The air had a tropical feel this morning, with a temperature in the 80’s even before we got to work on the CCC Field brick walk. Nevertheless, we finished clearing the walk to the fountain as well as most of the mulched beds under the trees. There are still a few weeds to be cleaned up, including in two small mulch beds around large trees and behind the benches. Before quitting for the day we stopped at the Rain Garden and pulled Lady’s Thumb knotweed and trimmed back some of the Bee Balm which has collapsed in the recent rains. Eric and I worked earlier in the week to weed the Native Plant Garden. Next week we’ll need to dive into the Pool Gardens and check the Butterfly Garden, CCC Museum and Anniversary Garden.
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Once again Mother Nature tried to help us with our daily ablutions by providing a free shower, but it did little to dampen the enthusiasm of today’s crew. At the CCC Field we worked on general weeding, with emphasis on the brick walks. Abandoning that effort in the shower, leaving more to be done, we moved to the CCC Museum and cleaned out the weeds there. Next stop, the Butterfly Garden, where again it was scattered crabgrass, carpetweed and a few others. Turtle damage was minimal, for a change. No butterflies to been seen today, but the Joe Pye Weed will be blooming soon. Last stop was the Pool gardens. On the left side we finished removing the unwanted grasses, and on both sides we did general weeding. The crew also tackled the grasses around the landscape edging, making a big improvement in the visual aspect. Several of the pool visitors gave us a verbal pat on the back for a job well done. There is still more to be done here also, with a rich crop of nutsedge growing at the back of the right side bed. In the next session we’ll need to get to the weeds in the Rain and Native Plant gardens. The Native Plant Garden now has 10 new plant signs which connect via smartphone to associated plant web pages. Feedback on their usefulness and functionality is welcome. Today’s gardening session was hijacked by the park’s natural resources officer, Irene Frentz. She requested help in saving some of the native plants in the Heritage Center landscaping, which in a few days will be cleared of vegetation and redesigned. So it was a combination gardening and rescue session, well attended by Friends and Virginia Master Naturalists. We dug out many, many plants and stuffed them in pots, to be held at the district office until assigned to a new location, or, possibly, back to the Heritage Center in the redesigned landscaping.
We did get a few minutes to pull weeds in the Rain Garden. It needs to be checked again soon. While there we added one Swamp Milkweed (Asclepias incarnata) from the Heritage Center. New identification signs are now in hand for the Native Plant Garden. Unfortunately, the clay subsoil proved too hard for us to install them. The storms tonight may alleviate that problem. Weeding and thinning are needed in this garden. Some of those present walked to the Butterfly Garden. It’s in good shape except for minor damage by turtles making holes for depositing eggs. Upon return, they reported that the CCC Museum docent has a list of the plants originally planted in that landscaping bed. The CCC Museum Garden needs just a touch-up to keep ahead of the crabgrass, dandelions and other weeds. Christy and I started the day at the CCC Field, pulling grass and spotted spurge from the brick walk. Eric and I finished the day here, pulling crabgrass and weeding under one of the mountain laurels. We also planted a couple of clumps of what we think is a sunflower from the Heritage Center. Weeds and grasses are coming up here almost faster than we can rip them out. Much work remains to be done. We need to get back down to the Pool Gardens. There’s more Bermuda grass to dig out before it gets too happy there, and other weeds move in whenever we aren’t looking. Below the swimming pool, the Anniversary Garden is looking good, but the deer have munched on the little redbug I planted. We need a deer-resistant small tree to replace it. Still green: After a spell of below-average temperatures, spring may finally be emerging from hibernation. The Christmas Ferns, mosses and American Hollies gave us a glimmer of green throughout the barren season. As the snow fades into memory, they will soon be joined by the new growth of our other forest plants. Beaver lodge: The beaver ponds are full once again. They had dwindled to mere puddles when the smaller streams went dry. Canada goose: It looks like a pair of Canada geese have selected this pond as a potential nesting site. I recently received the latest update to the Virginia Invasive Plant Species List. In the High Invasiveness Rank group is Japanese Honeysuckle, the vine that climbs up and over shrubs, small trees and fences and produces a powerful perfume in June. This honeysuckle was introduced into the United States before 1900 as an ornamental plant, and is now found in all states east of the Mississippi. It occurs here in Pocahontas in abundance. Mostly it persists as a sparse ground cover, held in check by the shade of our forest overstory. But where the tree canopy is thin or broken, honeysuckle vine can develop enough canopy of its own to suppress native undergrowth and to deform trees. I found and photographed one such open site where pine harvesting some years ago opened the tree canopy. Sites like this are put on the invasive plant registry as candidates for control during invasive species volunteer sessions.
Walking in the woods and looking at trees generally involves a lot of looking up but not seeing much detail from my ground-bound viewpoint. Sometimes, though, the detail is not "up there" but down where it comes into clear view. The lichen on this oak trunk was right at eye level, so I was able to study and capture it on camera. It does appear that the bark is dotted with "little gray beards".
Someone recently asked me about some black stuff he was seeing on rocks. I noticed this one today and did a bit of research. I thought it worth sharing. The following explanation comes from eHow.com: "Crustose lichen is the only plant that will grow on a bare rock. This is accomplished by gathering small amounts of water and then in winter when the water freezes, it cracks the rock surface, providing the lichen with minerals and organic materials. Over time this process forms a tiny bit of soil on the rock. These lichen tend to lay flat on their host, looking much like paint splatters, making them hard to remove. They range in color from black, gray, brown, orange, yellow and green. About 75 percent of all lichen in the world are crustose lichen. When dating stone walls and gravestones, scientists measure the radius of this lichen growth since it grows so slowly and lives for centuries." Read more : http://www.ehow.com/info_8463741_types-lichen-grow-rocks.html Toad: Hey, man. What are you doing? You’re messing with my habitat. Man: Sorry Toad, but you’re hiding in Stiltgrass. I need to get rid of this stuff. Toad: Huh? I like this stuff. It makes good cover and keeps me shaded. Man: Uh-huh. Too good. It’s choking out the native woodland ground vegetation. And besides, you need bugs, and this isn’t good bug habitat. Toad: What? Look at me, man. Do I look like I’m starving? Man: Yeah, looks like you’ve done well this year. But not because of Stiltgrass. When cold weather comes you’ll need a better place to snuggle down. I’ll just get this Stiltgrass out of here and then you can have your proper habitat. Toad: Fine. I’ll just sit quietly here and pretend you didn’t see me. On a summer walk in the Pocahontas woods, you might be mildly startled by a rustling in the leaf litter. If you don't see a squirrel, it may be an Eastern Fence Lizard that has decided to take cover on your approach. They are not especially shy, so you might still catch sight of it hesitating on a rock or tree trunk. They seem as curious of us as we are of them, and will watch us from a safe distance if they don't feel threatened.
This lizard and several skinks are the only lizard species in the park. It is common throughout Virginia, one of the links in the ecosystem energy flow. Sixty years ago the Eastern Fence Lizard was grouped with several other species in a sub-family aptly called Swifts (just try to catch one). But taxonomy is constantly changing and that grouping has fallen by the wayside. It now belongs to the family Phrynosomatidae; try to say that without tripping! --Ben |
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