Central Park’s cherry blossom trees delight visitors and locals alike. While April ushers in the bright blooms of the Yoshino cherry trees, park guests can also enjoy the more colorful Kwanzan cherry trees in early May. Find your way to some of Central Park’s top cherry blossom spots with this interactive map that the park debuted this year. Learn more about the park’s cherry blossom offerings and get a sneak peek at the beauty in the gallery below.
“No, this does not mean that they’ll now drop from branches into the yard or on your head,” one rattlesnake expert assured.
An Arizona company that relocates rattlesnakes captured near homes and businesses has shared an image showing a rattlesnake scaling a tree.
“Yes, rattlesnakes can and do climb trees when it suits them,” Rattlesnake Solutions stated Wednesday via Instagram.
Such a revelation might be alarming to folks who had previously thought they only had to watch their step.
But Rattlesnake Solutions attempted to alleviate concerns with the following bullet points:
–“No, this does not mean they can climb all surfaces, including smooth surfaces.”
–“No, this does not mean that they’ll now drop from branches into the yard or on your head.”
–“Yes, your uncle who tells the story about the ‘nest of rattlers that jumped in his boat’ is full of s**t.”
–“No, you do not now need to fear trees knowing this.”
The company explained that the northern blacktailed rattlesnake in the image scaled the tree after being released following its capture near a construction site in Cochise County.
“Upon release to carefully selected habitat, it fled … straight up,” Rattlesnake Solutions continued. “This species, in particular, may spend more time high in trees than is currently realized.”
–Image courtesy of Bryan D. Hughes / Rattlesnake Solutions
A decorated tree covered in sparkling lights and tinsel serves as the main Christmas decoration for millions of families throughout the United States. While many of these families will pull out an artificial tree to decorate, plenty of others still make the trek out to a local farm to pick a live Christmas tree.
If your family regularly uses artificial trees, it may seem old-fashioned to cut down a fresh Christmas tree every year. You may even think that doing so is bad for the environment. However, according to The Nature Conservancy, using real trees can actually support forests.
“Real trees help fight climate change, and even though your Christmas tree is cut down, you’re actually supporting forests,” The Nature Conservancy explains. Real trees generate less carbon emissions than it takes to produce and ship plastic trees. Plus, when “natural trees are harvested for sale, there are more than ten times as many left standing! Out of the 350-500 million growing on tree farms across the U.S., only 30 million trees are harvested for Christmas each year.”
So, this year, consider opting for a real tree. You’ll appreciate the evergreen scent, and you’ll support the environment and local businesses. Get inspired with this list of five Christmas tree farms across the country.
When we visited the Mountain Top Arboretum on a beautiful autumn afternoon, it was lovely and peaceful. Hardly anybody was at this public garden near Tannersville, New York, in the Catskill Mountains. The arboretum’s boardwalks and trails boast 178 acres of wetlands, meadows, forest, and plants, plants, plants.
If you like to combine your hikes with some nature education, you’ll probably like the arboretum. Visitors can walk a few miles of trails while stopping to read interpretive signage. People like me who always need a refresher course on tree ID will appreciate the round blue name tags tacked to trunks here and there.
Photo by Teresa Bergen
During my visit, the fall leaves were very beautiful. But photos showing the arboretum meadows blossoming in spring, or snow blanketing the leafless trees in winter, suggest that it’s worth the trip year-round.
West Meadow
The arboretum is divided into East and West Meadows. The West Meadow features the Rain Garden, which slows spring and summer runoff. Plantings in Bird Cove offer shelter, food, and a place to nest for some of the 60 species of birds who frequent the arboretum.
Artist Harry Matthews calls his stacked rock art “Anthropoliths.” / Photo by Teresa Bergen
You can also stroll a spiral labyrinth or check out the stacked rock sculptures. I especially liked the collections of dwarf conifers.
