New Addition to Timmins Honour Role of Trees

Don Buck from OMNR has found the biggest Aspen and Tamarack trees. They have been added to the Honour Roll. These trees are the first of each species to be added, but Don and I agree the record will not stand for long.
I am sure this summer a bigger Aspen will be found.
Just a note about Poplar and Aspen. Typically, in this area, Aspen (specifically Trembling Aspen) is called Poplar, while Balsam poplar is also called Poplar (sometimes called black poplar or just Bam).

Timmins Honour Role of Trees

Tree Planting in Northern Ontario

I am over here on YouTube and there is this connection to my blog. I wonder if others can see this link when looking at the video?

This video is of tree plant last summer. If there is a tree plant next summer there will be another video. I am working on the next video about how a seed is extracted.

I will show the process of how a seed is extracted from a cone, cleaned, tested and stored.

Come spring the video on how to grow a tree seedling will be in the works. Please stay tuned.

Comments and suggestions always welcomed. Is there something you want to see or learn about? Let me know

White Cedar Strip Down to Show All

What is going on here?

I have been seeing this in young cedar over the last couple of years. Maybe I just never noticed before , but now I seem to see it a lot. Seemingly healthy young cedar are shedding their bark in strips.

In many cases the bark has been striping around the entire tree. I always thought that if the bark was removed from around the entire tree - it would die. It seems these guys are all doing pretty well.

So what makes this happen?

Will they survive?

I hope someone will be able to help.

I will continue to search for the answer when I find it I will post.

What else did I see today? Just a little snow, but most of the shallow still water if frozen. I Roll'n chase a red squirrel that I was sure was in his mouth at one point. Those little critters are fast!! He loves the chase and sure would like to do more catching.

The Red Squirrels look really healthy. Big bushy tails and lots of fur. Big and bushy I think more then normal. I wonder if this means more cold then normal?


UTM 17-0456255-5334832

Wood vs. Steel - Environmentally Friendly Building

I drive by that big honk'n steel structure every day. Over the hill behind the building sometimes I can see the steam rising from the dryer at the Domtar mill. Not only is steel more harmful to the environment in many ways more then wood, but all that steel had to be transported to the north. Shipping all that weight had a cost on the environment too.

There are many sources that discuss wood vs. steel below is just part of one of them.

Life-cycle analysis results for the steel-framed vs. wood-framed home showed that the steel-framed home used 17 percent more energy; had 26 percent more global warming potential; had 14 percent more air emissions; had over 300 percent more water emissions and had about the same level of solid waste production. Analysis results for the concrete- vs. wood-framed home showed the concrete-framed home used 16 percent more energy; had 31 percent more global warming potential; had 23 percent more air emissions; had roughly the same level of water emissions and produced 51 percent more solid waste. ( From : Evaluating the Environmental Performance of Wood Building Material)

On a much happier note I did get a chance to walk along a new logging road today. At one point a gang of chickadees came by. I was not able to get a good picture but I was able to get this poor picture of one. There must have been at least 10 of them searching for food in the cedar and birch trees.

First Snow, Silent Forest

Today things are so quite, so so quite. With the little bit of snow that is covering the trees the sounds do not travel. Even the wind is silent yet strong enough to move the trees.

The snow can not absorb the sound of the chickadees that travel past me searching every nook and cranny for food.

I love to see the big trees on the edge of their range. The black ash is an unusual sight here near Timmins, especial as big as this on is.

Soon I will be on snow shoes to get around in the boreal forest.

In mixed wood stands there is always plenty of bird habitat, nest cavities and woodpecker evidence.

White Spruce - Timmins Honour Roll of Trees

This is a big white spruce, but very short. If we were using the points system of big trees it would not a big point winner.

Growing in a very open area, as you can see from the pictures, it has branches almost down to the ground.

Visit the Timmins Honour Roll of Trees. Hope you can find a tree that will beat any of the trees listed so far.

http://www.nt.net/~gofor/HonourRoll/TimminsTreeHonourRoll.html

Record Breaker - Sunny Day

Summer is here finally!!!

It was a wonderful sunny day in the forest today. My dog and I walked about 5 km, well I walked that far and he must have ran about 10km. I only see him when we cross paths now and then. Sometimes he chases something for awhile then comes to find me to be sure I am not lost.

Heard the blue jays and chickadees. Watched 3 spruce grouse fly up into a tree and sit there watching me as I was watching them.

Pictures are super special for one reason. They all have a ray of sunshine. Even the moose poop looks interesting when shinning in the sun.

Timmins temperature record November 4th 1975 17.8C.

Yesterday we only hit 16.7C

Todays record from 1956 of 14.4C was crushed! Do not have the official high temperature but it was over 19.0C.

I wonder about tomorrow's record 1975 18.9C. The call is for only a high of 12.

Pictures are:

A moss

A pile of moose poop

A white birch growing on a rock

A hollow birch bark

How to make a white birch culvert - just wait.

Birch Bark rots at a slower rate then the wood wrapped inside. It is the wax and special chemicals in the bark. I have a link below if you want to read more.

I found this very old white birch tree, long time rotting , yet still standing at the base. I pushed it over and rolled it around a little. The bark mostly stayed intact and all the totally rotted wood fell out.

It is a natural culvert, or a great decoration piece. I hauled it back to the office and will put it up on the webstore. I know a gal who has a similar piece in her front entrance. Looks great! This one is taller and the bark more intact.

Talking about the webstore - got a call today about the bear jaw for sale on the "Muddy Mark's" part of the webstore. Turns out it is illegal ! Guess I will not be doing that again.

http://www.extension.umn.edu/specializations/environment/components/birchbark2.html

Black Ash - Timmins Honour Roll of Trees

Black Ash - This is a big one.

Amount of Carbon stored : 818 kg

It has been added to the Timmins Honour Role of Trees. If you have a tree for the Honour Roll let me know!

http://www.nt.net/~gofor/HonourRoll/TimminsTreeHonourRoll.html

It was a wonderful day, cloudy but warm for this time of the year. No birds flying south anymore. I heard blue jays, grey jays and many little busy chickadees.