So many people have been asking about the 5 clearings on the Red Maple Swamp Trail at Fort Hill. We bumped into one of the experts and a ranger the other day and they told us the story: (Click on blog link for other photo.)
The reason that they have cleared these areas is because many invasive plants have taken over this area and killed the Red Maple trees. Clearing the land, the trees are able to self-germinate and grow because it is an open area full of sun. The small white stakes that you see are Red Maple seedlings that the park service has planted.
They have already seen much progress and hope that the Red Maple trees will again be the dominant trees in this area.
From The National Wildlife Federation:
“Small red flowers appear on red maples early in spring from March to April, and the fruit develops from April to June. Red maple fruits, called samaras, look much different from the typical fruits that people eat. Samaras have an enclosed seed at one end and a thin, dry, winglike projection at the other. Many people refer to them as helicopters or whirlybirds because the “wing” makes them spin when they fall from the tree. Seeds are often gobbled up by small mammals like squirrels and chipmunks.”
As kids we’d split a seed to expose the inside of the pod, and then stick the wing on our nose; we called them “Pinocchio noses”! 🙂
https://www.nwf.org/Educational-Resources/Wildlife-Guide/Plants-and-Fungi/Red-Maple#:~:text=Few%20people%20know%20that%20red,to%20the%20eastern%20deciduous%20forest.