Natural Lands Trust Preserve Blog

Delaware River named River of the Year

The Delaware River was named Pennsylvania's 2011 River of the Year by the PA DCNR and the Pennsylvania Organization of Watersheds and Rivers (POWR).  This year, there were five other nominees, and the public was asked to vote for their favorite river. 

The River of the Year designation helps raise awareness of a river's attributes and its conservation needs.  I like that the public votes.  I think it raises awareness of everyone's watershed, because watershed associations and other community groups rally public support for their local waterways.  With the Delaware in my side yard, it was a no-brainer how I voted, but I admit I am inspired to explore the other nominees (Clarion River, Conewango Creek, Kiskiminetas River, Pine Creek and Stonycreek River), because they must be awfully special to have made the ballot. 

Now, while the region is under snow, is a great time to plan your river visits.  (I love sitting by the woodstove on winter evenings with maps spread out on the floor.)  I encourage you to get your feet wet in the Delaware River this year.  There are a number of ways to do that.  One of my favorites is the Delaware River Sojourn June 18 - 25.  You can attend for just one day, or all eight.  Shuttles and meals are provided.  It is educational, it is social, it is fun.  Mariton will also be running kayak trips during the year for our members. 

Natural Lands Trust is a regional organization that reaches from southern New Jersey, up past the Poconos, and out to central Pennsylvania.  When you consider all the lands that we are stewards of (40 preserves and 20,987 acres), along with all of the conservation easements that limit development (278 easements and 19,379 acres), there are only a handful that are outside of the Delaware River Watershed.  That amazes me on two levels.  One, that the Delaware is so wide reaching.  It influences (and its water quality is influenced) by so much of the mid-Atlantic.  The second is that NLT reaches so far, yet are core area is still the Delaware River.

Again, I encourage you to take a close look at the Delaware in the coming year.  I also encourage you to look at one of the tributaries that empties into the Delaware.  Hopefully, that exploration will give you a better understanding about how our lives affect our waterways from the tiniest drainage to the longest un-dammed river east of the Mississippi.

 

Mariton - Trail Conditions

Kevin and I snow-shoed on most of the trails Thursday checking for any down trees after the ice storm.  There is an ice crust on the snow that is not thick enough to support a person's weight.  Walking without snow shoes would be challenging.  Because of the crust, X-C skiing would also be difficult.  A few inches of snow on top of the crust would make skiing conditions better. 

The snow base is about two feet deep.  It is interesting to see trail markers and deer rubs right at snow level, instead of two feet off of the ground.  If you come out this weekend, be careful.  Even walking with snow shoes was a work out.

Mariton - Snow Load

A lot of people are beginning to compare this winter with the Winter of '94.  There are several similarities in both temperature and snow fall amounts.  My friend, Carole Mebus, keeps a weather journal and occasionally emails excerpts from past years to help us keep things in perspective when the news media are selling doom and gloom. 

Anyway, recalling history is a good thing.  I remember that winter because we were stuck in a weather pattern similar to this January's.  A large quantity of snow would be dumped mid-week, and it would take almost two days to clean up.  Then it would warm up on the weekend and we would get another round of rain/freezing rain. 

You may not recall the weather pattern, but you probably recall the news reports of roofs caving in all over the northeast due the snow load .  Most of the cave-ins were on the flat roofs of warehouses, firehouses and stores.  Because of that winter, I stay conscious of the snow loads on the buildings at Mariton. 

For instance, the snow this past Wednesday yielded 1.35 inches of water when melted down.  A square foot from that snow event weighs 7 pounds.  So, a roof that is 20 feet by 20 feet has a snow load of about 1.5 tons.  Not that bad.  Some of the weight will sublimate (essentially evaporate) into the air, lessening the load.  But if you are like me, you have more that one snow event piled up there on the roof.  So, you stay aware of that situation, and take precautions when necessary.

And who really knows?  We could break this pattern and have a balmy February and March.

Mariton - Snow Plowed Here Also

We received 12+ inches of snow at Mariton.  The parking lot took quite a bit of time to plow as there was a layer of ice on the pavement beneath the snow.  The truck got stuck a couple of times.  I ended up roughing out things with the tractor (which has chains), and then "mopping" up with the truck's snowplow.  I am running out of places to pile the snow. 

