following King County web site has great photos of invasive plants, http://www.kingcounty.gov/environment/animalsAndPlants/noxious-weeds/weed-identification.aspx
If you do plan to restore some of your property check out the King County Public Benefit Rating System, http://dnr.metrokc.gov/wlr/LANDS/incentiv.htm, to see if you may qualify for tax reductions on the portion of your land that is restored.
On Saturday, October 25th from 10 AM – 1 PM, starting at the Land Trust building, Abel Eckhardt and John Browne will lead a workshop on land restoration. It will start with a 45 minute indoor class introduction on some basic restoration and planting ideas. Then we will go out to a few sites that have been restored by Land Trust staff and volunteers. I am sure we will see more reasons to support the Land Trust and we will learn some valuable lessons on how to restore our own property.
Low Impact Development and Rain Gardens can protect your waterVashon Beachcomber, September 24, 2008
Low Impact Development
By Laurence Stockton, Michael Laurie, and Steve Foley
Did you know there are ways to add more beautiful plants to your landscape that can also help control stormwater runoff and erosion, help reduce the pollution of Puget Sound, and you might be able to get a grant or save taxes in the process?
Traditional site development practices disturb the native vegetation, compact the soil and collect the rainwater to convey it away from a building site. The combined effect of increased drainage from hard surfaces like roofs, parking areas, roads and landscapes with compacted soils, increases stormwater runoff and reduces groundwater recharge. Stormwater runoff can then pick up oils, fertilizers, pesticides, and sediment, and carry them downstream where they become the number one source of pollution in Puget Sound.
You can lower the impact of your development and help sustain your water supply by taking measures to reduce stormwater runoff from your site. One of the most versatile and effective ways to manage and treat your stormwater is called Low Impact Development (LID).
Examples of LID include compost amended soils, restored native vegetation, stormwater dispersion or infiltration, permeable paving, and rain gardens. Rain gardens are one of the more attractive ways to collect, absorb, and filter stormwater runoff from roofs, driveways and other areas that don’t allow the rain to infiltrate naturally into the ground.
A rain garden is a constructed depression filled with 1-2 feet of a special soil mix, planted with select water tolerant plants and topped with mulch. The depression is constructed to allow stormwater to enter and pond to depth of 6-12 inches before overflowing. Depending on the soil conditions at the site, the water may drain away within hours after the rain stops or it may persist for days.
Michael Laurie and Steve Foley will hold a free workshop on Low Impact Development including rain garden design and construction on Saturday October 11 from 9:00 to 11:30 am. The workshop will begin at the Land Trust auditorium with a presentation on the LID provisions in King County presented by Steve Foley. Following the presentation there will be a tour of three rain garden sites to demonstrate the design, construction and maintenance of a rain garden.
Water Conservation, Why, What, Where?Vashon Beachcomber, May 8, 2008
Save money, save weeding time, reduce the pollution in Puget Sound, reduce your ecological impact, and adapt to the changing climate. Those are 5 good reasons I can think of for using water more wisely on Vashon and Maury Islands. Many homes have an opportunity to save $200 - $300/year by changing to more water efficient practices outdoors and to save another $200 - $300/year with indoor efficiency practices. Watering more efficiently can mean using drip irrigation to target the water delivery mostly to the plants you want watered instead of spraying a lot around for the weeds. The Partnership for Puget Sound has determined that the largest source of pollution going into Puget Sound is stormwater carrying pollutants including fertilizers and pesticides from our landscapes into the Sound. This harmful runoff can also occur when we overwater our landscapes.
Projections for Western Washington are that we will have more peak winter rain storms which may mean more of the rain running off into the Sound and less into the ground. Those projections also include hotter and drier summers and an increasing population creating a greater demand on a water supply that isn’t growing. Water rights for more water are expected to continue being difficult to obtain. Learning how to use less water now, can help us to be prepared for changing climate and other challenges.
I encourage people to start with the water conservation measures that we all can do at home relatively easily, the things that will likely provide the greatest savings for the least cost. For island water users who are customers of the island water utilities, it is easier to make the case for which measures provide the best savings at the lowest cost because the cost of a measure can be compared to the estimated savings on the water bill. This is not so easy for those on a well because the cost of your water is mostly the very low cost of the pumping energy and water treatment. Although even in these situations there are some other reasons for using water wisely as noted above. Also, if too many wells, pulling water out of the same part of the aquifer draw out too much at once it could lead to a temporary drop in water pressure or water availability. Another benefit, many septic system experts agree that using water more efficiently indoors will likely lead to our septic systems functioning better and lasting longer.
