In the Woods … Acorns

Perhaps you’ve noticed the impressive amounts of acorns in the Woods. At this point they are present mainly as shells and caps. Nonetheless, several trails passing under red oak trees are paved with the remains of last fall’s bumper crop of acorns. The fruit of trees, such as acorns, are called mast, and years when trees produce abnormally high amounts of fruit are called  mast years. Last fall red oaks masted across northern Michigan, and in our Woods.

The masting has had consequences in our Woods. First to notice the mast year were our deer harvesters. They commented that last fall the deer spent much time feeding on acorns along the bay’s edge, complicating the harvest. The large mast is also apparent in our Woods now as seedlings. Take a look at the trail’s edge and you’ll see many oak seedlings, more than we’ve had in year’s past. A closer look will reveal some of the seedlings that grew from last fall’s acorns. Brush aside the leaf duff, and look for an acorn at the base of the seedling’s stem (see photo below). Note that often the germinated acorns are not buried.

The masting has had consequences in our Woods. First to notice the mast year were our deer harvesters. They commented that last fall the deer spent much time feeding on acorns along the bay’s edge, complicating the harvest. The large mast is also apparent in our Woods now as seedlings. Take a look at the trail’s edge and you’ll see many oak seedlings, more than we’ve had in year’s past. A closer look will reveal some of the seedlings that grew from last fall’s acorns. Brush aside the leaf duff, and look for an acorn at the base of the seedling’s stem (see photo below). Note that often the germinated acorns are not buried.

Intriguingly, how trees coordinate a mast across vast regions is not well understood (The Lingering Mysteries of the Mast Year). As for why oaks mast, a frequently stated explanation is masts overwhelm the acorn predators ��️ and increase the likelihood an acorn will successfully produce a tree. To read more about last fall’s mast year in Michigan, link here: Got acorns? Michigan has tons and tons, amid ‘mast year’ for oaks.

Prairie Coneflower: Loved for its beauty, used by Native Americans as medicine and to make tea

A striking flower is blooming in the Meadow. The linked web site says…

“Prairie coneflowers are popular native plants for flower gardening. Native Americans used them for a variety of medicinal uses and also made tea out of the flowers and leaves. If you rub the disks, they smell something like anise.”

Ecosystem Connections: Bees, butterflies, and other insects are drawn to the flowers, where they receive nectar in exchange for their cross-pollination services. Herbivores ranging from caterpillars to woodchucks eat the leaves.

Green Acorns in the Woods

Perhaps you’ve noticed green acorns on the trails. Oaks will drop acorns if stressed, but there’s also a more intriguing cause … the acorn pip gall wasp.

If you see many green acorns on the ground, stop and examine a few acorns. Look for acorns that look like the ones pictured below. 

Specifically, look for a triangular shaped gall or a notch on the top of the acorn.  The notch is present if the gall has fallen out. If the acorn retains its cap, the gall or notch is just below the cap (top row in photo). If you look very closely you might find the galls in the duff (bottom row in photo). (Note: a gall is an abnormal outgrowth of plant tissue usually due to insect or mite parasites or fungi.)

The pip gall is caused by the exceptionally tiny pip gall wasp. In our Woods, pip gall wasps laid eggs in acorns earlier this summer. Larvae hatched and caused the acorns to produce the galls. The larvae now live inside the galls, and feed on the gall’s tissue. This infestation causes the oak trees to drop the green acorns. Typically, adult wasps will emerge from the gall next year and start a complex life cycle that includes causing a woolly catkin gall on the red oak’s flowers. Intrigued? Read here for the details The The Peculiar Acorn Pip Gall Wasp.

References

Merriam-Webster Gall Definition

Williams, L. (2023, 7 July). Acorn Pip Galls, Woolly Catkin Galls All The Same. Wisconsin DNR Forestry News.

Spring Cleaning Planned June 9

MEMBERS AND FRIENDS:  Your OWA Conservation Committee is hosting a short spring cleaning session on Sunday afternoon, June 9. 

Please join us for some camaraderie and fun as we spend a few hours cleaning the trails in our glorious woods. 

We’ll assemble in the OTYC parking lot at 1:00 pm. and spend a few hours working on the trails. 

Volunteers should bring a rake, blower, trimmer, lopper (or just their energy), along with gloves.  Leggings and long sleeves are recommended. 

Refreshments will be available when we finish.  Please let Shep Tate (sheptate@gmail.com) know if you can participate.

Flowers at Lake Street

From an email sent to members on Friday, May 17.

A small patch of spring flowers are blooming at the Lake Street entrance (see photos below). That corner of our woods typically escapes the browsing deer and as a result supports a few woodland flowers.

Right now, immediately adjacent to the trailhead, you can see trillium and the orchid-like fringed polygala. The fringed polygalas, also known as gay wings and flowering winter green, merit a close inspection.

First, note the delicate namesake fringe on the tip of the lower petal. Invisible are polygala’s underground flowers. The subterranean flowers never open, and are self-pollinated (1)

In addition, if you take a short hike to the meadow, you’ll find a carpet of wild strawberries in bloom.

While you’re enjoying the blooms take note of the healthy understory along the Mougey’s Lake trail.

Most of the bushes are maple-leaf viburnum and they’ll bloom a bit later. This understory and groundcover typify a northern hardwoods forest with a right-size deer herd.

Compare this corner of our woods with other regions that have been cleared by the deer.

In closing, if you’re inclined to visit the flowers you can park along Isthmus Road and then make the very short trek to the trailhead. If you know of other spots sporting flowers please let us know and we’ll share with members.

Reference

1.Wenzel, Brandee. “Fringed Polygala, Gaywings, Flowering Wintergreen (Polygala paucifolia Willd.)”. U.S. Forest Service, accessed 9 May 2024, https://www.fs.usda.gov/wildflowers/plant-of-the-week/polygala_paucifolia.shtml

A patch of trillium growing in the Omena Woods. (Photo courtesy Shawn Bradford)

Our Forests Are At Risk

Almost 50 years ago a few neighbors on the Omena peninsula formed Omena Woods Association to acquire available woodland acres on the peninsula to preserve and enhance its natural beauty and rural character.

The woods are part of what makes Omena a place where we strengthen family ties, protect and value nature, and create a healthier community now and for future generations.

Our neighboring forests are at risk as downstate and out-of-state developers seek to buy adjacent undeveloped woodland tracts.  Attached is one of the many unsolicited “offer” letters and contracts recently received. 

The prospective buyer – a professed out-of-state real estate investment company  – wants to purchase our neighboring woodlands for unspecified purposes, as do many others who have sent similar letters to many of us.

Of concern, the volume of solicitations is increasing and from parties who have no connection to Omena or Leelanau.

Please be aware that those of us who live here, who grew up here, or who found this glorious place by design or good luck would like to protect our forests today and for the future for our families to continue to enjoy. 

If you or someone you know is interested in these or any other type of offers, please contact one of the OWA Board members listed below.

We cherish our beautiful woods and the peaceful, rural nature of our peninsula and are concerned for their survival.