Hathorne Flower

New Growth Shagbark Hickory

New Growth Paw paw

New Growth Paw paw.

First Responce to Spring

Forsythia and Asian honeysuckle first to leaf out this spring. April 1, 2010

Setting Sun

I took these photos walking around the block after supper. The sun in the west through trees provided a partial view of the sunset, while the clouds looking to the east reflected the setting sun well.

Black Walnut Buds

Black walnut buds.

We have this hope of Christ waiting for the promise of the Father. Let us live ready for His coming just as this bud waits for spring.

River Birch Bark

March photo of River birch bark. Papery and colorful.

Shagbark Hickory Bud.

Shagbark hickory bud.

Camouflaged Red Tailed Hawk

I was out of gas in my work truck and came to the gas pumps. One pump was slow and that was the only one open. I took this as on opportunity to search the sky for the Red tailed hawk that frequented the area.

I saw what looked like a clump of leaves with my binoculars. I took my camera and zoomed all the way to get the shot. After taking the photo I looked at the screen zooming in again as far as I could and I realized I got a photo of the hawk!

It was worth waiting for the diesel.

One Days Moon Travel

Here are two shots of the same area at the same time 2 days in a row from close to the same place. the photos were taken in early March when I was riding my bicycle to work.

May be Scarlet Oak

In my tree searching I have run across an oak that may fit into the Scarlet or Pin oak. Scarlet has hairy end buds while Pin oak does not. I don't know if I can find a bud low enough to inspect to tell the difference between the two trees. I have never found a Pin oak in the wild.

Kentuckey Coffee Tree

Here is a Kentucky Coffee tree I ran into a while back. From a distance I didn't notice the bark of the tree.

                            These are the distinctive seed pods.

Hummingbird Video

Persimmon

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I found some Persimmon that had been cut by a brush hog, now growing back from stump sprouts. This is the first time I have IDed this tree as a sapling. The large lenticles on the stems stand out.

Lean to the Light

Here in a stand of Cottonwood is one stem that is leaning. Why? It is looking for light. We need to look for the light of Jesus. I see this often int the woods. But without the light of Jesus we are finished.

I can do nothing without you Jesus. You are the strength of my life. It is in You that I grow. You are the source of my strength.

Fox

I saw this fox this week driving back to my office. I thought it would be gone by the time I dug my camera out of my pack. But the fox was not in a hurry.

A couple of days later I stopped at this area and came across some feathers. So I see why the fox was here. It probably was looking to see if anything was left to eat. My guess is this was a kill by the fox earlier.

Common Persimmon Diospyros Virginiana

There are other persimmon around this area. This seems to be the largest one. They can grow past 20 inches diameter though this one is just bigger than 12 inches. I live near the northern edge of its range so height and diameter growth will not approach the record.

No other tree is like a Persimmon, so I always enjoy seeing them. The blocky bark is very distinctive. The fruit is good if you catch it at the right time in the Fall. If not it will be bitter.

Hornberam Ostrya virginiana

During this hike I noticed that the understory is dominated by Hornbeam and Gray Dogwood. These 2 photos are of Hornbeam. The tree does not grow large and the bark is shredy.

The wood of this tree is hard, seeds grow in a bladder that rattles. Children probably used them as toys. The leaves resemble elm leaves.

Site Index

I went back today and measured 4 trees. The U tree that is a Shingle oak.
Circumference 55 3/8
Height 63 feet
Canopy 34 and 56'
Total points 129

The Persimmon is larger than others I have measured for the diameter. Its height is not that tall. This gives me an indication that the site index of this area is not good.

An Ash tree is the reason I am here at this location. I want to watch how this tree grows next to a dominate tree. This area not haveing a good site index will not show good growth characteristics for the Ash. But I still will come back from time to time to see what is happening.

This photo is of the U tree which is a Shingle oak.

Curved Shingle Oak Revisited

I revisited the curving Shingle oak. And noticed the preponderance of galls growing in the branches. This is common in Shingle oak around here. This tree does not branch out much but grows upward because of being hemmed in.

I did not find any advanced regeneration of Oak in this area. Advanced regeneration is saplings growing up under the mature trees. They will be able to advance and take dominance when the mature trees die off.

One way Oak regenerates is from sprouting from stumps. Buds that are dominate near the base of a tree may sprout. The younger a tree is the more likely that the tree will sprout. Trees from sprouts have an advantage because of the mature root system to draw on to grow. If this Oak dies or is damaged the likelyhood of sprouts from this stump are low because of the mature age of the tree.

Below is the photo of the curved tree 21/Dec/2007


Tomorrow I will tell you of the next tree I stopped at. There are 5 trees I will describe and at the end I will show a video as I walked through the woods to see these trees.