The first step in trying to save water should always be to periodically check your water meter at a time when there is no water use. Try this test at home. Turn off all water using appliances and irrigation equipment. Then take a look at your water meter. Many water meters have a small wheel on the face of the meter. This small wheel spins around when water is flowing through the meter. If you see it spinning around after you are sure you have turned all the water using appliances and equipment off, you have a leak. If your meter does not have a wheel, just take a reading on the meter and write it down, then return in about half an hour and read it again. If the reading has increased, you have a leak. To find the leak, turn off the valve on the water line that supplies water to your irrigation system if you have one. If the wheel or numbers on the meter are no longer moving, the leak is in the irrigation system so start looking there. If it is not in the irrigation system investigate the water line to the home or indoors.
The best bang for the buck items for indoor water savings are typically low flow faucet aerators (1 – 2.5 gallons per minute), low flow showerheads (2 – 2.5 gallons per minute), and fixing leaks. As a first step try to determine the flow rate for your faucets and showerheads in gallons per minute. The maximum flow allowed by code since 1994 is 2.5 gallons per minute in home faucets and showerheads. The flow rate of your faucet or showerhead may be printed on the side. If not you will need to measure the amount of water it puts out over time. This may be difficult to impossible without the use of a shower flow bag available from either http://www.amconservationgroup.com or http://www.nrgideas.com.
If you determine that any of your bathroom faucets have flows great than 1.5 gallons per minute. You can replace the faucet aerator with one that only has a flow of 1.5 gallons per minute. To find high quality faucets and faucet aerators that use 1.5 gallons per minute or less look for the Water Sense label on faucets and aerators that you purchase. Or go to the following EPA web site:http://www.epa.gov/WaterSense/pp/bathroom_faucets.htm. The faucets and aerators listed at the EPA site are required to meet a strict third party testing standard for low flow rate and performance. When you go to purchase a new aerator bring one of the old ones with you to the store to ensure that the new one will fit your faucet. One of my favorite low cost items is the simple O-ring washer for use with outdoor watering systems. Sometimes regular flat washers do not stop hose leaks or they are dried out, cracked, and have stopped working. The O-ring washers are more flexible, tend to last longer, and tend to stop more of the difficult leaks. At a cost of about $0.50 or less per washer, at typical island water rates, the investment could be paid back in water savings within 1 – 2 weeks.
Water Conservation for Small Public Water Systems and Private Well OwnersA Hands-On Workshop with Michael LaurieSaturday May 24, 9-11:30 at a private residence on a Group B water system.Please register by contacting Susie Kalhorn 463-4006 or
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is limited! Michael will help identify the most cost effective ways to conserve water both inside and outside the home, including water-wise irrigation systems. Small public water systems don't use water rates as a way to encourage conservation. Instead, they rely on each homeowner to help keep the water flowing, particularly during the summer drought. Sign-up for the workshop and bring your neighbors. Take a chance at winning a free consultation with licensed waterworks operator, Bob Seibold, just for showing up!
Water conservation conversation concentration Vashon Beachcomber August 8, 2008
One hundred thousand gallons of water; some people use that much water or more trying to keep 6,000 square feet of lawn green all summer, unknowingly over-watering or with an inefficient system. How much water is that? You would have to stand there spraying your garden hose 24 hours/day non-stop for almost 12 days to use that much water. That’s a lot of water and a lot of money to pay for it. Imagine how much more it is when there are also leaks in the system like some people have.
So far we are lucky on Vashon that there are no signs that the underground water supply is permanently dropping due to our water use. There is enough water down there, so far, but meeting our water demand is very expensive, especially in the summer. And as Steve Haworth said in his article, we sometimes come close to exceeding the capacity of our water supply systems in the summer.
I think it is time for more of us to think about letting our lawns go brown as Emma Amiad suggested three weeks ago. We also should think about the idea of replacing some or all of our lawns, landscaping with plants that require much less water, designing and maintaining our landscapes to use less water and watering in ways that use less water.
