Joyce Kilmer’s poem Trees came to mind this week, when Redwood City finally got around to installing trees into the new street islands along Hopkins Avenue. I witnessed the holes being dug on Wednesday, but it wasn’t until Thursday that the mature trees, in large wooden boxes, were placed near the islands in which they were to take up residence:

In short order, a crew then went along the length of Hopkins Avenue from Nevada Street down to Elwood Street and installed the trees into the pre-dug holes. Then, on Friday, a pair of tall wooden stakes were hammered in to the soil, flanking each tree, and each tree was secured to the stakes with rubber strapping. Finally, the crews ran the irrigation to each tree (and to the surrounding soil, where I presume ground cover and/or other low bushes will soon be added). Here is one of the resulting islands:

Depending on the length of any given island, it received one, two, or as many as five trees. All of which are, I believe, the same: Quercus Rugosa, more commonly known as Netleaf oak.

Prior to this installation, neither I nor my wife, who enjoyed a long career in the Horticulture industry, had come across this particular oak variety before. We did a bit of research, however, and can see why they were chosen. For one thing, they are highly adaptable to a variety of growing conditions, meaning that not only should they grow well here (they are quite popular in Mexico), they should also handle some amount of climate change quite well. For another, their shape — they seem to remain relatively narrow as they grow tall — makes them well-suited to this particular installation. In any case, the lower limbs can be pruned away as the tree grows, raising the canopy above the level of the adjacent traffic.

On the subject of traffic, in 2007 about a dozen of these were installed in East Palo Alto along the Highway 101 sound walls. By 2021, the tallest of them was approaching 40 feet in height. An examination of those trees revealed that the trees have been capturing tire dust, diesel soot, and other particles from the air, making them ideal partners in our urban environment.

Unlike many oaks, Netleaf oak leaves are large and thick, and look a bit like those of a Southern Magnolia:

In trying to track down some examples of mature Netleaf oaks, my wife and I learned that in addition to the aforementioned installation in East Palo Alto, Stanford has apparently started planting them. As well, Apple Inc. used a number of them when they landscaped Apple Park. Figuring that we’d have the best luck finding nice, mature examples around the Apple campus, we headed down to Cupertino this week and spent some time walking the perimeter. It took a bit of time, but we finally found a couple of nice ones along Homestead Road, not too far off of the public sidewalk. Here is a real beauty:

Incidentally, if you haven’t been down to Apple Park, it is a truly lovely place, at least from the outside. While mere mortals like myself can’t just go in, the landscaping around the park is quite breathtaking. For instance, both my wife and I were struck by this view of the sidewalk as we strolled alongside Homestead Road:

If you go, do stop in at the Visitor Center. Not only is there a second-story outdoor deck from which you can get a better view of the campus itself, it also has an interactive exhibit that allows you to use one of their iPads to explore the “ring” both inside and out. Oh, and the center sports a lovely little cafe, plus a small store where you can buy shirts, watchbands, and the like.

I need to give a lot of credit to Dave Muffly, a tree researcher and consultant (and oak expert), who was hired by Steve Jobs and worked as Apple’s Senior Arborist for seven years. Much of what you see when you explore the campus is thanks to Dave, who is open to consultation on tree projects of any scale.

Sticking with the subject of trees for a moment longer, this morning my wife and I headed down to Menlo Park’s Nealon Park to being our weekly Meals on Wheels route (the food we deliver is prepared in the kitchens at the Little House activity center). As we arrived, we were dismayed to see that the giant Coast Live oak in front of the activity center had been cut down just a couple of days before:

The tree was quite old, though, and was probably threatening to do damage either to vehicles or to the nearby Little House. I presume that a new tree will soon be planted to replace what was lost; I for one will be looking forward to that.

Moving away from trees, but staying on an eco-friendly theme, I continue to check regularly on the Veterans Memorial Building/Senior Center project in Red Morton Park. I don’t have any significant new progress to report, but thought I should mention some of the eco-friendly aspects of the project. In particular, anyone who really looks at the building may wonder about the little mini-towers that are sticking up from the building’s rooftop:

You might assume that these are little observation decks, but in fact they are a key part of the building’s cooling system. These are “solar chimneys,” an ancient technology that has been in use for centuries. During the day, the sun shines on the chimney and heats both it and the air within. Because hot air rises, as it leaves the chimney it creates a bit of a vacuum, causing cooler, fresher air to be drawn in through windows and (I presume) vents on the building’s ground floor. That system, along with a number of other “green” design innovations, should keep the building comfortable on all but the most extreme days. And for those, the building will of course have a more conventional heat pump to provide active cooling as cheaply as possible. For all the details, check out the Project Climate Control document that was written up to explain how the building’s systems will operate.

Incidentally, since people occasionally ask, this new building is just part of what will eventually be located in this part of Redwood City’s Red Morton Park. Once it is complete, the adjacent single-story Veterans Memorial Building will be torn down and replaced by a new YMCA (that new building will take the place of their current building at 1445 Hudson Street). For those exploring options for physical exercise, the new Veterans Memorial Building will have a gymnasium suitable for half-court basketball (and other sports) on the ground floor plus an outdoor running track on the open portion of the building’s second floor:

For anything else, though, we’ll need to wait for the YMCA building to be built. That is where we’ll eventually find swimming pools, weight rooms, exercise equipment, and the like.

Lastly, one more eco-friendly item: Redwood City’s recycled water fill station is at long last opening, starting Monday, August 28. Unlike in the past, when the recycled water was brought over to the city’s Public Works yard using a tank trailer, this new automated system is connected directly to Redwood City’s ever-growing network of recycled water pipelines.

[image courtesy of Redwood City]

You’ll find the station at 1400 Broadway. It is scheduled to be open from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. on weekdays, and from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekends. Note that what was once free will now cost — but it won’t cost much. There is a $10 one-time fee, plus the water itself will cost $.01 per gallon, charged to your utility bill (yes, one cent: 100 gallons will cost one dollar). Before you rush over there, though, know two things. One, you need to have a way, approved by the Water Resources Management Program folks, to transport your water (I have a 150-gallon bladder I can use with my pickup truck, and I’ve witnessed others using large liquid storage totes, but I’m guessing a plastic barrel might do). Two, you need to attend a brief training that covers the use of the water, shows you how to operate the fill station, and likely approves your chosen method for transporting the water.

Upon completion of the training you’ll receive an “access card” that will be scanned each time you use the fill station. You can take up to 300 gallons at one time, and can make up to three trips per day (for a total of 900 gallons each and every day). This water is non-potable: you cannot drink it, use it for food preparation, or bathe in it. Redwood City’s recycled water is primarily intended for your gardens (including your vegetable gardens) and for any water features you might have.

Note that because the cost of the recycled water is charged to your water bill, in order to use the station you need to receive a water bill from Redwood City. For all the details, including a schedule of the required training sessions and a link to the application you’ll need to fill out to gain access, head over to the city’s Get Recycled Water web page.

Recycled water isn’t for everyone, but even after the extremely wet winter we just had, we should continue to maintain good habits and conserve. Thus, if this is something that you have any interest in, I strongly recommend that you check it out. I for one am looking forward to using it to help water my trees — including, if I can manage to get my hands one one, a Netleaf oak of my own…