American Elm Bud

Found this American Elm bud.

Maple Tree Remaeaured

I had measured this tree in 2002.  Not being able to find it for many years I ran accross it this past January. I wanted to come back and measure it. I wonder if it was 2 trees that grew together or is it one tree that is splitting apart as the tree ages.

                 2002 Measurements                                           2015 measurements

Height                  83                                                                      79

Circumference          202                                                                 226.25

Canopy                     77  &  77                                                         91  &  65

Total Points                   304.25                                                          324.85

I did not have a clinometer in 2002, so the height was measured by holding a pencil against the and then figure a perportion to a known height and multiplying. Now with a clinometer my height measurement is much better.     

The circumference has grown by 22 1/4 inches in 13 years.

That is 1.72 inches a year or or 0.85% a year.

In the 13 years the circumference increased 11%

Another thing to consider is the tree has a crack between the 2 bowls. Has this crack increased to make the circumference bigger?

Hairy Woodpecker

This guy flew by after I had been waiting for about 30 minutes. A Hairy Woodpecker. The sides of the head show a wedge shaped black stripe instead of more of a round stripe a Downy Woodpecker would have. Unfortunately that photo was not in focus therefore I put this one on.

This Blue jay was less cooperative. This was the best photo I could get of him. There were a few giving calls at further distances. These woods where I was at were devoid of birds most of the time we were there. 

One reason I go into the woods is to take photos. Another reason is to be quiet and listen for the Lord. That is the primary reason I go into nature. It is not the technology but the quality of life I am looking for. 

Therefore my day can be a success on different levels.

Psalm 24:1

A Psalm of David. The earth is the LORD'S, and all it contains, The world, and those who dwell in it.

Tendril

Close up photo.

A tendril of a vine grows in a spiral. This enables the plant to cling to anything nearby so the vine can grow up the plant.

Sin is like this tendril. What ever is near it will become attached to it. The way to avoid sin is to turn your life over to Jesus and live for Him. As the purposes of Jesus become our purpose the ability of sin to attach itself to us is lessened. 

2 Corinthians 5:17

"Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come."

Bald Eagle

We were at the zoo in February and were walking a ways to see some African animals and not many were out to view. As we were walking back I prayed that the Lord would let me see an interesting bird in the trees. Not long after that  I saw a large bird fly away and I watched it till it landed and I noticed another bird that might be a Bald Eagle. I saw some white, not sure of what I was seeing because of the tangle of bushes and branches I was looking through. But I brought my telephoto lens to the ready as I looked for a hole in the tangle of branches.  I found one and took about 4 photos and then looked for another hole in the foliage to get a different angle shot . Sure enough  I found one and took some more photos. This is where I got the picture you are seeing.

The day was clear with no clouds at all. The temp was in the 50's, a wonderful day to be out and looking for nature. The birds were about 200 yards away. So I was shooting the full 300mm with the lens. At first I was shooting at 5.6f but checking I changed it to f25 to get more focus in case the camera focused on a branch near by instead of the bird. My lens was a Canon telephoto lens EF  f45.6 75-300mm III I was shooting at 1/500 of a second so the lack of image stabilization wasn't a factor. Yet the photo was not well focused so I didn't crop it. If you look close you can see that I am shoot straight through some brush that is out of focus. I was very fortunate to get this shot.

The eagle on the left is a juvenile and this was the bird I watched at first.

This was a true answer to prayer. It had been years since I had seen a Bald Eagle. But God brought these 2 to my attention right after I had prayed.

Crow

 I had looked for crows earlier this year but didn't find them. This one just flew in while we were walking through the park and gave me this chance for photos He was calling and then turned as if to look to see what I was up to. .I guess he had finished his business there and flew off.

Crows have a language of many sounds. He was doing one type of call and then changed it before he left.

Silver Maple Bud

February 7th 2015

Sweet Gum

Sweet Gum seed pod and winter bud.

Shingle Oak bud

Shingle oak branch showing buds. The leaves don't drop normally until the spring. If you look closely, the white dots next to the terminal bud are lenticles.

f5.6
1/500 sec.
ISO 100
0 Step
55 mm of 18-55mm zoom lens
Photo taken the January 27th 2015

Red Barries

Winter red berries on a tree.

Winter Scene Along Creek

Black Walnut Bud

Here is last winter's photo of a Black walnut bud.

Ice Along Creek

I took some photos of the ice from our last storm. Looking forward to the storm coming Wednesday with more snow.

Psalm 147:17

 He casts forth His ice as fragments; Who can stand before His cold?

Erosion Control.

Erosion control. It would of helped if the trail did not go straight down the hill.

Moss Close Up

Ohio Buckeye Bud

Bud from Ohio Buckeye.

Hackberry

A berry from a Hackberry tree that remains in the winter.

Winter Close up Cattails

Isaiah 35:7

 The scorched land will become a pool

            And the thirsty ground springs of water;

            In the haunt of jackals, its resting place,

            Grass becomes reeds and rushes.

Winter Beauty

Winter plants have their beauty.

Seeds

Photo of a head of grass.

2 Corinthians 9:10 

"Now He who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will supply and multiply your seed for sowing and increase the harvest of your righteousness;"

Mark 4:30-32

"And He said, “How shall we picture the kingdom of God, or by what parable shall we present it? 31 It is like a mustard seed, which, when sown upon the soil, though it is smaller than all the seeds that are upon the soil, 32 yet when it is sown, it grows up and becomes larger than all the garden plants and forms large branches; so that the birds of the air can nest under its shade.”

