Take a walk through Pease Park…
You don’t have to go far before being immersed in the park’s diverse canopy of oaks, cedars, and sycamores. Each season brings forth native blooms to admire attracting carpenter bees, swallowtails, and Black-chinned Hummingbirds. It’s true — Pease Park, Austin’s first and oldest park, has always been naturally lush. A green space that serves not just as a site of refuge and play for a growing Austin, but as a habitat for the diverse and abundant species of Central Texas.
It’s with great honor and importance that Pease Park Conservancy fulfills its role in preserving this 84 acres of green space. We foster Pease Park for the sustainable use and enjoyment of all by working collaboratively with city departments, community groups, and partner organizations on conservation efforts at the park.
Growing and Adapting Together
With an evolving city-scape comes imminent change. Through ongoing projects, we’re studying how the ecology of the park responds to these changes to help guide how we steward the land. We hope that you’ll read on to learn more about our conservation initiatives. We’re excited to share these projects with you!
Maintaining Healthy soil
Urban soils in public spaces undergo a variety of disturbances. Pease Park, located along the floodplain of Shoal Creek, faces the unique challenge of maintaining healthy soil that can recover from compaction, mitigate erosion, and efficiently filter rain water going into the watershed. Applying onsite experience and notes learned during the Houston Arboretum's Field Notes Symposium, the Conservancy’s Conservation team has figured out an equation to achieve this: Rest, Regenerate, & Restore.
During peak seasons, the high density of park visitors can compact lawn areas, so scheduling prescribed periods of rest is crucial for recovery. Between rest periods, our team spreads mulch to conserve soil moisture, improve soil structure, moderate soil temperature, and protect neighboring trees’ roots.
Nutrient cycling also plays a key role in soil health regeneration. We’re in the process of establishing our own 3-bin compost system to better manage nitrogen, carbon, and oxygen cycles for soil fertility.
To achieve the best results for the native plantings in the park, we are conducting tests on plots with different soil amendments. By experimenting with mulch, compost, and microhorryzal amendments, we aim to determine the most effective method to restore and improve soil health and subsequently enhance biodiversity.
Greenhouse futures
Our greenhouse is now fully operational! This season, Alicia, our Native Horticulturalist, planted the first batch of seeds collected from various plants in the park. These include Mountain laurel, Mexican buckeye, and Lacey oak. Alicia also planted Anteloupe milkweed seeds, which were kindly gifted to us by friend of the park, Frieda.
By collecting seeds year-round and extending the growing season, the greenhouse will allow us to increase our supply of low-availability species and diversify our native plantings. We have added water barrels into our irrigation plans for plantings throughout the entire park. This will help us prepare for dryer seasons and ensure the livelihood of juvenile plantings.
A Commitment to Conservation
Although some of these projects proceed slowly and take place behind the scenes, they stand as a testament to our commitment to preserving and promoting the ecological health of this beloved green space. We aim to keep you informed and involved in our ongoing efforts.