In the off chance you weren't paying attention over the last week, we went from a drab and grey forest to summer. The tree leaves are all out, the grasses are in full growth mode, and the world is green. If you have allergies you probably noted that something was up as all of the blooming seasons compressed into one.
Another thing returned! The rabbit! For years the glen out in back of the Lodge has been visited by a nibbling bunny, and when we don't see him for a while we wonder if other elements of the forest might have made off with him. However, he is back, and to be frank, is quite large! It would appear that the lack of a highly cultivated and manicured lawn provides an optimal salad bar for a rabbit, and we hope to have his presence in the mornings and evenings for some weeks to come.
The garlic mustard (an invasive exotic weed, that can grace salads if you use the small tender young leaves) is also popping up! Thankfully, this is the 9th summer of plucking garlic mustard from the forest floor (it pulls up nicely), and the crop has thus far been modest. Better than that, garlic mustard's roots secrete a chemical that changes the soil chemistry to prevent other plants from growing, and our efforts have been rewarded by ferns, trout lily, woodland aster, and any number of other beautiful plants and flowers returning to the soil!
Get out there and enjoy the newly arrived summer forest!
Cascading Waters Trailhead Conditions at 8:00 a.m. (elev. 630'):
Temperature is 71.8 degrees and rising;
Humidity is 75% and falling;
Pressure is 29.97" and steady;
Wind is moving, but there is no reading;
Skies are partly cloudy;
The Cascades have a limited flow of water;
The Cascades Brook has flow in both channels, but modest;
The USFS Fire Danger Class is MODERATE.
The National Weather Service Forecast:
A chance of showers, mainly after 1pm.
Partly sunny, with a high near 83.
Southwest wind 6 to 10 mph.
Chance of precipitation is 30%.
New precipitation amounts of less than a tenth of an inch possible.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment