Earth Day Timmins

2012 EARTHDAY TIMMINS

Karl Habla organized an Earth Day walk at Gillies lake this year.
It was a wonderful day and the great ball of fire in the sky provided heat!

While the walk was not well attended it is the thougsht that counts. My kids laying in their beds said they were thinking of me.

more info from the Daily Press

Half of my Earth Day was spent at the 65th annual Sportsman Show. Again more info.

I really love to chat with the people that come to the Wintergreen display to talk about sightings and trails and being outdoors.

Plenty of people bought the Bird poster, only a townie!

For the first 2 hours my wonderful daughter joined me. She really only came for the candy floss.

I enjoy talking to people about the trails, the Timmins Honour Roll of Trees, Observations Naturally and interesting sightings around the area.

Nice!

Seeds of Diversity

Timmins Horticultural Society

This year I was asked if I could again talk about trees.
Well I guess so - that is all I really talk about anyway.
Trees and turtles and birds and orchid and trees.

Read about the event here

Kees and I discuss the importance of leaves on trees. It is the leaves that produce oxygen.

The bonsai white birch that travels with me every where is a great example of the importance of trees.

Oxygen Grows On Trees

Great Honed Owl Release.

The Owl Foundation

asked for 

HELP!

3 owls were coming form Vineland to be release close to where they had been found or injured.
My role was to pick up 2 owls in New Liskeard and release one in Matheson and hand one off to Brian in Timmins to be taken back to Kapaskasing.

 A barred owl was released just north of North Bay.
The Great Grey Owl in the video was released just west of Matheson.
The third was picked up in Timmins to be released in Kapaskasing.

The story of the Matheson owl is that it was young and must have fallen from the nest. It was too young to get back to the nest and certainly would have become a small meal for something.

Where the owl was released was only meters from where it had been found.

Brian tells me he had injured the bird when he hit it, I presume with his car.

The Owl Foundation 

Timmins Naturalists provided support for the transportation

Day after Early Earth Day 2012

Green House turns green 

early in the new year. 

CTV Jill Colton (@CTVJillColton ) and Mark check out the greenhouse before they leave for Sudbury after spending yesterday at Timmins Honda for Early Earth Day.

It is early April and already the green house is full of green conifer seedlings.

I just love coming in here when it is -30C outside and it is +25C inside. To watch the benches turn to green in a matter of days is just incredible!

Yes Jill, there are millions of tree seedlings here - and every one has a home!
These trees are the forests of tomorrow.

Most of the millions of trees do have a home, but some are still looking. If you want to buy a tree seedling, forestry size (small) or home owner size ( 6" pots) contact Millson Forestry Service and they can let you know what is available.

Early Earth Day 2012. Success!!

New Friends

together standing on an 

Old Friend

Roll'n and I met some new people this year at Timmins Honda, as we celebrate Earth Day a little early. Too cold to plant a tree today, the the hardy seedlings will tough it out until the soil is a constant 4C.

When I arrived the CTV gang and Forester Moe. had everything looking great and the public were already coming for a free tree seedling. There were also pens, pencils, and a Honda window thermometer.

Again this year the White birch bonsai was a great hit, and no you still can not have it. I will make some more so that they are available in a couple of years. You can read more about the tree here.

A new friend enjoyed meeting my best friend. Jill Coltan ( @CTVJillColton ) with CTV out of Sudbury really enjoyed meeting Roll'n, but then everyone does. I think she may have noticed I was there, but maybe not.

Everyone who came by got a free tree seedling provided by Millson Forestry Service. Timmins was the first stop, next up Sudbury and  North Bay. This year the tree seedlings are white spruce and white pine.

We need to continue to help our old friend, the earth. Plant a tree today, ok well not today, but when it is warmer, and the tickling roots will make it smile!

Early Earth Day. Free Tree Seedling

Early Earth Day April 16th, 2012

Visit Timmins Honda to pick up a free tree seedling.  Millson Forestry Service will again supply locations around North Eastern Ontario for Early Earth Day Events.

This year it looks like the ground will be warm enough to plant your tree seedling when you pick it up on April 16th.  The ground needs to be at least +4C and at my house it has been that warm. Tree Seedlings and Earth Day are a great fit.

" The best time to plant a tree is 100 years ago, 

the second best time is today!"

CTV Weather Specialist Jill Colton will be in Timmins

to hand out Millson Forestry Service Tree Seedlings 

as part of Early Earth Day celebrations at Timmins Honda.

EARTH DAY CANADA

Earth Day 2011 with Millson Forestry Service. Sault Ste. Marie, Sudbury, North Bay and Timmins.
Success in the Sault  Success in Sudbury  Success in Timmins

2011 Forester Moe. and Muddy Mark at Timmins Honda

Earth Day 2010 with Millson Forestry Service. Sault Ste. Marie, Sudbury, North Bay and Timmins.
Seedlings in Sault  Seedlings in Sudbury  Seedlings in Timmins

2010 Susan Millson, Muddy Mark and Forester Moe. in Timmins

The making of Muddy Mark

We all know that Earth Day is actually April 22nd. This year for Earth Day I will be at the Timmins Sportsman Show. I am also hoping I will be able to join Karl Habla on his morning Earth Day walk at Gillies Lake.

Marching for Earth Day

You can get bigger native tree seedlings at Millson Forestry Service any time. My favourite is the Red pine, but the White pine (Ontario Arboreal Emblem) is a close second.

10 Most Weird Trees

10 Most Weird Trees: If you watched the film Avatar, then you certainly have impressed the forest Pandora. But to see the most fantastic ...

Pileated woodpecker. Love the sound!

Pileated Woodpecker!

Ya just got to love the sound!

This woodpecker is on a hydro pole, a very common place to see them.  The power surging through the wires cause the pole to have a very slight vibration. The vibration can mimic the feel of bugs in the wood.

The sound is loud as it echoes through the wood. The video picked up the sound very good.

The head frame at the end of the video is the McIntyre

The only remaining building, following the demolition of the mine site in 2001, was the Shaft No. 11 head frame and a shed containing electrical switchgear for the head frame. The headframe was completed in 1927. 

From : http://www.timmins100.com/mining-heritage/

http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/pileated_woodpecker/id

http://www.pileatedwoodpeckercentral.com/

Timmins is celebrating 100 years of history.

White Birch Bonsai - Update

Healthy and Happy

Spring has come to the greenhouse.

I had not been in the greenhouse for some time. I missed the birth of the first buds bursting on the branches.

I missed all the leaves growing big and strong. Hey wait, you are suppose to be a bonsai.

Next for the tree is to have at least 50% of the leaves removed and trim the branches back to keep the shape. I started to do it but I did not have a shape enough knife or my good secateurs.

This tree went into this pot May 2009, it was 2 or 3 years old at the time. So now the tree is 6 years old. I wonder when it will get the white bark of a White birch. That is really what I am waiting for. I want to see the paper birch that makes this tree famous!

Hopefully this year.

In the bush it looks like trees get the white bark before they are 5 years old, but they are not stunted. I will leave the tree in this pot for one more year and remove it in the fall. It will go back in the same pot, but 1/3 of the roots will be removed.

 The photo history of the tree can be seen here

Past blog entries :  Jan 23, 2010      Nov 01, 2009     May 10, 2009