Hampshire Outdoors

First Crocuses

2012-02-07T06:57:00.003-05:00

Shoots from bulbs are triggered almost entirely by sustained increase in temperature of the surrounding soil. So in mild winters like this one, it's likely they will appear earlier this Spring. We saw daffodil shoots (Narcissus sp.) over the weekend, and we saw our first crocus blooms (Crocus sp.) this morning.

Crocus is a genus of perennials in the iris family with about 80 species. Crocuses are native to Europe, the Middle East and Central Asia, and south to North Africa. They are successful at nearly all altitudes, and that's one reason why they do well in the mid-Atlantic.

You've probably seen photos of crocuses blooming in the snow, and it sounds like we'll get the chance to see that tomorrow.

Frosty Mornings

2012-01-09T06:40:00.001-05:00

First light on a frosty morning.

Diane and the dogs crossing the big field.

My oldest dog Korry stops back to check on why I'm kneeling.

Most people in the mid-Atlantic region will tell you that witnessing the change of season is important to them. Of course, that's an underlying theme of this blog. Based on my current understanding of others' interpretations of climate change data, we may have an increasingly warmer climate, but that will likely be experienced through irregular weather patterns, more snow rather than less, and increases in both flooding and drought.

As an educator, I also align more with those who are putting their energy into climate adaptation, rather than what may or may not be possible in reversing climate trends, which may be entirely due to anthropogenic causes. I don't look forward to droughts or floods, but I certainly look forward to more snow. I'm surprised we're still seeing temperature swings in January of 30 oF or more.

But for now it seems will have to settle for frosty and foggy mornings rather than snow.

Eagles in the City

2012-01-03T22:14:00.003-05:00

I was commenting that it has been more than three weeks since we've seen a Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) along the South Branch. Then today I received an email from my neighbor Greg in the Clarendon neighborhood of Arlington, VA (most densely populated county in the U.S.) that there was an eagle in his tree, and our neighbor Joan got these two great photos.

Best of all, there is good reason to believe the eagle may have been surveying Greg's flock of plastic flamingos, although I wish it would pick off some of the neighbor's free-roaming cats. What might this mean for the Arlington Egg / Backyard Hen Initiative? I learned there was another eagle spotted above the Arlington Career Center last month.

American (Common) Merganser

2011-12-24T08:46:00.004-05:00

Mergansers in flight
Source: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

Today was the first time we've seen Common Mergansers (Mergus merganser americanus), the american subspecies of the merganser known as the Goosander (M. m. merganser Linnaeus) in Europe. These diving ducks always seem to appear just after we notice the South Branch of the Potomac has turned that familiar shade of winter green.

Mergansers have serrated bills, and like other diving ducks, their legs are positioned further back along their body. This facilitates diving but also requires a running start to get up and out of the water. They fish cooperatively and have a lot of other behaviors similar to cormorants, but they also nest in tree cavities. I think of cormorants as among our most primitive birds, so it's interesting to consider these beautiful mergansers as modern semi-aquatic flying reptiles.

Be sure to use the database link in the upper right corner of this blog page to report what you're seeing.

South Branch Reached Action Level

2011-12-11T16:32:00.001-05:00

I'm having difficulty determining just how much rainfall we received last week. Our own South Branch Science Consortium Weather Station doesn't archive readings online, and with the Oldtown Bridge flooded, I didn't take the time to go to the Wood House from Romney and back on Thursday night. I went to Romney for the watershed meeting hosted by Melissa Merritt for WVCA, but had to get back to Washington, D.C for meetings the next morning, and I couldn't afford the extra 90 minutes to get the data from the supporting laptop there.

My wife takes our more primitive rain gauges inside for the winter so the ice doesn't destroy them. I'm a little suspicious of my annual accumulations too, as I've registered less than 30 inches this year, and I'll bet it's the wettest of the seven years I've been in Hampshire.

Every stream I passed from Goose Creek to the North River was significantly swollen, so I wasn't surprised by the spike on the South Branch at Springfield.

South Branch flooding, fresh tracks

2011-12-06T15:10:00.009-05:00

(Click the photo to enlarge)

We always look forward to walking the beaches of the South Branch of the Potomac after the water recedes. We have a particular spot where we always find a fresh collection of mammalian, avian and reptilian tracks.

If you recognize any tracks in this photo, post a comment. Some of the tracks are from our German short-haired pointers, who always beat us to the river on our walks.

Deer Management

2011-12-04T14:42:00.021-05:00

This is the last week of deer season in Hampshire County until the brief winter private-property season at the end of December. I've estimated between 40-55 deer per square mile around our area in northern Hampshire County.

Piebald white-tailed deer at Patuxent Wildlife Research Ctr.

Many deer management plans aim to reduce that population to under 20 deer per square mile. Some metropolitan areas suffer from whitetailed populations over 100/mile2!

We're surrounded by the river on three sides and mountains on all four sides, so we have less immigration/emigration than most places. As a result, we occasionally see evidence of a shrinking gene pool like unusual antlers and piebald deer. Of course we also see a lot of tree damage.

This also suggests greater vulnerability to disease. Not only do greater deer densities mean more interaction and the potential for spreading disease, but a reduced gene pool can also mean lesser resistance to all environmental challenges.

Venison Pizza

Hunting remains the best available option, particularly if you can convince hunters to harvest does. I've lost enough young trees to antler rubs to appreciate harvest the bucks too, but harvesting a recently impregnated doe is much better for population management.

My schedule this semester has been too busy to squeeze in any hunting, but my co-worker Shari brought in some ground venison this week. I used over 1/2 pound, mixed with jalapeno peppers, on a single pizza.

Ailanthus Fungus?

2011-11-18T16:12:00.001-05:00

This is the first time I have ever seen a fungus growing on a living Ailanthus tree (Ailanthus altissima, Tree of Heaven). I know we'd all love to see a natural attacker of these trees, but we could also expect that whatever killed a nearly invincible Ailanthus tree would likely be devastating to many other species.

I don't yet know what this fungus is, but it didn't take much research to discover there are several fungi and diseases of Ailanthus. Joanne Rebbeck, of the U.S.Forest Service Northern Research Station in OH describes Verticillium wilt, caused by Verticillium albo-atrum. It was first detected in Pennsyvlania in 2002, and is caused by a soil-fungus that infects the vascular tissues of Ailanthus trees. She reports the infected trees die rapidly, typically within a growing season, and that it shows promise as a potential biological control agent of Ailanthus! Unfortunately, Virginia Cooperative extension reports other vulnerable trees include, but are not limited to, maple, redbud, quince, ash, sassafras and slippery elm. A few species have demonstrated resistance, including fir, hackberry, dogwood, fig, beech, sycamore, white oak and willow. Read more here.

On the BugwoodWiki, I found lists of 32 arthropods and 13 fungi that are associated with the genus Ailanthus in China. The fungal species directly associated only with A. altissima include Phyllactinia ailanthi, Cercospora glandulosa, Phyllosticta ailanthi, and Pseudocercospora ailanthicola, Alternaria ailanthi, Aecidium ailanthi, and one unidentified Coleosporium species.

An article by Peter Feret in the Journal of Arboriculture mentions there are six species of fungi that attack
the foliage, and ten that attack the stem and vascular system, with another five species of decay fungi that have
been found in Ailanthus roots and rotting trunks. But he doesn't provide any details, but cites a 1971 paper by Hepting that I haven't yet found.

Non-natural Controls

I don't know anyone that trusts USDA to introduce anything (sorry, APHIS and IPM friends!). I favor the non-natural controls for Ailanthus. While I prefer Glyphos and Roundup mixes over the restricted use Garlon triclopr pesticides, my friends know my favorite product is almost the most fun: T-190 by Ingersoll Rand.

Big Sycamores

2011-11-12T16:05:00.025-05:00

American sycamore, Green Spring / Levels, WV

Hampshire County is loaded with big sycamore trees (Platanus occidentalis). Even small sycamores seem to have unusually large leaves, but even after many years we sometimes find leaves that are still impressive. Of course, big green leaves mean there's more chlorophyll by which to convert sunlight to carbohydrates that make these trees grow fast and large. So like most things in nature, their are both obvious and not so obvious correlations and causation among observable phenomena.

