Pine Barrens

With the peak of its A-frame pointing skyward toward our heavenly goal, the First Methodist Church marked the entrance to the neighborhood. Oaks and pine trees shed their acorns and needles on the church yard. Squirrels and birds made their homes outside the stained glass window. Church leaders had installed one swing set and one seesaw next to the big parking lot and called them a playground. Crabapple trees, which bordered the lot, tempted bored children with their hard, bitter fruit. My parents

Ricketts Glen is one of the most gorgeous naturally preserved lands I’ve been to! After I get to the top of the mountain and make my way through the woods I am greeted by a vast beautiful lake. As soon as I arrive I can smell the scent of pine from the maple trees, sometimes freshly cut grass and the natural outdoor aroma that fills you with peace and serenity. My favorite part of Ricketts Glen is hiking right next to the variation of waterfalls. There is a small narrow path that guides me into the

“Daddy! Can I have a piece?” The reply was of course a short laugh and an, “Of course, pumpkin,” from my father, as we finished securing the tree and prepared to go home. The little coconut-cream colored rope, now filled with the dizzying aroma of pine, twirled smoothly between my fingers as I toyed with it dreamily, leaning myself against the window and gazing at the immaculate, snow-draped scenery sweeping by. A small yawn escaped as the day came to its close, my eyes fluttering shut, and hands

Abstract Fire has long been used as a management tool all over the world. In our study we designed 2 experiments to investigate the affect fire has on both organic soil layers and Pinus palustris (Longleaf pine) saplings. For this study, a sapling is a youth Longleaf pine less than 2m in height in addiction to one you can wrap your fingers around. The organic soil layer is made of undecomposed plant matter (litter). Samples were taken from 2 different forests located behind the UNCW campus.

not be discussed. Tree seedlings and saplings were recorded only if they fell within the area encompassed by the belt transect length and width. If they did, the four-letter species code was recorded per individual seedling (ex: PIPO for ponderosa pine), its status (1 if living, 0 if dead), height (cm) from ground level, and the number of internodes to determine approximate

memory is the day that me and my wife took the spontaneous decision to take a trip to the land I call home. It was a beautiful and chilly Sunday morning in Orem Utah. Quiet and piece was surrounding our apartment complex. The thick shadows of the tall pine trees were covering the terrace screens. Our doors were open to clear out the heavy smell of burned bacon still sizzling on the stove. It was that morning, which in a split second, me and my wife took the spontaneous decision that we are going on a

A loud snapping splintered the silence of the woods, ricocheting off stones and water. Unnatural and wrong, it made the trees sigh in pity, for they were the only ones who knew the end to this particular tale. A girl stood in the midst of the silence, a playful smile gracing her rosy lips as she clutched the wooden stick tighter in her grubby fingers. Beneath her feet lay a twig, snapped cleanly in half from the weight of her body. A feral growl escaped her lips as she twirled, wild honey blonde

The car ride wasn’t that long but it felt like forever. Once we got out of my familiar range of York my mind drifted off the anticipation but it still stayed close behind. The music coming from the car was blurred from my lack of attention to it. The sound of my dad’s voice on another business call coming from the front was also put to the side as all my attention was intentivly directed to my phone. Scrolling through feeds and games the log eternity of the car ride drew more intense. Though it was

Manuscript for : 696832 Anjelena Cook Pen name: Anjelena Ellett Title: Little Pine Tree's Awakening Little Pine Tree was about three feet tall with bright green needles on all his branches. His favorite color was red. He always wore a thick, red scarf around the trunk of his tree. He was a curious little tree. He noticed the many different colors of the world. (Insert image 1: Little Pine Tree with red scarf standing all alone) He loved the bright blue sky, the fluffy white snow, the

temperatures during the summer, and the Santa Clarita region alone has had a 20% reduction in soil moisture. The effects of the reduction of soil moisture has led to concerning forest fire events such as the Sand Fire in 2016 and also the invasion of Pine Bark Beetles. Events like these can be incredibly dangerous to both nature and to the human population. Although difficult to prevent because forest fires can happen naturally when temperatures rise, especially during summers, there are still many