Tell it to the Trees

I often catch a lot of grief on the purple martin Facebook sites for my suggestions to struggling landlords to cut down a single or even multiple trees. Some "environmentalists" take my suggestions to cut down a tree as 'flippant', cavalier and careless. Rest-assured, I do not take those suggestions lightly - especially when it comes to my own property. It actually breaks my heart to have to cut down a tree.

Nevertheless, we have lots of cedar trees - really old cedar trees -- on our property that need to go (for a variety of reasons). Regardless of the fact that I'm allergic to them, I've always admired their beauty and resisted the urge to give the greenlight to Mr. Freeze to cut them down. All this to say, the decision to take out these 2 cedar trees this past weekend have been a subject of much emotional debate for about 5 years now.

The large cedar in the foreground and the 2 to the right in the background were targeted for eradication.

The largest cedar on the left was consistently used by hawks to launch surprise attacks on my purple martin colony.

Three trees were originally on the chopping block, but after taking down 2 of them, my heart couldn't take anymore, so I asked my “Paul Bunyan” to stop and we compromised with a very aggressive limb trimming for the third tree. For the last few years a resident Sharpie and later a Cooper's hawk have both taken advantage of the cover that these large cedars provided, and launched surprise attacks on my colony.
Eventually, maybe...some other day the third tree will go down too after I've had time to heal and assess, but not today.

Cedar tree providing cover for the hawks is gone.

View from the gourd racks - another 100' of visibility.

The hawks' approach has been pushed back another 100 feet. She will now have to cross this clearing to attack and she will surely be spotted.

The far right cedar tree got a reprieve and only received an aggressive limb trimming.

As a way to comfort myself after cutting a tree down, Bob and I either find a ‘volunteer’ (a small tree sapling of a desirable variety) or plant more trees in a better location than the one we removed.
A lot of dire information about climate change has been on the news lately, along with some very cost effective measures to counter it – as in, plant a tree! I did some research this week and it turns out that incidentally, Bob and I have been planting the *best* trees that also help sequester the most carbon.  
Eastern white pine trees, sycamores, hickory trees, poplars, silver maples and a few other species, according to this website (among many) that I’ve read:  https://www.thoughtco.com/which-trees-offset-global-warming-1204209    and:
This site: https://www.americanarborists.net/tree-tips/2017/july/what-trees-are-best-suited-for-the-changing-clim/
“Fast-growing trees with large crowns”, they say.
Trees that are too crowded do not do well either - regardless of their age. They won't spread their branches when a tree is overcrowding them, therefore reducing the amount of leaves they grow. Cutting down their neighbors and planting a replacement in another area will provide much more benefit to the environment and the climate, than overcrowding your stand.

Oaks to the south of the cedars provide mottled shade. Lower limbs are kept trimmed up high to encourage growth.

But we have multiple goals here on Gobbler’s Knob and when multiple goals can be accomplished with minimal effort, that’s even sweeter. We've been planning for over 2 years to plant this area (approx. an acre) with native wildflowers and grasses and I could hardly contain myself when I ordered my seed from Hamilton Native Outpost yesterday.  We've killed the fescue growing here and Bob has been discing the ground over & over to ensure everything is dead.
The Shadows and Sunbeams mix did so well in our western extended Savanna, that I'm ordering more of it for the large oak-shaded areas. And the oaks in the above pictures provide the perfect amount of shade for this mix.

The Shadows and Sunbeams mix in my 'eastern Savanna'

Some of the cedar trees we have removed have been replaced with much nicer trees. Swamp white oaks are one of our favorites.

 

 

 

 

2 Swamp white oaks planted 8 or 9 years ago.

This hickory tree was a 'volunteer' and after much expert trimming by Mr. Freeze, it has now chosen a primary and is starting to grow rather quickly. It received a lower limb-trimming this past weekend to encourage more top-growth.

Hickory Tree

This plum grove (below) consists of over 40 trees. We planted them as small saplings that we purchased from the George White nursery in 2008. I remember crawling around on my knees to cut down the large ragweed that grew up around the small saplings, threatening to choke them out. Now, they're spreading and stronger than ever.

