Final Panhandle workday of 2013

At our community workday on Saturday, neighbors worked with park staff in two groups: one to rake up the plentiful leaves beneath the eucalyptus trees west of Masonic Avenue...

...and another group working inside the rain garden for weeding, deadheading and removing leaves.  

Even in the week of the winter solstice, the rain garden receives a fair amount of direct sun at mid-day, contributing to the speedy growth since the planting in March.

The path to the Sue Bierman Glade has been resurfaced with fresh material and its borders have been edged. Gotta love routine maintenance! 

Happy Holidays to all!

Pictures from January workday

Today's Panhandle workday involved repeat volunteers and the families of the second grade class at San Francisco Day School. Here are a few photos from our day and one of our special guest.

Sweeping in the memorial circle


Clearing the Shrader cross-path of mud and debris

Dale Danley (L) with Megan Bierman by the sign that honors her mother, Sue Bierman

Someone gets a ride in a wheelbarrow pretty much every month

Besides what you see in the pictures, there was also a lot of leaf-raking, soil spreading, and shrub clipping. We were a large group and I think we all felt amazed by the amount of work we got done. Megan Bierman joined us in the work and expressed her appreciation for making the Sue Bierman Glade, installed in 2001, a more welcoming spot. To help us understand some of her mother's work in the struggle to keep the Panhandle park from being turned into an elevated freeway, she led us in singing The Cement Octopus, written by San Francisco song-writer Malvina Reynolds about the freeway revolt.

Starting our 2012 at the Panhandle's West End

2012's first community workday in the Panhandle is coming up this Saturday, and the forecast is for clear weather.

Saturday, January 14

9 am - 11:30 am 

Meet in the park at the bulletin board near Ashbury

Tools & gloves provided, wear sturdy shoes and dress in layers

Park staff tell me that our projects will be centered in the area between Shrader and Stanyan, where the Sue Bierman Glade is located. It's rare that our workday takes place all the way up at the west end of the park, so Saturday's program is a rare opportunity to care for an area that, despite some recent tree pruning and path upkeep, isn't reaching its potential as a transition area between the Panhandle and the rest of Golden Gate Park (or as a tribute to a neighborhood hero).

Let's take time Saturday during our snack break to learn more about Sue Bierman, for whom the grove of redwoods, cypress, and pines was dedicated more than ten years ago. All are welcome to join us, and our break typically starts around 10:30 a.m.

Improvements at the west end

The path leading to the Sue Bierman Glade received some attention and some fresh, clean materials. Looking good!

Tree improvements near Bierman Glade

I noticed recent tree pruning that has dramatically improved the appearance and feeling around the Sue Bierman glade, west end of the Panhandle. The pruned trees were pittosporum, one of the most common trees in the park.