Jolly Green Goddess busted!

There I was, peacefully hand-watering and trying to salvage my tiny “crop” of chard, spinach and tomatoes on that famously hot southern side of our white house around 9 a.m. one day last week, when suddenly to my eyes and ears did appear the rumble of a white City of Sonoma truck. It was the water police, a.k.a. Water Waste Patrol! And in our driveway!
The tall, handsome, kind and articulate gentleman offered me water-saving shower heads and hose nozzles, but didn’t happen to come by while our various neighbors washed a car in the driveway or a truck in the street during the mornings or afternoons of last week’s heat wave.
We definitely need to have any potential leaks checked, as everyone should, since our lawns are fading from lack of enough water, and our sticking to our stinky principle of “If it’s yellow, let it mellow” mysteriously did not reduce our apparent water usage.
Speaking of water, while use of the Russian River seems to be down, I have to wonder if you have seen the Russian River lately.
Jerry and I enjoy the anonymity of sitting and reading, with lots of San Franciscans we don’t know, with our feet in the river’s water near Monte Rio. A couple of weeks ago, hardly anyone was there, and the water’s edge was foamy, green and ugly, there were no guppies, and people who did venture in voiced fear of touching their picnic food without using sanitary wipes of some kind. Children could walk all the way across to the other side, and weeds (nothing good to eat) were growing among the pebbles along the river’s banks.
The river resembled our daughter’s description of the Dnieper River downstream from Chernobyl where she once visited as a Sister Cities exchange student. One has to wonder what the fish that do survive will be like.
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As the Jolly Green Goddess cared for Mary Powers’ roses along the edge of her property that borders Nathanson Creek, I noticed mounds of plants growing in the creek bed, growing undeterred.
If you are a blackberry fan, you might find your jam in Nathanson Creek, along with watercress, eucalyptus, and a whole lot of other water-blocking vegetation, especially in the downtown area.
Personally, I would not eat the watercress, or even the blackberries growing in the creek. While Sebastiani Vineyards & Winery religiously tests the creek for effluents (I have seen them do this several times) for which they might be responsible, we simply don’t know what other people have dumped in there.
Why hardly anyone seems to have noticed the cause and effect previously of heavy rains, lack of exits for the water and flooding on the east side of Sonoma is beyond my personal pea brain.
Of course there are some people who believe the growth in the creek is just nature and that nature will take its course, even if that course runs through other people’s garages and living rooms.
Some Nathanson Creek neighbors are quite concerned about getting flooded should it ever rain here again, especially if it rains too much, and many believe the last time any government agency cleaned out the vegetation was around 10 years ago.
Some remember that when Brock Arner was city manager, he said his hands were tied because the creek was under the purview of “Fish & Game” and “Flood Control” agencies – at what government level no one was sure. Last week one city staffer told me it’s the responsibility of the “Sanitation District” and the “Water Department.” Another staffer said “some of it is done by agencies and some is private responsibility, depending on where you’re talking about.”
Sonoma Public Works Administrator Al Bandur straightened things out as much as is possible. Bandur said, “About eight years ago Sonoma Creek and its tributaries were declared habitats for endangered species.”
Bandur also confirmed that it is the private property owner’s responsibility to clear to the middle of the creek, but that they have to leave stumps and certain other growth to maintain salmon or other habitats.
Then he said that the state Fish & Game Department can actually fine any city agency or private individual for disturbing a habitat, which can result in the resident who cleans the creek having to sue various levels of government to recover their fines.
Many of Sonoma’s creek-side residents are not sure what to do. One thing they are sure of is that they don’t want more flooding.
In our last floods a couple of years ago, water backed up in the creek, new developments off East Napa Street helped overload the system, and houses were flooded as far south as France Street. The fact that Patten Street has no drainage for several blocks due to an asphalt hump that has built up from years of added pavement undoubtedly contributed to the problem.
Those of us who were flooded on the east side found a coating of silt in our gardens (and many homes) that the city didn’t test and couldn’t identify. We know from personal experience that the following spring all sorts of weed and plant varieties sprung up that had never grown in our lawns before.
Perhaps our leaders could get together and figure out some action for the good of our people that transcends all these bureaucratic conflicts. In the meantime, City Hall offers a printed “Creek Care Guide,” according to Bandur.
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Tree leaves are starting to turn gorgeous colors, reminding us of the wonders of nature, while others just turn brown and drop to the ground. When they do hit bottom, so to speak, rake and save them in a compost pile or container.
This fall’s messy leaves can turn into next season’s natural fertilizer. To the pile add grass clippings, if you have any, as well as pooped-out flower and vegetable plants, as long as they appear to be disease-free. If your tomato stems and trunks look ravaged by unknown predators, throw them away and do not put into your compost. Microscopic bugs will just multiply in that warm compost “cooker.”
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Wildwood Farm & Sculpture Garden’s annual maple tree sale runs through September in Kenwood, where you can enjoy and purchase loads of “turning” maple trees as well as more than one hundred sculptures of ceramic, steel, coated resin and other weather-resistant materials. It’s worth the trip just to experience the almost spiritual beauty of the trees. 10300 Sonoma Highway, Kenwood. Call 707.833.1161 or visit www.wildwoodmaples.com for more information.
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When watering your plants, make choices. Water the ones that are really important to you, such as food. If that source of food is not important or vital, perhaps let your veggies go. If your lawn isn’t so important, let it go.
By the way, during several recent trips to Napa in the last few weeks I saw absolutely no signs of water conservation on that side of the border – just lots of green lawns. On the other hand, Santa Rosa residents seem to be sacrificing their grass willingly.
When you decide not to water your plants, you might comfort yourself with this quote from Prince Charles, who has neither water nor financial problems: “To get the best results you must talk to your vegetables.”
Get down. Get dirty!
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