Fall Takes on a New Meaning for Venerable Old Man Poplar

When I was teaching, I rarely introduced my students

to the Nature Trail on the hot days of September.  I waited

until the cool, crisp days of fall. It was a more pleasant

experience and a chance to see nature's transitions vividly.

I've just completed a fall spruce-up on the trail, and it awaits
your visit, whether you're a teacher with a class, a former SFL
student, a community resident, or a home school parent seeking
innovative resources.

The trail is easy to find, beginning at the bottom of the stairs
to the ballfield.  It is pretty much self-guided. A detailed guide
is on the headings of this blog.

Not far down the trail, take a left turn on "The Boardwalk."
This will lead you toward our stream.

You'll see numerous trees, shrubs, and wildflowers along the way.
This one is Sourwood.

I enjoyed chewing a sourwood leaf for a juicy, tart snack along
the way.  Don't do this without some assistance with identification.

Of the seven varieties of ferns which grow in these woods, Royal
Fern grows to the greatest height, even though it was the last to
emerge last spring. This frond was at least four feet tall.

Kudzu is a non-native invasive plant that is attempting to encroach
on our trail. Frost will slow it down, but it is hard to contain,
especially when it takes to the treetops.

Kudzu is well-established in these trees at the perimeter of the
trail, but I will battle it during the non-growing season this winter.
Climate change is NOT helping!

I'm always seeing surprises when I visit the trail.  Before you even
leave the parking lot to enter the trail you can spot these Passion
Flowers (or Maypops) growing on the bank.

This is a familiar scene, yet something has changed.
I alluded to it in this post's title.

A section of Old Man Poplar was noted to be leafless last spring.
When I visited last week, about 20 feet of the massive tree lay
on the ground to the left of the trail.

The nature trail is all about change, including unpredictable change.
Though I expected Old Man Poplar to begin shedding branches and
slowly "fade," this still caught me off guard.

I'll leave these dead limbs where they fell.  When other sections
fall, I'll decide whether they impede hiking or not.

Moving on, I'm glad to say that Jack, Will, and Tom stand
sturdily as always.  But some of us may live long enough to
see drastic change here, too.

The Slingshot Tree is in good health.  Another poplar, it could
be around a very long time.

With the stream bed dry as a bone, you don't have to use the bridge.

I took a stroll in the stream bed and noticed this mammoth tree
trunk.  My work gloves are there for comparison.

This tree, now dead, also grew up in the stream bed.

It was convenient to remove logs and limbs that sometimes
clog the waterway.

Half buried in the sand and pebbles was this ancient Mason jar.
Not a single crack on it, this jar has been underwater for ages.

Here's a fairly large piece of driftwood.

Someone had laid one of our benches across the stream to access
Big Rock.  But you don't need a bridge to get to it in this weather.

A variety of wildflowers and ferns is found across from Big Rock.

Some plants even take root between the cracks and crevices of
Big Rock.

It's hard to believe there's enough soil in these cracks to support
a root system.

This pretty wildflower sprang up in the middle of our path.
I hope it doesn't get trampled before it can spread.

This "Low Bridge" sweetgum tree is still alive, but only a sturdy
branch keeps it from falling all the way to the ground.  When it
does, it will serve as a bench, replacing the one it's going to crush.

On the return loop, this is the approach to Old Man Poplar and
"The Boardwalk."

In this view you can see where part of Old Man Poplar is missing.

The work on the trail was pretty light today. Scratches from
the catbrier (also called greenbriar and Smilax) were the main
evidence of the work I had done.  The final step in my workout
routine was pulling my push up these steps.  This is why I save
my spruce ups for cooler weather.

So now is the time for a mentally and physically

refreshing hike on your  nature trail. Expect some

surprises.  Keep your eyes and ears open and you

never know what you might see!

CHES Students Get an Introduction to the Nature Trail

After getting rained out over the weekend, I was

able to reschedule a special nature hike for this past

Tuesday, which turned out to be a beautiful day.

In addition, numerous plants on the trail displayed

themselves much more prominently than a mere four

days earlier.  

Because Moore County Schools were out for Spring

Break, Christian Home Educators of the Sandhills

had free run of the trail. We made the most of it, with

students up to 5th or 6th grade, down to kindergarten,

plus some siblings even younger -- two in strollers!

Because parents were also included, I had on-the-spot

permission for a few activities not normally included.

More about that later.

Let's begin our tour.
(Note: Most pictures of my guests are near the end)

Before the families arrived, I scouted out the trail.

There had been two days of severe weather since last Friday.

I'm happy to say Old Man Poplar was still standing.

There's plenty of evidence of life the the Old Man.

Just since Friday, an abundance of Jack-in-the-Pulpit has burst forth.

Not only was there more of it, the leaves were larger and a
few exhibit its trademark hooded greenish flower.

A beautiful shrub of the trail is Wild Azalea, or Pinxster Flower.

