Creek Mouth planting this Sunday, December 19th

This last weekend we had two very successful work days out at the Creek Mouth. In total we had over 50 volunteers come out to help. All of the black plastic is now out and almost all of the plants are in the ground. There will be one additional volunteer event before the end of the year. This coming Sunday, December 19th from 9am - 2pm we will be out to finish the planting and do some hand removal of ice plant at the site. If you have any questions please feel free to email us. Thanks again to all of the volunteers that have helped with the project along the way. Check back next year for future volunteer dates and project updates.

Creek Mouth Update!

This last weekend's volunteer events were a great success! Thanks to all of you dedicated volunteers that came out to help remove the black plastic and start planting native species. The black plastic along the eastern creek bank has been removed and nearly two thirds of the bank has been planted. We will be back at the site this Saturday and Sunday, December 11th and 12th, from 9am - 2pm. Please come out and help us finish up the planting. If you have any questions please feel free to email us. Thanks again to all of the volunteers that have helped with the project along the way. Check back next week for more photos and updates on the project.

Volunteer Planting Dates!

Creek mouth volunteer planting dates have been set for December 4th, 5th, 11th and 12th. Please join us to help remove the black plastic at the site and plant thousands of native species. We will meet from 9am to 2pm each day. Please wear appropriate attire and remember to pack sunscreen and water. Please contact us with any questions and to RSVP if you are interested in attending.

Progress Update

The ice plant at the mouth of Carpinteria Creek has been solarizing for more then two months now. This week the plastic was lifted up in a few locations to check on the ice plants progress. The ice plant is very brown and shrivled, see photos bellow. This means that volunteer events to help remove the black plastic and plant native plants at the site will be happening soon. Check back for dates in November.

Ice plant is Solarizing!!!

On Saturday with help from the California Conservation Corps, the Oxnard City Corp and community volunteers, we have completed the initial phase of the project. All of the black plastic is in place and ice plant is being solarized!!! Let’s hope for more of this warm, sunny weather to speed the process along. Thanks again to all of you who have helped along the way. We hope you will be able to come back out in a couple months to help remove the black plastic and plant natives with us. Check back in a month or two for updates and information on planting dates.

Project Update

Thank you to all the volunteers that came out over the last two weeks to help put the black plastic in along the mouth of Carpinteria Creek. On Wednesday a group of volunteers came out from Patagonia as well as Oxnard’s City Corp, who contributed to a very productive day. We are almost done installing the black plastic, the last 50 foot section will be completed this coming Saturday. Please come out and help, we will be at the creek mouth from 9am -2pm.The plastic will remain for two to three months in order to solarize the non native ice plant along the creek mouth. Once that is done we will need more volunteers to help with the re-vegetation efforts. Thanks again to all those who came out to help. Check back for project updates and future volunteer dates.

Update on Saturdays Volunteer Event

Thanks again to everyone that came out to help this last Saturday. We completed laying the black plastic on the eastern edge of the Creek. We are also ready to lay black plastic along the western bank. Volunteers worked to cleared the ice plant along the paved path and filled sand bags in preparation. Thanks again to all those who came out to help.

Carpinteria Creek Mouth Restoration Project Begins!!!

Thank you to all the volunteers that came out over the weekend to help put the black plastic in along the creek mouth on such beautiful Saturday. We had a successful day covering a quarter of the project area with black plastic. The plastic will remain for around two to three months in order to solarize the non native ice plant along the creek mouth. Once that is done we will need more volunteers to help with the re-vegetation efforts. We still need volunteer for this upcoming Saturday, August 7th. Additional volunteer days have been added for Wednesday August 18th and Saturday the 21st. please contact Kevin Thompson to RSVP. Pictures bellow are from last Saturday’s volunteer day. Thanks again to all those who came out to help. Check back later for more updates!

Volunteers needed Saturday July 31st & August 7th

Please join South Coast Habitat Restoration, Channel Islands Restoration, California State Parks, and the Carpinteria Creek Watershed Coalition, in kicking off the start of our newest restoration project at the mouth of Carpinteria Creek. The creek mouth is critical to the restoration of the Carpinteria Creek Watershed. It provides important habitat for a variety of bird species as well as the federally endangered Southern Steelhead trout and Tidewater Goby.

We will be laying large sheets of black plastic over the non-native iceplant, a process known as “Solarization”. Using sandbags to hold the plastic in place until the iceplant has died. At that time we will remove the plastic and install a variety of native plants. This will greatly increase the habitat value of the entire watershed. We will be working from approximately 9am  to 2pm. Please wear appropriate attire and bring sunscreen, a lunch, and plenty of water.

All tools and supplies will be provided

Please contact us for directions and parking information or with other questions.

Carpinteria Creek Mouth Restoration Beginning Soon

Currently the mouth of Carpinteria Creek is lined with approximately 350 feet of rocks on both of its banks confining it from its natural meandering state. Few native plant species are present on the banks of the creek mouth, nor in the surrounding area. The majority of the vegetation on the banks is non-native, consisting of iceplant and myoporum. Here are a few pictures of the Carpinteria Creek Mouth prior to the project‘s start.

The goal of the project is to increase the habitat and ecological value of the mouth of Carpinteria Creek by removing non-native flora and planting of native flora along the banks. The existing non-native plants will be removed via a combination of solarization, hand removal and treatment with herbicide. The iceplant will be removed by solarization with black plastic and hand removal. Native plants will be installed through the dead iceplant using volunteers during the rainy season to facilitate establishment.