5×7″ note card of Oak savanna on a foggy day, at the Mount Pisgah Arboretum. These premium 5×7″ note cards of Oregon and the Pacific Northwest, are blank inside, feature embossed envelopes, and protective clear sleeve. Purchased individually, note cards are $6.00 each, OR, $5.00 each when purchasing a boxed set of 12. Free shipping for orders of $75.00 or more, otherwise a flat rate of $12.00. Once on the shopping cart page, you can easily add multiples of any greeting cards you’ve already selected. If interested in wholesale purchasing of my Oregon note cards, please CONTACT ME for pricing information.
Mount Pisgah Arboretum, located in the southern Willamette Valley near Eugene, preserves one of the region’s remaining oak savannas—an ecosystem once widespread across the valley floor but now reduced to a tiny fraction of its historic extent. This distinctive habitat features widely spaced Oregon white oaks (Quercus garryana), standing over a grassy and herbaceous understory with fewer than five oaks per acre. The oak savanna at Mount Pisgah stands out as a mosaic of prairie-like openness amidst hillsides and riverbottom woodlands. Its structure allows abundant sunlight to nourish native grasses, wildflowers, shrubs, lichens, and mosses—supporting a remarkable botanical diversity with over 339 plant species recorded within the Arboretum.
Ecologically, the oak savanna ecosystem developed under a fire regime historically maintained by the Kalapuya people. Periodic low-intensity burns cleared competing vegetation, preserved the oaks, and encouraged a dynamic mix of food and habitat resources.Without fire, Douglas-fir, maple, and other shade-tolerant species encroach—shading out grasses and reducing biodiversity. Consequently, modern restoration practices at Mount Pisgah include prescribed burns, mowing, and selective removal of invasive species, aimed at mimicking traditional management and restoring ecological balance. The savanna’s open structure and rich understory support diverse wildlife. Oak trees generate acorns that nourish mammals and birds, and their cavities host birds and insects. Insects such as native bees, butterflies, dragonflies, and beetles thrive in the understory. Raptors like red-tailed hawks and peregrine falcons hunt over the grasslands, while songbirds and sparrows nest in scattered oaks and shrubs. Amphibians and reptiles—such as red-legged frogs, western pond turtles, garter snakes, and lizards—inhabit nearby riparian pockets and bask on riverine logs.
At the Arboretum, the Oak Savanna Trail (about 0.3 mi) winds through this sunny ecosystem, offering interpretive signage that highlights the cultural and ecological significance of human-influenced fire regimes. The adjacent Oak Savanna exhibit features interactive displays, native plants once used by Kalapuya people, and reflective benches to appreciate the interconnected nature of this habitat—and a statement etched in stone: “the oak savanna will not exist without humans”. While less than 10% of the valley’s original oak savanna remains, Mount Pisgah Arboretum offers a vital refuge for native plants and wildlife, and a living classroom for restoration ecology. The site reminds us that this landscape is both ecologically rich and culturally significant—one that must be actively maintained to thrive into the future.
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