Category: Woodlands | Accent on Natural Landscaping

The Hunt

November 30, 2018

As many of you know I have been turkey and deer (gun season) hunting for many years. This is the first year in many years we’ve had snow for the deer season, so I thought I would share some of my photos with you. Perhaps you’ll be able to see why I “hunt.” (To enlarge the photos, click on a photo and then click again.)

Donna and her Grand Nephew heading out to blind opening day of deer hunt gun season 2018.

Donna’s blind blends into the Eastern Hemlock (Tsuga canadensis) grove.

Northwest view from Donna’s blind. Note the early morning hoarfrost on the neighbor’s clearcut.

Northeast view from Donna’s blind. Note the early morning hoarfrost.

On a cold crisp morning, the hoarfrost makes the woods seem almost eerie.

View of hunters from Donna’s blind going down the lane mid-morning.

View of hunter from Donna’s blind coming down the lane during mid-afternoon.

It’s worth frost-bitten toes and fingers just to see this view at the end of the day.

“

Tamarack also known as American Larch

November 7, 2018

The gold of the Tamarack blends beautifully with the bronzes and reds of other fall colors. In the spring, the tiny yellow needles reflect the sunlight nearly taking your breath away from the shimmering glow.

I have many favorite plants, but one of my favorite pine trees is the Tamarack, also known as the American Larch (Larix laricina). It’s such a unique tree. It looks like a coniferous tree, but it goes dormant every year and loses its needles — but not before turning the most beautiful shade of yellow. [Read more…]

Why the Colors of Fall

October 29, 2018

Little Bluestem (*Schizachyrium scoparium*) turns a beautiful shade of bronze in fall.

I love the fall season. I love to watch the change in color of the warm season native plants — forbs, grasses, trees and shrubs. I’ve always known the change in color had something to do with the chlorophyll in the plants, but I thought it was about time I learned what happens to create the beautiful colors of fall. I knew it wasn’t magic….

The role of chlorophyll

I learned the plants change color when they stop producing chlorophyll. Chlorophyll is the green substance in plants which interacts with sunlight throughout the warm seasons of spring and summer to make the food the plants need to grow, and which gives plants their green color. This process is called photosynthesis and it uses the energy from the sun to combine carbon dioxide and water into sugars.

The change to cooler weather, shorter days and less sunlight in the fall tells the plants to stop growing and to begin storing the sugars in their roots for next year’s growth. This reduction in chlorophyll lets other pigment colors in the plants begin to show. The steadier, the more gentle the temperature change from the warmth of summer to the cold of winter allows the fall color to change more slowly and linger longer. However, once we’ve had a freeze, the chlorophyll breaks down faster and plant colors will start changing quickly.

The Sugar Maple (Acer saccharum) has the highest sugar content for making maple syrup. It likes cooler climates. Although we value them for their wood and their syrup, some people consider them weeds because they tend to produce many seedlings. — The Sugar Maple (*Acer saccharum*) turns an orange color at its peak in the fall. During a dry, sunny fall, the orange color appears a more brilliant reddish orange.

What makes the brilliance?

I also found out weather conditions throughout the growing season and into the fall are what affects the brilliance of the colors we see. A drier summer typically means more vibrant colors, while a rainy summer typically means less vibrant, more drab looking colors. And, a dry fall with more sunshine produces the deeper red colors.

Update on American Beech

October 24, 2018

American Beech (Fagus grandifolia). Although not in full color yet, it doesn’t appear the leavse will be as bright red as they were in 2016.

This past weekend was work weekend at our hunting property. My brothers, their families and I always try to get together before the gun deer season to clean the shack, maintain equipment, make wood and check deer stands. This year was tough finding a weekend to do this (everyone has so many other commitments which happens when families get older), but we managed one day all together. I, being the oldest and retired, was able to happily stay on a few extra days and enjoy the peace and gentle quietness of the forest and, for a change, the twinkleness of the night skies and an waxing full moon.

American Beech (Fagus grandifolia). Although the beech has grown, so have the balsam around it making it more difficult to capture in a photo.

While there, of course, I had to take photos of my favorite American Beech trees. Reference my 2016 post American Beech (Fagus grandifolia). The trees don’t have quite the same color this year, but they’ve grown immensely. What you think?