Letters.ACORNS SO BIG... editor: In "Michigan's Discriminating Troubadour troubadour One of a class of lyric poets and poet-musicians, often of knightly rank, that flourished from the 11th through the 13th century, chiefly in Provence and other regions of southern France, northern Spain, and northern Italy. " (Winter 2002). Gary Lantz describes the Kirtland's warbler Kirt·land's warbler n. A rare, gray-backed warbler (Dendroica kirtlandii) that nests only in north-central Michigan. [After Jared Potter Kirtland (1793-1877), American naturalist and physician.] as "a mighty flier not much bigger than a bur oak acorn." I would interpret that literally, however, the forester in me says that a large bur oak acorn may stretch itself out to maybe two inches across and maybe weigh up to a half-ounce. Might the author have mistakenly referred to a juvenile Kirtland's warbler, rather than an adult, i.e., "mighty flier"? Perhaps he was referring to its eggs? Ronald E. Bonar US Forest Service, Savannah River Savannah River River, eastern Georgia, U.S. Formed by the confluence of the Tugaloo and Seneca rivers at Hartwell Dam, it flows southeast to form the boundary between Georgia and South Carolina. It empties into the Atlantic Ocean at Savannah after a course of 314 mi (505 km). New Ellenton, South Carolina New Ellenton is a town in Aiken County, South Carolina, United States. The population was 2,250 at the 2000 census. History New Ellenton was formed from the citizens of Ellenton a farming town chartered in 1880 situated on the Charleston and Western Carolina Railroad in Gary Lantz responds: I have on my desk a bur oak acorn collected along my favorite prairie stream that's approximately 3 1/2 inches across, including the ample fringe skirting the cup. Sibley's Guide to Birds gives the overall length of a mature Kirtland's warbler at 5 3/4 inches, including tail. I tend to regard the tail as an appendage appendage /ap·pen·dage/ (ah-pen´dij) a subordinate portion of a structure, or an outgrowth, such as a tail. epiploic appendages see under appendix . rather than part of the mainframe, so if you count the acorn cup on my bur oak acorn and dismiss the tail on the warbler warbler, name applied in the New World to members of the wood warbler family (Parulidae) and in the Old World to a large family (Sylviidae) of small, drab, active songsters, including the hedge sparrow, the kinglet, and the tailorbird of SE Asia, , we're in the ballpark. Basically though, the metaphor was meant to make the distinction to a lay audience that the Kirtland's is a very small bird indeed, a real mighty mite compared to say, a robin or a cowbird cowbird, New World bird of the blackbird and oriole (hangnest) family. The male eastern, or common, cowbird is glossy black, about 8 in. (20 cm) long, with a brown head and breast; the female is gray. . We're talking creativity as opposed to pure science, yet I'm sure you'll agree that exact measurements can't convey the amazing energy and beauty compressed into a warbler's tiny frame, which oftentimes seems not much bigger than the thumbnails of the football players we grow Out here in cowboy country. I guess in this case the eye of the beholder gets the nod. Send m e your address and I'll send you an Oklahoma bur oak acorn next fall, so you can see for yourself why the comparison came to mind. THE IRREPLACEABLE ELM editor: With respect to the Tree Doctor's response (Winter 2002) to the question of whether or how cuttings could be taken from the dying elm at Locust Grove Historic Home, I have a question and a comment. If reproducing an elm from a cutting is, at best, extremely difficult/virtually impossible, how are the "resistant" elm varieties being propagated true to the parent? I respectfully disagree that a zelkovia looks much like an American elm and with the assertion often made (not by the Tree Doctor explicitly) that it can be a more or less suitable replacement for an elm. I think anyone hoping for an even somewhat comparable replacement will be disappointed. It is at best a mid-sized tree at maturity, while elms were high-trunked, full-sized shade trees. In such an instance, I think the pin oak, for example, would be a much better choice. It's a fast-growing, full-sized shade tree that tolerates compacted soil and transplanting well (all characteristics of the elm). It and the tulip tulip [Pers.,=turban], any plant of the large genus Tulipa, hardy, bulbous-rooted members of the family Liliaceae (lily family), indigenous to north temperate regions of the Old World from the Mediterranean to Japan and growing most abundantly on the steppes poplar (if the site is not heavily traveled) provide the relatively upright, columnar effect of elms when lining streets. For the relatively light shade of the elm's smaller leaves and seeds, consider a thornless, seedless Seed´less a. 1. Without seed or seeds. Adj. 1. seedless - lacking seeds; "seedless grapefruit" seedy - full of seeds; "as seedy as a fig" seedless adj → honeylocust cultivar cultivar Any variety of a plant, originating through cloning or hybridization (see clone, hybrid), known only in cultivation. In asexually propagated plants, a cultivar is a clone considered valuable enough to have its own name; in sexually propagated plants, a . The zelkovia may be a nice tree in its own right, but I do not believe it should be suggested as a replacement for an elm, even "sort of." William Lawrence III Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania PRAISE FOR GOOD MANAGERS editor: This month marks my 50th year in Mendocino County, now as a retired