Arboreality Returns in June

I am returning to Seattle this May, and Arboreality will be on vacation until June 1, 2008 while I pack and travel.

Arboreality extends a gracious thank you to Mike of 10,000 Birds for volunteering to host the Festival of the Trees next month on such short notice. Be sure to send in your submissions this April featuring trees, forests, and wood.

Once I am settled in Seattle I’ll be able to share images from my return trip across the US. We’ll return to the evergreen forests of my home-state with a fresh pair of eyes. Until then, enjoy the blooming spring or the glorious autumn (depending upon your location), and feel free to reminisce through the Pennsylvania hardwoods when we explored the Poconos, and my dear home right here at the farm in Chester County, Pennsylvania.

See you in June!

Fungi Along the Forest Trails

Evergreen Goodness: American Holly Among the Pennsylvania Hardwoods

Fabulous Friday Philadelphia Snowfall

This morning we awoke to a beautiful snowfall which has given us about four inches in the last four hours (it’s 8am EST now). We took a quick walk to enjoy the boot-crunching-goodness of first-thing-in-the-morning snow. With little wind, the trees are well-coated; snow always accentuates the lovely shapes of trees. Today's top image is of the butternut tree (Juglans cinerea) over the driveway, an excellent tree and true friend, naturally photogenic in snow.

Just about everything looks good in snow, including our wood fence (built by The Fence Authority of Chester County, Pennsylvania). We’re thankful for our cedar fence (this is its first winter) which allows our husky Blackfoot to enjoy the yard as a good dog should. As you can see, the garden is also segmented, to keep our over-zealous husky out of the vegetables.

Now that it’s lighter outside I plan to go visit the local woods with my camera. More images to follow!

(Blackfoot's Washington buddy The Quilting Doberman posted some righteous pictures of the beautiful snow in the Cascades this January).

Frozen Forests at Ridley Creek State Park

I took some much needed time out this week to enjoy a small hike at Ridley Creek State Park. Ridley Creek State Park includes more than 2,606 acres of woodlands located in Delaware County near the West Chester Pike (Route 3).

Among the park’s many features is the Park Office and Gardens. From the DCNR park website:

"The park office is in the “Hunting Hill” mansion, built by the Jeffords family in 1914. The mansion was built around a 1789 Pennsylvania stone farmhouse that forms the core of the building and serves as the reception center."

Recently the Philadelphia area has seen bits of snow, ice, rain, and freezing rain, which meant that on this particular hike, most of my attention was spent trying to maintain my balance on icy trails. We will return soon on less icy days when I can carry my camera and bring you photos from the forest. In the spring I will also return to share images of the gardens. In the absence of pictures, I can tell you that the creek was roaring and full, and the trees were snuggly in their icy snow-blanket.

If you’re in the Philadelphia area and would like to learn more about local trees and forests, be sure to visit Steven Chmielnicki at Artisan Trees. Steven is an ISA Certified Arborist of Artisan Tree & Treehouse, LLC. Recently Steven began organizing informal “tree walks” at parks in our area. He invites groups of people to join him in learning to identify local species. These tree walks are free and open to the public. I hope to join Steven in the future and share a little about his tree walks here at Arboreality.

To learn more or to join in future tree walks visit the Artisan Trees website.

Warm Winter Sunset

Yesterday’s unseasonably warm sunrise was matched by the evening's delicious, colorful sunset. I’m not sure if it was the stormy weather, the eclipse, or my mood, but at yesterday's sunset the sky was positively glowing! My camera does not remotely do justice to the golden pink of the clouds and deep blue of the sky.

Blog Update: Arboreality is now listed at the Nature Blog Network. Be sure to check it out for listings of other great nature blogs!

Warm Winter Sunrise

It’s a warm, humid morning in Philadelphia (60 degrees Fahrenheit and rising). I’ve only been in Chester County, Pennsylvania for three winters, but each one has included some strange, unseasonably warm days often sandwiched between freezing days and big snows. Today the prediction is for rain and possibly thunder; by the speed of those low, lavender clouds – I suspect that we’re in for a wild new moon (accompanied by an equally electric solar eclipse). Time to plant!