I encourage everyone to try out some level of rainwater collection and use. But before installing rainwater collection systems that can take many years to pay for their cost through savings, it makes more sense to invest in the things that will likely have a much quicker payback. Several lower cost options include: using compost to help the soil make better use of water, mulching to reduce evaporation and erosion, growing low-water use plants, checking for leaks and breaks in your irrigation system and watering only when the plants need it by checking the soil. Those steps will also allow you to reduce the size and cost of your rainwater system. I currently have about 1,000 gallons of rainwater storage and use at my home.
If your main reason for keeping even part of your lawn is to have low-growing plants that complement or fill in under taller plants, there are many ground cover alternatives to lawns that require far less water and work. Some that can work well here are sweet woodruff, violets, wild ginger, bleeding hearts, false lily of the valley, thyme, kinnikinnik, lady’s mantle, bunchberry, twinflower, starflower, coastal strawberry, and inside-out flower.
If you haven’t already tried it, I encourage you to try watering part of your non-lawn landscape with soaker hoses or drip irrigation. Using soaker hoses and drip can eliminate the problem of some plants blocking the water from reaching others, it will eliminate water blowing away in the wind, and it will help you to deliver more of the water only where you want it. A number of Vashon stores sell soaker hoses. After you buy a soaker hose, uncurl and un-kink it and lay it out along a line of plants or circling large plants. It may have a tendency to want to spring back. If it does, purchase some 6” garden staples from one of the local stores to help hold it in place. Lay the soaker hose lines 12 to 24 inches apart. Place them closer together for sandy soil and farther apart for loam and clay. If you install and use a simple twist timer with your soaker hose it will help you avoid over-watering. Start out watering for 30 minutes two to three times a week and increase it if the plants need more. Annuals and vegetables will need more than most well established perennials. Install a pressure regulator between the soaker hose and the outside faucet to prevent the creation of geysers in the hose. If you are on a well you might want to add a filter to prevent clogging up your soaker hose.
Once you get comfortable with soaker hoses, pressure regulators, and timers you might want to venture into trying drip which often makes it even easier to put the water right where you want it.
Saving summer water can help reduce the peak demand on our island water systems and it has many other benefits. We can have very beautiful landscapes, save money, save time, and maintain a safe buffer of water for fire fighting, emergencies, and stream life (for systems getting some of their water out of streams).
Michael Laurie has his own business, Watershed LLC, as a Water Efficiency Consultant. He works with homeowners and businesses helping them to reduce their water use inside and outside their buildings.
Water Wise Landscape Ideasfrom the newsletter of Heights Water, Vashon, WA, June 2007
Michael Laurie
The 7 steps of WaterWise Gardening.
There are 7 steps we all can take to reduce our water use and improve the beauty of our landscapes.
Plan & design with water conservation in mind
Evaluate your site and your needs. Note the amount of shade and type of soil you have in different areas and pick plants that will work well in those conditions. Wasabi will grow well in wet and partly shady areas but it will have a hard time in direct sun. Consider how you will be using the different areas of your yard. Plant lawn only where it will serve a purpose. The kids may need a few hundred square feet of lawn to play on but they may not need an acre or more of lawn. Group plants according to their water needs, so you can focus water only where it is needed. If you have drought tolerant plants like sedums mixed in all around blueberries you will have a hard time providing the proper amount of water for both.
Improve the soil – its foundation
Soil improvement is the single most important thing you can do to ensure healthy plants and conserve water. Plant roots will penetrate deeply into soils made more porous and nutritious with added organic matter. Water will soak in and be used better also. Adding compost to boost the organic matter will maintain or improve the health of your plants. Also the compost will help the soil hold onto and slowly release the water to ensure that your plants make more complete use of the water.
Plant and maintain only as much lawn as you need.
Lawns are water guzzlers. One inch of water on one acre is over 27,000 gallons…so keep it small. Plant lawn only in areas where it provides functional benefits. Plant during the fall to take advantage of autumn rains and moderate temperatures which are ideal for growing grass. Consider lawn alternatives such as eco-turf, thyme or other “step-able” ground covers.
Select low-water use plants & plant in water-use zones.
