Architect, Landscape Architect, Urban Designer, Land Use Planner, Environmental Observer

Sunday, August 16, 2009

knowing your "Place In Space" -

How you live, garden or design within the section shown below will vary significantly due to the specific microclimate you are in and your particular solar orientation.

The section below is typically a west to east section for most of the California coast.
For my location however, it is a south to north section (see last image below to view the coast curving to form the top of Monterey Bay - North is at the top of the image).

Introduction -


When the environmental movement really started there was a sense that one should know something about their surroundings.

I live in Santa Cruz, California. This is on the west coast of the United States. Santa Cruz is near midway on the coast of California. It sits on the North side of the Monterey Bay. I live between two marshes - Pescadero marsh to the north and the marshes of Watsonville to the south. My watershed is the San Lorenzo River Watershed.


Some fundamental questions -

(I'm fortunate to have volunteered for the California State Park system at Pescadero marsh, where I learned some of the following information)

1. Name three native trees that grow in your area:

a. Coast Redwood
b. Coast Live Oak
c. California Bay Laurel

2. Name three native shrubs that grow in your area:

a. Coyote Bush
b. Coffeeberry
c. Pacific Wax Myrtle

3. Name three native riparian trees or shrubs:

a. Arroyo Willow
b. Box Elder
c. California Cottonwood

4. Name three sea birds if you are near the coast:

a. California Gull
b. Cormorant
c. Brown Pelican

5. Name three raptors:

a. Red Tailed Hawk
b. Swallow-Tailed Kite
c. Northern Harrier

6. Name three marsh birds if there are marshes nearby:

a. Common Egret
b. Great Blue Heron
c. Black Crowned Night Heron

YOU MIGHT ALSO WANT TO KNOW WHERE YOUR WATER COMES FROM....



(Loch Lomand Reservoir)



AND WHERE YOUR SEWAGE GOES ...


(Water Treatment Facility, Ocean Street Extension)


WHAT LATITUDE ON EARTH ARE YOU ?

(about 37 degrees North)

(you can't work on solar design if you don't know this.. but that will be a future post !)


. . .

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