Woods Hollow's Four Habitats

Who would think there was anything alive in this sandy patch of dead oak leaves and brown grass at Woods Hollow Nature Preserve in Balston Spa?  But, believe it or not, this is just exactly the kind of severe habitat Wild Lupine loves, and sure enough, just a few steps further on, masses of this showy blue flower were coming into bloom.

I'm always struck by the diversity of habitats when I visit Woods Hollow, especially when I enter the preserve through the sand-pit area right off the parking lot on Northline Road.   This area may appear to be sterile, but it supports a marvelous sequence of plants throughout the growing season, starting with these spectacular lupines.

Then, just a short hike up a sandy bluff, the shady woods begins, and it's here that stands of pines and mixed hardwoods produce the more fertile, acidic soils that a whole other class of plants can thrive in, including Pipsissewa, Pyrola, Pinesap, and Checkered Rattlesnake Plantain.

 The most spectacular plant of this pine-woods habitat is the Pink Lady's Slipper, and hundreds of these lovely native orchids were budding in the woods today, including a few whose maturing flowers were starting to blush with pink.

Then there's the pond and its small feeder streams that create an entirely different habitat for plants that prefer the damp.  There were blueberry shrubs hanging over the water that had already dropped their flowers and were forming new fruits, and a patch of Sheep Laurel was showing the buds that will open into lovely pink flowers in just a few weeks.

I love to take a path that follows the edge of the pond around several bays.  Today, the path was edged with masses of magenta Fringed Polygala and also a whole firmament of bright-white Starflowers.

I often see Starflower plants with two or three flowers on them, but today I found one with four!

Making a circuit through the preserve, I return to my car past a wide-open sunny wet meadow, which provides yet another distinct habitat for those plants that need both sunlight and wetness.   Today, Yellow Rocket was adding its vivid color to the meadow, but as the summer progresses we'll find Milkweed, Boneset, and Slender Gerardia here, as well as the dreaded but lovely Purple Loosestrife.  Even later, masses of one of our native orchids, Nodding Ladies' Tresses, will fill a corner of this meadow.

Well, here was a little surprise!  A rather small Snapping Turtle was making its way across the path, so I stopped to say hello.  (When I say small, I mean about as big around as an 8-inch birthday cake.)

Oops!  I guess the turtle didn't want to be greeted today.   I promptly got out of its way and it trundled on.

Rain, Rain, Won't Keep Me Away

Thank God for Goretex! Otherwise, I'd be spending this whole rainy week indoors, which would just drive me nuts. I did stay in yesterday, but by today I felt like I had to get out, even though it was really pouring. I could see a little lightening-up to the southwest, however, so I donned my raincoat and wellies and headed in that direction to Woods Hollow Nature Preserve in Ballston Spa. Where it was still pouring hard. (Click on photo above.)

Under the pine trees it didn't seem quite so wet, although it sure was dark -- too dark to take photos of the Canada Mayflower and Lowbush Blueberries blooming along the trail. But see how the little Black Birches seem to add light to the otherwise dismal woods with their bright-green young foliage. (I confirmed my suspicion that they were birches by scraping a twig to smell the tell-tale scent of wintergreen.)

I was mystified by what looked like little patches of snow at the base of many pines in the woods. Hey, it was a little chilly today, but our snow is finally all gone. Was it some kind of fungus?

A closer inspection revealed that the patches were foam. A whole bunch of bubbles. I could see some bubbles on the bark higher up, as well. But the foam collected in just one spot, not all around the base of the trunk. I wonder what could cause this phenomenon. Anyone know?

Update:  Thanks to an interested reader, who left an explanatory link in the comments, we now know the cause of this harmless foam: 
"This foam is caused by the formation of a crude soap on the bark from fatty acids in pine sap/resin. Over a drought a mix of sap salts and acids accumulates and coats the bark surface to form the basics of a rough detergent. When it rains, these ingredients mix with the water and start sudsing up. The froth (foam) is from the agitation of the mixture as it runs down the rough bark during its flow toward the ground.

So it’s perfectly normal when your pine suds up in the rain (although if it does so excessively, it may indicate that there is some insect or other damage that is causing it to “bleed” more sap)."

It's a good thing I wore my rubber boots, because there were places the trail was very wet. The Sweet White Violets and Sensitive Fern didn't mind.

I came to Woods Hollow specifically to check on the progress of Pink Lady's Slippers, which thrive by the hundreds there under the pines. Today, I found many dozens budding, but only one clump where the buds had any pink tinges.

Driving home along Geyser Road, I annoyed a tailgating driver behind me by suddenly braking and whipping my car to the side of the road, where a sandy bank was just covered with this spectacular Blue Lupine. If anything, this dark rain-soaked day just intensified their color. (I bet that jerk who gave me the finger never even saw them. Hah!)

I would have stayed out longer, but my camera case was getting soaked, although I managed to stay warm and dry beneath my raincoat. Wish I could give a little raincoat to this soggy mama squirrel, pleading at my back door for a few more seeds. Well, how could I resist? You can see from her polka-dot tummy that she has many tiny mouths to feed back home in the nest.