Photo by Teresa Bergen
East Meadow
The East Meadow has the Pine Allée, where you can walk between grand rows of eastern white pine. I was excited to wander the Fern Trail — until I realized the obvious, which is that ferns die back into a crunchy dry mass of brown in autumn. I imagine it’s glorious in spring. My favorite part of the East Meadow was the Wetland Boardwalk, which was very colorful in the fall.
Photo by Teresa Bergen
Wildlife at the arboretum
Depending on the time of year and your own good fortune, you might encounter some small but interesting critters inside the arboretum. The West Meadow Rain Garden provides a rich habitat for many species, offering them a place to lay eggs under leaves, drink flower nectar, or eat some berries and seeds. Monarch butterflies appreciate the meadow’s milkweed, while the nocturnal spotted salamander uses soft rush as a protective covering to hide from predators.
A view of the West Meadow. / Photo by Teresa Bergen
Arboretum events
The arboretum hosts nature-related walks and workshops. Upcoming events include a class on making holiday centerpieces with natural materials, guided walks, and a tree ID class. Next March, artist Laura Leigh Lanchantin will teach the traditional method of making watercolor paint from the sedimentary rock and clay of the Catskill and Appalachian Mountains. Then, she’ll guide you through an open-air painting session with your new paint. All for 10 bucks!
If you go
This isn’t the place for your cutest shoes — unless your cutest shoes are rain boots. Be prepared for some mud and muck. A rain jacket also came in handy during our visit. You can wander the arboretum for free, but they appreciate a donation of at least five dollars. The nearby All Souls Church is also worth a look. We walked over from the West Meadow to check out this Episcopal stone church built in 1894.
All Souls Church. / Photo by Teresa Bergen
If you visit in winter, this is a good place to snowshoe. And sorry, Fido, no dogs allowed.
Don’t put off your fall sightseeing plans any longer! All of those lovely leaves will be gone before you know it, and you’ll want to rack up plenty of photos and memories to remember the season. Outdoors Wire can lead you to some of the best states for seasonal celebrations and show you an excellent fall road trip route, but what options are there for the plant-loving traveler?
If you’re interested in investigating the various tree species that make autumn such a gorgeous time of year, this photo guide is for you. Below, you can explore a list of the eight best trees for bright fall colors and get info on where to spot them in the United States.
If you’re not used to dangling on a rope hanging off a 200-foot old-growth tree, it takes a minute to find your climbing rhythm. You have to muster the balance and the quadriceps strength to stand up in your foot loops and push the top metal ascender up the rope with your right hand. Then, you sit back in your harness and lift your left knee while using your left hand to push up the bottom ascender. In this fashion, I inch-wormed my way up the Douglas fir.
Megan Bonham, my guide at Tree Climbing at Silver Falls, was relentlessly encouraging. She climbed beside me, coaching me upward and reminding me which piece of equipment did what.
Photo by Megan Bonham
It wasn’t all smooth climbing — I sometimes lost my equilibrium and unexpectedly swung around like a helpless baby monkey. And, a couple of times, I encountered pointy broken limbs keen on impaling me. But the thrill of being right up in the grill of such a stately tree, and the excitement of trying something so outside the norm, propelled me up. And when you get to the top of the climb? Ah, the forest view.
Learning to climb
The climbing happens in Silver Falls State Park, a gorgeous green space near Silverton, Oregon, known for its waterfalls. Aspiring tree climbers meet their guides in a trailhead parking lot, where they get suited up with gear. Once you have adjusted your harness and helmet, you’re ready for the practice tree.
Guests learning in the practice tree. / Photo by Teresa Bergen
If you’re like me, the idea of tree climbing evokes an image of clambering up branches. But this is all about rope work. My first few minutes on the practice tree involved trying to remember which ascender was which and swinging around stupidly. It seemed unlikely that I’d get the hang of it and manage to climb a tall tree. Turns out, my experience was pretty typical.
