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Chileno
Valley Ranch Gardens and Grounds
The
garden around the house was a big project in
itself, although the design is simple and has
the affect of fitting in naturally with the house.
The garden was put in in the fall of 1997, although
some David Austin roses, sunflowers and other
flowering plants were planted in the front of the
house in the spring, because Sally couldn't wait
until the required picket fence was built before
seeing what would grow.
Besides the
flower and vegetable gardens, Mike has planted 180
apples trees which are now bearing fruit. They are
new varieties and are certified organic
See an
article about our garden in the
Petaluma
Argus Courier
There
are over 1000 pickets in the picket fence, all
shaped from redwood boards salvaged from the old
part of the house that Sally and Mike took down
to create a space for the kitchen, bathrooms,
family room and the master suite above. The picket
fence is painted Navaho White, to match the trim on
the house. It is a beautiful fence and took a good
amount of time to build. It circles the front of
the house like the lace on a green collar. After it
was installed and all the pickets were painted one
by one, a concrete curb was installed with a
aggregate finish, to match the long, wide walkway
to the main entrance.
The curb
sweeps gracefully around the edges of two
yards, separating ample flower beds from the
lawn. The types of flowering plants in the garden
are too numerous to list, but do include 70
rosebushes, which provide fragrant bouquets for the
bedrooms almost all year. Sunflowers and other
hearty plants produce flowers for bouquets when the
roses are resting.
Although
the formal garden will not be enlarged, plans
exist for additional gardens for special plantings,
such as additional roses, a field of vegetables, an
orchard and fruit bearing plants, such as berries
and grapes. This is in addition to the present two
year old orchard, two rows of olive trees and two
vegetable gardens. When additional water is
developed, these new gardens can be added.
Hopefully, some income can be made off of these new
gardens.
The Out
Buildings
There
are several other buildings on the ranch in
addition to the house. This was a functioning
dairy up until the mid fifties. The buildings all
have new uses, but are of interest to historians,
as they are all in their original form. Each
milking stall in the 100 feet by 60 feet milking
barn still has a fancy cursive number painted above
it, in a style reminiscent of the last century.
The
horse
barn has old wooden stalls, chewed down over the
years by tethered horses. The calf barn is
cleared out but stands ready for calves to stick
their heads through the feeding stalls for some
fragrant hay. And the old small barn hides an old
horse drawn buggy on it's upper loft.
Present and
future uses for these wonderful old first growth
redwood barns include a wood shop, a wood shed, a
chicken house, a hay barn, and perhaps some day, a
summer theater!
The
Ranch
The
ranch is 600 acres of pasture, hills and woodlands.
Several streams course through the property,
each with it's own needs and character. Several of
the creeks have been replanted in native trees and
restored, mainly by fencing out the cows. Beef
cattle can be seen grazing on the hills and in the
pastures around the house. They are of special
interest to guests, a fact which amazes Sally, but
which Mike finds quite natural, since he finds them
quite fascinating himself.
Guests are
encouraged to walk around the ranch, exploring the
creeks, enjoying the wonderful views, and searching
for nesting neo-tropical migratory birds or soaring
predators, both of which are numerous. Deer,
bobcats, and other critters abound. In the spring,
many kinds of wildflowers dot the
hillsides.
Creek
Restoration
In 1996,
Mike and Sally began restoring the part of Chileno
Creek which runs through their ranch. Fences
were put up to exclude the cows, two hundred native
trees and numerous willow sprigs were planted, a
drip system was installed to get the trees through
their first three years, and alternative watering
troughs were installed for the cows.
The
results have been spectacular. Today , the
creek is fully clothed in lush vegetation and birds
and fish have found a welcoming home. Studies by
the Point Reyes Bird Observatory show a dramatic
growth in nesting neotropical songbirds. Steelhead
have been seen swimming up the creek.
The
story does not end with this project. Other
gullies and tributaries on the Gale Ranch have been
similarly fenced and planted. Neighboring ranchers
have gotten interested in doing the same thing, and
now over six miles of stream have been fenced and
planted. The Marin Resource Conservation District
has helped everyone plan and fund their
projects.
We are
proud of what we have done and are eager to share
our beautiful creek with our visitors!
Links
Sonoma
Farmtrails
- Promoting awareness and value of on-farm sales
for the benefit of our members' businesses and
continuing agricultural endeavors in Sonoma
County.
Marin
Agricultural Land Trust
(MALT)
is a nonprofit conservation organization that
preserves farmland in Marin County, California,
through conservation easements, public education
(including hikes and tours of farms, ranches and
gardens) and advocacy.
Grown
in Marin.com
- A list of ranches in marin and their
products.
Research
on Tomales Bay
- Scientific Information on the Tomales Bay
Environment.
Tamal
Saka
- Tomales Bay Sea Kayaking Center - Tamal Saka is
pleased to offer guided tours, rentals,
instructional classes, overnight trips, and
extended adventures throughout the northern
hemisphere.
Point
Reyes Lighthouse
- The Lighthouse Visitor Center is open from 10:00
am to 5:00 pm, Thursday through Monday.
Point
Reyes National Seashore
- The area contains unique elements of
biological and historical interest in a
spectacularly scenic panorama of thunderous ocean
breakers, open grasslands, bushy hillsides and
forested ridges.
Petaluma
Chamber of Commerce
- Petaluma welcomes you! Few cities of our size in
America have earned the reputation that Petaluma
can claim. We have gone from being one of
California's largest cities (1860's) to the World's
Egg Basket (early 1900's) to the World's
Wristwresting Capitol (current).
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