Linda Brodman, Habitat Restoration

Study the lives of conservationists and you discover a diversity of careers and talents: John Muir, Jane Goodall, Theodore Roosevelt, Rachel Carson, Aldo Leopold, Julie Packard, Ansel Adams. There are men and women, shepherds, philosophers, scientists, legislators, philanthropists, artists, and writers. Do they advocate with money or media, with literature or litigation? They demonstrate many paths taken to have a positive impact on Earth.

There are also quiet ones among us who use their hands and backs and simple tools to change the world. What drives a person to develop a passion for nature and accept the challenge of habitat restoration? Is it the sight of a wildflower meadow on previously weed-choked land, the comradery with other weed warriors, or maybe the wholesome ache of well-used muscles after hours spent clearing public lands?

Ask Linda Brodman who has dedicated years to restoration of public lands. Her earliest interest in plants developed in the suburban village of Floral Park, Long Island, New York, where historically hundreds of acres of flower farms blossomed. Her mother embraced the locale, nurturing her brood of five children as well as her garden of pansies, mums, marigolds and her favorite–fragrant Tropicana roses. As the oldest child, Linda reflected her beloved mother’s care-giving ways. She was drawn to a career in nursing, but she also had an appetite for adventure.

After college in New York City, with an itch to see the world, she and a friend boarded a Greyhound bus for a five-week trip to explore the West. In the deserts, mountains and valleys, the seeds of her future life were sown. After her return to the East, Linda packed up her three cats with possessions and crossed the country again, this time to settle in the Santa Cruz mountains. She would join an active environmental community and form friendships that would change her perspective on life.

Linda’s extensive, well-respected career in nursing complemented her emerging interests in ecology and conservation. In 1993, she joined Ken Moore who was active in CNPS and who had launched Wildlands Restoration Team (WRT) in the late 1980s to remove invasive exotic species from Big Basin State Park and other state parks. Linda was determined to learn about our native flora and to have a positive impact on the land. She attended UC  Berkeley’s Jepson Herbarium workshops and talks at the California Native Plant Society (CNPS). Over time, she joined the California Invasive Plant Council, CNPS, and Sierra Club. She volunteered at Yosemite, then organized people to join her. Weeding became an obsession and she read everything on habitat restoration that she could get her hands on.

“There is no going back for me to a way of thinking that everything is okay and life goes on.  I am very clear on what needs to happen and will be involved with the WRT for the long haul. Our life on earth is very short; I have found there is so much to know about what lives here with me. I plan on finding out and making it my life’s work to protect and do no harm.”     Linda Brodman, 1995

Tim Hyland, who was also active in the Santa Cruz County Chapter of CNPS, led Saturday restoration projects and Linda joined those intensive efforts. Their work at Sunset State Beach focused on removal of invasive European dune grass (Ammophila arenaria) and prescribed burns—an enormous, multi-year challenge. Linda joined the local CNPS board in charge of programs, then took the lead role of Saturday habitat restoration projects—a hefty load in addition to her employment as a nurse.

By 2018, Linda Brodman’s commitment to CNPS expanded to include chapter president and treasurer in 2021 shortly before the shocking COVID-19 pandemic engulfed our world. Schools and workplaces closed, unemployment rose, and public programs including lectures, meetings, and plant sales were prohibited. In December 2020, the county reported over a thousand active cases of COVID. Medical professionals and facilities were overwhelmed. Santa Cruz County estimated the local healthcare workforce accrued over 16 thousand hours of uncompensated overtime, suggesting the intense stress they were facing.

It was a grim time for everyone. The number of COVID cases in the county exceeded 71,000, with hundreds of deaths. For a dedicated nurse, like Linda Brodman, who worked hard and welcomed weekends in nature with kindred spirits, it was particularly difficult. A few stoic friends continued their outdoor restoration practice, wearing masks and maintaining social distancing.

California’s mandatory stay-at-home order and other restrictions were lifted during summer 2021. Linda Brodman and the Santa Cruz County chapter celebrated with the return of spring field trips and an on-line plant sale, but with some difficulty. And then real lightning struck in August with the CZU Lightning Complex Fire.

During the last few weeks of the CZU Lightning Complex Fire, my heart has filled with a profound sadness knowing what we have lost — beloved wildlands, idyllic open spaces, flora, and wildlife. Our community has reached out to help many people who have suffered losses and cannot return to what was their home. Stay hopeful and involved. Like the interlace of plant and tree roots, we are all connected; our resilience and stewardship will help with our personal renewal, and restore our natural world.    Linda Brodman, 2020

Nevin Smith, a founding member of our chapter, launched our propagation group in the 1970s at Wintergreen Nursery and later moved the group to Suncrest Nurseries in the early 90s. Suncrest provided great support to the chapter with access and greenhouse space, pots and soil, and help from the nursery staff. Those healthy native plants were vital to our chapter plant sales, raising funds for our educational and conservation activities. When Suncrest Nurseries was sold in 2023, it was a scramble to find alternative options. Luckily Linda had a resourceful team of supporters.

Propagation lead, Kari Olsen, and others in the chapter drew on enduring relationships within the nonprofit and nursery-landscaping community to find a solution. Cabrillo College’s Horticulture Department was willing to provide space and our propagation team relocated truckloads of the CNPS plants and equipment to Cabrillo’s facilities. The collaboration with Cabrillo College persists (with plant sales and projects), to the delight of our members,  students, and community.

The diverse skills and experiences of CNPS members demonstrate many paths one can take to support conservation. After more than three decades, Linda Brodman continues to inspire us with her dedication to habitat restoration of public lands.