The new tree of this hike was black cherry: we saw two excellent specimens very soon after we entered the park. The bark of the black cherry tree is very distinctive, making it easy to identify even at this time of year (before the leaves are out.) Some people say the bark reminds them of burnt potato chips. Can you see it?
Just in case you don't have me around to confirm: cherry trees also have a distinctive, almondy smell (not a pleasant one though) if you scratch-and-sniff a living twig. And the black cherry leaves have a brown fuzz running down the center of the underside of the leaf. This is a useful identification tool once the leaves come out. (I'll get you a good picture of that in a later post, promise!)
As we walked along, the little lady pointed out to us an American beech tree that she recognized from our Snake Mountain hike. She informed us that she'd been showing beech trees to her classmates at school, telling them how they can know what kind of tree it is. She remembered that beech trees don't loose their leaves as easily as other deciduous trees, so often you'll see them clinging to their leaves all winter long. When I reminded her of the smooth grey bark, she went to a nearby witch hazel plant, saying, "This has smooth bark, is it a beech?" So I showed her the most distinctive part of a beech tree: the bud.
Some people will call this a "cigar bud" to help them remember. See how long and pointy it is? It almost looks like a thorn when you look quickly. And the light brown is a distinctive feature as well.
Still a pretty cool tower! We're checking out a white pine though.
As we left the woods, the sun was just starting to set. A perfect after school hike, just in time to get home for dinner :)
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