Andrea Mackenzie: Preserve California’s Landscape

Andrea Mackenzie shares about the beauty of California’s landscape.

I occasionally get asked, what’s the quintessential California landscape — beaches, deserts, high Sierra? For me, California is all about those rolling hills of grass and oaks: the oak woodland. For a lot of people, oak woodlands are just something you pass through on the way to Lake Tahoe or Half Moon Bay. But for me, they’re the destination.

And we have so much to enjoy here in the Bay Area: from Mt. Diablo to Mt. Tamalpais to Santa Clara Valley, where I live. Spring in our oak woodlands includes Lupine, poppies, globe lilies and other wildflowers that dot the landscape with color. Grasses wave. Streams babble with water. Warblers, orioles and hundreds of other bird species pass through in the height of spring migration.

That bright smell of sage and bay catches your nose on the breeze. You might see a rabbit or a deer. And the oaks themselves. We have several different kinds, but my favorite is the valley oak, sort of the big dog of the species. These grow fast and massive and can thrive in all their tangled beauty for centuries.

As I walk beneath the oaks that shade the trails of Coyote Valley Open Space Preserve, I’m reminded of the delicate balance of life. These trees provide shelter, food and refuge for countless species, nurturing everything from the tiniest pollinators to the people like me, wandering beneath their branches.

Above my head and below my feet, a life-giving ecosystem is quietly at work. Beyond their beauty and the sensory pleasure they bring, oaks play a crucial role in protecting us. You might ask: oak trees as defenders? Yes! These incredibly fire-resistant oaks buffer us from wildfire and pull carbon out of the atmosphere. But while they might seem like they’ll be here forever, they are impacted by climate change, disease and development. But if they are protected and taken care of, they’ll take care of us and contribute to California’s richness well into the future. With a Perspective, I’m Andrea Mackenzie.

Andrea Mackenzie is the General Manager of the Santa Clara Valley Open Space Authority, a public land conservation agency located in San Jose that protects and stewards the region’s open spaces to benefit nature and people. She loves spending time in the Bay Area’s beautiful outdoors with her family and dog.