This hickory is located at the property called Shagbark, too.
Sunday, January 30, 2005
Cedar Trees
Nance: LJ and I have some differences of opinions, if you can believe that and this subject might be one of them. I think that the cedar trees should all be cut out. The area where the picture was taken, below, once must have been used for pasture and most of the trees growing up are cedar. I will want to do some clearing in this area for a garden some day so the cedars may as well go now. I'm sure that this post will generate some discussion with LJ. In fact, I hope that he will join in and post comments of his own. In anticipation of that, I will begin with this post to preface it with "Nance" and we will know in future posts just who is talking (or spouting off, as the case may be).
When the settlers started moving into Missouri and Iowa, most of the trees grew along the creeks and rivers. Forest fires on the prairies kept the trees limited and allowed the grasses and wild flowers to fill the rolling prairies. When the white men moved in they brought the cedars onto the homesites for windbreaks, fence posts and fire wood. When the family farm was 40 acres or 80, the farmer cleared his pastures of any volunteer trees so that the grasses would grow to feed his cattle. Driving the countryside nowadays, look at the pastures no longer being utilized. Cedar trees are taking over the unused pastures. Read this . . .
Kansas City Wildlands website (http://www.kcwildlands.org/feature6.htm): The eastern red cedar is the only native coniferous tree in our area and has many beneficial qualities as a source of food and shelter for birds and other wildlife. However, cedars are an invasive species in natural communities like prairies and glades, where regular fires would have eliminated these trees in pre-settlement times. [Cedars burn readily and cannot tolerate fire.] If allowed to dominate a prairie or glade, cedars shade large areas and also inhibit plant growth by the accumulation of the acidic leaf litter under them. In time, the biological diversity of these communities is destroyed as they become "cedar jungles."
So, on our little parcel of land, I want to encourage the hard woods and other large decidious trees but I would remove most of the cedars. Perhaps we should leave just enough that we can use one for a Christmas tree each year. I think that would be just about right!
When the settlers started moving into Missouri and Iowa, most of the trees grew along the creeks and rivers. Forest fires on the prairies kept the trees limited and allowed the grasses and wild flowers to fill the rolling prairies. When the white men moved in they brought the cedars onto the homesites for windbreaks, fence posts and fire wood. When the family farm was 40 acres or 80, the farmer cleared his pastures of any volunteer trees so that the grasses would grow to feed his cattle. Driving the countryside nowadays, look at the pastures no longer being utilized. Cedar trees are taking over the unused pastures. Read this . . .
Kansas City Wildlands website (http://www.kcwildlands.org/feature6.htm): The eastern red cedar is the only native coniferous tree in our area and has many beneficial qualities as a source of food and shelter for birds and other wildlife. However, cedars are an invasive species in natural communities like prairies and glades, where regular fires would have eliminated these trees in pre-settlement times. [Cedars burn readily and cannot tolerate fire.] If allowed to dominate a prairie or glade, cedars shade large areas and also inhibit plant growth by the accumulation of the acidic leaf litter under them. In time, the biological diversity of these communities is destroyed as they become "cedar jungles."
So, on our little parcel of land, I want to encourage the hard woods and other large decidious trees but I would remove most of the cedars. Perhaps we should leave just enough that we can use one for a Christmas tree each year. I think that would be just about right!
Shagbark, a tradition
My folks, back in the late '60s, built a home in the timber and called it "Shagbark" because of the large and distinctive shagbark hickory trees on the property. When they purchased a lot on a small private lake across the border, just into Missouri, and built a one-room vacation cabin there was a shagbark hickery again . . . and the cabin came to be called "Shagbark II" or Shagbark, too. The folks vacationed at the cabin throughout the '70s and into the '80s. When the mowing and upkeep got to be too much for them, LJ and I were delighted to buy the cabin and to maintain the Shagbark name. A shagbark hickory still shades the cabin and another on the property grows taller each year. We found and walked our 37 Missouri acres in the fall of the year. We are no tree experts but we believe we spotted a few shagbark hickories and so we will call this property Shagbark III.