The debris on the bridge was proof of the flood stage waters during
the two days of severe weather.  The water had receded by Monday
and the trail had dried to a great extent by our Tuesday afternoon walk.

All streams are prettier when free-flowing and alive.
Ours is no exception.

Horse Sugar is another plant found only on the south side of the
stream. As its new leaves begin to emerge, the old battered ones
seem to "bow down" in homage.

Horse Sugar has spread greatly over the years.

Smooth Solomon's Seal is an interesting herb found only on the
south side (off school property). This is the first specimen I had
seen there in years.

Christmas Fern is one that never completely disappears.
It's fronds can be found 12 months out of the year. Here the
old fronds have fallen over, replaced by healthy new ones
that are still shooting up taller.

The tiny fern at center is Ebony Spleenwort. You guessed it --
it's found only on the south side.

I had to search diligently for this bracken fern, one of a few
varieties that prefer the dry uplands over the wetlands where
other varieties thrive.  Counting these, we can find SEVEN
distinct fern species in a ten minute walk!  Our trail is a really
special place.

What's this? A vintage 1985 sign post from our original nature trail.
It was Post # 29. Read its fascinating tale below in this excerpt
from the 1983 trail guidebook.
. 

This fallen yellow blossom is a sign of Carolina Jasmine
blooming far overhead. It is one of many vines that are
quite at home on the trail.

Wild Ginger was shown in my previous blog. But on this day, we
found a record-setting number of pignuts on this specimen. See if
you can count from 7 to 9 pignuts. They're well hidden.

Because of all the pebbles that two fall hurricanes lifted from
the stream bed and dumped on a trail, we must christen our
trail to the bridge.  How about Rocky Road? Or Path of Pebbles.

The "Rainbow Tree" that has fallen across the creek still shows
itself to be healthy as new leaves are sprouting all along its trunk.
I would still classify it as "disabled."

These are the star-shaped leaves of this sweetgum tree.

These seedpods are from the same sweetgum tree.

Concerned parents asked about poison ivy on the trail.  I do a
minimal amount of spraying to keep it OFF the trail.  But if you
wander off the trail yourself you may encounter it. Though some
people say "Leaves of three, let it be," note that kudzu, Jack-in-
the-Pulpit, and other plants have "leaves of three." Better to study
pictures of Poison Ivy and Poison Oak (same species but with
variations) until you can confidently identify them.

All of these herbs, ferns, and wildflowers I've been showing are
loving the filtered sunlight they get in early spring while the
tall trees of the canopy are not fully leafed out.  But they also
do well in the full shade of summer, which protects them from
excessive heat.  This summer, take an evening stroll on the trail.
I think you'll find it at least five degrees cooler than most spots.

The remaining pictures feature the wonderful kids

and parents who spent this glorious afternoon with me.

The first view of Jack, Will, and Tom is always breath-taking.

"I can see all the way to the top!"

The moms liked it as much as their children.
And that's a very good thing!

We've crossed the stream twice and are on the way to Big Rock.

"No, it has nothing to do with Rock Candy.  Sorry."

At Big Rock, several brave students sat on a bench directly
beneath the heavily-leaning Rainbow Tree.  I as much as promised
them the tree wouldn't fall today.
And that's when the BENCH fell!
Even hickory will rot after a few years.

This area beside Big Rock is a designated teaching station, with
plenty of notable items nearby.

I and several students had gone several feet past this tree when
we were called back by excited voices.  A very tiny but alert
young lady had spotted a green snake coiled in this tree.
It's in the exact center; can you find it? A great example of camouflage.

Sorry my closeup is blurry, but the short video below is better.

A harmless green snake is very desirable on a nature

trail. This is the second one I've seen there in 40 plus years.

These folks are holding up Sourwood leaves.  Just one week ago
they couldn't have had a Sourwood snack; the leaves had not yet
come out enough.  But there were plenty today, and the enthusiasm
was terrific.  One older boy asked me if you could buy this at any store.
You can't, but I showed him a sure-fire way to identify it.  Normally,
I discourage any tasting on the trail, but this is an exception.

At trail's end, we made the obligatory effort to straighten

Old Man Poplar.  I'm sorry to say that our task was not

made easier by having several of the older (stronger and

heavier, too) students climb atop the giant poplar. 

I didn't really mind.  In fact, I asked their moms if it was okay.

They readily took responsibility (WHEW!).

I asked the moms if they had ten more minutes.
They did, so I treated them to an extended "Fake
Snake Show", similar to what I showed the second
graders last week.  It wasn't all joking around, though.
Lacking a nice five-foot black rat snake, I used a
rubber snake to demonstrate how I have captured
many a non-poisonous snake with a snake stick and a
few common sense tricks.

It was a great day and I've already invited my friends
back next year.  I'm inviting YOU, too, to take a
hike sometime soon.  The Sandhills Farm Life
Nature Trail is there for the whole community.
Please just respect school hours when planning your visit.