As Dan said, it is beautiful.  I hope to get out later today and tomorrow to enjoy it.  I skiied most of the trails yesterday afternoon.  The conditions were great, so this new layer of snow should make things even better.

Losing a friend... Denis Manchon

 

We are saddened to hear that our friend Denis Manchon has passed away. He was a frequent visitor to Natural Lands Trust’s Mariton, Crow’s Nest, and Fulshaw Craeg Preserves who took amazing photos of the wildflowers here (you can view a thumbnails slideshow of just a few of them above).

These photographs changed the way we look at the preserves; they are artistically beautiful but also unique in how they capture individual wildflowers—some of the resources we are protecting on our preserves. The images also document the flora of the preserves, not only that these wildflowers are present in this place and time but also on what date they reached peak bloom.

Denis was a perfectionist in getting the photo. He corresponded with us and followed this weblog to know what was coming into bloom. Photography wasn’t passive for him: when he arrived he would crawl around the flowers to get the perfect composition. And he sought out the best specimens: the ones the insects hadn’t chewed on yet, that time and weather had not faded. One time he spotted a better cardinal flower (Lobelia cardinalis) across French Creek from the ones he was photographing, so he just waded right in the water to get the better photo.

Denis was also generous with his expertise. He donated albums and digital media of his photographs for Natural Lands Trust to use to further our conservation mission (you can see the albums at Mariton and Crow's Nest). And he helped us with our own photography efforts, offering encouragement and advice.

We’ll really miss Denis. We are grateful for the time he spent on the preserves and hope you also enjoy seeing his work. Seeing flowers like these on a day as cold as this one is a reminder that spring will come and that those wildflowers are out there now and will be ready to return.

 

Mariton - Parking Lot Plowed

It is 10 a.m., and the parking lot is plowed and beginning to melt.  Sunnyside Road has been plowed and is slushy.  I still have more shoveling to do.  If you are off and want to snow shoe or ski, you can get in to park now. I broke some trails the other day with the tractor, so there should be good ski trails, as well as walking trails.

Deer Resistant Trees - Willow Family

I have never witnessed deer browsing much on members of the Willow Family (Salicaceae).  Rabbits and mice, however, will girdle young trees by eating the bark in the winter.  Beavers also seem to like branches of these trees for winter stores. This family is made up of two genera, the Willows (Salix) and the Poplars (Populus).  

Willows.  I will be honest.  I can’t tell willows apart.  The flowers were too small to differentiate in my field botany classes, so everything was referred to as Salix sp. (meaning we knew the genus, but not the species).  I called all trees Black Willows (Salix nigra), which was probably accurate most of the time where I grew up.  I referred to all Willow shrubs as Pussy Willows (Salix discolor) which was probably less accurate.  While I grew up with Black Willows that always had their feet in water, I think that the Missouri Willow (Salix eriocephala) is probably a better native tree for most landscapes.  It grows quickly, lives a little longer, and doesn’t need constant water.  It would be a great tree for stabilizing a stream bank.  While Weeping Willow (Salix babylonica) is a popular choice, I actually prefer the form or our native willow trees over the Weeping Willow.  I think the native trees have more character. 

The Pussy Willow (Salix discolor) is a great shrub, and doesn’t require a wet area.  There are tons of cultivars out there, and many are attractive.  In this case, using a native will make your landscape unique.  Pussy Willow is one of the first things to bloom while winter is still entrenched in the north.  I remember cutting the first blooms that I would find on my boyhood tromps and taking them home to my mother.  She always seemed to brighten.  To her, pussy willows were a signal that the days would soon get longer and sunnier. 

The Poplars, or “popples” as my Grandpa called them, are better known as Aspens to most.  These are beautiful trees with very interesting light gray-green bark.  The buds are an important food for many birds.  I love them because they shimmer in a slight breeze.  The leaf petiole (or stem) is flat and at a ninety degree angle to the plane of the leaf, so leaves seem to flutter.  As a kid, I could predict the weather by watching the leaves.  Those leaves turn a brilliant yellow when the elk begin to bugle.  (By the way elk, rodents and rabbits eat the bark of aspens, but I have never seen deer eat their bark.)  As a pioneer, they love lots of sun and can tolerate poor soils.  While they may not live for centuries, they will live longer than most homeowners who plant them.  Give them some room and they will form a dome shape colony (or clone) of genetically identical individuals.  For sentimental reasons, I prefer the Quaking Aspen (Populus tremuloides) slightly more than the Bigtooth Aspen (Populus grandidentata).  Both are attractive trees and more interesting to me than the Lombardy Poplar (Populous nigra) that is often seen planted in yards. 

