Isabelle enjoys Darby Creek, John Heinz National Wildlife Refuge
What a better way to spend the July 4th weekend than down by the water. Â The old canoe in the basement was dragged out and strapped onto the Subaru station wagon and brought down to the only freshwater tidal marsh in Pennsylvania. This is what Indian creek, our Morris park creek drains into. Â Here is Isabelle canoeing on Darby Creek.
Staghorn Sumac, West Fairmount Park, Philadelphia PennsylvaniaÂ
We also dusted off the 1959 Chevrolet Impala sitting in the driveway and headed for the Schuylkill River in West Fairmount Park.
Isabelle buffs up our 1959 Chevrolet Impala in West Fairmount Park
Before cruising the Belmont Plateau we settled in for a leisurely park and walked along the river. Â Here we discovered a nice patch of Staghorn sumac (Rhus typhina) just below the Strawberry Mansion Bridge.
Staghorn Sumac and the Tree of heaven, West Fairmount Park, Philadelphia Pennsylvania
The picture above may seem pretty straightforward but is actually an astonishing representation of two different species altogether.  To the upper right is the native Staghorn Sumac.  The lower left is the non-native invasive  Tree-of -Heaven (Ailanthus altissima).  They both look so similar at first glance and are growing right next to each other, with pinnately compound leaves about the same size with reddish leaf stems. To the untrained eye these two trees look almost identical.  We bring this up because there are just a few Staghorn sumac specimens growing in our area of scope in Morris Park, and they are surrounded by Ailanthus. Knowing the differences is helpful when we undertake our yearly maintenance effort at pulling the hundreds of Ailanthus seedlings up.
Staghorn Sumac, West Fairmount Park, Philadelphia Pennsylvania
The leaflets of the  Staghorn sumac are dentate, with toothlike edges, while the Ailanthus  leaflets are smooth. The young twigs of the Staghorn sumac are densely hairy, a give-away characteristic of this large shrub or small tree, as well as the origin of its common name.  The dense hairs along the new growth resembles that of the antlers of a young male deer. The Staghorn sumac has incredible ornamental value.  Its reddish-brown seedpods and lush pinnately compound leaves and shrub status make it a great back-round plant.  Isabelle’s brother has one in his back yard in the suburbs of Paris, France.  Every year he prunes it so it has a nice shape.
Jewelweed in the Wissahickon, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
On July 4th itself we chose the Wissahickon to spend the afternoon walking Keeba, only 15 minutes drive from Morris Park. Â Here we explore a magnificent patch of the native wildflower Jewelweed (Impatiens capensis). Â This one tops the list of our favorite flowers. We look forward to seeing them flower every summer. Â We were careful to make sure Keeba did not prance about in this patch of very delicate plants. Â The blue-green stems are very fragile.
Tulip Poplars in the Wissahickon, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
The Tulip poplars in The Wissahickon are memorable.
THE SANGUINE ROOT TAKES A RELAXING TRIP TO OUR NEIGHBORING DELAWARE HOPING TO SEE FLOWERS AND BIRDS AT THE MOUTH OF THE DELAWARE RIVER.
Bombay Hook National Wildlife Refuge, Delaware
Iris versicolor
We had never seen one of these before. Not even in cultivation. However we knew what it was right away and the brakes were applied. (Bombay Hook is so vast that it is a road trip inside the sanctuary) Â Questions: Â How come this native Iris is not growing everywhere as an ornamental, while the non-native exotic ones are? Â How did this get passed by? Â Why isn’t this Iris taught in school? Why is this not the Delaware State flower instead of the native-to-China Prunus persica, the peach blossom?
Bombay Hook National Wildlife Refuge, Delaware
What a great discovery, a wild native Iris, growing in its ecosystem.
Bombay Hook National Wildlife Refuge, Delaware
Magnolia virginiana
Finding the native Sweetbay magnolia growing in the wild is also a novel sight. Â This one blooms in the late afternoon and evening when it fills the air with an enchanting aroma.
Bombay Hook National Wildlife Refuge, Delaware
In a wooded area we saw this great patch of Jack-in-the Pulpit (Arisaema triphyllum) growing among its native woodland neighbors, the Enchanter’s nightshade (Circaea lutetiana) and the Virginia Creeper (Parthenocissus quinquefolia).
