APRIL 2006

April 06 Earl Plato

“April is the sweetest month for nature lovers.” That’s fellow nature writer Gerry Rising’s headline in a recent Sunday Buffalo News. I tend to agree with him although I prefer Marcy Woods in May. April in Marcy Woods is for the botanist. Gerry lists the plants he sees when many woodland wildflowers rush through their flowering cycle before tree leaves develop to close off the life-enriching sun’s rays. This week in mid-April Norm and myself saw the tiny white flowers of spring Beauties and the green petals of wild leeks popping up.
We saw a few sharp-loped hepaticas with their various flower hues. Just wait for a few weeks. Gerry Rising lists the main flowers he sees in spring. They are the same ones we will see in Marcy Woods as the weeks advance. Botanists would find first spring beauty, leek, skunk cabbage, Dutchman’s breeches, trout lily, sharp-loped hepatica, blood root, toothwort, wild geranium, Jack-in-the-pulpit, columbine, and May apple. That’s what’s in Marcy Woods. Gerry tells us, “Remember wildflowers picked are wildflowers killed.”
***
Yes, like others I picked up garbage locally. Every Saturday could be an Earth Day. During the Week we wanted to increase the educational impact of Earth Day. Our hope is in our young people. It is they who will reap the benefits of an environmentally protected planet. Pick a Saturday this May and do some act of “cleaning up” your community. one beer bottle, pop can, three pieces of paper, and a run away balloon caught on a branch - not much but an attempt to keep Marcy Woods a cleaner place. What can you do to help our natural environment?
***
Good Friday surprises. Ken, Allison and three of the grandchildren along with Peter and Lois Griffith took an afternoon walk in Marcy Woods. Again no Wood frogs but three surprises. First was a towering old beech tree on the Lower Trail. Devoid of life it stood branchless. Up and down its bark were the “horses hooves. Twenty or more of Tinder polypor - horse’s hoof fungi.
Writer’s note: The late Bert Miller took his knife and scraped some of the spores of this bracket fungus onto a flat rock. “It’s like punk,” he said. With a match he showed how it glowed like a punk stick, Note its name “tinder.” Punk sticks were used to set off fire works.
Secondly at the trail where it branches - to the right the cabin to the left the continuance of the trail and then Peter yelled out. “There’s a pileated!” The giant woodpecker flew past us and alighted a few hundred feet to the east. Great sight!
Thirdly - under our feet. As we headed out we gathered at the Kennels stand where notices would be posted. Just in behind the stand were countless white flowers. Could they be Blood roots? They were. These beautiful early beautiful spring flowers were growing in profusion. All these years of walking past this place and not aware of this stand of flowers. You are always surprised in Marcy Woods.