Snow and ice will suffice

So, instead of getting into a list of what has or hasn’t happened during the hiatus, today we’ll look at today and yesterday, as Oklahoma and much of the nation is experiencing a winter storm.

This angular composition is the result opening the kitchen door. Interesting (to me, anyway) are the layers of the snow drift against the door, somewhat analogous to the rings of a tree. As can be seen, we had at least an initial overnight snowfall, followed by three snowfalls of lesser duration or intensity.

Raising our sights up a little, tracks of an unobserved critter are seen between a tree tentatively identified as Cedar Elm (Ulmus crassifolia). The critter leaving tracks is probably either an Eastern Fox Squirrel (Sciurus niger) or Eastern Gray Squirrel (Sciurus carolinensis). Because the Fox squirrel is adaptable to a variety of habitats and is listed as the most common species of squirrel in Oklahoma, it seems these are likely the tracks of a Fox squirrel. The Gray is smaller and prefers densely wooded forests, according to the OSU Gray and Fox Squirrels fact sheet.

Finally, a look out the front door and the texture of snow with a slight line of demarcation between the sidewalk and the minimal porch, providing an illusion of the overcast clouds in the sky.

And if you didn’t catch the allusion in the title…

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Spring Photos of Three Oklahoma Tree Species

 A few photos from Bethel Acres in Central Oklahoma during. the Spring of 2025.

The first focuses on the long needles and early cones before they’ve matured. According to an Audubon Society Field Guide published in 1980, this species is native only to the Southeastern tip of Oklahoma. The Wildflower Center’s Native Plants database page, updated in 2022, repeats this information. The location where this photo was taken, of a tree distributed without human intervention, shows the effects of global warming in the extension of its range northward. (Assuming the species is identified correctly.)

LobLolly Pine
LobLolly Pine (Pinus taeda)

 

Next is what appears to be a Post Oak, with a three lobed leaf shape. The leaves are about 5 to 8 inches long, but shape and size are highly variable.

Post Oak (Quercus stellata)

Blackjack Oak (Quercus marilandica)

Finally, here’s a Blackjack Oak, which has much larger catkins than the Post Oak. The two different species are known to hybridize easily. Perhaps we will post some photos in the future. Observed what appeared to be a Post and a Blackjack oak, growing next to each other, and each showing leaves resembling the “template” form for both pf the species. The typical Blackjack Oak leaf has a “duck foot” shape, almost triangular, without any deep indents. The Post Oak, on the other hand, has a “head” lobe with two deep indents above and below what look like “arms,” tapering a little into the form of a (vaguely) human body.

But that’s a task for another day.