Frost in the shaded spots

As we walked along our normal trails through and around the wetlands we could see the effect of the sunlight on the frost, even though it was still below 0 C.

Moving indoors

2011-11-07T06:01:00.000-05:00

We live in a house constructed from three, 100-year old barns. The design was based on a children's book by Wolo, in which a squirrel escaped a forest fire by jumping on a log and floating down the river to a home inside a tree, where it lived with a variety of other animals.

The Wood House was also designed to be a green home, built so that you could heat it with a candle. The architect brags about this in his displays at the big Green Festival in Washington, D.C. each year. I can't even heat it completely with our fancy catalytic re-burner Vermont Castings wood stove.

I don't need an infrared monitor or camera to prove there are gaps and leaks in which air escapes or gets in. Instead, simply studying the number of critters that make their home in my home tells me all I need to know. Especially this time of year, we've found plenty of Deer mice (Peromyscus maniculatus) and their close relatives, the White-footed mice (Peromyscus leucopus). We've also found several flying squirrels (Glaucomys volans).

But we also find Black rat snakes (or "Black snakes", Pantherophis obsoletus), our largest snake in most of the mid-Atlantic. To the horror of our wonderful house keeper, we find them as often as every two months, sometimes sitting in the middle of the kitchen floor!

I found this young black snake right inside the door. You'll notice how distinct its pattern is, and you can also see that it had probably never been threatened before, and therefore very comfortable being handled by me.

Morning Fog

2011-10-28T01:09:00.001-04:00

I took a few photos during our walk as the fog lifted this morning. Little arachnids encased these thistles with webs, and I liked how they stood out from the backdrop of the cliffs across the river.

Jimson Weed (Datura stramonium) is a poisonous plant with an attractive flower. Some like the look of the rest of the plant (entirely poisonous), but I don't.

The toxins of Jimson Weed produce delirium, where fantasy seems like reality. Of course that means at one time it probably had many recreational or medicinal uses.

This was a disappointing discovery: the Mile-a-Minute weed (Persicaria perfoliata) had produced a bright blue fruit. I've never seen this before, largely because in previous years we would have removed all the Persicaria by now.

Some Color

2011-10-24T16:00:00.000-04:00

The dry summer and wet September apparently wasn't to good for producing leaf color, but this was certainly a nice weekend.

The paw paws (Asimina triloba) along the river have turned a bright yellow. Elsewhere along the Potomac this is a good time to find paw paw stands to go back next September to collect the very fragile fruit. My trees are still too young. Typically fruits begin appearing when the tree is between 3 and 4 inches in diameter.

There's an adult Bald eagle somewhere in the picture above on the left with the blue sky. We see lots of eagles, but never seem to have a camera ready.

Preparing the Bird Feeders

2011-10-23T22:30:00.000-04:00

While repairing and cleaning the bird feeders, we found this one had a surprise inside. When I split the casing you could see the wasp larvae and their casings. I'm still trying to determine exactly what species of wasp built this.

The Last Hibiscus Bloom?

2011-10-12T00:45:00.000-04:00

I was surprised to see this full bloom on October 11.

Classroom Trees

2011-10-09T17:30:00.000-04:00

Back in 2001, I was disappointed to see elementary kids sending pickup truck loads of seeds off to the state nurseries without keeping any to grow themselves. Most teachers will tell you however, any tree planted on school grounds is vulnerable. Even in urban areas, rodents, rabbits and deer can wipe out a class project overnight. And well-meaning custodians sometimes get carried away with their weed-whackers and mowers.

So in 2006 I called the very nice folks at the Potomac Conservancy who ran the Growing Native program and told them about my strategies for growing trees inside classrooms. We held some teacher workshops over the next few years and now many schools have Grow-Out Stations. The slides from one of those workshops are still available on the Growing Native website and at TreesInSchools.org.or ChestnutsInSchools.org.

There's not much to it. I collected more than 40 old recycling bins when Arlington County Virginia distributed larger bins, and gave most away to teachers. You can find similar size bins anywhere, often for just a few dollars. I continue witht he recycling theme by using corn-based plastic cups from my morning iced coffees, or from ubiquitous Big Gulp cups for individual planters within the larger bins.

Most tree seeds require cold stratification of 60 days or longer to germinate, easily simulated in a refrigerator. Some also require scarification to weaken the seed coat that allows the embryo to break free. Others, like white oaks, will germinate almost as soon as they hit the ground. You can use natural soil if it's loamy, but clay will harden, crack, and fail the plant. Otherwise, consider potting mixes.

The most important step, particularly if you decide to keep the bins outside, is to protect the seeds from squirrels. It may not be an exaggeration to say they're watching you while you plant these seeds. If inside, the major threat seems to be from kids overwatering the young seedlings.

Cool Portable Field Microscopes

2011-10-04T18:00:00.000-04:00

As a biology teacher, I was always glad to have a prism field microscope around, but these new hand-held tools are great if you've got a tablet (iPad), iPod, smart phone, or laptop with you. Magnification is up to 200x.

Click on the top photo and look closely to see the little pollinators within the flower.

I'll post the company details here.

September Rain

2011-10-02T20:00:00.000-04:00

September Rains

We had over four inches of rain during the last few weeks of September. We wish we had planted grass, but it seems there is more rain to come.

Historical weather is not as easily avialable as I wish. The easiest to find is from NOAA, but the closest recordings are Martinsburg and Hagerstown.

Our dwarf lime plants seemed to thrive, but we're moving them inside this week. We didn't apply a horticultural oil or other insecticide, so we'll probably enjoy the sticky mess of scale insects later in the winter.

I'm not an avid mushroom hunter, but autumns like these are terrific for harvesting Chicken of the woods and Hen of the woods (Maitake) and other mushrooms. In the city, Maitake mushrooms go for as much as $1 an ounce (over $15/pound).

Do your homework and go with someone who knows what they're doing.

Outdoors in Poland

2011-09-26T21:49:00.000-04:00

I subscribe to the Hampshire Review electronically, but I realize now I could have taken a photo of me looking at the online version. Instead, here are a few photos of my 10-day work trip to Lodz (pronounced "wooch"), Poland's third largest city, from September 14-24. I was visiting there with two colleagues to help the University of Lodz MBA program faculty introduce curricula in cybersecurity and entrepreneurship, and our Polish colleagues were great about showing us all around.

One of the first things I noticed from the plane, and on the train from Warsaw, is that many, many farms are only about 100 meters wide but a whole kilometer long (330 feet x 3300 feet). I'm guessing that allows everyone to have close neighbors and road frontage.

European sycamores (Platanus orientalis) are sometimes called Planes. They appear very similar to our Platanus occidentalis.

These are different than Norway Maples (Acer platanoides), which were common in Lodz (and considered invasive in the U.S.).

Another tree that was very common, and more familiar to Americans, is the Horse Chestnut (Aesculus hippocastanum). People collect the seeds for good luck and to make crafts. They have a very nice drooping canopy and they were found all over.

The Aesculus seeds have an armored husk, but nothing like American Chestnuts (Castanea dentata) or Chinese Chestnuts (Castanea mollissima).

For those that like to explore nature with technology, I saw a few trucks we don't get to see here in the U.S. There was this red Nissan Patrol, which has been sold around the world since 1951, but only available here since last year as a more upscale Infiniti QX56.

There were also these Hyundai Gallopers, which is the modern version of the Mitsubishi Pajero, sold here in the U.S. for a while as Mitsubishi Monteros. Unlike Toyota Land Cruisers, Suziki Jimnys (Samurai's here), and the Nissan Patrols, which were all made in coordination with the U.S. Government back in the 1950's, these Mitsubishi/Hyundais didn't appear until the 1980's.

Bad Timing

2011-09-06T07:48:00.000-04:00

We spent about $500 in equipment rental (Bobcat 335 mini-excavator), $75 in Diesel fuel, and about 30 hours of hard labor this weekend on streambank repair and wetlands restoration. Today it appears much of our work could be underwater within three days! Just another one of our farm projects we'll have to call "an experiment".

Here is the September 6 prediction. Click on the image to see the current forecast.

2011-08-27T16:59:00.001-04:00

It appears the desert of northern Hampshire County may get some precipitation from this storm afterall.

