Woodland Winter
)have distinctive bark with deep, thick furrows. In the summer the trees have clusters of small white flowers which are favorites of honeybees. The nectar collected by the bees becomes a delicious honey. In the fall, the leaves turn a beautiful dark red.
) trees in the winter, these buds buds will turn into those beautiful white flowers in April!
Devils walking-stick; Aralia spinosa
) got its name, only the Devil himself could handle this! These trees have huge pinnately compound leaves up to 3-feet long. The leaf scars are visible in this photo as a smooth "smile" mark.
These Ice crystals were found at the edge of a pond.
is actually the frozen sap of the Frostweed plant. The water pressure from the roots is so strong, the sap oozes upward and freezes on a very cold day.
because of the rolling pattern the feet make as the skunk lopes along.
Even though there are no wildflowers blooming in the winter, it is possible to find interesting plants. I was fascinated by this curled grass growing along the trail to Laurel Falls in the Smokies.
The outer sapwood is distinctly different than the harder heartwood on this fallen pine.
I found this tree growing along the Ocoee River in southeast Tennessee. The bark of this tree peels in sheets. When I was a kid, we had two of these trees in my yard. Once my mother wrote me a letter on the bark and sent it to me at Girl Scout camp! That was an interesting letter!
at the UT Arboretum. Canid (dog, fox, coyote, wolf) tracks differ from cat tracks by having claw marks; cats retract their claws when they walk.
along the creek bank at Haw Ridge on a frigid morning in late December 2005. I was fascinated at how some of the crystals looked like leaves, others like needles. I had to lay flat on my stomach in order to focus down on the ice. Suddenly, I felt cold; the water pouch in jacket pocket had leaked! :0 Thank heaven for fleece and wicking material! The following photos show some of the different ways that ice can form. Enjoy!
This oak leaf was outlined in frost crystals. Isn't water an amazing substance?!
Another delicate "Ice flower". The shapes of the crystals are as varied as snowflakes!
These Skunk tracks are not clear because more snow had fallen on them, however the pattern of how the skunk walks is still visible.
My husband and I love to hike in the winter, there are no bugs, few people and no miserable heat. A snowfall adds a special quiet magic to the landscape. The key to winter hiking is keeping warm and dry. Remember: "Cotton Kills"! Never wear blue jeans or cotton socks when hiking in snow! Wool and fleece can be life-savers if you get wet in winter.
Pine trees often decay in a standing position. The harder heartwood in the center has solidified sap which makes the wood rot more slowly. The softer outer sapwood breaks down more quickly leaving the solid heartwood core behind. The resinous heartwood is split and sold as easy burning "fatwood."
American Beech trees; Fagus grandifolia
hang on to their leaves far into the winter. If you see small, smooth-barked trees in the woods with light brown leaves they will be beeches. The twigs have long sharp leaf buds. The following year's leaves are tucked into a snug winter coat which will fall off as the leaf unfolds in the spring.
) are making themselves at home in east Tenneessee. Although they are primarily carnivores, they are opportunists that will eat livestock and pets, birds, snakes, crayfish, birds, frogs, small mammals, insects, fruit and berries, garbage, and carrion. It is not uncommon to hear coyotes howling, especially in the evening. I was at Frozen Head State Park one time when the noon test siren at the Morgan County Correctional Facility went off. I heard a pack of coyotes howling in the distance. Coyotes are quite wary of humans, so they are not often seen.
Another interesting design of Ice crystals at the edge of the pond. Ice looks white if it has lots of air incorporated into the crystals.
A close-up of the frost on the oak leaf.
I found this "bouquet" of Ice flowers along the trail at Haw Ridge in January 2007.
tracks at the UT Arboretum after a rare snowfall. It is interesting to see the patterns of the footprints. Squirrels and rabbits move in a "galloping" pattern where the hind feet land in front of the front feet as they move. Note the larger hind feet to the left. Like many rodents, squirrels have 4 toes on the front feet and 5 toes on the hind feet.
Hackberry tree; Celtis australis
) is very easy to identify in the winter, it looks a lot like a 3-D topo map!
in the snow. Many birds are "hoppers", they keep their feet together and hop when they walk.
in this photo? Deer are very well camouflaged, if this small group had not made a sound, I would have never noticed them! If there had not been snow on the ground, they would have been nearly invisible. Sights like this make me appreciate the early Native Americans and their tremendous hunting skills! Deer raise their tails as a warning signal when they are startled. There really are three deer here, two are in the middle, one has its backside to the camera and is turning its head to the right. Look for the black tail of that deer on the left of the obvious deer.
During a hike at Haw Ridge in January 2007, I found many different and beautiful patterns of ice crystals in puddles, the edges of a pond, and even the frost on leaves. I thought this triangle pattern was fascinating!
These Ice crystals looked like tiny crystal goblets. I found them in the middle of the hiking trail!
spp.) tree is easy to identify in the winter, it doesn't have a protective cover like most other trees.
leaves turn a lovely shade of red.
Sycamore; Platanus occidentalis
) trees are one of the easiest trees to identify in the winter. The upper branches are white since the brown bark sloughs off; Native Americans called the sycamore the "Ghost Tree". They are usually found growing near water, along river or creek banks.