Setting Goals

This area is among my favorite places to walk on this glacially twisted land that is ours for the moment.  The massive white pine tree has grown up through the stone wall that was built when the field, visible through the trees at the left of the picture, was first cleared nearly two centuries ago.  That river bottom land becomes covered with a cone shaped pile of mixed outwash that poured over the edge of the receding  glacier.  Filled with an assortment of stones of various sizes, mud, clay and sand, that ground was quickly deemed not suitable for farming.  It is a pleasant place to walk if one stays on the lower edges of the steep slope.

A deep natural soil developed at the base of the old tree.  Several generations of fallen pine needles have rotted into an acidic mix that should support the growth of arbutus plants.  Two of our transplants were moved here last summer.  A small old cage protected the plants from hungry rabbits this past winter but more permanent arrangements need to be made.  A 6 X 6 foot square of wire fence was bent to a 5 X 5 square with 6 inch high edges.  After the ground thaws, a low field stone well will be built around the outside edge of the cage.  That will prevent hungry woodchucks from pushing the cage aside or rabbits from wiggling under it to feast on evergreen arbutus leaves.

The growing white pine tree simply pushed the old stone wall aside.  That piece of wall is still largely intact but now sports a curved outer edge.  Restoring the near edge of the wall to a straight surface is an option.  If that happens, the curved outer edge will be left as it is.  The new straight wall will only approach the tree.  Room for some additional tree growth without moving the new wall will be left.

My desire to help the native treasure arbutus find a natural home here is filled with contradictions.  Without the cover of the ugly wire cage, numerous hungry animals will eat the plant flush to the ground.  Looking ahead, arbutus will likely prosper here and soon reach the limits of the cage.  New growth will then appear beyond the cage and be at risk of becoming rabbit.  In time the cage will rot and the entire patch of arbutus will then be at risk.  We cannot change the fact that former farm land supports animal growth in numbers that far exceed what was present before man came and made this his home.  Our efforts may allow wild arbutus to grow here again if only for a short period of time.  We find that limited success well worth the effort.  Time spent working outside at this time of year is an additional bonus.

No Real Snowfall Yet

As is frequently the case here, our snow on the ground is less than what was forecast.  The snowplow remains covered and unused.  Every now and then the cover is set aside and the engine is started.  When we do need the tractor to start, it must be ready.  With all of this down time the engine discharges a huge plume of smoke when it roars to life.

The first picture shows the current status of the first four arbutus plants that were transplanted here several years ago.  Both visits by a woodchuck and a rabbit made it clear to us that a protective cage is required to allow the wild plants to grow and flower.  The plants are now in contact with the edge of the cage so a new larger cage will be constructed so that we can uncover the planting to smell the flowers and harvest the seed.  This solution will be short lived.  At some point either the cage will be permanently removed or the plants allowed to grow past its protection.

This is our only truly wild arbutus planting.  We have seen it growing here for more than two decades.  Some years we could find no trace of the plants and other years it flowered.  A late winter hungry rabbit ate these plants flush to the ground.  What can be seen now is a single year's regrowth.  Apparently these plants have experienced foraging damage many times in their lifetime.  That they have reappeared speaks to the tenacity of arbutus.  That animals eat them may explain the common difficulty of keeping arbutus in a garden.  We will see one or two flower clusters here this year but another year's regrowth will be necessary for numerous blooms.

The shallow sunken stone well is intended to limit cage removal to those animals with opposable thumbs.  So far no animal has been able to push the cage aside or sneak under it.  We however can lift the cage clear and enjoy arbutus fragrance close up.

Our recent second attempt to transplant arbutus from the wild included a cluster of small plants.  We recently separated two plants but were unwilling to disturb root masses any further than that.  Both plants handled the second move well and have put on new growth.  The nearby remains of a barbed wire fence will be removed and the old fallen stone wall will be carefully rebuilt.  In time a large arbutus planting will grow here into a stone wall.  The close placement of arbutus and wall stones must have occurred naturally some place.  It should be beautiful.