Wood House Research Farm / South Branch Consortium Weather



South Branch Science Consortium
Current Conditions as of 16:56 Saturday, August 27, 2011

Station Summary	Current	Today's Highs		Today's Lows

Outside Temp	74.3 F	86.4 F	00:00	66.9 F	11:26
Outside Humidity	95%	97%	11:37	46%	00:05

Inside Temp	79.9 F	81.5 F	00:00	76.0 F	13:27
Inside Humidity	52%	55%	12:53	48%	00:00

Heat Index	78.0 F	90.0 F	00:02
Wind Chill	74.0 F			67.0 F	10:34
Dew Point	73.0 F	73.0 F	17:57	63.0 F	00:05

Barometer	29.597"	29.874"	05:15	29.596"	23:54
Bar Trend	Falling Rapidly

Wind Speed	Calm	12 Mph	19:41
Wind Direction	WSW 242°

12 Hour Forecast	Partially Cloudy, Rain within 12 hours


Wind	2 Minute	10 Minute

Average Wind Speed	0.3 Mph	Calm
Wind Gust Speed		4.0 Mph


Rain	Rate	Day	Storm	Month	Year

Rain	0.00"/Hour	0.20"	0.20"	1.40"	23.13"
Last Hour Rain	0.00"

NOAA Rader Loop (left-click to zoom)

http://radar.weather.gov/radar.php?rid=LWX&product=NCR&overlay=11101111&loop=yes

Cotton, Peanuts and Naked Ladies

2011-08-08T21:20:00.004-04:00

Click here for interactive map

I gave a presentation in Suffolk, Virginia last Thursday, and found a short period of time to go scout the perimeter of the Great Dismal Swamp, one of the largest national wildlife refuges in the U.S. On the way there, I saw fields of cotton, peanuts and soybeans.

I was surprised by the bare soil surrounding the cotton, which suggests high herbicide use. I learned that cotton growers also employ an exfoliant toward the end of the growing season, and that enables easier collection of the cotton.

Cotton field near Suffolk, VA

I learned a lot about peanuts too, and have been thinking about how they'd do in the alluvial flood plain soil along the South Branch that is an unusual mix of sandy clay. Most sources say sand is good, clay is not. That sounds like an experiment to me.

The Swamp

Great Dismal Swamp boardwalk

I had very little time to explore the Great Dismal Swamp, so I stopped in the refuge office, got a bird list, and the staff there uniformly recommended a short loop trial that visits multiple habitats typical of the swamp.

Bike trail in the Great Dismal Swamp

When I asked how to spend a few days visiting the swamp when I had more time, they also agreed that a mountain bike in April/May is best. With over 100 miles of interior hiking/biking trails and very comfortable lodging in Virginia Beach, the Outer banks of North Carolina, or at the Hilton Garden Inn Riverfront in Suffolk, that sounded like a plan.

Read more about the Great Dismal Swamp here.

Naked Ladies

When I returned to Hampshire County I saw Naked Ladies everywhere. Their scientific name is Amaryllis belladonna, and they're native to South Africa. I have a few dozen thanks to my neighbor Puddy in the city, who regularly rewards me with neighborliness when thinning her garden.

Amarylis surround my farm equipment.

Naked ladies are also known as Belledonna lilies, and they have been popular with gardeners since the late 1700's because of their habit of producing leaves in fall or wet springs, then remaining dormant until now and suddenly sprouting a single stem with an attractive flower. I like them because they are toxic to deer and groundhogs.

Experiments in Hibiscus Propagation

2011-08-08T10:34:00.003-04:00

I've had lots of disappointments in propagating local and historically indigenous rose mallows (Hibiscus spp.) They were the first plants in pre-colonial America to be cultivated for shipment back to Europe. The seeds we've collected from locally growing Hibiscus moscheutos (white/cream-colored flowers the size of dinner plates) are always infested with mites that are not killed by freezing.

We ordered seeds of Hibiscus moscheutos, Hibiscus laevis (syn. militaris), and a subspecies of H. moscheutos often called H. paulstris (actually Hibiscus moscheutos palustris, Swamp Rose Mallow) from Prairie Moon Nursery. We direct-sewed them naturally (as if they'd fallen from the plant's seed pod), and then spent many, many hours trying more advantageous seedings. We've truly only been regularly successful when sewing the seeds in April in the greenhouse and then transplanting after germination (about 100x more work than our preferred approach!).

So now I'm convinced the only strategy for sewing seeds directly is to do so in situ after the last frost, in areas with appropriate moisture, That's not easy, as that is our wettest time of year, and if you observe native H. moscheutos you'll see they grow immediately next to but not in the water.

That said, when the experiments are successful, the colors are impressive. We fence anything (everything!) we transplant. Hibiscus generally survive deer well, but as many of you know, deer usually don't know they don't like something without trying it at least once!

from http://www.visoflora.com/#

I don't know who this kid is, but I wanted to provide an example of the size of these flowers.

Growing Citrus in the Eastern Alleghenies

2011-08-07T09:31:00.001-04:00

I'm curious to know what cycles others in Hampshire, Morgan, Mineral and Hardy Counties have witnessed in growing lemons, limes and other citrus. The folks at Nature's Art in Cumberland (a very pleasant, easy place to spend money) started me growing lemons and limes last year. Most start producing fruit in April and May indoors. We move them outside after mid-May (about 10-14 days after the predicted last frost). Yesterday one of the limes produced a new flower, even with nearly mature limes already present.

(click for a larger view)

Rain barrels and rain chains

2011-08-06T23:31:00.001-04:00

After the rains over the last 10 days, I'm convinced that rain chains simply won't work with typical rain barrel setups. The rain chains are aesthetically pleasing, and they disperse the water in a way that doesn't cause erosion, but the water is broadcast too widely, even if your rain barrel is topped and surround with plants all around.

While it's easy to drain the water on top, it's difficult to screen that water, which is typically filled with small leaves and other things that will clog spigots, valves and our sprinkler and soaker hoses.

My rain barrels fed (poorly) by rain chains.

Spiny Softshells of the Ohio River Watershed

2011-08-02T11:42:00.008-04:00

Our Hampshire County watersheds mostly drain into the larger South Branch, Cacapon, or Opequon watersheds, or directly into the Potomac. During my adventures with the West Virginia Youth Science Camp in the Kanawah/Ohio watersheds, we saw a few things that surprised me, but the juvenile Eastern Spiny Softshell turtles (Apalone spinifera) were the biggest surprise.

While geocaching on July 12, Stephanie and Rachel found this softshell below one of the Cedar Lakes dam's spillway after a rain. I worried that it would be in danger as the grass dried in the 35oC temperature (and as the grounds crew began mowing), so Rachel placed it back in an aquatic environment.

On July 15 we found an even smaller softshell in the recently mowed grass heading uphill and across the road to one of the lakes. I made the decision to accelerate it's journey because of the roadway. The lake had a few very large snapping turtles - we noticed a few geese with missing feet and broken legs - but the lake certainly seemed safer for an aquatic turtle than a road.

During college I worked with Florida Soft-shelled Turtles at ZooAmerica, and apparently the Eastern Spiny Softshell is just as fast, and similarly aggressive as a hunter. Its shell is smooth except for the small spines on the front of it's shell that give it's name. The spots also seem to distinguish it from the smooth softshell also found in parts of the Ohio river watershed.

It is primarily a river turtle, and it likes to bury itself in the sand or sandy gravel or mud of river bottoms with only it's snout visible (see photos below).

Most interesting to me is that it can get oxygen from the water. Its embryonic pharyngeal gill slits (which all vertebrates have) become a highly vascular pharynx with a lining thin enough to remove oxygen from the water. I haven't found a diagram or image of this yet. If you find one, add a link in the comments below.

Like other aquatic turtles, it buries its eggs on river banks exposed to the sun; but unlike other turtles, the egg development is not temperature dependent.

Great aquarium photos of A. spinifera burying itself:

This USGS map shows A. spinifera's indigenous (native) range and recent non-indigenous findings outside the Ohio/Mississippi watersheds.