(Incidentally, Tulip “Poplar” or Yellow “Poplar” (Liriodendron tulipifera) is in the Magnolia family, and isn’t a poplar at all.)

Mariton - Turkey Flock

 

We have been seeing wild turkeys at Mariton again.  Sometimes we go a few weeks with very little turkey activity.  Lately, we have been seeing them everyday on the preserve, and it is a flock of almost 30 birds.  This morning, they walked through the yard, past the Nature Center and up into the woods.

Deer Resistant Trees - Birch

The Birch Family (Betulaceae) is a large family of trees and shrubs to consider for species that deer don’t seem to browse.  Over the years I have seen very little browse damage on any species in this family.  Black Birch, or Sweet Birch, (Betula lenta) is a species that is often seen regenerating in the forests when nothing else is getting a foothold.  It likes both sun and shade.  It grows on the boulder fields at Mariton, as well as rich soils.  It has interesting lenticels on its bark when young.  As it ages, the black bark almost peels in large plates.  The leaves are small and fluttery and turn a pretty yellow in the fall.  The tree has graceful bowing branches.  These limbs tipped with catkin seed clusters make the tree attractive in the winter and provide food for birds.  While deer don’t browse this tree much, you will have to protect it from humans until it is established.  Sweet Birch’s most endearing quality is the wintergreen aroma and taste of broken twigs.  Its twigs and sap were the source of flavoring for birch beer at one time, and it is hard for me to pass by one without breaking off a twig to suck. 

Paper Birch (Betula papyrifera) is a familiar landscaping tree.  It is deer resistant, has beautiful bark throughout the seasons, and attractive fall color.  A pioneer species, it prefers sunlight,  and does not mind poor soils.  It prefers well-drained soils, but I have seen it with wet feet over the years.  Gray Birch (Betula populifolia) is a small tree with light colored bark (that doesn’t peel much).  Like Paper Birch, it tolerates lots of light and poor soils.  

River Birch (Betula nigra) is a good choice if you have a wet area in your landscape.  It is not a large tree and has many reddish weeping branches.  You will need to occasionally pick up twigs under this tree, but since it is often planted in wet areas where it is hard to mow, that isn’t always a problem.   This is a great tree to plant as a clump of stems.

Yellow Birch (Betula alleghaniensis) probably has limited uses in yards.  It likes it moist like River Birch, but can tolerate shade.  Its bark peels like paper birch, but is a yellow brown color.  This tree reminds me of dark, cool stream banks and hemlocks.   

The Birch Family has other genera besides Betula.  One of my favorites is Carpinus caroliniana or Hornbeam, Musclewood, Blue Beech, etc.  This is a small tree that likes the shade of the forest.  Its most endearing quality is that its smooth trunk resembles a flexed muscle.  Its branches have that weeping graceful quality of other birches. 

 Hop Hornbeam (Ostrya virginiana) is another deer resistant “Birch”.  Unlike the smooth bark of Hornbeam, the Hop Hornbeam, or Ironwood, has bark that peels in long longitudinal strips (like a cat shredded the bark with its claws).  It also likes shade and would be attractive under some larger shade tree.

Finally, in the shrub category are the Alders (Alnus).  These brushy shrubs like their feet wet with lots of sun.  They can end up taking over a stream bank, which is good for the stream, but makes access more difficult.  While I don’t notice deer browsing alders,  beavers do seem to like to eat them.  Species to consider would be Hazel Alder (Alnus serrulata), Speckled Alder (Alnus rugosa).

Sun or shade, wet or dry, there is probably a birch that you could use in your yard.

Mariton - 2010 Rainfall Recap

December was relatively dry, with only 2.55 inches of precipitation.  Mariton's average for December is 3.93 inches, but it has ranged from 0.86 to 7.71 inches over the years.  There were five other years when December received about 2.5 inches of precipitation.

Most months were within an inch or so of average.  The exceptions were March and September (very wet), while August  and October were very dry compared to the average figures. 

2010 ended the year with 51.87 inches, which is extremely close to average (51.78).  With fourteen years of data now collected, this is the only year that comes this close to average.  Total precipitation from other years ranged between 40.39 to 66.56 inches.