Open Forum
This is intended for any specific nature discussion. Some possible topics might be as follows. Interesting broader speculations we are putting under the separate "meditations".
1. Is it nature? At one extreme the high tech spinning cycles and the automatic doors are still part of nature. Civilization is a wholly owned subsidiary of mother nature. At the other extreme there is no "nature" left, every corner of the earth, the arctic pole, has chemical pollutants. Maryland divides instruction into Master Naturalist and Master Gardiner. Towson Y is mostly horticulture and plantings but the dynamics of these plants are still interesting. It is convenient. It is dynamic.
2. Google Earth. These plants can be pinpointed on google earth and it might be useful. The first version of Towson Y that appears on google earth is just as the landscaping was starting. Some of the large trees in that view are already gone. There may be a possible update. The location could be specified even on that early 3D version.
3. Special equipment. Mostly unnecessary but a magnifying lens would be useful if you get interested. Particularly to look at winter buds and twigs.
4. Disclaimers. It is all tentative to start. Even when we get the landscaping plan the accuracy could be in doubt. Another similar plant might have been substituted at the last minute. There may be some mention of uses of plants as medicine or food. Do not take this as permission. Even plants that are clearly "edible" may have been recently sprayed, or covered with road pollutants. Foraging is interesting but not in this urban setting.
5. Sod, Grass, Turf. This might be the most important topic from an economic and ecology point of view. It is America's biggest crop. Someone or a team would have to take this as a challenge.
6. Hazards or risks. I have not seen much poison ivy, always a concern. Nor have I seen deer or field mice that might carry Lyme disease. Deer are probably on the campus at night. Most of the plants can be seen from paved areas. A hickory nut could fall on your head.
7. References. I am using the Maryland DNR tree guide that is online and for winter the simple "Winter Tree Finder " by the Watts. The Natural History Society has much more detailed references, but much can be found online. Google winter buds and twigs for instance. The state of Virginia has a large dichotomous key for those interested, which generally serves for Maryland.
There are at least two online apps for identification. Inaturalist and Plantnet. Inaturalist tends toward plants out of landscaped areas, but will identify both types. Both will take a picture from your phone and give you an ID or a series of suggestions.
The idea of close observation of one or two trees is illustrated in "Seeing Trees". A short and accessible description of some plant physiology is "How Plants Work" by Chalker-Scott.
8. Priors. I have an affection for Bayesian process where you have some baseline information and gradually update it as more data is available. There are a few lists of common urban landscaping trees online, part of why I am expecting the center circle to have hybrids of honey locust. That being a commonly planted urban tree but have not found the bud/twig ID as yet.
Here is a list taken from four references of the best or common street trees:
London Plane Tree ( Is it planted too much?)
Princeton Elm ( to overcome Dutch Elm)
American Linden
Red Oak
Sweet Gum
Honey Locust
Pin Oak
Gingko ( is it male or female?)
Zelkova
Scholar Tree
Fruitless Olive
American Hornbeam
Hackberry
Japanese Lilac ( blooms in summer)
Katsura
Black Tupelo
Dogwood
Sugar maple
Tulip Tree
Saucer magnolia
Eastern Redbud
American Holly
So far we have about half of these, some like the olive are more southern.
9. Habitats. Well there are edges, but maybe not the classic habitats. We are in the Maryland Piedmont , divided from the coastal plain by the highway 95 area. The planting zone may be changing but usually about zone 7. Winds favoring out of the west. Near a long ridge, Joppa Road which connected to Joppatown when it was the main Maryland port. Is there other useful background?
10. Firsts. There are whole threads devoted to seasonal firsts and amateur naturalists that observe them. With a thousand potential observers this could get very detailed. It might pertain to climate change. Firsts tend to be spring as first in the year but could be any season.
1. Is it nature? At one extreme the high tech spinning cycles and the automatic doors are still part of nature. Civilization is a wholly owned subsidiary of mother nature. At the other extreme there is no "nature" left, every corner of the earth, the arctic pole, has chemical pollutants. Maryland divides instruction into Master Naturalist and Master Gardiner. Towson Y is mostly horticulture and plantings but the dynamics of these plants are still interesting. It is convenient. It is dynamic.
2. Google Earth. These plants can be pinpointed on google earth and it might be useful. The first version of Towson Y that appears on google earth is just as the landscaping was starting. Some of the large trees in that view are already gone. There may be a possible update. The location could be specified even on that early 3D version.
3. Special equipment. Mostly unnecessary but a magnifying lens would be useful if you get interested. Particularly to look at winter buds and twigs.
4. Disclaimers. It is all tentative to start. Even when we get the landscaping plan the accuracy could be in doubt. Another similar plant might have been substituted at the last minute. There may be some mention of uses of plants as medicine or food. Do not take this as permission. Even plants that are clearly "edible" may have been recently sprayed, or covered with road pollutants. Foraging is interesting but not in this urban setting.
5. Sod, Grass, Turf. This might be the most important topic from an economic and ecology point of view. It is America's biggest crop. Someone or a team would have to take this as a challenge.
6. Hazards or risks. I have not seen much poison ivy, always a concern. Nor have I seen deer or field mice that might carry Lyme disease. Deer are probably on the campus at night. Most of the plants can be seen from paved areas. A hickory nut could fall on your head.
7. References. I am using the Maryland DNR tree guide that is online and for winter the simple "Winter Tree Finder " by the Watts. The Natural History Society has much more detailed references, but much can be found online. Google winter buds and twigs for instance. The state of Virginia has a large dichotomous key for those interested, which generally serves for Maryland.
There are at least two online apps for identification. Inaturalist and Plantnet. Inaturalist tends toward plants out of landscaped areas, but will identify both types. Both will take a picture from your phone and give you an ID or a series of suggestions.
The idea of close observation of one or two trees is illustrated in "Seeing Trees". A short and accessible description of some plant physiology is "How Plants Work" by Chalker-Scott.
8. Priors. I have an affection for Bayesian process where you have some baseline information and gradually update it as more data is available. There are a few lists of common urban landscaping trees online, part of why I am expecting the center circle to have hybrids of honey locust. That being a commonly planted urban tree but have not found the bud/twig ID as yet.
Here is a list taken from four references of the best or common street trees:
London Plane Tree ( Is it planted too much?)
Princeton Elm ( to overcome Dutch Elm)
American Linden
Red Oak
Sweet Gum
Honey Locust
Pin Oak
Gingko ( is it male or female?)
Zelkova
Scholar Tree
Fruitless Olive
American Hornbeam
Hackberry
Japanese Lilac ( blooms in summer)
Katsura
Black Tupelo
Dogwood
Sugar maple
Tulip Tree
Saucer magnolia
Eastern Redbud
American Holly
So far we have about half of these, some like the olive are more southern.
9. Habitats. Well there are edges, but maybe not the classic habitats. We are in the Maryland Piedmont , divided from the coastal plain by the highway 95 area. The planting zone may be changing but usually about zone 7. Winds favoring out of the west. Near a long ridge, Joppa Road which connected to Joppatown when it was the main Maryland port. Is there other useful background?
10. Firsts. There are whole threads devoted to seasonal firsts and amateur naturalists that observe them. With a thousand potential observers this could get very detailed. It might pertain to climate change. Firsts tend to be spring as first in the year but could be any season.
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