Things not to Mow Over

The most frequent comment I get from people seeing my newly mowed fields is “Hey, you missed something.”  My conversational skills are almost nonexistent, so I’m never quite sure how to respond to that kind of comment.  Since it’s not a question, I don’t think I’m obligated to respond.  I usually just acknowledge the accuracy of their statement and stare at them until they walk away.  Do they honestly believe that I’m unaware of the fact that there are things in the field left unmowed?  Of course I missed something.  I meant to.

If I intended mow everything in the field, I could just grind it all down with a ten foot Bush Hog.  My primary objective is to remove unwanted features from the field and I do all that is necessary to achieve that objective.  Beyond that, I also wish certain features to remain untouched, so the mower is carefully guided to avoid key items.  I made earlier mention of my desire to avoid destruction of the ant mounds, but there are many other things that I hope to keep intact.  I doubt that anyone would question why I failed to mow down the bird boxes.

Flowering Dogwoods are thriving in the field.  About 20 years ago, disease eliminated the Flowering Dogwoods from my woodland understory.  That left a few young sprouts in the old crop fields as the only living dogwoods on the property.  I selected about 25 sprouts and allowed them to grow to maturity.  They now flower heavily and provide an abundance of fruit each year.  I keep hoping to find some young dogwoods recolonizing the woods, but that has yet to happen.

I’m allowing a few Blackjack Oaks, Quercus marilandica, to grow near some of the ant mounds.  Where the Allegheny Mound Ants live in close proximity to the Blackjack Oaks, there is a chance of encountering the uncommon Edwards’ Hairstreak butterfly.  The butterflies lay their eggs on the oak and the ants provide protection to the butterfly during its early stages of life.  This wonderful association exists on other parts of the property and I am encouraging it to spread.

Small shrubs and trees growing in association with the tall prairie grasses provide ideal structure for the placement of bird nests.  Deerberry is an ideal species for this activity.  So far, Deerberry has been slow to establish in the fields and slow to expand its clumps.  If it becomes a problem in the future, it is easy to eliminate by cutting and stump spraying.

I’ve been watching this patch of native rose for several years.  It has been slowly spreading, but has not produced any blooms.

Native roses have thorns, but the thorns are generally less of a threat than those of the invasive Multiflora.  I like to think of the bite of native rose thorns as a nip from a playful puppy.  By comparison, the bite of the Multiflora Rose is more like a mauling by a mad dog.

I don’t plan to allow any of these White Pine seedlings to remain in the field.  My plan is to transplant a few of them as replacements for deer damaged trees planted in a double line beside my established White Pine windbreak along the side of the yard.  Those trees in the background are the seed source for the seedlings.  The fact that these little trees have been able to survive for two or three years in the field, suggests that they are ideally suited to grow in their planned location.

The field is full of these Cut-leaved Grape Ferns, Botrychium dissectum.  They are short enough that the mower blades do no more than shave a bit off the leaf.  I’m amazed at how well these plants do in association with the tall grasses.  Even though there is just the one species growing here, the natural variation in leaf shape makes for an unending variety.

Some things I avoid, not because they are to be saved, but because an encounter might damage both me and the mower.  Seasonal wet spots in the field still hold deep tire tracks made at the time the last crop was harvested.  Most ruts have mellowed down and filled in, but a few of the worst persist.

Another freshly dropped balloon.  This is number eight for the year, making this an above average year for balloon fallout.  It wouldn’t be tragic to mow over this bit of litter, but having the ribbon wrap around the mower shaft and wedge between the shaft and blade can create a mess that I’d rather not deal with.  I believe my 2014 mowing struck a good balance between cutting what needed to be cut and avoiding those things best left untouched.

Tractor Invasion

I found the large prairie being overrun with tractors. I guess it wasn’t a great threat, but it did get me thinking about a time in the past when tractors were used for plowing, planting and harvesting this field. Before that it would have been mule power. It makes me wonder what would have been here if the land had remained undisturbed during the last 200 years.