 

One of the benefits of working with old field stone is the age of the new wall remains secret.  This wall was recently built to protect an arbutus transplanting site from right-of-way traffic.  To date the wall has not been struck and the six transplants are growing unmolested.  Some tidying up will improve our foot access to these plants.  Left over stone needs to be removed as do brier crowns.  Grading with woods soil will smooth the sloped approach to these plants.  Fallen pine needles will be scattered to hide our work from sight.  Now if we could just have snowfall sufficient to cover these plants, all would be right in this small corner of our world.

Early Fall Arbutus Buds

Overnight temperatures in the mid 50s F followed by bright sunlight drew me outside today.  This is the season when arbutus plants are forming next year's flower buds.  These first to flower plants must get a jump on the season if their white sweetly scented flowers are going to be ready early.  This patch of four plants was transplanted from the wild four years ago.  They were scheduled to receive a new larger protective cage with newly laid drystone walls to prevent hungry rabbits and woodchucks from feeding here.  That task will not be completed this year.

At least three bud clusters can be seen here in a curved line between leaves.  Start at the left edge of the photo just below the large leaf that extends to the top.  A cluster of buds are adjacent to the pine needles.  Stay focused on the gap between leaves and move across encountering two more clusters of buds.

Now that you know what to look for, these two buds are quickly found.  The tell tale hole in the leaf identifies these buds as the same ones seen in the upper photo.

This is our only patch of wild arbutus.  Two years ago a hungry bunny ate all of these plants clear to the ground.  Only then did we come to understand the reason why these plants seemed to repeatedly disappear.  Rugged beyond description, these plants regrew under a wire cage.  This is a rather small appearance for plants that we know are more than a quarter of a century old.  We will see how quickly they fill the area under the cage.

Two years after the attack, this plant is set to flower next Spring.

This is our twice transplanted arbutus.  When we last moved plants from the wild, a small cluster of perhaps three separate plants could not be left behind.  Two were moved this year to a location under an ancient white pine that has grown up in an old stone wall.  We planned to remove the rusted barbed wire and reset the wall so that these plants could grow next to a stone wall.  That is another job that awaits completion.

My last day of outside garden work was on August 1, 2015.  A simple move from kneeling to standing unleashed pain in my lower back that extended to the right hip and ran to the end of that foot.  Three muscles that attach to the hip remained firmly flexed and could not be persuaded to relax. A large quantity of prescribed pain medicines finally brought relief, but then caused massive bowel problems.  That uproar set off an aged gall bladder that threatened my liver.  Emergency surgical intervention followed in a week by surgical removal of the gall bladder may finally finish this experience.  With help I may be able to plant my garlic in three weeks as this gardening season comes to a close.  One has to wonder if  the prudent course is to be a move into a senior community.  I would like it best if it had a spot where I could transplant some of my arbutus.  Does anyone know of a good one?

Arbutus, July 2013

In early May of 2011, four small Arbutus plants were carefully dug from the wild and moved to this location beneath a white pine tree.  Most of the pictures that follow were taken from this same position.  The flat stones edging the planting were later moved to accommodate a protective wire cage that was installed following the attack on these plants by a marauding woodchuck fresh from its winter's sleep.  A patch of moss surrounding arbutus leaves at the right will serve as a landmark.

Those four original plants have exploded into this impressive display.  The bright light green leaves are all new this year.  Low afternoon sunlight casts a light edge on some of these leaves but only the camera sees it.  To the human eye all of these leaves are green to the edge.  Our heavy regular rain for the entire preceding month may have encouraged more new growth than is customary.

One has to look closely to find the dark green leaves that were newly formed just one year ago.  By comparison to this year's new growth, they are relatively few in number but their appearance a year ago truly excited us then.  We cannot begin to imagine what these plants will look like one year from now.