Snowy Chester County

The farm where we rent our cottage is nestled in Chester County, just outside of Philadelphia. For the last few days we’ve had a beautiful little snow dusting and crispy, cold temperatures. Our snowfall accumulated roughly two inches, and officially brought winter to our neck of Pennsylvania.

Yesterday’s sunrise illuminated the many oak trees which have not yet released their leaves. This phenomenon, called “leaf marcescence,” is common among oaks (Quercus), beeches (Fagus), and a few other deciduous trees. (Remember you can click on pictures to enlarge). I hope to take a drive up toward Phoenixville some time this winter so I can bring you pictures at Arboreality – there are beautiful swaths of forests (and lovely planted sycamores in town), and the blush of the young beech trees is always a warming sight in the cold of winter.

Of course, I can’t resist an excuse to share another picture of the stone silo. As an artist, I am perpetually inspired by the intermixing of farm, forest, and fauna here at my Pennsylvania home. This stone silo is one of a handful of remnants of the original farming days which once defined Chester County and the greater Brandywine Valley region. The third image is one of my favorite romantic staples in these parts: the elegant, imposing Black walnut (Juglans nigra).

Today, much of this land is being converted to suburban housing. Fortunately, the local culture allows room for a genuine interest in conservation, as demonstrated by the Open Space Preservation Department of Chester County. Last winter I had the pleasure of interviewing the Director, Mr. Bill Gladden. Check out the interview here at Arboreality, and stop by the Open Space Preservation Department website to learn more about local efforts to retain forest and farmland in the area.

Coming up at Arboreality: Christmas trees, winter planting, and green holidays.

Looking to bring a few more trees to your blog? The Festival of the Trees is a monthly blog carnival featuring trees and forests from around the blogosphere. Stop by the Festival of the Trees coordinating blog to learn how you can contribute your tree posts, or volunteer to host the festival right at your own blogging home! (An April volunteer is needed! April means Arbor Day for many in the US... what better time to host the Festival of the Trees?)

Cold Sunrise at the Farm

The Moon is waning. Here in the Philadelphia area the coming New Moon in Sagittarius (December 9, 2007) heralds wind, cold, and (hopefully) snow. When I woke around 4am today the moon was still high with Venus, and by dawn it was eclipsed by passing wisps of cold, grey clouds.

(Note for star gazers: the Moon is nearly conjunct Venus; that means they're really close together in the sky from our perspective. Seriously, just make yourself get up early for five minutes, and soak in the beauty before sunrise.)

No one calls in the winter wind like the Eastern white pines along the western side of our cottage. Without their leaves, the oaks may groan and the walnuts may roar, but the Eastern white pines still kick up a clatter, their voice clearer in the winter without the deciduous trees to drown them out.

I encourage you to visit Cady May at Meanwhile, Back in the Holler and listen in on what the trees have to say in her neck of the woods. She's composed a timely video which is as much a documentary as it is a lovingly constructed work of art: Autumn in a Tennessee Holler.

November Forest

October was kind to Philadelphia this year. We enjoyed late summer heat, which means that I was still harvesting red tomatoes until just a few weeks ago. It also means that many trees are still holding their leaves in swaths of pink and gold – great news for us tree lovers!

And there’s more good news for us tree lovers:

First, the Festival of the Trees came twice this month, courtesy of Salix Tree at WindyWillow. Go forth to enjoy the Trees of Halloween – if you dare! Then take a leisurely stroll through the Trees and Fruit of Autumn. Delicious.

Second, forest biologist Nalini Nadkarni is putting the finishing touches on her most recent book, Between Earth and Sky: Our Intimate Connections to Trees, due out in Spring 2008 from the University of California Press. I have had the honor of working as her assistant in preparing this book, and I am very excited to share more with you in coming months.

For now - enjoy the pictures!