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.
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.
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.
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. 
European sycamores (Platanus orientalis) are sometimes called Planes. They appear very similar to our Platanus occidentalis. 
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. 
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. 
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.
Cayla with two big crayfish and a big leaf from a streamside Umbrella Tree (Magnolia tripetala).
