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Happening
at the Crossroads:
April 12,
2010
by Coggin
Heeringa
As
Door County bird migration gets underway and the trees start to show
green at Crossroads at Big Creek, we are drawn into the forests. A walk
through the woods can be most revealing.
The heavy snows which
fell last December damaged a number of trees. Many evergreens lost
branches, some were bent over, and a few were completed weighted down.
A good number of these downed trees continued to live in a horizontal
position. That, I can comprehend. What I find truly amazing is that
frequently, after considerable time, tree trunks are able to bend
toward the light.
We all know that houseplants grow toward light, but tree trunks are wood… wood is rigid, solid. How can it possibly bend?
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Apture™
I
finally found the answer in a book called Life Processes of Plants. The
author, Arthur W. Galston, explained that in erect trees, annual
rings tend to be rather symmetrical, but that in a horizontally placed
tree, annual rings are noticeably asymmetrical.
He wrote: “In
trees like pine and fir, the lignin on the bottom side of an
asymmetrical ring differs from that on the upper side: there is more of
it and it is chemically different in a way that makes it stronger. The
deposits of more and stronger lignin on the lower side press the stem
upward, eventually causing it to bend in that direction.”
Right now, the forests look pretty beat up, but trees are truly flexible. And we want more of them.
At
Crossroads, we are looking forward to planting more than a thousand
trees this spring. Last fall, Friends of Crossroads began their
Perimeter Planting Project. Their objective is to plant conifers around
the boundaries of Crossroads property, and they will continue planting
trees this spring.
The Crossroads Master Plan specifies that the
southeast corner of the preserve be reforested. We believe this area
was logged off in the1850s. For more than a hundred years, it was an
apple orchard. A goal is to restore it to mixed hardwoods, as it
was before European settlement.
When Sue Peterson of AmeriCorps,
who is working through the Volunteer Center of Door County, approached
Crossroads to see if we might have a task for youth service volunteers,
restoring five acres of the old orchard seemed a perfect project.
This
winter, a youth representative met with DNR Forester Chris Plazk and
members of the Crossroads Building and Grounds Committee to formulate a
plan.
On Earth Day, youth will go into action. Students from
Sevastopol School will start the work by making seedling protectors
(hundreds of wire cages) and raptor poles, cedar poles with
perch platforms, which (we hope) will attract hawks which (we also
hope) will keep meadow voles under control.
April 24 will is
National Youth Service Day and youth from area high schools will
begin planting. Aptly, more trees will be planted on Arbor Day, and in
May, grade school students from Gibraltar and Sunrise Schools will
finish the plantings.
If you are interested in planting trees or
enhancing your landscape, you are invited to join the Wild Ones of Door
County on Saturday, April 17 at 10:00 for the slide Show: “The Best
Native Plants for Door County Gardens and Landscapes.” Landscaped
gardener and nurseryman, Clifford Orsted will present a slide show of
the best local and regional native wildflowers, grasses, sedges, ferns,
vines shrubs and small trees. He will describe how to select plants
from full sun to shade, for woodlands. He also will share the cultural
preferences and benefits to wildlife.
Saturday and Sunday, join
the naturalist for a hike to Big Creek. Spring is always an exciting
time at the creek and any day, the annual sucker run will be underway.
Crossroads
is a donor-supported educational center focused on science, history and
the environment. The Collins Learning Center is open daily 2:00-5:00.
Again this year, rain barrels will be available for $65. For more
information, visit www.crossroadsatbigcreek.org
Wednesday,April 14, 4:00
Sustainability Lecture: Managing for Biodiversity
Learn
what biodiversity is, why it is important, what are the threats. We
will explore what we can do to manage for biodiversity. A $5.00
suggested donation will be applied to upgrading the lighting in the
Collins Learning Center. Lecture hall of the Collins Learning Center.
Saturday, April 17, 10:00
Wild Ones Lecture: “Best Native Plants for Door County Gardens and Landscapes.”
Landscaped
gardener and nurseryman, Clifford Orsted will present a slide show of
the best local and regional native wildflowers, grasses, sedges, ferns,
vines shrubs and small trees. He will describe how to select plants
from full sun to shade, for woodlands. He also will share the cultural
preferences and benefits to wildlife. Free and Open to the public.
Collins Learning Center.
1:00
Hike to Big Creek
Join
the naturalist in a hike to Big Creek. No promises, but we might see
fish. We will see something interesting. Free. Appropriate for
all ages. Meet at the Collins Leaning Center.
Sunday, April 18, 1:00
Hike to Big Creek
Join
the naturalist in a hike to Big Creek. No promises, but we might see
fish. We will see something interesting. Free. Appropriate for
all ages. Meet at the Collins Leaning Center.
Many of
the Past News articles may be retrieved from this directory,
indexed and named in the following manner: 080101-news.htm
where
the first two numbers are the year, the second two the month and the
last two the date.
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