In support of the Administrative Priority to Increase Capacity to Allocate Resources to Maximize County Program Effectiveness the Hurricane Ike: Landscape Recovery and Renovation Project was initiated. Soon after the storm, Dr. Johnson, CEA-Horticulture, and the Galveston County Master Gardeners were asked to partner with the Texas Forest Service (TFS) to conduct a survey of damaged trees on Galveston Island. Over 40 Master Gardeners responded to the call for assistance. A day-long training session was conducted by TFS to prepare these master volunteers on the data collection process. Over the next two days teams conducted the survey, covering 9.47 miles, or roughly 5 percent of the 204 miles of streets in the study area.
Results from the study indicated that approximately 11,000 public right-of-way trees were dead or likely to die and another 31,000 trees on private property were in the same condition. Dr. Johnson and the Galveston County Master Gardeners also participated in a series of videos detailing the situation.
Throughout much of the recovery process, Dr. Johnson served as a liaison between Galveston County and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). At the County Commissioners' request, he conducted the initial tree assessment on Bolivar Peninsula. He then prepared documentation to support requests for tree/debris removal for the City of Galveston. These requests totaled in the millions of dollars and FEMA looked to him for the definitive word on the appropriateness of the applications. Dr. Johnson, working with Extension colleagues, has prepared numerous articles documenting the ecological disaster following Hurricane Ike. His collaboration with the Texas Nursery and Landscape Association has been instrumental in drawing the attention of industry professionals to the task of rebuilding the landscapes of Galveston County.
Replacing much of the landscape throughout the Texas Upper Gulf Coast represents a significant challenge. To address this critical issue, Dr. Johnson and the Galveston County Master Gardeners launched an initiative to rate more than 800 plant materials on their ability to withstand storm damage. These ratings were added to the Earth Kind Plant Selector Database - providing a comprehensive listing of adapted plant materials for the area. This tool will play an important role in ongoing efforts to rebuild Galveston County.
On September 26, 2009, the Galveston County Master Gardeners Association conducted an Extension Educational Seminar focusing on Landscape Recovery and Renovation. The program, held at the Galveston Convention Center, was attended by over 284 participants. This Landscape Revival focused on a wide range of adapted plants, soil preparation and installation techniques. With an overall satisfaction rating of 80% and increase in knowledge/intent to adopt practice values well over 50%, the program was considered highly successful at meeting strategic educational goals and objectives.
The Texas AgriLife Extension Service continues to serve the residents of Galveston County as they rebuild from the devastating effects of Hurricane Ike. Our Extension Office and the Galveston County Master Gardeners are committed to providing relevant, high quality Extension educational information to support the rebuilding process.
Content for this article was provided by Dale A. Fritz, Ph.D., District Extension Administrator-Texas AgriLife Extension Service
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