Volunteers' explicit invasive plants come from the Sepulveda Basin Wildlife Refuge

The Sepulveda Basin Wildlife Sanctuary suffers from many diseases and may find natural areas located in the middle of the country’s second-largest city, including garbage and even biohazards, such as needles discarded in nearby drug use.

But on Saturday morning, hundreds of volunteers had another culprit in their sight: Rhamphospermum nigrumThis is a non-native plant called black mustard that thrives in the 225 acres of reserves and the wider Sepulveda Basin recreation area.

The plant has four-leaf yellow flowers, fills the meadows of the basin and draws idyllic pictures that obscures its true condition – an invasive weed that squeezes out native plants such as sage and poppy, such as the health of the basin is crucial, through which its natural wildlife and the Los Angeles River can extend.

“It does look harmless, but it becomes mono, which is the main enemy of biodiversity,” said Dan Mott, an environmental educator for Friends of the Los Angeles River, who held events with the California Native Plant Society and the San Fernando Valley Audubon Society. “Native species can't be here, and all birds and insects that should be in the area don't want mustard.”

He said the grassland also captures less carbon and is not as effective as native species in filtered runoff into rivers. The plant is native to North Africa, temperate regions of Europe and parts of Asia, and it is believed to have been introduced hundreds of years ago.

Environmental groups have been doing habitat restoration in the reserve since 2019, and this weekend's event is also a later Earth Day celebration after events were lowered. On Saturday morning, volunteers spent hours pulling up black mustard and focusing on a land of five large coastal live oaks. The tree is native to California and is fire-resistant, but if surrounded by thick mustard weed bushes.

“If there is a bunch of invasive species that produces fuel under it, it burns like a bonfire. It overwhelms the tree's ability to protect itself,” Mott said. In five years, five-year important areas of reserves should be largely cleared.

18-year-old Wes Vahradian volunteered with friends in the Los Angeles River for four years, and he has been a volunteer leader and has restored how much habitat using Arcgis, a web-based mapping software on his phone.

Brent Kado crosses the invasive mustard weeds and volunteers move away at the Sepulveda Basin Wildlife Preserve.

By 10:30 a.m., the app noted that about a quarter of the acres had been restored. “We're doing very solid here, and it's a great way to measure the impact we're making. We did that in the Sepuveda Basin,” he said.

Vahradian is about to enter Campbell Hall, a private school in the studio city, to ask students to engage in community service. Vahradian said he was attracted to environmental groups because he had been flying in the river for a long time – “It's a little crazy, but you can fish completely.”

He said that although mustard weeds are indeed reborn, progress has been made over the years. “The whole premise is that the Sepulveda Basin should be a natural ecosystem and when birds move in, they are the place for birds.”

The pulled black mustard is collected into 30 gallon paper garden bags that will be towed and buried in a landfill. Mott said the goal is to eventually composting the weeds.

Eamon Wilson passes invasive mustard weeds through another volunteer to dispose of the Sepulveda Basin Wildlife Reserve.

Zia Shaked, 11, said her favorite activity was reading, and she spent the morning with her mother, stuffed with five bags filled with weeds that her younger brother and cousin had uprooted.

“I learned that it's really helpful before folding the weeds, because otherwise you'll have a bite of weed on your face,” she said. “I just put the weeds in the bag. I didn't even notice how much space I cleaned up, and I looked up, about half an hour later.”

Her mother, Shanna Shaking, said it was the second time the Santa Monica family has restored their habitat, although it was the first for her daughter.

“It’s a great way to spend the morning, be outside and do something useful,” said Shaked, an adjunct professor at the UCLA Institute of Environmental and Sustainability. “It’s the team’s effort.”

Mort said habitat restoration activities typically attract about 150 to 200 participants, but he certainly noticed the increase in attendance since the January 7 fire destroyed Palisade, Altadna and other communities.

He said: “When wildfires occur, there is nothing that can do.