There has not been any discernible change in these remains of female flowers over the past month.  Three or four black beads are visible in the picture but we are expecting the seeds to form on raspberry like structures.  Perhaps now is the time to commit to renewed daily inspections as these things may happen rapidly.  Last year we missed the seeds completely.

Nearly every leaf shown is attached to our from seed baby plant.  Only three small dark leaves marked the location of our baby earlier this year.  I find it hard to believe that all of this new growth sprang from such humble beginnings.  This plant is poorly placed relative to the edge of the protective cage but any changes will be made to the cage.  There is absolutely no way that this plant will be moved.

Our tour ends at the single patch of wild arbutus that grows here.  It is growing in the overburden that was pushed off of our gravel deposit more than half a century ago.  This is a poor location at best and this spring very little of this plant could be seen.  Its expected demise was premature as is evident by all of the new growth.  Perhaps the woodchuck found its first meal here, inflicting only  a setback.  Maybe one of these days the gardener will find a few minutes to eliminate some of the plant's competition.

Arbutus In January

The recent snow is nearly gone so it was possible to see the transplanted arbutus.  A wire cage protects the arbutus from foraging woodchucks but it certainly detracts from the "wild plants in a natural setting look" that we were trying to create.  The cage is placed to the side every time that we visit here so we get to see these plants in a native appearing setting.  Recent snowfall has consisted of small dry flakes that passed easily through the wire mesh.  We have yet to determine how we will deal with heavy wet snow flakes that would pile up on top of the cage.  The cage may have to be set aside when such snow begins to fall.

Six days ago all of the snow had melted.  With the dreariness of short winter days beginning to color our moods, we needed to see something bright green and growing.  Both the arbutus and its companion moss lifted our spirits.  It is easy to understand the past widespread use of these greens as indoor decorations.  On my next visit, I will have to check to see what odor, if any, these leaves possess.  Picking a single wintergreen leaf to sample both its taste and scent happens occasionally but the arbutus leaf smell will be sampled in place.

Man has certainly had a deleterious impact on native plants.  One could easily believe that the plants would be better of if they were simply left alone.  If you accept that individual death is a natural event, then a hands off approach might be better.  My seedling arbutus might have a different view.  A full sized oak leaf had fallen across the tiny seedling.  I do not understand how the oak leaf passed through the wire cage. It must have blown into the arbutus area while the wire cage was placed to the side.  Later, wind could have moved it to cover the seedling.  Loss of color accompanied by possible leaf damage followed the loss of daylight caused by the covering oak leaf.  Had I not intervened, the seedling may have smothered in the dark.  One purpose of my frequent visits is to remove some of the debris from the plants.  Fallen blueberry leaves and pine needles are allowed to remain close by so that natural decay can nourish the treasured arbutus.  Our need to meddle while trying to create a natural planting is certainly inconsistent but that is the way it is.

No Footprints, But Other Signs

With no snow there are no animal tracks to follow. Still the critters abound around here. I just have to think that some little forest creature lives in the hole between these beautiful moss covered rocks. It looks as inviting as an ivy covered cottage.

Something has been eating my arbutus leaves. The culprit is unknown to me, but I would rather they picked some other plant for their munching.  We first noticed the damage several weeks ago.  Feeding caterpillars sometimes leave a similar munch pattern.  Fortunately flower buds were not on the menu.  Next fall we shall try to look and identify the culprit.  

The top of stone walls is a popular place for animals to leave scat to make their presence known. They like to leave those special markers where they will surely be noticed.  Fox are notorious for marking territory with nose high deposits.  We enjoy seeing a fox but could really do without these markers.

I have to call this one the streak. I don't know for sure, but I suspect this strafing run was made by one of the group of crows that hang around the garden like gang members on a street corner. No less than a foot in length, this stripe was laid down at high speed by a bird flying really low to the ground. With no nest to tend, crows eat at the bird feeder then spend the afternoon chasing each other and generally fooling around. Of course there is always  a possibility that the streak could have been made by a hawk. Our garden is large and the odds are in our favor. So far neither of us have been hit by aerial  bombardment.