Choose plants with the lowest possible irrigation need and group them accordingly. Give plants a head start by planting in the fall, so they can become established during the rainy season. For more information on plants that do not need much water, check out the following web sites:
http://www.savingwater.org/docs/plantlist.pdf
http://www.wnps.org/plant_lists/counties/king/documents/KingCounty.doc
http://www.greatplantpicks.org/?page=selectionCriteria
Mulch, mulch, mulch
Use 2 or 3 inches of mulch (bark, wood chips, compost) to cool the soil, minimize evaporation, reduce weed growth, and slow erosion. Remember to leave some breathing room around the plant’s stem or trunk.
Water wisely
Watering deeply but less often encourages deep roots and prevents disease. Reducing excess watering will reduce pesticide and fertilizer runoff into streams and groundwater
Water to the plants’ needs, not just to a pre-set schedule. Also, reduce the watering time in the Early and Late Summer.
Provide appropriate maintenance.
Limited fertilization, proper pruning, weeding, mulching, organic pest control, and irrigation system adjustments will enable your landscape to thrive. The garden’s best fertilizer if the gardener’s footprint.
I have been working as a water efficiency consultant for over 13 years and helped hundreds of homeowners reduce their water, pesticide, and fertilizer use. If you would like to schedule a customized visit for your landscape, please feel free to contact me at 206-567-5492 or
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Article by Michael Laurie in the Vashon Island Beachcomber originally printed April 26, 2006, about saving water at home
“Using water wisely starts with home decisions”
Letter by Michael Laurie to the Vashon island Loop about water conservation“More On How Much Water We’re Using”
http://vashonloop.com/PDF/LoopV3_18.pdf
Book review by Michael Laurie in the Vashon Island Loop about “WorldChanging”http://vashonloop.com/PDF/LoopV3_26.pdf
Salmon returning home to Vashon
December 16, 2003, Michael Laurie
Articles about Watershed staff An article about Michael Laurie and Watershed in the first issue of the Partnership for Water Conservation Summer 2006 newsletter. At this time the article is only available to Partnership members. http://www.partners4water.org/documents/Summer06newsletter.pdf
For information on becoming a Partnership for Water Conservation member please visit their web site at: http://www.partners4water.org/getinvolved_join.html
Getting to Know Our Interns Michael Laurie" From the July 2007 Issue of the King County, Washington, Master Gardener Newsletter, Sound Gardening
Sally Fox
A tour of Michael Laurie’s garden on Vashon is an opportunity to see sustainable gardening at work. Michael, a graduate of this year’s class, has multiple rain barrels, a rain garden that uses stormwater runoff, a green roof, compost beds, Northwest native plants and a no-irrigation meadow. A dedicated herbologist, Michael grows a huge variety of culinary and medicinal herbs and can brew lucky visitors tea picked fresh from the garden.
Consulting in water efficiency management, Michael shows people and businesses how to improve their water use and develop more environmentally sustainable practices. He supports utilities, Conservation Districts, government programs, businesses and individuals to translate waterwise principles into practical and doable ideas. His project for the Naval Shipyards in Bremerton showed them how to save hundreds of thousands of dollars using water more efficiently.
Water management is critical both locally and globally. On Vashon Island, where
Michael lives, quality water is key to the island’s welfare. Conservation matters, but so does protecting quality by limiting the negative impacts of pesticide and fertilizer use.
For this reason, Michael and a partner created a project called “Garden Green, Drink
Clean” for the Vashon-Maury Island Groundwater Protection Committee. They helped islanders make better choices on fertilizers and pesticides by providing fliers showing the environmental impacts of the products sold on the island. Dollars-off coupons encouraged people to experiment with low-impact products.
The project offered general information on how to use water more efficiently in yards and gardens. In addition, Michael provided audits to selected households in which he evaluated homeowners’ interests and needs and created a customized set of recommentations for each property. The audit included hands-on demonstrations and information on natural approaches to insects, diseases, weeds, compost and fertilizers.
Michael’s background includes degrees in environmental science and energy management and years working in energy and water management. He is also a passionate gardener. “The topics of gardening and water use are so huge that no one can know it all.” For him, the Master Gardener training was an opportunity to keep up to date while increasing his knowledge of diseases and insects.
Michael stated, “The program is a great exposure to different topics, experts, and
resources. Plus, it is a great network.”
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