Happy Arbor Day – In Massachusetts, USA

Environment oriented celebrations naturally would occur in the Spring, wouldn’t they.  After all, that’s when it hits you right in the face.  Last week it was Earth Day, yesterday, in Massachusetts at least, it was Arbor Day.  Sensibly, Arbor Day is set on a state by state basis, and arrives earlier in the south than up here in (what used to be at least) the cold north.  No matter, some good things happen in New England that I’m told don’t necessarily happen in some other parts of the country.  We get a “reverse foliage” effect.  The new leaves on many of the deciduous trees start with a distinct yellow “pop.”   Others, with a more subdued red.  It last for two weeks or so, and then everything turns straight green.  Enjoy it while it lasts…  This is one of my favorite trees, the Lancer Oak, on the grounds of Worcester State University.  It is thought to be one of the oldest trees in the City of Worcester.  Click on the image for a better view.

Where’s Winter?

We were out at the Quabbin Reservoir this morning and there may have been a few images worthy of posting as a result, we’ll see.  It’s been a very tough winter for capturing anything at all compelling.  A creative drought just like the dry air.  Where is winter anyway?  I shouldn’t complain since I have to drive an hour to work and in the snow that is not fun!  (Now watch, in just a week or two, we will be inundated and it will be my fault.)  You can’t judge climate by local weather so is this a harbinger of things to come?  Unclear.  I did note that the Department of Agriculture recently released new plant/crop growing “hardiness” guidelines that reflect our warming earth.  The USDA divides the country into zones based in part on average temperatures.  They have moved every zone basically “up” one zone, confirming the observation that plants from lower latitudes are finding life more hospitable up this way.  So where did winter go?

We did have a brief taste this past week, during which we observed the all important principal with regarding to winter photography.  Get out there while it’s still snowing. We walked to Worcester State University, to visit one of our favorite trees, The Lancer Oak.  I’ve mentioned The Lancer Oak on many occasions here.  At over 125 years of age, it’s reputed to be the oldest Oak tree in the City.  It watches out over the campus on a day like this like a gigantic, patient, Overlord.

Stretching it’s arms.

And reaching for the sky.  A Lion in Winter (apologies to James Goldman).

So, where’s winter?

A Toast, To a Very Old Friend

 

The Holidays of course remind us of what is important, who and want matters to us. Nothing lasts forever, no matter its importance.  I’m a big fan of trees, as anyone who read this blog will know. Though I appreciate all trees, I’ve got my favorites. The road from Gate 41 at the Quabbin Reservoir in Petersham, to the water is one of my favorite, very short walks because of one tree in particular.

It may not look like much, particularly in the winter.  But a closer look at its branches gives one a sense of real strength, at least it does so for me.  It’s circumference is way over six feet.  You can’t really tell the age of a tree without examining it’s rings, but this tree is embedded in a stone fence in what was once the community of Storrsville, which was essentially abandoned by it’s occupants well before the Quabbin Reservoir was created in the 1930′s.  I suspect this tree was not only there at the time, but was probably already old.  A tree like this can be well over 150 years old, dating it back to the Civil War era.  A close up view might explain my fondness for this big guy.

In the background you can see Rand Brook and on the other side of the brook is an old mill dating back well into the middle to early 1800′s.  We have seen this tree in all sorts of weather and it is still very much open for business.  Loaded with leaves in the summer.  So of course, it was still loaded with leaves when the October 31 ice and snow storm hit, a storm that wreaked havoc on trees and power lines.  And on our friend here.

Will it survive?  I don’t know.  That’s a big wound.  My guess is that it will survive for at least a few more seasons, but wounds allow for infections.  The Division of Conservation and Recreation who manage the Reservoir typically leave things wild unless fallen limbs block the road.  You could tell that they had in fact sawed and moved off some of what fell.  Beyond that, this wonderful old tree is probably on it’s own.  I propose then a Holiday toast to what matters.  Cheers.

A Walk in the Park

I’ve been inspired by Elm Park, in downtown Worcester, Massachusetts, for many years.  In so many ways, it mirrors the the beauty, the potential, and the struggles of life.  (Click on the horizontal images for a better view.)

It was born in idealism and is chronically underfunded.  It’s inhabitants, wonderfully urbane trees, flourish in the spring and summer, put on an incredible light show in the fall, and then have to withstand the winter.  But, they seem, mostly, to make it through.  At least they have each other.

It’s nice to have them around.

Happy Thanksgiving.

(Technical note:  All images created with an infrared converted Nikon D200, converted to black and white in Nik’s Silver Efex Pro.)

Then as Now

Over the past year we’ve increasingly been drawn to “character trees,” inside the Quabbin Reservoir.  The typical definition of character tree (it is really a subjective one to be sure) has more to do with it’s shape and the apparent story it tells by the twists, turns and gnarls in its trunk.  I now add a qualifier:  they were planted, by humans.  This highlights for me the idea that we can understand something about a society’s relationship with nature by the way they planted trees.  And, trees last a long time, particularly away from an urban environment (less pollution, fewer dogs). The story they tell can last longer than the communities that planted them, as we see here along the Road to Millington, inside Gate 30/29 at the Quabbin Reservoir.  (Click on the images for a better view.)

We were quite surprised to come upon this carefully ordered stand of trees last December.  What stories can we infer?  It’s fun to image.  This area, a part of North Dana, was relatively prosperous.  There was manufacturing nearby but it was still largely a farming community.  The land owner was trying to make a statement. There is graphic order here, but it’s kind of a friendly order.  After all, these are shade trees.  Just the thing for a hot summer day, pre air conditioning.  The temperature under row of trees on a summer day might have been 15 degrees cooler than the hot sun.  A nice place to stop and rest the horses perhaps.

These rows of trees, along stone walls, are not, however, just an artifact of the past. They are still with us today.  Here’s a recent image from “downtown” New Salem, just a few miles away.

Perhaps this is something like the scene along the road to Millington would have appeared were North Dana here today.