August 12

It’s midday at Gratiot County’s Reed Park, a 100-acre, multi-recreational facility located near the small village of North Star. I’m at the entrance to a ¾ mile rectangular loop called the Beech-Maple Trail. Close to the ground, I spot a few stickseed plants. It is doubtful anyone has taken many walks in the woods without ending up with a several of these sticky seeds on their legs or socks as well as their dog’s hair. I continue on the trail through this shaded landscape noting the closed canopy above me. Also, I observe the contrasting color and texture of bark on a nearby beech and maple tree. Further ahead, I pause and listen to a faint Cicada buzzing sound. These insects have a special organ called a tymbal that produces sound. The tymbal contains a series of ribs that buckle one after the other when the cicada flexes its muscles. Every time a rib buckles, the rib produces a click. Many clicks produce a buzzing sound. Noticing the leaf litter, I’m surprised to see unripe acorns, since they usually fall to the ground after turning brown later in the season. Continuing around the Beech-Maple Trail, I focus on nature’s decomposers including: mushrooms and slime mold. Also, I notice an interesting combination of decomposers on a tree trunk; fungi along with a shredded hole made by a Pileated Woodpecker. Just ahead, movement on the ground catches my attention. Scanning the landscape, I see minimal growth in the understory except in some clearings, where Elderberry bushes are growing. While perusing the leaf litter, I come upon a few Beech Drops sticking up. This herbaceous plant, lacking chlorophyll, makes its living parasitizing the roots of beech trees. A growing plant inserts a root-like structure into a beech root, absorbing enough nutrition to sustain itself. After perking my ears to birdcalls, I make my way past a patch of Sensitive Ferns to the trail exit and the end of another great hike.

Let me stand firm

In the forest deep

In a special place

I long to keep

Let me spread shade

To the earth below

Feed the squirrel

Shelter the crow

If only a hour

Wish I could be

Pride of the woods

A stately oak tree

D. DeGraaf