Another infamous tree found in Missouri is the locust which has wicked, large thorns that grow up the trunk and off of every branch and limb. We have encountered many of those at the Lake and removed the smaller ones. The thorns will puncture the soul of your shoe and many a lawn mower tire has been ruined by one of those locust thorns. During our walks through the new timber, I did not see one locust tree!
In my first post, I said that I would call the new place Mt. Moriah -- which I still like -- and I may refer to it as Mt. Moriah to lessen any confusion when talking about Shagbark II and Shagbark III. But marriage is full of compromise and LJ preferred to continue the Shagbark tradition.
Unfortunately, Shagbark the original remains only in our memories and hearts as a large man-made lake swallowed up the lower acres and a bulldozer bared the land of the trees, scattered the bricks and boards of the house and the garage, the "print shop", the swinging bridge and even the grandkids tree house. I hope someday that I can recreate some of those things for my grandkids amongst the trees of Shagbark III.
Another infamous tree found in Missouri is the locust which has wicked, large thorns that grow up the trunk and off of every branch and limb. We have encountered many of those at the Lake and removed the smaller ones. The thorns will puncture the soul of your shoe and many a lawn mower tire has been ruined by one of those locust thorns. During our walks through the new timber, I did not see one locust tree!
In my first post, I said that I would call the new place Mt. Moriah -- which I still like -- and I may refer to it as Mt. Moriah to lessen any confusion when talking about Shagbark II and Shagbark III. But marriage is full of compromise and LJ preferred to continue the Shagbark tradition.
Unfortunately, Shagbark the original remains only in our memories and hearts as a large man-made lake swallowed up the lower acres and a bulldozer bared the land of the trees, scattered the bricks and boards of the house and the garage, the "print shop", the swinging bridge and even the grandkids tree house. I hope someday that I can recreate some of those things for my grandkids amongst the trees of Shagbark III.
40 acres and a barn
I have nagged LJ for several years that I wanted 40 acres and a barn. HE wants to get out of our home county due to rising taxes. Since we are both getting to that age where we think about (and yearn for) retiring, we had half heartedly been looking for property in Missouri. A couple of months ago we came across 37 acres of rolling hills, timber, pond and a primitive cabin. No barn, boohoo. After looking at the property we tried to make an offer on it but found that someone had beaten us to it. So we went on . . . a month down the road, the realtor called; the financing had fallen through on the first offer and did we want to entertain one. Did we ever! To cut to the chase, we closed on the property last Friday. We are now the owners (mortgage holders) of our retirement property! I will call the property Mt. Moriah because of it's proximity to the town of that name in northern Missouri. Mercer County.
Skip this unless you wonder where Mt. Moriah comes from: Mount Moriah (pronounced in Hebrew as moe-ree-yaw) in Jerusalem, now popularly known as the Temple Mount, has been a focal point of Bible History right from very early times. It was the place where Abraham nearly sacrificed Isaac. It was the place where Solomon built the original Temple of God. It was the location of many of the events during the ministry of Jesus Christ, with the scene of His arrest on The Mount Of Olives on The Fateful Night just to the east, and His Crucifixion (see How Did Jesus Christ Die?) at Calvary just to the north.
The picture above was taken December 31, 2004.I have lots to learn about these blogs. Just fumbled my way through inserting the photo. I'll see how it goes from here . . .
Skip this unless you wonder where Mt. Moriah comes from: Mount Moriah (pronounced in Hebrew as moe-ree-yaw) in Jerusalem, now popularly known as the Temple Mount, has been a focal point of Bible History right from very early times. It was the place where Abraham nearly sacrificed Isaac. It was the place where Solomon built the original Temple of God. It was the location of many of the events during the ministry of Jesus Christ, with the scene of His arrest on The Mount Of Olives on The Fateful Night just to the east, and His Crucifixion (see How Did Jesus Christ Die?) at Calvary just to the north.
The picture above was taken December 31, 2004.I have lots to learn about these blogs. Just fumbled my way through inserting the photo. I'll see how it goes from here . . .
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