The woodland areas were full of ferns and lush herbaceous plants, however we were being bitten up by black flies. Â Also, there was an emphasis on the birds that could be viewed at this National Wildlife location and most of the other visitors at Bombay Hook were preoccupied with the birds. We decided to see if we could view some of the birds that were getting so much attention.
Bombay Hook National Wildlife Refuge, Delaware
This is the place to view birds and we were very pleased at the variety of them. Â Off in the distance is the Delaware Bay. We spotted this Egret.
Bombay Hook National Wildlife Refuge, Delaware
It was looking for an evening meal.
Bombay Hook National Wildlife Refuge, Delaware
It dipped into the water for a fish.
Bombay Hook National Wildlife Refuge, DelawareBombay Hook National Wildlife Refuge, Delaware
After consuming the meal, the Egret was approached by what we believe to be a male Red-Winged Blackbird.
Bombay Hook National Wildlife Refuge, Delaware
The Red- Winged Blackbird circled over the Egret and the Egret rose out of the water and opened up its broad wings and flew about 100 feet.
Bombay Hook National Wildlife Refuge, Delaware
What a show! Â After it landed, it wandered into the tall marsh grasses and settled in.
Bombay Hook National Wildlife Refuge, Delaware
Bombay Hook provides every amenity for bird viewing, including built in telescopes, elevated structures, and signage. For beginners like us, these proved very helpful.
Just north of Bombay Hook National Wildlife Refuge, Delaware
Driving north through the backroads, we spotted something that at first glance looked like an odd chicken. Oh, no, that would be  a Turkey Vulture.
Bombay Hook National Wildlife Refuge, Delaware
Definitely not a chicken.
The view across the Delaware Bay, Delaware
This thing loomed in the back-round all day. Yeah, that would be the Salem Nuclear plant, in New Jersey. It has the same reactor core as the now melted down Fukushima-Daiichi nuclear plant in Japan, A General-Electric Mark I. Â This one is puffing away, running all those big flat-screened tvs, among the many other amenities of modern life.
So this is what it has come to. Â Just like at the Fukushima plant, all of the radioactive waste is sitting in a pool of water beside the plant, with nowhere to go and a half-life of 10,000 years. If it has no where to go now, it will most likely have no where to go in 200 years or 2000 years. So by running this plant, there is the assumption that there will be a stable technologically advanced society that will be able to watch over this waste made 100 years ago, 200 years ago, 2000 years ago, 5000 years ago. Â That is quite a gamble to take, not just on future generations of humans, but all of the other species we live amidst. Since when has there been a stable human society that has lasted at least 500 years? Â With nuclear technology so heavily guarded, could it survive the usual turmoil of humanity over the long haul?
Overly optimistic starry-eyed apologists of the nuclear industry imagine that humans will be able to use this waste for something productive. There will be fusion reactors and micro-reactors and all sorts of nifty things going on. None of these pie-in-the sky justifications for nuclear power address the long-term issue.  As if there is an arrogance in the air that is so enamored with nuclear power and a rosy belief in a peaceful global society that is evermore technologically advanced and politically sophisticated that will last for at least 10,000 years, managing nuclear waste and the by-products of the nuclear industry and  nuclear warheads combined.
If there ever is a time to be philosophical or perhaps moralistic about something, that time is 1000 years from now. Thats right, The Staff of the Sanguine Root is not being righteous or overly moralistic here, shaking our fingers at all of the sinners among us. It is true we do not have a television, but that is no reason to be righteous and indignant.
We try to see the picture over the years, the long term, the bigger picture, the long- haul. A species-specific perspective. The Egret we saw today, catching its evening fish and having an encounter with the Red-winged Blackbird, and then retiring to the Marsh grasses for the evening says it all. Â That species has been doing the same thing for many thousands and millions of years. Try to imagine Delaware 40,000 years ago. Â What species were there? Â What did they do? How did they live? Â Anyone have any ideas? Â Please chime in. Â While the exact locations of the salt marshes may have been different, most likely there were Egrets and Red-Winged Blackbirds, Sweet-bay Magnolias, Blue-flag Irises and Red Maples.
Here, these species are still alive.