Bonham’s favorite part of her job is seeing people transform from struggling with their gear on the practice tree to successfully climbing. “Once we get into the big tree, just seeing how they learn to maneuver through the branches and everything and then the reaction when they do make it up to the top and have that realization of oh, wow, they did it!” she said. “It’s such a thrill.” She loves to see her clients feel proud of themselves.
Made it to the top! / Photo by Megan Bonham
Who climbs trees?
Bonham has personally guided a client as young as seven — a fearless birthday girl who zoomed up the tree while her mother had heart palpitations. The company’s oldest guest so far has been 89. People climb trees at Silver Falls on their honeymoon or to celebrate an anniversary. Most are on vacation. Some are local. Bonham fondly remembers one couple who had survived a medical scare with cancer and were spending a year touring the country and checking off their bucket list items.
“Just taking advantage of the time that they have,” she said. “That was really, really neat to be part of their experience.”
Why not climb a tree? / Photo courtesy of Tree Climbing at Silver Falls
Tree camping
Guests can climb three trees at Silver Falls, ranging from 200 to 300 feet tall. You can climb the tallest to see the sunset, then rappel down in the dark. Or, if you really like it up there, you can book the tree camping option. “You get a beautiful view of the sunset, and rock to sleep in the wind,” Bonham said.
Would you like to sleep up high in this hammock? / Photo courtesy of Tree Climbing at Silver Falls
Much as I loved climbing the tree, I’m not sure how much sleeping I’d do while lying in a hammock or on a portaledge and harnessed into ropes. But it’s an intriguing idea. The guide prepares dinner in the trees for the campers and makes breakfast before rappelling down the next morning. You can tree camp from May 1 to September 30. Tree climbing is available year-round, weather permitting.
Or opt for the deluxe portaledge. / Photo courtesy of Tree Climbing at Silver Falls
In addition to Silver Falls, the company has a location on Lopez, one of Washington’s San Juan Islands. Hmm. I’m already plotting more trees to climb.
Spend time outside and discover something bigger than yourself at Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Parks. Located between Fresno, California, and Death Valley National Park, this wild and stunning region is home to some of the largest trees in the world. A stroll through a forest of sequoias is the only way to truly grasp their size. If you’re planning a trip to the area, make sure to get the full experience by stopping at the parks’ best sights. Whether you’re visiting in winter or summer, here are seven sequoia trees to look out for at Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Parks.
Flowers can help make almost any yard look vibrant and inviting. If you don’t like or already have flower beds planted, consider incorporating flowering trees into your landscaping.
Homeowners can expect several benefits from planting a flowering tree. With the addition of just one plant, your yard will gain shade and visual appeal. For families, these advantages can make a major difference in how they use an outdoor space. With flowering trees, kids can play outside in the shade, and parents can appreciate some charming scenery.
When planning your next landscaping project, do yourself a favor and consider planting these eight flowering trees.
People who are unfamiliar with the tree of heaven (Ailanthus altissima) may think this plant sounds perfectly pleasant. However, as The Nature Conservancy explains, “Though its name makes it sound divine, the invasive tree of heaven is no angel.” Here’s what you should know about this invasive species.
Native to parts of China and Taiwan, this deciduous tree came to the United States in the late 1700s. While people initially favored the tree of heaven as “a unique, fast-growing ornamental shade tree,” the plant grew unpopular in the 1900s. Since then, it has become an invasive nuisance in many parts of the country. Find out if your yard is harboring this plant and learn how to get rid of it with these tree of heaven identification and removal tips.
Patience may be a virtue, but sometimes you just want to see results fast. If you’re looking to add some fast-growing trees to your garden, here’s what you need to know.
How fast can a tree grow? The answer varies depending on the species. According to the Arbor Day Foundation, slow-growing trees gain 12 inches or less per year. Meanwhile, moderate-growth trees gain 13-24 inches, and fast-growing trees gain 25 inches or more.
Find a fast-growing tree that suits your yard with the list below. Discover the best species for your region’s weather and how much annual growth you can expect. Ready, set, grow!
