Updates from the Hedgerow Project

By Aylara Odekova, AMLT Native Plant Program Manager

This month, AMLT completed fieldwork on restoring and revegetating four acres of land at Pie Ranch. Funded by the Coastal Conservancy, this project started in June 2023 with treatment of invasive plants that thrived after the CZU Fire Complex. Since then, AMLT has completed six hand treatments throughout the entire restoration area, attempting to control highly invasive species, such as poison hemlock, Italian thistle and nasturtium. In addition to tackling invasive species, AMLT created a plan to propagate 60 different species of culturally significant plants, such as buckeyes, blue elderberries, soaproot, hazelnut and yarrow. Plant installation began with the first rain in November 2024 and continued until Summer of 2025. Over the course of one planting season, AMLT installed 3,354 plants along Green Oaks Creek, the roadside hedgerow as well as an ephemeral creek area at Pie Ranch. AMLT has engaged in a collaborative effort with Pie Ranch’s Youth Corps Conservation Crew to tend, water, monitor and map each of the plants. Restoration efforts have also involved 12 tribal members and a team of 35 dedicated volunteers, who contributed over 2,039 hours of volunteer time towards this project. We are thankful to the Coastal Conservancy for the opportunity to work on this project and to Pie Ranch for a shared vision of stewardship.

*AMLT volunteer preparing to plant red maids, lupine, popcorn flower and yerba buena along Green Oaks creek.*

*AMLT volunteer watering yarrow along Green Oaks creed.*

Executive Director of Pie Ranch, Nancy Vail shared her vision: “Since our beginnings in 2002, Pie Ranch has held a vision of healing our relationships with ourselves, each other and the Earth. As we have inherited a legacy of stolen lands and a country built by stolen people, we humbly seek to build a path forward that is rooted in justice and love. Being neighbors to 7.5 million people in the Bay Area from a multitude of backgrounds, we are committed to tending diverse, culturally relevant foods grown with regenerative practices while bringing back traditional Indigenous stewardship and native plants to these lands in honor of the original stewards, the Quiroste people. As there are no known descendants of the Quiroste, we have partnered with the Amah Mutsun Tribal Band and Amah Mutsun Land Trust since 2014 to work toward this vision.”

This year marks the 12th year anniversary of our relationship with Pie Ranch. As we continue working together to restore and revegetate the land that sustains us, we are healing the external as well as the internal landscape of our hearts. This process restores the sacredness of this land and brings a sense of belonging and dignity to its people.

We are looking forward to continuing this collaborative practice of tending and stewarding the land with Pie Ranch for another planting season with a funding opportunity from the Wildlife Conservation Board through the San Mateo Resource Conservation District. Our goal is to promote ecological restoration, increase native biodiversity, and support culturally significant plant species through coordinated land care rooted in Traditional Ecological Knowledge and regenerative agriculture practices. Stay tuned for updates on our joint stewardship efforts of fire- and climate-impacted hedgerows of Pie Ranch.