trees
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Fabulous
Ohara Donshu – Blind Men Appraising an Elephant, early 19th century. Ink and colors on paper, Overall: 92 x 46 1/2 in. (233.7 x 118.1 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Gift of the Asian Art Council, Mr. and Mrs. Willard G. Clark, Georgia and Michael de Havenon, Mr. and Mrs. Greg Fitz-Gerald, Dr. and Mrs. George Liberman,…
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And another leaf…
…is unfurled.Meanwhile, a crab apple (Malus) begins to bloom.Less delicately, the thumb-sized bud of a Horse-chestut (Aesculus hippocastanum) still contains its upright chandelier of flowers and leaves.A young seed-ball of the London Plain (Platanus × acerifolia) blown off in Sunday’s high wind and mushed up on contact with the sidewalk. This was a little under…
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Sunset Park Elm
The chartreuse edition.And on the micro level, a single seed from the rich crop the tree is now laden with. Remember, elms are wind-pollinated, so the early flowering resulting in early fruiting. On average, it takes 70,900 of these little winged seeds to make up a pound, according to this USFS site. But wait, a…
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Redbudding
The Redbuds (Cercis canadensis) are coming, the Redbuds are coming! Another day, another tree.
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Some Trees
Glove-like leaf coming off a new Tulip Tree (Liriodendron tulipifera) bud.A very sprouty old Quercus.Same, in situ.Salix catkins and baby leaves showering 6th Avenue.
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Formula
Catkin + glove = early spring. P.S. Tomorrow I’ll be leading a Brooklyn Bird Club walk in Green-Wood Cemetery. We will be on the look-out for early migrants and active year-’rounders. We’ll start at 8 a.m. at the neo-gothic gates at 25th Street and 5th Avenue. Everybody’s welcome and it’s free. Bring binoculars.
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Cloak and Dagger
Mourning Cloak (Nymphalis antiopa) in the flowers of an early blooming crab apple (Malus). Actually, on second viewing, this seems to be a cherry (Prunus). The butterfly’s long tongue, rather like an oil derrick, or a dagger, plunging into the heart of the nectar. Seems like a good year for Mourning Cloaks. Note that this…
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Thickening
If you’re new to the neighborhood, I’ve been photographing this fine old American Elm with the swooping branches in Sunset Park since November. It is in flower now: the wind-pollinated flowers have no need to be attractive to pollinators. Happy spring!
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Many Forests Gone
Eric Rutkow’s American Canopy: Trees, Forests, and the Making of a Nation is a history of America’s woodlands. It is therefore a history of loss: the great forests that once stretched from the Atlantic to beyond the Mississippi were certainly touched in part by native Americans, who burned for deer parks and plots for seasonal…