Native range is brown-orange

Dog-Day Cicadas

2011-07-23T15:44:00.050-04:00

Annual Cicadas (Genus Tibicen) are often known as Dog-day cicadas because they appear in the "dog days" of July and August. Michelle found this cicada on July 14 during our group hike in Kanawha State Forest, and it's the first cicada I had seen this year. It is most likely Tibicen canicularis, which is sometimes called the Dog-day Harvestfly.

Cicadas are found almost worldwide (everywhere except Antarctica), and they're in one of two families: Tettigarctidae (limited to Australia and Tasmania) and the much more common Cicadidae. They are not related to locusts (swarming grasshoppers), but many people call them locusts mistakenly.

Unlike the 13 and 17-year cicadas, annual cicadas have only a 2-3 year life cycle underground. And because of overlapping "generations", we see them every year.

Image retrieved from City-Data.com

Over the next few weeks, you might also see the ground-dwelling Cicada-Killing Wasps ( Genus Sphecius). Image retrieved from City-Data.com

Other photos from the hike in Kanawha (locals seem to pronounce it can-ahh) State Forest:

The whole group:

Cayla with two big crayfish and a big leaf from a streamside Umbrella Tree (Magnolia tripetala).

Young Snapper

2011-07-07T23:45:00.002-04:00

Young common snapping turtle (Chelydra serpentina)

I found this little future monster when I walked down to the ponds to check on a project we started to evaluate soil moisture requirements of three different species of Hibiscus: Rose Mallow (Hibiscus moscheutos), Swamp Rose Mallow (Hibiscus moscheutos palustris or syn. Hibiscus palustris), and Hairy Rose Mallow (Hibiscus lasiocarpus).

The common snapping turtle (Chelydra serpentina) is a large freshwater turtle with a bad attitude and a very mobile head and neck (presumably the origin of the name serpentina). Because they don't have many predators, their upper shell can grow to be a half-meter (50cm or almost 20 inches), and they can weigh over 30kg (over 65 pounds), but they're much more common at about half that size.

Last year, just after completing the new turtle pond, we found an adult female laying eggs. I thought she was merely stuck on the bank and lifted her up the steep muddy slope, only to discover the eggs below. That ruined my day.

Video of a Hummingbird Moth

2011-07-05T09:34:00.000-04:00

On Sunday, July 3 we saw our first Hummningbird Moth of the summer. These Lepidopterans are in the Family Sphingidae (the Hawk moths), and I believe the specific name is Hemaris thysbe. (the Hummingbird Clearwing - can anyone confirm this?) Here is a video I took with my phone:

First weekend in July

2011-07-02T22:10:00.004-04:00

Except for some special projects, I finished my last professional responsibilities for the summer on July 1, and this is my first weekend off. On Thursday I leave for the the National Youth Science Foundation's West Virginia Youth Science Camp near Ripley, WV for 10 days. We have a lot to do this weekend, but I'll capture a few photos for posting (click for a larger version).

Diane's butterfly garden

Diane's butterfly garden seems to have naturalized, with just a few weeds. As most of you know, a butterfly garden must have complementary trees available and also a shallow puddle. The latter is sometimes a challenge in our part of West Virginia.

A second greenhouse

I found this little greenhouse, complete with doors, heaters, motorized baffles and other features for $500 several years ago. With Jamie's help, we're finally getting it assembled. I haven't yet dug the trench for water and electricity, but at least it's started.

Wild raspberries everywhere

Goshawks, Bald Eagle Fledglings, and Young Peepers

2011-06-25T21:49:00.010-04:00

Northern Goshawk, (Accipiter gentilis)
Photograph by David Brinker

Earlier this week I read in the Washington Post that someone shot Maryland's only nesting Goshawk (Accipiter gentilis) in nearby Garrett County. Way back in 1984, I got to care for a Goshawk for the Pennsylvania Game Commission, which used the accipiter for sting operations targeting illegal trades among falconers. The penalties for all these crimes, in the uncommon occurance when someone is convicted, always seems trivial.

But today (Saturday) I found a very cute little female Wheaton Terrier running loose near Indian Rock in northern Hampshire County. I hollered around the fisherman's access, but then took her home just a few miles to our farm. We learned the owner was the visiting daughter of our friend, and when I returned her a little later, I heard the Bald eagles that nest there chirping on the slope above Indian Rock. These eagles, both the adults and the immature birds, fly up and down the South Branch from the mouth to Milleson's Mill and have nested there for as long as I've lived here.

There are few things that leave an impression like that of an eagle flying by as you're sitting by the river.

===

Yesterday, Anna Hjelmroos took me and Heather Eves on a field trip detailing her Masters degree capstone project at Wolf Trap Farm Park near Vienna, Virginia. There we saw young Spring Peepers (Pseudacris crucifer), which were so prevalent we worried about squashing them as we walked. They're so small you'd thing they were spiders or insects of some kind. They are fast, but Anna caught a few and i got a photo. I've seen ticks larger than these little chorus frogs. We have thousands of peepers on our South Branch floodplain ponds, but I've never seen them this small.

Tiny young spring peepers

Later we followed Wolf Trap Run along the Farm Pond and came upon a cliff that was probably 20-25 meters high on a ridge that is probably less than 100 meters wide, clearly carved by the stream over time. Another one of those surprises within our National Parks.

The cliffs along Wolf Trap Run

Milkweed blooming

2011-06-20T18:54:00.002-04:00

I'm pretty certain it's Common Milkweed - Asclepias syriaca that is currently blooming. We have a lot, although milkweed sometimes has pollination challenges because the flower design inhibits some insects, and the stickiness is sometimes to much for the more fragile insects, which often die because they're unable to escape.

Common Milkweed - Asclepias syriaca

Our house begins to look buried in wet Junes.

Scarlet Tanagers and Cedar Waxwings

2011-06-20T11:29:00.002-04:00

Image of Cedar Waxwing from Cornell.

This weekend marked the first Cedar Waxwing (Bombycilla cedrorum) and Scarlet Tanager (Piranga olivacea) we've seen this season. Both are among our most strikingly colored birds in Hampshire County.

We see lots of Cedar Waxwings travel from the trees on our side of the South Branch to catch insects along the cliffs on the other side. But most interesting is Cedar Waxwings love of over-ripened, fermenting fruits that leave them intoxicated, sometimes even leading to death by alcohol poisoning.

Image of male Scarlet Tanager from www.Birding.com.

New Intern

2011-06-13T08:46:00.001-04:00

Jamie planting grapes on Memorial Day weekend.

Jamie is our new intern at the South Branch Science Consortium. He's a rising junior at MIT in Aerospace Engineering.

We put him to work right away planting grapes and designing a trellis system for supporting the vines. Over the summer, we hope to have him lead a variety of projects in alternative energy, agricultural experiments, and redesiging our whitewater playspot in the river channel.

Moving dirt.

Rescuing toads.

South Branch beaches

2011-06-07T12:15:00.007-04:00

The spring floods moved a good part of our upstream beach further downstream. It's already very popular with canoeists and tubers, but fortunately there have been no fire rings or litter yet.

Looking downstream from our old spot.

I'm not sure what Korry hunts for in the water, but she'll do this for hours.

The following morning.

Potato planting

2011-06-06T00:24:00.002-04:00

Our fields were finally dry, and I got the Red and Kennebec potatoes in the ground in two long rows. I experimented with rototilling followed by a pass with a potato plow, then backfilling with the flattened bucket of the tractor. It worked well on the float position, unless there was a lot of vegetable matter in the soil, which sometimes caught behind the bucket and scoured the potato groove.

Freshwater Mussels in the South Branch

2011-06-05T15:28:00.001-04:00

Freshwater mussels in the Chesapeake watershed seem much more vulnerable and are certainly less common than in the Ohio River drainage 40 miles west. I'll bet 80% of those we do see are just empty shells, but I could tell these were alive from 15 feet away. I've read that there were as many as 14 species surviving in the Potomac back in the 1970's. Nowadays, fortunately, all are protected.