What about our species? Â We have made it complicated for ourselves and every species around us, haven’t we? Â Never before, in the billions of years of Earth’s history has uranium been refined to the extent that it has. In less than 70 years! Â Nor has the cocktail of carcinogenic and radioactive blend of materials carefully extracted from the earth, and manipulated and exposed in a variety of industrial processes have ever seen the light of day. Â Exactly what geological layer are humans creating? Â How many species will become extinct as a result? Â Exactly why is this happening, and what can be done about it? Just remember, what will 100 years from now be like? If that isn’t convincing, what about 500 years?
Are our societies really that stable? Â Just look around. How can Nuclear anything be a viable resource for anything period. Â Who are we kidding? Â Its 10,000+ years of radioactivity. Hot particles for everyone all the time- all we need is one hot particle in our lung. Fukushima is blowing them out in a hot wind.
TREES TWISTED, CRACKED AND BROKEN IN PIECES, THE TORNADO LEFT A PATH OF DEFORESTATION IN ITS WAKE. Â HERBACEOUS WOODLAND PLANTS GROWING IN THE ONCE SHADY FOREST WITHER IN THE SUN.
Tornado deforestation, Brimfield State Forest, Brimfield, Massachusetts
Part II of the special coverage of the Massachusetts tornado by Sanguine Root staff writer Sean Solomon.
Tornado deforestation, Brimfield State Forest, Brimfield, Massachusetts
The path of the tornado reached its peak width in the Brimfield State Forest.  To see this was a shocking sight.  This has always been a shady, wooded area, so thick with trees that it was dark and mysterious, and was the quintessential forest for me as I was growing up.  To see this destruction is unsettling. These trees were part of my upbringing, and have created the backdrop for my appreciation of forests. Like the beautiful Victorian houses of the town of Monson, the trees on this hillside  were the example of what forest is to be, like what an elegant house is.  For the trees to have been ripped out like this is disorienting.
Tornado deforestation, Brimfield State Forest, Brimfield, Massachusetts
Is this what it has come to? Â Are we to expect more and more of these tornados in the future? We know that tornados do occur in this area, but rarely. Â Does the dramatic increase in atmospheric carbon dioxide have an effect in this? Â This would be a good time to come out and study this tornado. Â Now that the bigger trees are down, there will be effects on the land. Â The ferns and herbaceous shade plants are yellowing in the hot sun.
Tornado deforestation, Brimfield State Forest, Brimfield, Massachusetts
Here, Christmas fern (Polystichum acrostichoides) survived the tornado but is now exposed to so much sunlight, that it is turning brown.
Tornado deforestation, Brimfield State Forest, Brimfield, Massachusetts
The woodland herbaceous plant, Smilacina racemosa, False Solomons seal, is also turning brown at the edges. (Top and bottom).
Tornado deforestation, Brimfield State Forest, Brimfield, Massachusetts
Change has come to this forest, and how it will manifest itself is up for speculation. Â Please feel free to throw in your two cents as to how it will pan out in the next 5 years, ten, and how about 50 and 100! Â This tornado’s path will be still evident in 200 years to the close inspection.
Tornado deforestation, Brimfield State Forest, Brimfield, Massachusetts
Many of the Oaks and Hickories will probably sprout new branches on top of the trunks and there will be some odd-shaped trees in 10 years, with thick trunks and lots of thin branches coming off the tops. Some of the wind-blown trees that have survived will be trees that have interesting angles and curves in the trunks, with straight tops.  Many young trees have survived this event and they will grow into the new forest.  Species such as birch and white pine may thrive in this new sunny environment, and they make take a more prominent place in the forest in the next twenty years.  There will also be some surprises.  Long dormant seeds may sprout and there  may be species making a presence not seen in many years.  There will also be a possibility of invasive, introduced species gaining a foothold in this disturbed environment, such as the Asiatic bittersweet and Japanese Knotweed.
Tornado deforestation, Brimfield State Forest, Brimfield, Massachusetts
This last picture illustrates the amount of dead wood that now sits on the land. Â This poses a fire risk in the next few years ahead. Â One dry summer with all of this dry wood sitting around and any number of fire possibilities creates a huge potential problem. Â What can be done now to have a healthy forest regenerate, and for this to be a safe process? Â While the towns and city is re-built, the forest must also be considered.
As difficult as this has been and will be, the re-building and decision-making of the towns and forests presents a unique opportunity for  re-defining our role as citizens in a civic engagement as well as stewards of the natural environment we live amidst.
