Trees and the Return of Cranes

A fall photo from a road trip along Trans Canada Hwy 17 looking across Bissett Bay, near Rolphton.

Last year I purchased 40 spruce tree saplings from a Cadet fundraiser and I finally got around to planting them in the field this spring. I neglected to give them proper care so they didn't all survive, however I have two rows of saplings totaling 22 tress that I hope will end up being a good wind break in a few years.  I purchased an additional 40 white spruce tree saplings this year.  The area I cleared in the north field for this years white spruce quickly got overgrown with grasses and tansy before I had a chance to plant the trees so the saplings will overwinter in big pots placed in my vegetable garden.  The trees purchased this year were two years old versus the one year olds from last year (actually making all the spruce tree saplings the same age!)

 

I mulched the trees in the field with straw to add some protection for winter but also to help me find them in the spring. Over the summer they disappeared in high grasses a couple times. I did not water them throughout the dry summer but I think being under the tall grasses helped keep them in decent condition. I collected some acorns at some point and put them in pots and now have a couple oak trees growing - I'm excited about that. In addition I dug up some young elm, maple and ash trees from another forest walk and hope to have my own little forest one day. Farmers are busy clearing their land of trees to expand the fields and I am planting trees to see them grow.

Isabell lost almost all her feathers during her molt this year.  Visually it was impactful because she is normally such a good looking chicken. Chickens don't lay eggs while they molt as it takes a lot of energy to grow back their feathers.

One of my goals around the property is to create visual excitement. The monocromatic landscape is beautiful in itself much of the year but at certain times it is simple nice to see colour. I have a black and a red currant bush in my fruit tree area but I decided to transplant wild currant bushes (don't know if they are red or black, most likely black) around my sheds as a little hedge.  These can be for birds and chickens to forage. In this location the foundation of a previous barn exists - I have a lot of hidden cement slabs around the property - so I dug up the grass/weeds (first pic) at the edge of it to plant currants which should do fine in the gravelly soil. As I find more currant bushes growing around the property, I will complete the hedge.

I didn't get a photo of my fruit trees before they lost their leaves, but one plum tree has dark red leaves in the fall, and another tree has leaves that turn yellow.  One apple tree did not make it through last year's winter - my guess is due to the cold harsh wind. The other two apple trees and one pear tree bounced back and started new growth from the bottom of the tree. I guess I will have to create a wind barrier with burlap or something until my spruce trees grow enough to cut the wind before it reaches my fruit trees. The second pear tree was a bit sheltered by low choke cherry bushes and didn't seem impacted.

The cranes have returned. These two videos were taken from my living room window. I wanted to walk closer to the cranes in the field but the tractor showed up to plough the field. Maybe next year.