Turtle Pond

2011-05-29T08:53:00.000-04:00

As soon as we discovered Wood turtles and Painted turtles on our farm I began planning strategies for expanding their habitat. doubled the size of our turtle pond in 2009. I'm always impressed with how quickly aquatic plants and pioneer species (and invasives) return when there is water. Our ponds were designed as vernal ponds, relying only on winter and spring rains, but all hold water all year. The original turtle pond was a tiny, deeper complement to the frog pond, divided by a 15-foot walkway. The new pond is over three times larger. Special credit goes to Dale Roberts of the Java Shack in Arlington, who while visiting for a recreational weekend, drove the bobcat for nearly three hours straight and dug much of the shallow end.

July 2009

May 2011

Hollies flowering

2011-05-28T22:40:00.000-04:00

Flowers of Ilex opaca

We're at the northern edge of the natural range for American hollies (Ilex opaca), so I pay a lot of attention to our plantings. Those planted in sunlight started blooming this week.

Findings - Turtle eggs and birds nests

2011-05-27T08:13:00.001-04:00

While preparing to plant some grapes, I found these turtle eggs. The only turtles we ever see in this area of the farm are Box turtles (Terrapene carolina). I haven't been too successful in relocating turtle eggs. Sooner or later, they're always discovered by a raccoon, fox, skunk, or opossum. There's only so much you can do to protect them that wouldn't interfere with the young emerging turtles.

Diane found this little nest on the ground. It seems a little big for a hummingbird. But what really caught our attention is that on closer inspection you'll see it is made almost entirely of horse hair. The horse barn is almost 500 meters away, so the little bird that made this must have believed this was the material of choice. Click on the second picture for a closeup.

First Hemerocallis blooms

2011-05-26T09:18:00.001-04:00

The first Asian daylily (Genus Hemerocallis) blossoms look like they're just a few days away.

Daylily flowers usually last less than 24 hours. They open at sunrise and begin to die off at sunset, but may be replaced by another on the same flower stalk the next day.

Hemerocallis is native to China, Korea, and Japan and elsewhere in Asia, and popular worldwide because of worldwide because of their hardiness. Most Daylilies grow in clumps, and I've seen them listed on some invasive plants list. Most of our daylilies came from neighbors who were thinning theirs, so I guess there's some legitimacy to this. I sometimes see them at weird places along the road in the first few weeks of June.

Sad Outcome

2011-05-23T18:10:00.008-04:00

They seemed too young to fledge - just two days after the May 21 photo - but both young birds and their parents abandoned the nest. One died on May 24 on the street (I'll send you the photo if you want).

May 23, 2011

May 24, 2011

Nesting Doves

2011-05-21T19:54:00.002-04:00

I've been reluctant to sneak a photo of the doves that nest every year in one of the hanging baskets on our front porch in Arlington, but this year I did.

An adult doves nesting with two squabs on our front porch in the city.

As abundant as our pigeons (Columba livia) and Mourning Doves (Zenaida macroura) are, we rarely get to see them nesting. It's too bad , because members of the Family Columbidae have some of the most altricial young (needy or dependent, opposite of precocial). For the first few days of life, the young squabs eat only a special milk produced from the crop of both the male and female dove.

Here's a photo I found at A birding blog by Gunnar Engblom.of a pigeon (Rock Dove) feeding youg squabs.

Photo: Susannah A. Lower Fraser of Wanderin' Weeta

Raspberries and Cucurbits

2011-05-15T12:38:00.000-04:00

One of the fenced-in raspberry patches.

I weeded the raspberries so my wife could plant her pumpkins and squashes among them. When I prepared these 10 x 30 raised beds I used soil from the river bottom mixed with a large amount of organic matter and both composted and new coffee grounds for extra acidity, but the soil still has a significant clay composition. It doesn't affect the output of our plants from what I can tell. I'll wait to hear when Church View Farms begins harvesting their berries and then I'll compare.

I like the combination of the raspberries and cucurbits because the raspberries outgrow the very large leaves of the cucurbits, and there is little sunshine left for weeds.

Edible Plants Talk

2011-05-14T10:46:00.001-04:00

I knew of Leenie Hobbie through mutual friends on Facebook, but I had a chance to listen in on her edible plants talk when my neighbor hosted a "Yoga and Weeds" event at Foxwalk Farm. I wandered toward the barn, which has a large art studio above the stables, hoping to have missed the yoga. I was a little late for the edible plants introduction, but I was pleasantly surprised to learn just how much of the abundant local fauna was indeed edible. Leenie often mentioned plants that were valued as liver "tonics" or kidney tonics.

In my recent post on Garlic Mustard I mentioned that I like my medicines and their dosages clinically tested. But I also took a chemical ecology course in graduate school in which the overriding theme was that even when chemicals can be synthesized in the lab, it's rarely more efficient than harvesting the chemicals from their natural sources. Moreover, having a command of natural medicine can save lives in extraordinary situations where modern medicine is unavailable. So I paid attention, but I'm not going to get into the business (or liabilities) of listing such things here regularly.

When I returned home I noticed all of the irises next to the boathouse were in bloom.

Irises in bloom along the boathouse driveway.

Blooming Irises

2011-05-08T12:02:00.002-04:00

Normally we see about a week between when the tulip bulbs self destruct and the Irises. The Genus Iris has over 250 species, but the "type" is Iris germanica. We have several hundred of them, and they multiply nicely from rhizomes.

Irises along the smaller turtle pond.

I like them around our Hampshire farm because deer don't seem to try them even once (they're mildly toxic) and our deer will eat right out of the planter boxes on our front patio. They seem to bloom in the first week of May each year in Hampshire County, although the leaves sometimes begin emerging as early as late March. When we divide them in the Fall I 'll plant a few dozen throughout the farm in surprise places, usually forgetting about them until the greenery becomes noticeable in mid-April.

Our sunnier wetlands (left) are still flooded, and I see that the Silver Maple (Acer saccharinum) seeds we spread casually have germinated and thrived. The wood ducks and frogs seem to prefer the more protected woodland wetlands, and the predatory herons seem to avoid them, so I'm happy to encourage a few Silver Maples, Sycamores (Platanus occidentalis) and River Birches (Betula nigra) in the two smaller, more open ponds.

A female Wood Turtle travelling along our walking trails.

We do leave spots for the Wood Turtles (Glyptemys insculpta). Our adult turtles seem to be thriving, but we haven't found any youg wood turtles yet this year. Unlike Box turtles, which close up and park themselves at any sign of danger, the wood turtles will move out of the way. Hitting a turtle with a mower is a sickening feeling, and fortunately it's only happened once (a Box Turtle). We made a decision two years ago to mow all the trails along the ponds, creeks and the river with the mower at it's 4-inch setting, easily high enough to miss a Wood Turtle.

Garlic Mustard and new Swamp White Oaks

2011-05-06T15:00:00.001-04:00

I still have not pinned down a date for when Garlic Mustard (Alliaria petiolata) first appears.

Garlic Mustard near the old Blue Ford river crossing

The leaves, flowers and fruits are apparently edible, providing a flavor of both garlic and mustard. I've read that it induces swaeting and is helpful for respiratory problems, ulcers and gangrine. You won't get such recommendations from me - I like my medicines and their dosages clinically tested. But like many other invasive plants, I do wish someone would declare them to be aphrodisiacs or an ingredient of eternal youth, because trying to clear a woodlot of Garlic Mustard is tiring and boring. And you need to do it completely for five years in a row to exhaust the seed bank.

Later I'll post a photo of a mature plant with seeds. They're actually very easy to pull, as the roots come right out without any special pulling technique. If seeds are present, you'll need to remove them from the woods. I burn them, although I've read that some believe composting heat kills the seeds of many weeds.

Here's a photo (left) of a remarkably resilient Flowering Dogwood (Cornus florida) that was able to leaf out and flower even with bird and presumably insect damage to its bark on a broken branch hanging straight down.

The photo below shows a few Swamp White Oaks (Quercus bicolor) germinated from acorns stored haphazardly over the winter.

Diane's successful Swamp White Oak germination.

American Chestnut Leaves

2011-04-24T06:09:00.001-04:00

We've grown many dozens of American Chestnuts and back-crossed Chestnuts over the last 5 years. We keep a few in large pots in the city for school demonstrations, but most were planted as seeds in Hampshire County. The trees in Arlington leaf out about 7-10 days earlier than the Hampshire County trees. This photo was taken today. In my studies of tree phenology, I believe that's largely a function of soil temperature, and I've wondered about the variability of temperature in the potted trees' soil. Someday I'll stick a thermochron in there.

