Post Type: Field Notes

Field Notes

Field Notes: Mighty Oaks from Little Acorns

October 2, 2020 - By Ellen Powell, VDOF Conservation Education Coordinator There’s an old saying that you plant an oak tree for your grandchildren. There’s some truth to that, as oaks are not the fastest growing trees. But along the way to maturity, they provide benefits to us and to the environment. Shade? Check. Beauty? Check. Acorns for hungry wildlife? Check. Oaks do grow acorns, but just as importantly, oaks grow caterpillars. More than... Read More

Field Notes

Field Notes: Milkweed Magic

September 18, 2020 - By Ellen Powell, VDOF Conservation Education Coordinator For a plant with ‘weed’ in its title, milkweed is a pretty awesome plant. It contains toxins called cardiac glyphosides, which deter feeding by most insects and mammals. Despite this trait, a milkweed plant is a little universe unto itself. In fact, one study documented more than 450 species of insects visiting milkweed in a single midwestern field. You probably already know about... Read More

Field Notes

Field Notes: Hitchhiking Seeds

August 31, 2020 - By Ellen Powell, VDOF Conservation Education Coordinator When you think of summer hitchhikers, you probably think of chiggers and ticks. Ick! But did you know that beggar-ticks and harvest lice might also grab a ride on your clothes? Don’t worry, these don’t carry diseases or make you itch. They are the harmless seeds of some of our native plants. Seeds that cling are adapted to travel to new locations on... Read More

Field Notes

Field Notes: Out of the Ashes

August 20, 2020 - By Joe Lehnen, Forest Utilization & Marketing Specialist Until about two years ago, the fate of trees removed from the urban forest in Harrisonburg, Virginia was predetermined. The trees, no matter how large they might be, were either destined for the firewood pile or had a future as mulch via a giant tub grinder. Like many other municipalities across the Commonwealth, urban trees that were removed due to natural mortality... Read More

Field Notes

Field Notes: Scouting for Trees

August 13, 2020 - An Isle of Wight County Boy Scout recently earned his Eagle rank by designing and installing a tree identification trail at Nike Park in Carrollton, Virginia. Sawyer Cook shared the following story about his project.

Field Notes

Field Notes: In This Together, Apart

June 12, 2020 - by Sarah Parmelee, Area Forester Despite a spring shrouded in uncertainty, VDOF forester Sarah Parmalee found hope and normalcy in a very simple forestry task – planting trees with her community, together but apart. Tree planting projects were very different during the 2020 spring planting season, but forestry work must continue to keep our forests, waterways and communities healthy and hopeful. Sarah is thankful for the people and organizations that... Read More

Field Notes

Field Notes: When Volunteers Go Bad

May 21, 2020 - by Sarah Parmelee, Area Forester Last fall, a little seedling popped up in my yard. It was too young to be readily identifiable, so I left it on the off chance that it was something cool. This spring when it leafed out, I realized that it was a butterfly bush. Now, I do not have any other butterfly bushes in my yard, but other folks in my neighborhood do, and... Read More

Field Notes

Field Notes: Fantastic Ferns

May 15, 2020 - By Ellen Powell, Conservation Educator Woodland walks in May are a study in fresh, vibrant green. Tree canopies have leafed out, shrubs and saplings fill the midstory, and underfoot, ferns and other ground covers sprawl across the leaf litter. Ferns are not flowering plants; their reproduction is altogether different. They have a unique two-phase life cycle. The sporophyte form is the plant we recognize as a fern. It releases spores, which... Read More

Field Notes

Field Notes: Bottomland Forests and Flooding

April 16, 2020 - By Scott Bachman, senior area forester I will confess, when I moved to Isle of Wight County as a much younger forester, I was concerned about the “swamps” and how I would ever work in this environment.  Three decades later I have learned to enjoy the bottomland forests and to appreciate the ecosystem services they provide. One such service is floodwater storage and energy dissipation.  In mid-February this year, much... Read More

Field Notes

Field Notes: Sounds of Spring

April 10, 2020 - by Ellen Powell, conservation educator The flush of green suffusing our woodlands isn’t the only signal that spring is here. If a daily dawn chorus wakes you this month, it likely includes our state bird, the northern cardinal (Cardinalis cardinalis). This species is a bit unusual, in that both males and females sing, providing a familiar soundtrack in woodland edges and thickets statewide. Learn more about cardinals and listen to... Read More