Though they were abundant, these tractors were pretty well behaved. They look like part of a pajama pattern. I’m sure you know what it really is.

I’m beginning to wonder if my perception is off. First I mistake a bit of the local flora for a discarded volleyball and now I spot a bit of trash in the prairie and think it’s an expanding batch of milkweed seeds.

It’s just 2011 balloon number 4. The rain of discarded helium balloons has remained fairly constant for the last 25 years. I guess ceremonial balloon releases are not impacted by changes in the economy. There are several local children who would have been thrilled at a tractor themed birthday party. Perhaps that’s where this came from. Was this a single balloon that escaped the grip of a child or was it part of a mass release? I guess the lesson being taught is that it’s OK to litter as long as the trash is being thrown into the sky and not directly onto the ground.

Balloon Count

Things are shaping up nicely for having a new record year of finding spent helium balloons at Blue Jay Barrens. My current record is 7 balloons found in 2009. This Minnie Mouse adorned balloon is number 3 for 2011 and I still have 9 months left to go.

This balloon has been here for a while and was almost hidden beneath the leaves. When I pulled it away from the ground I was pleased to see that it was still pliable and hadn’t begun to deteriorate. Some plastic materials become brittle and crumble with age. I hate when that happens. I’m the type of person that will sit and pick up every crumb, just because I hate to think of that trash sitting in my woods.

Balloon 7

This has been a record year for finding spent helium balloons littering Blue Jay Barrens. A festive orange balloon found the day after Christmas marked number seven for the year, two above the previous record. The fresh condition of the string indicates that it hasn’t been exposed to the elements for too long a time.

A dozen feet to the side it could have fallen into an early trash repository. This looks like it was a one load dump. The idea that it is not only proper, but beneficial to deposit trash in gullies, is one that is still alive and well in today’s society. The presence of the old gas tank makes me wonder what contaminants may have found their way to this site.

The old tub was probably still sound enough to hold some of the smaller objects going to the dump. I wonder what conditions initiated collection and removal of junk from around the homestead. Did these items form a growing pile outside the barn until a certain dumpable volume was reached? I think it more likely that everything was scattered about and only moved when it became an obstacle or nuisance.

There are several small dumps with one roll each of old poultry fencing. I was told that the fence came from a time a couple of generations ago when the family was big into raising chickens and pheasants. When poultry raising activities were abandoned, the birds were all turned lose. Since the fence was supposedly all made obsolete at the same time, it’s odd that the discarded wire was dumped in so many different places. Maybe there was a recipe for dump loads that called for no more than one roll of wire per pile.

When I saw a flash of blue from a distance, I thought I had found balloon number eight. It was actually a plastic grocery sack tied to a tree. Unless the wind has been doing some crazy things, this knot is hand tied. I presume it to be a marker intended to help a deer hunter find his way through the woods. If I had found him, I would have pointed out that he was a litterbug, a trespasser and a poacher. It’s funny when these guys argue that they’re not poachers. I always recommend they read the hunting regulations and note that a poacher is someone hunting on private property without written permission of the owner. Claiming that “The Guy” said it was OK isn’t quite good enough.

Happy Birthday

If today is your Birthday, here’s a Birthday greeting, compliments of someone who couldn’t keep hold of their party balloon. This is the fourth balloon I’ve found this year. With three months still left in the year, I may be able to set a balloon finding record. I’ve watched people clean up after a backyard party by untying balloons from chairs and deck railings and letting them float into the sky. Do they think they’re releasing them back into their native habitat? I’m betting my next balloon will have a Halloween theme and display either a witch face or a black cat.

This particular balloon must have come into contact with some of the party treats because there were several flies feeding on its surface. This fly, a bee mimic, wouldn’t even leave when I picked the balloon up.

There must be something mighty tasty here. Several flies of this same type were feeding on nearby asters. I wonder if this fly went back to that natural food after I took away its balloon.

I never saw this fly feed, but it wouldn’t leave the balloon. Maybe it was just enjoying the sweet sensation being transmitted through the sensory receptors in its feet.