If a Tree Falls in Ojai, Everyone Hears It

Ravaged by root rot, the century-old oak by the Libbey Bowl was the first to fall. Then down tumbled a venerable--but ailing--tree near Matilija Middle School.

Within months, an oak that breaks up the pavement on Blanche Street near City Hall will be uprooted, a victim of insidious fungus.

In the past 18 months, this sun-baked valley has lost a dozen graceful, gnarled oaks on city land.

The prominence of the deceased trees--and the community’s unbridled anguish at their loss--has sprouted something quite unusual: a public campaign to save the oaks.

With its day spas, citrus orchards and quirky artists studios, Ojai is, to many, the modern-day Shangri-La. And in this hidden paradise, residents are not letting their oaks fall quietly.

“Think about it: If we had a building that was 200 years old, and someone harmed it, or worse, razed it, there would be an outcry,” said Caryn Bosson, executive director of the Ojai Valley Land Conservancy. “Yet the Ojai Valley has some trees that are over 300 years old and dying, but the awareness in the community is not there in terms of their care and maintenance.”

Perhaps predated only by the sueded Topatopas that ring the valley, the oaks are a symbol of Ojai. Their scattered acorns--when mashed into a paste--fed the Chumash long before 8,000 ranchers, nature-lovers and urban escapees descended on this Ventura County community.

They are a point of pride in this rural, touristy city, where some residents derisively call Thousand Oaks “Thousand Stumps” for its tree-cutting tendencies.

The trees shade the otherwise inhospitable bowl from the sun’s scorching rays. They canopy Libbey Park, where lovebirds stroll and toddlers toddle. The coast live oaks--also called California live oaks--and valley oaks--sometimes known as white oaks--stud lawns in the leafy Arbolata area of town.

In all, city arborist John Davis estimates that Ojai is home to between 1,000 and 2,000 oaks, most of them younger than 250 years old. It’s not unusual for some of the trees, even dozens, to die each year. But area environmentalists want to save as many trees as possible.

To keep the city leafy, the Ojai Valley Land Conservancy and Horticulture Society are sowing the seeds of oak preservation around town with a full-tilt public information campaign.

“I have never heard of this kind of campaign,” said Janet Cobb, executive director of the Oakland-based California Oaks Foundation, a statewide group dedicated to preserving and perpetuating oak woodlands. “And I really commend them. It’s a wise thing to do--taking care of the native vegetation.”

As part of the campaign, a few thousand easy-to-understand pamphlets on oak care are popping up at real estate offices and the Chamber of Commerce. The booklets instruct Ojai newcomers--many of them Eastern transplants who erroneously believe buckets of water help the trees--on oak do’s and don’ts.

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The groups hosted a Heritage Oaks Day downtown this spring, where folks learned about the finicky genus quercus. High school students trained in the ways of trees have gone door-to-door, telling oak owners about proper care of the trees. Ideally, tree-friendly groups are envisioning an Ojai tree master plan, that identifies where every tree in the city is, what kind it is and where others are needed.

Their tree-preserving message is also hitting the road, with slide shows before the City Council and Planning Commission. Homeowners associations are the next stop.

The message: Oaks are persnickety. Especially the geriatric ones. Mistreatment can--and will--kill them.

“When they age, trees--just like people--develop all these maladies,” said arborist Paul Rogers, a consultant with Ojai and other Southern California cities. “The way they should be left is in their natural condition--no irrigation, no planting [around them], let their fallen leaves stay.”

According to Rogers, keeping mature oaks healthy means not watering them during California’s long, dry summer; leaving their surrounding land free of water-thirsty plants; not changing the height of the soil around their roots and trunks; and hiring a professional to take care of tree-pruning needs.

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Seeing the trees treated poorly piques many longtime Ojai residents, each of whom seems to have an oak care pet peeve.

City Councilwoman Nina Shelley’s chief annoyance is the ivy-climbing-up-the-oak-trunk fad. Although it may look quaint and rural, she says, such landscaping is tantamount to a boa constrictor snuggling up to a rodent.

Environmentalist and real estate agent Carla Bard shudders when she sees lovely, water-needy ferns or pansies crowding an oak. The Ojai Valley Land Conservancy’s Bosson can’t bear to watch when she sees people hiring “Joe-El-Cheapo tree-trimming service” to tend their trees.

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The trauma of dying oaks seems to hit Ojai neophytes hardest, prompting a few tears and words of remembrance, said Shelley.

“Newcomers seem to get more excited about the death of an oak tree than [do] people who have been here for some time,” she said. “They seem to view the oaks almost as something sacred. The old timers, . . . we take it in stride: It’s an old tree, a lovely old tree, and we’ve enjoyed its grace and shade, but now it’s time to go.”

And, thanks to a tree protection ordinance, adopted in 1991, all the oaks that are cut down on private and public property in Ojai are replaced with seedlings.

For the dozen oak deaths in the 18 months, city arborist Davis said some 103 seedlings have been planted, though it will take decades for them to mature. Another 38 oaks will be planted by year’s end.

But when oaks--such as the weakened one at the Libbey Bowl--are cut down, it is for a good reason.

“The trees that are being removed are evidence of our duty to safety of people,” he said. “Obviously, removal is that last course of action we’ll take. . . . It’s a very difficult decision to make. Many people tend to be upset by this.”

Experience has taught Ojai residents the dangers of an ill oak. While an oak may look perfectly healthy to a layperson, it can be hollowed by rot or other ailments inside the trunk and, thus, vulnerable to toppling.

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Aside from damaging cars, such oaks can injure or kill people.

A decade ago at Wheeler Hot Springs, a member of the family who owns the spa and his assistant were killed by a hollowed-out oak that fell during an autumn storm.

So, the need for preserving oaks must not be overblown, said Ojai historian Dave Mason.

“Ojai has a way of saying, ‘Preserve the trees, no matter what,’ ” he said. “Well, plant another one. They grow fast enough.”

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Caring for Oaks

Ojai is home to two varieties of California native oaks: the deciduous valley oak, also called the white oak; and the evergreen coast live oak, or California live oak. Once established, these graceful trees become accustomed to their environment and can thrive for centuries. Changing their surroundings and irrigation can prove fatal. To keep oaks healthy, arborists recommend the following:

Limit watering. Once a tree is established--after about two years--it should only receive water during California’s wet season, October to May. Summer watering can lead to root rot and disease. Sprinklers should never spray an oak’s trunk; any watering of oaks should occur by drip irrigation.

Reduce planting. The area beneath an oak’s canopy--called the drip line--should be left as natural as possible. Forget water-loving pansies and sod beneath an oak; instead, leave fallen oak leaves and mulch for a natural effect. Even drought-resistant plants should be used sparingly beneath the canopy.

Prune carefully. Improper pruning of oaks can weaken and stunt them. Any trimming is best left to a certified, licensed arborist.

Keep soil level steady. Raising or lowering the soil level around an

oak, grading, paving and digging trenches can all damage roots and kill trees.