On Monday, a patch of phragmites was removed from our native warm season grass and wild flower meadow. If left to its own devices, this invasive plant would have smothered every other plant in the meadow. In its place is a hole - a tiny hole that even the most punctilious ecologist wouldn't notice.
What's the big deal? In art jargon the big deal is the "negative space." Negative space is the absence of matter that gives present matter its form. For example, a donut would not be a donut without the hole - the hole is the negative space. The duty of any land manager is to manipulate both the negative and positive to give the landscape form. Want to see the landscape taking form? Come soon, come often, and keep your eyes open for things that aren't there.
