Descanso Gardens Redwoods Spared By County Supervisors

LOS ANGELES (CBS) — The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors has spared a stand of non-native redwood trees at the entrance of Descanso Gardens.

Officials had planned to replace the redwoods at the entrance of the garden with drought-tolerant species to save water. The redwoods, which are native to wetter California climates, were to be removed as part of a five-year plan to thin the number of non-native trees on the property, according to the gardens' executive director David Brown.

But Supervisor Michael Antonovich blocked the change.

"It is important that these mature redwoods are preserved," said Antonovich, who proposed that the Department of Parks and Recreation work with representatives from La Canada and the park guild to come up with an alternative that would both save the trees and save water.

The portion of the plan that called for grass turf to be removed will still go forward.

Two weeks ago, county workers cleared 179 oaks and 70 sycamores from an 11-acre site near the Santa Anita Reservoir to make way for sediment from local debris basins, as part of the region's flood control management. That move touched off a number of protests from San Gabriel Valley residents and environmentalists. A spokesman for Antonovich said Tuesday's motion, which received the unanimous support of the board, was unrelated.

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