We also found this plant last week, and then this week we saw that it was flowering. Anyone have a tip?

Gallinule Chick

2011-04-22T12:31:00.000-04:00

source:www.birdsandsuch.com/pages/gallinules.html

With the flooding in our lower field, we've been on the lookout for emerging water plants from the floodplain's seedbank. Yesterday we got a big surprise when a young gallinule ran out in front of me then feebly flew 20 meters away. I called to my wife, but that also alerted our two old kurzhaars. Our older dog (14) won't hold a point if an animal moves, so I didn't want her to spot it while I was trying to photograph it.

I borrowed this photo from www.birdsandsuch.com, but the bird I saw was much more rufous and with a red-yellow, adult-colored beak. These birds and others often reflect high ferrous mineral content, and are wetland soils are loaded. Except for a purple gallinule or moorhen, I can't think of another bird with this immature body shape, a brightly colored beak and long legs than would be wading around in 4 inches of watery grasses.

What to Plant Outdoors This Week

2011-03-29T21:24:00.007-04:00

(5 weeks before the last frost*)

Seeds
You may have already planted seeds for peas and spinach outdoors, if the soil was workable, and maybe carrots, beets, lettuce, green onions and parsnip seeds.

It also pretty safe to plant chard, kale, endive and kohlrabi seeds.

Plantings
You also might have already planted asparagus crowns and horseradish crowns or roots. Onion sets or hardened-off onion or leek transplants can also be planted in the garden.

This is also the week to start potatoes.

* I like to use Dave's Garden website for calculating freeze/frost
dates. They predict the following for us here in the Green
Spring/Levels areas:

Each winter, on average, our risk of frost is from October 12 through May 4.
Almost certainly, however, we will receive frost from October 25 through April 18.
We are almost guaranteed that we will not get frost from May 19 through September 29.
Our frost-free growing season is around 161 days.

Our friends Steve and Ruth at Church View Farm near Three Churches use May 1.

Crocuses and Daffodils

2011-03-27T17:02:00.000-04:00

We woke to a covering of snow this morning, after a little more than a week or 10 days of crocuses and daffodils blooming.

Capturing April Showers

2011-03-13T21:13:00.000-04:00

I bought these old wine barrels a long time ago, and finally installed them this weekend. We've not yet connected the distribution and overflow hoses, but we've now got a downspout in both front and back yards draining into barrels. Our other two dounspouts drain into an underground basin in the flower bed next to the driveway.

Back-Crossed American Chestnuts

2011-03-06T17:19:00.001-05:00

We've got about 40 American chestnuts (Castanea dentata) on our farm, all grown from seeds. At least 20 are third-generation back-crosses with Chinese chestnuts (Castanea mollissima)

to develop resistance to a fungal infection called blight. Specifically, the blight is caused by an Asian bark fungus (Cryphonectria parasitica, formerly Endothia parasitica) accidentally introduced into North America on imported Asiatic chestnut trees in the Bronx Zoo in 1904.

In these photos, Diane is looking at the Spring buds. Among our varieties, the bark and buds are distinctly different between the two BC3 back-crosses we've planted (Hahn x OpAm and Cain x OpAm). The Hahn trees are faster growing with many Chinese qualities.

You can view the slides from a presentation I made for the Growing Native Program administered by the Chesapeake Bay Foundation and now the Potomac Conservancy.

Pruning River Birches

2011-03-03T06:12:00.000-05:00

We don't like to prune River birches (Betula nigra), ever. We've got an 18-panel, 4.2 kW, grid-tied PV solar system, and in the summer, our very large river birch blocks it, reducing its capacity by almost 40%. We decided to remove one of the four main stems, and we followed conventional wisdom, making the cut in late January. Because the limb hung over multiple phone and power lines, we hired a tree service to remove the limb with their boom truck. Admittedly, there was no natural collar that was evident, but I was immediately concerned that the remaining stem was too long.

I had only my small 14" arborist saw in the truck and decided to fix it when I had my big saw with me. I also wanted to use a taller ladder than what I had on hand, because i didn't want to accidentally damage the adjacent trunk. Unfortunately it warmed up right away, and we missed those next to weekends at the farm. I should have found a way to do it with the small saw. As we watch the sap free-flow from the cut, we're crossing fingers hoping the tree will continue to thrive.

Normally the beginning of meteorological Spring is a time full of optimism. I don't think I'll be content until I see this tree leaf out in April.

Waiting for the frogs to sing

2011-02-27T16:07:00.002-05:00

As it warms, our wetland vernal ponds are still holding a lot of water, and the surrounding moist and mesic-moist soil is thoroughly saturated.

Wood frogs (Rana sylvatica) will be the first to begin singing, and they will begin breeding with the first warm rain, sometimes while there is still ice on the ponds. Most interesting, they are found further north than any other North American reptile or Amphibian.

Photo by Karen Fancl

Winter flooding

2011-02-26T13:55:00.000-05:00

A few brave folks drove through 8-10 inches of water moving across the top of the West Virginia side of the Oldtown Bridge.

I had a trailer in tow, and we had been thinking of making a trip to Cumberland, so we wimped out, stopped by Nature's Art in Cumberland to buy an indoor lime tree, and then drove down Route 28 through Ridgely, Fort Ashby, Springfield and then back north to Green Spring.

Cherry tree

2011-02-21T16:32:00.000-05:00

Back in the city, my neighbor Joanne had a very large ornamental cherry tree that had succumbed to the burden of winter snow, after years of struggling with invasive English ivy. I offered to trim the dead branches, and she accepted, but then told me she was planning to pay to have the whole struggling tree removed. I summoned my neighbor Doug, who I new would love the wood for the custom canoe and kayak paddles he builds, and we promised to save her a few hundred dollars by taking care of it during the three-day weekend.

Only after cleaning up did we realize we cut down a cherry tree on Washington's Birthday. While the account of George Washington's story is debated among historians, we didn't know what to think about this, but we thought we could at least pose for a photo.

Taking advantage of the end of Winter

2011-02-13T15:17:00.001-05:00

The occasional warm days hint bring a little optism. But I'll confess that some things are easier in Winter. Here we've loaded 95 gallons (about 650 pounds)of coffee grounds from the Java Shack in Arlington and Open Kitchen in Falls Church into the T190.

Sometimes we apply the coffee grounds immediately to the soil to provide some acidity, mostly for berry crops or transplanted plants from the Ericaceae family (blueberries, cranberries, rhododendron and laurel).

Otherwise it's beneficial to compost the coffee grounds. We like to create a mix of leaves (90% by volume), coffee grounds (5%), and woodstove ashes (5%) to maximize the nutrient availability in the mature compost.

Pre-Vernal Ponds

2011-02-06T23:26:00.000-05:00

Our turtle, frog and Wood Duck ponds were pretty low all winter, but we've been glad to see nearly all of them at full capacity this week. This will ensure the best conditions for wood frogs and peepers in early March.

Before we bought our farm, the wetlands were drained by dredging the original intermittent stream to create a narrow channel. The creek boundaries may have been ambiguous after the extensive flooding in 1996, but by creating a channel, a lot of wonderful wetland habitat was no longer available. We merely created stream crossings with 6-inch flow-through pipe and 90o ends that can be rotated to allow for variable depths. We can raise the water level by up to 8".

As many of you know, we didn't have to plant a single wetland plant; they immediately appeared from the existing seed bank.

Geocaching in Hampshire County

2011-01-06T19:00:00.004-05:00

Geocaching is like treasure hunting, although most participate because of the spirit of the hunt rather than the treasure itself.

We have more than a hundred geocaches within a 30 mile radius of Romney, as you can see below. Clicking the link will take you to Geocaching.com

In the northern part of Hampshire County, we have several caches that are accessible only by paddling or tubing along the South Branch.

In the photo below, my nephew Elliot is securing an easy-to-find cache near the river bank.

Honeylocust

2010-10-26T19:30:00.000-04:00

I've written before that the Honeylocust (Gleditsia triacanthos) is one of my very favorite trees. Our honeylocust in the city is always remarkable on mid-October.

