Mountain gets native upgrade

Tonight, Brisbane residents will be presented with plans that include removing non-native eucalyptus trees that have squeezed out native plants and overrun Colma Creek's headwaters near San Bruno Mountain Park's main entrance at Guadalupe Canyon Parkway.

"We wanted the community involved," said San Mateo County senior park planner Sam Herzberg, who has been coordinating habitat restoration efforts near Bog Trail with groups that include the Heart of the Mountain, Friends of San Bruno Mountain and the California Native Plant Society.


Community members are being asked for input on how best to tackle the 20 acres of state and county parkland where eucalyptus trees are draining creek waters and pushing out native plants, such as the wax myrtle bush that feed birds.

Funded by a one-time grant of $140,000 from Proposition 12 bond monies, most of the hard labor will be done by contracted tree-removal professionals and county fire-safety crews.

But combing Bog Trail for plant seeds and then replanting the native greens after they've been nursery-raised will require the help of five to 15 volunteers every other week, said volunteer coordinator Joe Cannon.



Altogether, it will take about three years for the work to be completed.

But preserving the habitat will be well worth the effort, said Friends of San Bruno Mountain president Doug Allshouse, who has seen flocks of up to 30 migrating birds descend on the Colma Creek headwaters.

"Native plants invest their energies in providing food for native species," said Allshouse. "They are the key in the food chain."



Planning and scoping efforts will extend through the end of March, when nonprofit organization Heart of the Mountain will start the permitting process.

With bird-nesting season approaching in early March, the coalition will avoid disturbing the vegetation until fall, which partly explains why the project's timeline is stretched out over three years.

The bulk of volunteer efforts to replant native species will begin about one year from now.



More information about the project will be presented tonight from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. at the Brisbane Community Center, 250 Visitacion Ave. For more information on volunteering, contact Heart of the Mountain at (650) 355-6635.

Email: malbert [at] examiner.com