Tyler Starr
10 September 2008 from 1912-1937
Location: The Northeast corner of the quad.
Weather: 78 ̊ F, little to no wind, skies clear, but most of the quad is in the shade because the sun is setting.
General: I focused on identifying the trees surrounding the quad, but to no avail—I was unable to identify most from my Field Guide, so I did some research online. I believe the first tree was some sort of buckeye or horse chestnut tree, of the genera Aesculus. I counted 9 of this specific type of tree along the Northern edge of the quad. They were about 40 feet tall, with trunks that diverged about 6-10 feet up. The leaves are palmately compound, with seven leaves to a “palm.” (see picture, the leaf and fruit on the left). The fruits are very interesting—they are green spheres or ovals that are about 2 inches or so in diameter. They are surrounded by sharp prickles. I broke one open, and found a small, brown nut inside. I observed 6 of another type of tree immediately to the north of the tree described above. It was about the same height. Its leaves (right side of picture) were a pretty cool shape—it is like a palmately lobed leaf, except the “fingers” are pretty short. The leaf that I took is about 6-8 inches across. I was unable to identify this tree. I asked Professor Craig if he knew what type of tree it is, and he said it is known as a tulip tree or yellow poplar. There are many other types of trees along the other three boundaries of the quad that I will try to identify later. I noticed that the trees along the north edge are trying to grow out over the quad to capitalize on the open sun-bathing space over the big field. One of the trees I first described has a huge chunk of its trunk cut off on the south side, apparently leaning out too far over the quad.
No comments:
Post a Comment