Many of the These Trees Were My Friends

 Saving the Bog at Indiana Dunes comes at a price---thousands of trees that have been cut down. According to the experts the trees needed to be cut down because they sucked too much water out of the bog.

The bog is an ecosystem that is not found anywhere else. Rare plants are found here and no where else. The only thing is---bogs aren't made to last forever. This bog is following the progression of all other bogs before it---eventually it dries up and disappears, changing into woodland or meadow land. But after filling in much of our wetlands, we humans feel the need to protect the few remaining on public lands. So here is the dilemma---how to hold back nature's natural progression.

After

Before

And in this case the experts say the trees must go. And so this spring thousands of trees have been chopped down. Trees that previously gave song birds a resting place on migration; where premium bird watching occurred in other springs are gone. Trees that gave wild life hiding places and shelter---deer, muskrat, beaver, and tiny frogs are gone. Trees won't shade this summer's hikes. They're all gone. Sacrificed for a good cause, but mourned nonetheless.

"Many of these trees were my friends" said Treebeard in the Lord of the Rings. We feel the same sorrow.

The Bog

          

Tree Museums

We are still losing trees at an alarming rate. In some places the understory of the forest has more wood than is standing above. We've been warned about the different types of forests traveling northward as the climate changes. I wonder if this is only the beginning or just a bunch of bad luck only due to  recent winds and storms (that could also be the product of global warming.)  

Sick Trees

I'm still researching what's happening to this tree that has black spots in the bark all over its trunk.

But the research has put a fright in me---apparently there are just as many things, if not more, that threaten our trees as threaten humans. And we humans help spread the pests and disease at an alarming rate; albeit unwittingly. Firewood for fireplaces and campfires should not be moved except under the utmost caution.

It would be nice to have a national alert system where people could go to see what kind of pests and disease are attacking in their area and what they can do to help.

And the Earth Rejoices

This tree, looking much smaller than it actually is (see the bench at the bottom of the hill)  was a casualty of the recent storms that hit this part of Indiana.

But with the storms came cooler weather; for the first time in weeks we had a good soaking rain, and everything in the forest---wildflowers and wildlife is rejoicing.

Trees down

We've been losing a lot of trees this year. There's been a lot of wind storms. These pine trees fell like toothpicks.

But there are some grateful creatures making use of the windfall.