industrial consulting forester with an emphasis in California redwoods. For over 25 years I was the leading redwood appraiser A person selected or appointed by a competent authority or an interested party to evaluate the financial worth of property. Appraisers are frequently appointed in probate and condemnation proceedings and are also used by banks and real estate concerns to determine the market for the Save the Redwoods League in its acquisition contributions to both coastal and inland sequoias. I am fortunate to have signed up for your Life Membership some time past and treasure your publications. Your Autumn 2001 edition had a short blurb blurb n. A brief publicity notice, as on a book jacket. [Coined by Gelett Burgess (1866-1951), American humorist.] blurb v. , with a fitting picture, about the gal who uses her voluptuous features to save the redwoods and critically mentioned a newly organized local timber company, Mendocino Redwood Company. Sensational and not fair. The redwood region has had and will continue to have a long history of lumber and other forest products. In the past and recently we have had "bad actors" interested only in the bottom line of the current owners. But for the most part the highly detailed state rules and regulations have brought control to our woods. The G.A.P.-sponsored company you called attention to is being managed on a basis of sustained yield and production that could be the envy of the southern pine industry and other forest production areas of the nation. Good management should be praised. Robert T. MacDougall Jr. Ukiah, California NONHISTORIC TREES editor: As the federal government wages war on terrorism Terrorist acts and the threat of Terrorism have occupied the various law enforcement agencies in the U.S. government for many years. The Anti-Terrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996, as amended by the usa patriot act , our local form of the federal government, the National Park Service, is attacking its nemesis, the nonhistoric trees. It figures to be an epic battle, with 576 acres of trees at Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, that need eradication. NPS NPS National Park Service NPS Naval Postgraduate School NPS Net Promoter Score (customer management) NPS Non-Point Source pollution NPS Native Plant Society NPS Norfolk Public Schools (Virginia) is in the process of cutting most of the trees down, with the remaining ones to be destroyed in the next year or two. Most are unaware of this war because the NPS has been careful not to publicize this attack. Why should you care? You should care if you live downstream. When the cutting ends, soil erosion will increase 13 percent. The sediment released from this erosion will end up in the already sediment-impaired Monocacy River. You should care if you enjoy the beauty of Gettysburg National Military Park. When the 576 acres of trees are destroyed, 30 percent of the wooded areas of the park will be bare. The death toll will be 140,000 trees. The visual impact will be stunning. You should care if you feel the federal government has more important things to do with our tax dollars. This tree removal operation will cost $2.3 million dollars, according to the General Management Plan, and I believe this estimate is low. And the cost estimates do not even include the additional staff to maintain 576 treeless acres. At a time when America is at war on terrorism, I can think of better uses for this money: more sky marshals, better security at nuclear power plants, developing vaccine stockpiles, or maybe just helping the economy by not slipping back into a deficit spending Deficit spending When government spending overwhelms government revenue resulting in government borrowing. deficit spending Expenditures that are in excess of revenues during a given period of time. mode as we fund our war on terrorism. If you care about any of this, call Gettysburg's representative, Todd Platts, and let him know how you feel. Patrick L. Naugle Gettysburg, Pennsylvania 'SPECTACULAR' BIG TREES editor: I was thrilled when I came upon your magazine in a doctor's office. I saw the 2000 National Register of Big Trees The National Register of Big Trees is a list of the largest living specimens of each tree variety found in the continental United States. A tree on this list is often called a National Champion Tree. , and it was great! As a result of a picture in that issue of a sequoia with many others around it that were dwarfs in comparison, we planned a late April trip to Sequoia National Park Sequoia National Park, 402,510 acres (162,960 hectares), E central Calif.; est. 1890. In the park are 35 groves of giant sequoias, spectacular granite mountains, and deep canyons. to check this out. I am sending you a copy of a photo of me standing in front of one of these giants! Truly spectacular! Michele Thomas-Sommers Via e-mail Editor's Note: Thanks to all those who called or emailed to point out we were obviously thinking of something other than arboriculture arboriculture Cultivation of trees, shrubs, and woody plants for shading and decorating. Arboriculture includes all aspects of growing, maintaining, and identifying plants, arranging plantings for their ornamental values, and removing trees. when we mis-ID'd the George Washington tulip poplar Martha Stewart was holding on the cover of the Winter issue. Send comments to Letters to the Editor, American Forests. PO Box 2000, Washington, DC 20013 or e-mail mrobbins@amfor.org. American Forests reserves the right to edit letters. |
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