In this second photo, you can also see our new solar panels. We're planning a large solar array in northern Hampshire County during 2012.

A Surviving American Chestnut

2010-10-14T19:37:00.000-04:00

A friend took me to see this American chestnut, barely surving in a ridge overlooking the South Branch. We collected leaves and sent them to Penn State for DNA analysis, which confirmed it was the original species.

Too Dry

2010-10-06T19:50:00.000-04:00

In the Winter and Spring, this path through the wetlands would be bordered by water on both sides - standing water on the right and moving water on the left. This October, there's no water visible in either.

Dangerously dry

2010-10-06T19:24:00.000-04:00

The cows are managing to find food despite less than ideal moisture available to grass. Unfortunately, weeds and invasives have an advantage in these conditions.

Underwater ROVs

2010-08-23T19:42:00.000-04:00

I'm a SCUBA instructor,and while I've always been interested in underwater videography, I usually have to many responsibilities to focus my attention so narrowly (through a lens). I was intrigued by these underwater remote-operated vehicles in the shape of a fish, with built-in cameras.

Algae blooms in the South Branch

2010-08-15T19:52:00.000-04:00

We reported these alga to Potomac Riverkeeper. Algae typically blooms in periods of excess nutrients. In the South Branch, that often happens here in mid-August after a rain following long arid periods due to runoff from farms.

Surprisingly, many cattle farmers still allow their livestock in the river, despite many available, well-funded programs to help farmers be responsible in protecting watersheds. Manure management, particularly at large poultry operations is another source of excess nutirents.

Amaryllis Lilies - Naked Ladies

2010-08-07T20:00:00.000-04:00

Amaryllis belladonna are deer resistant, so I'm generally happy when my friends in the city offer me their excess when they divide their bulbs.

Family Hikes

2010-08-01T20:06:00.000-04:00

We do lots of mowing to maintain nearly two miles of walking trails. It all pays off during our big family visits. We usually have both morning and evening hikes through the woods and along the river. With just about 1 dog for every two humans, we make several stops for cooling off in the river.

After the hike, Luke and Lily dig in to our fish-shaped waffles. We use frozen blueberries for fish eyes.

We try to enhance the fish-shaped waffles with an assortment of renamed syrups, jams and frostings, including Pond Water (syrup), Mud (chocolate frosting, Fish Slime (honey from our friends at Church View Farm), and Turtle Egg Shell Puree (white frosting).

Young Raccoons

2010-05-17T17:51:00.000-04:00

This very young raccoon (Procyon lotor) fell from a nest in a very large silver maple. I don't recall ever seeing a raccoon this young. I wish I had recorded this on video because the crying was surprising. My friend David of Viral Media Productions said I could have retired early off the advertising. I hid it in the bushes near the base of the tree; hopefully it's mama retrieved it before a cat, crow or other opportunistic critter found it.

As trees begin to "leaf-out", few are as impressive as those in the legume family like the honeylocust (Gleditsia triacanthos). Most species in this family (Fabaceae, formerly Leguminosae) have pinnately compound leaves that develop remarkably fast. The honeylocust is among my favorite trees, and they're indigenous to the mid-Atlantic region and beyond. They make very good street trees because they create just enough shade, are fast growing, and don't require raking in the fall. They aren't disease-resistant, but they certainly recover well. We have many in the woods on our Hampshire County farm with all of their natural, medieval-looking defenses intact. Fabaceae is the third largest family of lowering plants, with 730 genera and over 19,400 species, and they're found world-wide. Many legumes, of course, are economically important as food and they also return nitrogen to the soil in which they grow.

Redbuds (Cercis canadensis) are also representative native legumes widely recognized in West Virginia's Eastern Panhandle.

First two weeks of Spring

2010-04-06T17:57:00.000-04:00

The two weeks following the vernal equinox are always the most impressive to me. There is often a dramatic change in weather, and of course we see lots of changes in plant and animal cycles. Passover usually falls on the first full moon after the vernal equinox, Easter falls on the first Sunday after the first full moon following the vernal equinox, and in many countries the vernal equinox is the beginning of the new year. So with lots of observation, celebration, reflection, and changes in nature, these two weeks feel like more of a renewal period and maybe a better time for resolutions than mid-Winter.

Back-yard daffodils

Most of us below 1000 feet have seen the blooming daffodils (Narcissus spp), forsythia (most are hybrid F. suspensa × F. viridissima), some magnolias (Magnolia spp.), and cherries (Prunus spp.).

Redbuds, almost in bloom.

The redbuds (Cercis canadensis), Virginia bluebells (<Mertensia virginica), and spring beauties (Claytonia virginica) are blooming this week, and many of the trees are beginning to leaf out.

Bluebells along the South Branch[/caption]

Some dandelions (Taraxacum officinale) are already full-sized. We even saw mayapples (Podophyllum peltatum) breaking ground on April 1. I learned today that mayapple leaves and rhizomes contain the poison podophyllotoxin, used by doctors to kill warts, and used by Native Americans to coat corn kernels before planting.

Among reptiles, we saw our first painted turtles (Chrysemys picta picta) last week, but we didn't see the first wood turtles (Clemmys insculpta) until April 3.

[caption id="attachment_108" align="alignleft" width="300" caption="Wood turtles have emerged from hibernating in the river."]

Diane shows the turtle is female.

The spring peepers (Pseudacris crucifer) were a little quieter this week, but we found our first spotted salamanders (Ambystoma maculatum) while my wilfe was transplanting American pussywillows (intentionally misspelled, but known specifically as Salix discolor).

Diane and an adult spotted salamander.

There were lots of new birds this week. Brown thrashers (Toxostoma rufum) have returned to our hedgerows. We saw and heard kestrels (Falco sparverius), our smallest falcon, as they hunted overhead. Crows must be beginning to nest because they are increasingly aggressive toward the red-tailed hawksButeo jamaicensis.

David Blahut reported three bald eagles (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) along the South Branch near Levels, but the only eagle I've seen since January was on Sunday near Horsepen Pond at Dulles Airport. There are suddenly lots of turkey vultures () overhead. I also saw the first swallows of the year (tree swallows, Tachycineta bicolor) along the South Branch floodplain, but Frank Wilson reported seeing them upstream over a week earlier.

Near the bird feeders we've seen chipping sparrows (Spizella passerina), brown-headed cowbirds (Molothrus ater), and mockingbirds (Mimus polyglottos), along with those mentioned earlier this Spring.

Clint Ferguson reported that he's heard turkeys (Meleagris gallopavo) gobbling already. I've heard barred owls (Strix varia) and their "Who, who, who cooks for you" call, which is often mimicked by hunters specifically to locate gobbling tom turkeys.

We find new beaver (Castor canadensis) damage ever week lately, but we also saw some tracks we couldn't identify. Maybe you can help. I wonder if they might be from a mink (Neovison vison), but they might just be a turtle.

Thanks to all who are reporting their observations.

If you know a teacher, be sure to tell them about the reporting form (link) before Environmental Education week (April 11-17).

Spring Peepers and Arriving Birds

2010-03-24T18:03:00.000-04:00

Spring peepers(Pseudacris crucifer) are noisy, almost 24 hours a day. Most people are surprised to learn so much noise comes from such a small creature, which is about the size of the tip of my index finger. We have the Northern subspecies P. c. crucifer in the Mid-Atlantic.

You can hear their call by clicking one of these links: wav file or mp3 file

Eastern Meadowlarks (Sturnella magna) have arrived and have started singing.

American Robins (Turdus migratorius) seem to have descended en masse too.

Eastern Bluebirds (Sialia sialis) are inspecting and adopting housing for the Spring. Fortunately, we just installed six new boxes in early March.

Our Red-tailed Hawk (Buteo jamaicensis) is back. I really don't know if we have the same Red-tails every year, but it's nice to think so.