January Plants

Even the Eastern Red Cedar has a brown tint in January. 

White Oak Comparrison

These 2 white oaks (the 2 large trees on either side of the hiking trail.) are almost the same size in circumference. The one on the right is 92 7/8" and the one on the left is 89 1/8".  The one on the right is healthier and I propose it will grow at a faster rate than the one on left. Why?

Look at a close up of the bark of the White oak on the left. The bark has remained in a more juvinle state because of the growth on the bark.

The bark is the protection of the tree.

It is the same in our life with Christ. If we protect ourselves from the influences of the world we will grow much faster than if we fail to protect.

And how can we protect ourselves spiritually?  Guard your mind!

Philippians 4:8
"Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things."

Winter Sunset

Sunset on January 6th 2015 at 6:37 PM

6 Jan 15 6:37 PM
Sunset from my back yard.

Canon EOS Rebel T3
f/6.3
1/640 sec
ISO 6400
-1.7 step
55 mm

Hackberry Bark

Hackberry bark.

And the Lord will continually guide you,

And satisfy your desire in scorched places,

And give strength to your bones;

And you will be like a watered garden,

and like a spring of water.

Isaiah 58:11

Wolf Tree in Younger Forest

Hiking among the rocks we enjoyed the winter woods that blocked the cold wind blowing.

In our hike the other day ( December 16th 2014)  we came across this larger Chinquapin Oak. We measured it because it was larger than the other trees in this forest.

Circumference of 135.25 "

Height of 100.5 '

and a Canopy of 68 ' and 61 '

Total points of: 227

This tree will be easy to find because it is not far in the woods after a clearing as we walk on a chip seal gravel trail. The day was windy and 30 degrees and overcast. The tree sort of resembles a wolf tree. This tree may have been in an open field and then the woods were allowed to grow up later.

Lord let there be a place for people to grow in their knowledge of you, among the mature Christians who understand how to nurture others in their Christian walk.

Mocking Bird

Saw this Mocking bird on a cold December day. A sign of life in the brush.

Lord let us be alive in the midst of hardship like this Mocking bird. 

Large Cottonwood

We measured this large E. Cottonwood tree today.

Circumference: 20' 5" I measured above the burl, which was 6' high.

Height: 109'

Canopy 75

Giving a total point value of 373.

Notice the tape is not level, but you want to measure it as the stem of the tree leans.

The large burl hindered my measuring at the correct height or 4' 6". But this tree has some history. The tree may have been 2 trees and then grew into one tree. There is a crack in the bole of the tree that may break away at some point.

I had just brought my 50 mm lens and could not get a clear shot of the tree with it. Therefore the stitching. Such a gloomy day would not make for much of a good photo. The 50 mm lesns has more settings to adjust for low light and that is why I brought it. I really enjoy my wide angle lens, which I failed to bring with me. It gives me a lot of latitude in where I could take a photo from. But I didn't think there was any hope of taking any half way decent photo.

Jill, my wife was worried about me falling in the river. There was a lot of room to get around the tree. I wasn't worried at all.

Ash Sapling

Hiking along a trail Friday there were many Ash saplings along the edge of the trail. These were probably Green Ash.

Speaking of Jesus in the future; "A bruised reed he will not break. And a dimly burning wick H will not extinguish. He will faithfully bring forth justice. Isaiah 42:3

Red Wild Flower

"If you give yourself to the hungry 

and satisfy the desire of the afflicted, 

Then you light will rise in darkness 

and your gloom will become like midday."

Isaiah 58:10

Wild Flower

Common Mullein

The Common Mullein has dried up. Looking forward to next year.

Isaiah 40:8 "The grass withers, the flower fades,
But the word of our God stands forever."

Grape Vine

This vine starts near the tree and ends up in the branches.

Don't let problems spring up near you. Root out the problems before they get into your life.

Micah 5:14 "I will root out your Asheirm from among you,
and destroy your cities."

American Sycamore Root Foot print

Notice the large base the roots are making.

The circumference on this tree is 167 3/4" which is 53 in diameter.

Jeremiah 17:8

"For he will be like a tree planted by the water, That extends its roots by a stream And will not fear when the heat comes; But its leaves will be green, And it will not be anxious in a year of drought Nor cease to yield fruit."

Ash Tree

Here is an ash tree still unaffected by the dreaded emerald ash borer. I am using this tree as a guide to locate my plot of Persimmon trees that I will be looking at in the future. I will also watch the growth and health of this tree.

The tree has measurements of:

height - 47'

circuference - 31.375"

Canopy - 31' 33'

Total points - 86

Jeremiah 6:1

"Flee for safety, O sons of Benjamin, From the midst of Jerusalem! Now blow a trumpet in Tekoa And raise a signal over Beth-haccerem; For evil looks down from the north, And a great destruction."

Woods Trail

Hiking Friday brought expectation to us as we were looking for an old Persimmon trees patch. Hiking is a wonderful way to enjoy life and nature. As we hiked, not only were we looking forward to getting to the Persimmon, but we also were enjoying just being out in nature.

Psalm 25:10 "All the paths of the Lord are lovingkindness and truth To those who keep His covenant and His testimonies."