We planted 3 -"Mighty Moe" (poplar) trees in 2012. The purple martins love to use the new leaves out of the tops each year to line their nests. The purple martins stripping out the leaves are a large part of the reason the trees struggle to grow each year. Mr. Freeze walks by and (jokingly) tells them each year, "get outta my poplar trees, or I'm gonna get the shotgun". hehehe! They're not skeered.

2 large poplars. There were 3, but my neighbor got drunk one night and ran one of them over. The purple martins love to pick their new leaves.

 We planted this river birch (and several others around the property) around 2009 or so. We needed it mainly for shade, but I love the multi-colored trunk shavings that peel off the trunk. They are so beautiful. Now if the limbs would just quit drooping down! It really loves the water runoff from the house and is growing exponentially every year!

This "Shingle Oak" was another volunteer. It has received some 'trimming love' from my expert arborist, Mr. Freeze.

Shingle Oak (also known as "Water Oak")

Another Swamp White Oak -obviously, the ground is not as favorable for this tree as in other spots, but eventually, it will be a beautiful tree.

One of my favorite Swamp White Oaks that we planted along our driveway. Mr. Freeze gives it a lot of love.

 This picture and the second sycamore tree below are my favorite trees. They were both 'volunteers' and have grown so fast that I'm afraid to get caught up in their vortex each time I walk by. During late summer, it is such a hoot to stand under them and listen to the cicadas 'singing'. And they drop so many seeds. I have 3 of them now.

Sycamore #1 - approx. 14 years old

Sycamore #2 - approx. 14 years old

These Eastern white pine trees were planted in April, 2010.

Check them out now. 

 We planted more of them at the end of our driveway.

The same trees today: 

The George White nursery here in Missouri is wonderful - carrying all the native trees for Missouri in very cost-effective bundles. I encourage everyone to order or visit this nursery and see what a great job they do with providing Missourians with a wide variety of trees and shrubs (check out their chokeberries!).  Seriously, how cool is that??

Feed the Bees: Let Sleeping Logs Lie

Along with posting about Purple Martins and our native prairie restoration efforts, I'm starting a new series here on my blog, called, "Feed the Bees". With the recent reports of the decline in the insect populations, it's becoming more & more imperative that we start taking a look at what we can do in our own micro-environments to help maintain or restore the insect populations. All life depends on our pollinators and if they die, we die.

I used to think the Virburnum, dandelions and wild plums were the first bloomers in spring. But this year, I was delighted to find this wee little flower growing all over my yard. It's called, Houstonia Pusilla - or more commonly:

Tiny Bluet, Small Bluet, or Least Bluet

As I've driven around Missouri in search of other purple martin sites and talked with people about their resident birds, I've seen a lot of man-made lawns and hay fields that really don't support the insect populations we need to sustain pollination.  But, I'm only one person.  I understand to some people, it can be daunting to try to figure out how to change a lawn into an eco-friendly garden that will support so many types of wildlife. With this blog, I'm hoping to encourage others to take baby steps towards supporting our insect populations, including ALL our pollinators, as well as reduce the back-breaking work that people do to maintain these sterile lawns.

Our "extended" Savanna - we were going to burn it this year (it's 4 years old), but life happens and we didn't make the window. So instead, we mowed down the dead stuff and mulched all the leaves. It's ready to be a bee-haven again this year.

 

We currently own 23 acres here in Licking, Missouri. For a long time, I was focused on picking up the dead branches that had fallen from some of the trees. It was back-breaking work. It was hard. And during the summer, it was hot and, even after spraying myself with Deet, I would still end up with a tick or chigger bite as my reward for my hard work. We would wait for it to rain, and then when there was little chance of a fire spreading to the neighbor's hay fields, we would burn all the old, dead and decaying wood.

We planted 50 of these wild plums as mere twigs(purchased from George White Nursery) in 2008 / 2009. I still remember crawling through the ragweed that got taller than the twigs and cutting it back to let the small trees get some sunlight. Today, 32 of them survived and on average they stand at approx. 14-15 feet and have a plethora of blossoms in the spring, providing a lot of early pollen & food for the bees.

 The plants in the southern fields have started to turn green.

The western half of the southern field - mowed and raked - will possibly be burned again next year. It has been planted for 7 years.

The eastern half of the southern field. mowed & raked to remove the duff. Also planted 7 years ago.

After reading more about bees however, I have learned that some of them actually NEED this dead, decaying wood in order to survive.  They also need undisturbed soil, covered with dead leaves, etc.