Other birds spotted this week (hover over common names to see an image):

White-breasted Nuthatches (Sitta carolinensis)

American Goldfinches (Carduelis tristis

Blue Jays (Cyanocitta cristata)

Red-headed Woodpeckers (Melanerpes carolinus)

Hairy Woodpeckers (Picoides villosus)

White-breasted Nuthatches (Sitta carolinensis)

Carolina Wrens (Thryothorus ludovicianus)

Pileated Woodpeckers (Dryocopus pileatus)

Wood Ducks (Aix sponsa)

Mourning Doves (Zenaida macroura)

Rock Doves, or pigeons (Columba livia)

There was no good river trash following last weekend's flood. On the riverbanks and nearby islands, we've found everything from canoes and sailboats to balls and other toys after past flooding, and that somehow makes cleaning up the mobile home parts, refrigerators and shredded blue tarps a little more tolerable.

Seasonal Changes Well Underway

2010-03-19T08:41:00.001-04:00

Almost as soon as I posted my March 7 report, I saw a bluebird (Sialia sialis) and the first Red-wing Blackbird (Agelaius phoeniceus) of the Spring. Just before the rains began, I also saw a half-dozen killdeer (Charadrius vociferus) in the fields down along the South Branch floodplain. I'll bet many are busy relocating their nests this week.

If you spent time outside or even near a window this week, and realize you're feeling a little better about things, it likely has something to do with both the temperature and the length of daylight. In all vertebrate animals, signals from your retina from an increase in light affect your pineal gland, which is shaped like a very small pine cone, about the size of a grain of rice. As you can see in the image below, it's located near the center of the brain.

The pineal gland is a small endocrine gland in fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds and mammals that produces melatonin, which is a hormone that affects both daily and seasonal functions of our lives. The melatonin and other biochemical signals it produces affect behavior, migration, shedding, antler loss, and a wide variety of other functions and behaviors. It may affect humans less than other animals because we have regular estrous cycles (come into heat) throughout the year; and because, of course, we use technology to alter our "photoperiod" of available light.

The pineal gland is made up of four or more types of cells, and some of those cells in non-humans strongly resemble retinal cells, leading some evolutionary biologists to suggest a link to the photoreceptors in more primitive animals. In short, the pineal gland may help animals from being fooled by unseasonably warm temperatures that might lead to certain behaviors or cycles beginning too early, resulting in premature migrations, reduced reproduction or lower birthweights, etc.

Most of you have already noticed daffodil bulbs (Narcissus spp.) breaking the surface. Crocuses are blooming (most are Crocus tommasinianus, I think), among wild garlic (Allium vineale) and wild onion (Allium canadense). Wild onion and wild garlic are closely related; the easiest way to distinguish them is to know that wild garlic's leaves are hollow and wild onion's are not. All members of the Allium family (garlic, onions, leeks, shallots, etc.) give me instant hiccups, so I'll rely on one of you to tell us which are best for cooking.

We planted most of our hibiscus seeds in late November and early December, but spread the remainder just before the flooding last week. I hope the folks downstream enjoy them in July and August. Swamp rose mallow (Hibiscus moscheutos) is the most common hibiscus in Hampshire County, and has white flowers the size of small dinner plates. We also planted H. laevis (formerly H. militaris) which is usually pink with a purple center; and we planted H. lasiocarpos, which some think is a subspecies of H. moschuetos preferring wetter soils.

Swamp rose mallow (Hibiscus moscheutos)

Birds have begun singing prominantly in the mornings, and I hope you'll tell me which you see and hear singing. This time of the year that singing is mostly territorial, followed by mating later in the Spring. I've been seeing crows (Corvus brachyrhynchos) exhibiting territorial aggression.

Flooding has receded, and while the river banks are scarred, take notice of which river bank features contributed to erosion or were eroded, and which river features resulted in sediment deposits. Predicting erosion is often easier than predicting where sediments will be deposited, but engineering solutions for controlling either are often counterintuitive. Fortunately, we have knowledgeable local DNR specialists who are happy to give advice.

Because of the overwhelming saturation of wetlands and bottomlands, I'm very interested in when you begin hearing spring peepers. Use the online form! tiny.cc/hampshireoutdoors

Rapidly Rising Rivers

2010-03-13T13:29:00.000-05:00

Flooding is expected throughout the Potomac Watershed this weekend. The ground is saturated from snow melt, and rivers were already swollen, so we can expect the rivers to respond to falling rain almost immediately. Rainfall of up to 4.5 inches is predicted for this weekend.

The most comprehensive online river gauge information in Hampshire County comes from the Springfield gauge on the South Branch, and from the Moorefield gauge upstream in Hardy County. There is an online gauge on the Cacapon near the mouth at Great Cacapon (Morgan County), and way upstream in Hardy County on Waites Run (a tributary) near Wardensville. The Paw Paw gauge in adjacent Morgan County is the first gauge on the main stem of the Potomac River.

Look to the right for links to gauge information, or click on the current forecasts below (Springfield and Moorefield) for expanded information for the South Branch.

Meteorological Spring - March 7, 2010

2010-03-13T13:28:00.001-05:00

Meteorological Spring is here. We'll enjoy about 11 hours and 36 minutes of daylight this week, and that changes by almost 15 minutes per week this time of year. Our little unheated greenhouse has been breaking the 25C mark regularly (77-78F)s, and with our predicted highs above 10C (50F) all week, I'm starting to get impatient.

When we arrived home on Friday evening my wife called to me from the kitchen, thinking she heard a dripping sound. As we listened closer, I looked up to see a flying squirrel (Glaucomys volans volans) nibbling something on a rafter above. The squirrel scrambled down a timber, went to our older dog's bowl, drank some water, then grabbed a piece of kibble and scooted upward again. Like us, until this weekend, the little squirrel was generally happier inside than outside. She was too small to be caught in a squirrel trap, so after she was convinced I was safe (eventually eating from my hand), I tricked her into feeling secure in a bag of dog food, pinched it closed, carried it outside, and reversed the process. Cute as they are, flying squirrels can do a lot of damage and have been known to carry zoonotics.

[caption id="attachment_25" align="alignnone" width="300" caption="Our house guest"][/caption]

I saw the first tadpoles in our ponds on Saturday, where the ice was mostly paper thin if present at all. There's no sign of turtles in the ponds or river yet. All the wetlands are thoroughly wet, and that makes me optimistic.

Other than ravens (Corvus corax) and crows (Corvus brachyrhynchos), the only birds I'm seeing regularly are cardinals (Cardinalis cardalinas), titmice (Baeolophus bicolor), a variety of woodpeckers, Canada geese (Branta canadensis), juncos (Junco hyemalis), and an occasional turkey (Meleagris gallopavo) and a few pairs of American mergansers (Mergus merganser americanus) on the river - all winter residents. The robins (Turdus migratorius) seem to be arriving in places in Zone 7a, so we'll start seeing more of them next week.

Sycamore seeds (Platanus occidentalis) are prominant, but otherwise not much is happening in the plants world, except that the newly exposed ground covers look plenty moist and with plenty of green understory. The native red cedars (Juniperus virginiana) seem to be doing fine, unlike many of their transplanted cousins from the same family Cupressaceae (aborvitae, Leyland cypress and others), which are sometimes bent over and uprooted by the burden of heavy snows. We've seen a few smaller white pines (Pinus strobus) that had similar troubles, where the tree tops were still pinned to the ground by snow.

The whitetail deer (Odocoileus virginianus) and cottontail rabbits ( Sylvilagus floridanus) I've seen this week still look healthy, although I've seen a few deer remains from what appeared to be younger, probably later-born fawns.

The South Branch, Cacapon and Little Cacapon rivers all seem to be rising slightly, warming significantly, and maintaining that late-winter green color, although I won't be surprised to see a brown color in all three soon.

I'm always curious to know what you're seeing. Send an email to jim@woodhouseresearch.org or better, use our online form: http://tiny.cc/hampshireoutdoors

What is Phenology?

2010-03-07T21:08:00.000-05:00

Phenology is the study of the timing and interrelationships of biotic natural phenomena (e.g., plant and animal life cycles) in consideration of abiotic phenomena (e.g., climate, weather, daylight, flooding, tides, etc.).

Not only are you welcome as a reader, you can play a role in developing this blog by sharing your observations. Particularly if you see something special, like a first robin, a bald eagle, invasive plant or a bobcat.

Most of my reporting is done from between 520 to 1000 feet above sea level, not far from Springfield, WV (39.45, -78.69)

Send an email to jim@woodhouseresearch.org or use our online reporting form (best): http://tiny.cc/hampshireoutdoors