When Bob mowed the fields, he accidentally killed this black snake. It makes me sad when a snake dies, but we left it in the field for any scavengers to partake. Poor guy...wondering why he didn't hear the thundering of the tractor and get out of the way.

So, no more bonfires here on Gobbler's Knob to burn limbs or dead trees. From now on, we'll be piling up the dead wood and letting it decay. The larger limbs from these piles will be used to create new brush piles and cover for the resident quail (and other incidental wildlife that takes advantage of the refuge.

A dead tree. It was struck by lightning and then the insects and woodpeckers finished it off. We'll push it over and it will be at the base of the rest of the pile, providing food & cover for the bees & insects to make use of it.

We trimmed some of the lower limbs on our trees for two reasons: 1) Bob can mow under the trees now without getting slapped in he head by a low limb and; 2) the hawks that come after my martins won't be able to use them as cover. They will be piled on top of the dead tree log above and given over to nature's use.

Small limbs & rubbish will be piled up for the insects to make use of.

This will take a little bit of muscle, so Bob will use the tractor to push it all up together. Then, we'll make a nice brush pile for quail cover next to it. I can't wait to see what kinds of insects move in!

More limbs to add to the pile.

Supporting the Ground Nesters

How can we support ground-nesting bees and other ground-nesting insects?

1. Protect existing nesting sites (insects can be observed entering ground tunnels, small piles of soil often surround the entrances)
   • Do not disturb the soil (avoid tilling, digging, vehicular traffic)
   • Do not cover soil with mulch
   • Maintain existing vegetation, which is usually sparse, by removing strong-growing plants (shrubs, invasive weeds)
   • Nesting sites can be protected from predators like skunks and raccoons by covering the area with chicken wire
2. Create man-made nesting sites for ground-nesting bees
   • In gardens, areas can be dedicated for nesting sites. Rock gardens are ideal as they usually have well-draining soil and low vegetation. Some areas need to be kept free of vegetation. Rocks and clumps of perennials are helpful as orientation for bees to find their nest entrances. Bees choose sunny locations for their nesting sites and prefer slopes exposed to the southeast, which warm up quickly in the morning.

Supporting Tunnel-nesting Bees

How can we support bees nesting in wood tunnels and hollow stems?

• Leave dead trees standing as long as they are not a safety hazard.
• Do not remove dead wood and fallen trees from forests
• Pile up logs from cut trees (especially those containing burrows) to allow larvae of beetles, wood wasps and horntails to complete their life cycles, and to provide abandoned tunnels for nesting bees.
• Do not remove plant stems of dormant perennials and grasses from garden beds until early spring, and leave removed stems in a loose piles for as long as possible to allow young bees to hatch from their nesting material.
• Do not mow wild meadows more than once a year, ideally in early spring.

Shelter for Overwintering

It’s important to provide shelter for overwintering insects:

• As much as possible, keep leaf litter in woodlands and garden beds where it falls.
• Create stone, brush and wood piles as shelters for overwintering insects.
• Wait to cut down old stems and clumps of perennials until late winter or early spring.

Table 1. Nesting locations of common bee and wasp genera
Ground-Nesters:
Bare patches of well-drained soil, most often sandy or silty loam that does not collapse when dry and is soft enough for digging, but some species nest in pure sand, others in river banks that are periodically inundated	Mining Bees	Andrena
	Minute Mining Bees	Perdita
	Cellophane Bees	Colletes inaequalis
	Slender Sweat Bees	Lasioglossum
	Dark Sweat Bees	Halictus
	Green sweat Bees	Agapostemon, Augochlora, Augochlorella
	Digger Wasps	Sphex
	Horse Guard	Stictia
	Spider Wasps	Entypus
	Sand Wasps	Bembix
Wood and Stem-Nesters:
Tunnels in trees, logs, rotting wood, and also hollow stems of herbaceous plants and grasses, as well as wooden structures and old masonry	Mason Bees	Osmia
	Yellow-faced Bees	Hylaeus
	Carder Bees	Anthidium
	Leafcutter Bees	Megachile
	Large Carpenter Bees	Xylocopa
	Small Carpenter Bees	Ceratina
	Resin Bees	Anthidiellum, Dianthidium
	Mason Wasps	Euodynerus
Cavity-Nesters:
Abandoned mouse nests, cavities in the soil, in trees and buildings,	Bumble Bees	Bombus
	Paper Wasps	Polistes
	Yellow Jackets	Vespula

June & July Summer Blooms

As I looked through my SD cards in my camera today, trying to clean them off, I realized that I had taken a lot of native wildflower pictures.  Every year, I try to document via pictures all the wildflowers that are blooming each month, so that I can see the progress we're making. There are several that do very well here and, in spite of the very hot, dry weather we've had, they are at least daring to spread their petals and square off with the intensely hot sun.

Late June Bloomers
These were planted in December, 2014.  They did okay, in 2017 but at the end of June this year, my gray-headed coneflowers were kickin' it in the west savanna area.

Gray-headed coneflowers

Black-eyed Susans

Virginia Mountain Mint

Butterfly Milkweed (bloomed from June through July)

Ox-eye Sunflower

July Bloomers

The heat intensified in July, but still, the wildflowers were determined.

Lobelia

Royal Catchfly (red) and Black-eyed Susan

Even more Gray-headed coneflowers bloomed in July

Ladino clover seems to love the heat

Queen Anne's lace (wild carrot)

And 4 years after planting - looky, looky who showed up!!  Royal Catchfly - there were 4 plants this year (also planted in the Savanna with the Gray-headed coneflowers).

The Partridge pea started blooming in early July, but has really been showing off since the last week of July into August.

Partridge Pea

Of all the blooming flowers I thought the honeybees would love, the sumac was not even on my list! But, turns out sumac is one of their favorites here.  So, I guess I'll let it stay.

Smooth Sumac - only 1 of 2 flowers on this page that the honeybees seem to really like.

Rose Pink

The Rattlesnake Master is spreading like crazy - it has basically taken over my specimen garden, ousting most of the coneflower varieties there and only the prairie blazing star is hanging on. Since it's a native wildflower and all kinds of bees and butterflies love it, I'm not going to try to stop it. It's too hot to try to fight it. The clever prairie blazing star has managed to spread to other parts of my field, so it has figured out how to outrun the rattlesnake master.

Prairie Blazing Star in a field of Rattlesnake Master.

Wild Quinine

Turns out, the most favorite plant on my property for the Bumblebees have been all the St. John's Wort bushes I've planted.  They are crazy about it...unfortunately, the Japanese beetles are too. *sigh*
Interestingly, I haven't found one honeybee on the St. John's Wort and the Bumblebees are enjoying a pollen Bonanza!

St. John's Wort

I have a lot of favorites, but Wild Bergamot scores in the list of my top-five.

Wild Bergamot

Trumpet vine

We plant a LOT of red clover - the Bumblebees love it and the Honeybees don't use it (due to the difference in the length of their "tongues").  Guess who just bought 50 more lbs. of red clover? Heh!

Red Clover - Bumblebees LOVE it!

Common Milkweed and Wood Sage

Bindweed - the flowers are open in the morning, but close up when the temperatures start rising.

Ironweed (with Queen Anne's Lace in the foreground)

Prairie  Fleabane

This picture doesn't do the wildflowers justice - Wild Quinine, Queen Anne's Lace, Coneflowers, Sumac and Prairie Blazing Star are just a few of the predominant native wildflowers you can see here (click on the picture to get an enlarged view - that's true for all of them).

July - Wild Quinine dominates, but it will soon retreat and another will come up to carry us into Fall.

Passion Flower

Wood Sage

Lastly, a few of which we're not sure

Wild Potato Vine?

Well, I have searched & searched and we thought the vine & flowers in the picture to the left were either a variety of Morning Glory, or "Redvine"; but the best online site I can find calls it "Wild Potato Vine"

UPDATED 8/15 - Thanks to Chuck Yetter & his wife, these have now been *correctly* identified -  they're called "wild petunias". 

A field of wild petunias - you're welcome, Chuck!  :-)

Field full of "wild petunias".

Out of all the flowers above, the only ones I've found that my honeybees really like are the Butterfly milkweed and the Smooth Sumac.  I've been searching all my August blooming flowers and haven't been able to find from where my honeybees are getting their pollen and nectar stores for the Fall.  Today though, my investigation may have identified their source.  Stay tuned....pictures and details are forthcoming!