Both black ash and white ash leaf out much later than most other trees and are now easy to spot. The flattened, tan-colored bark on many ash trees sometimes makes them look like they have a bad case of mange. But this condition is caused by a fungus that just feeds on dead bark and does no harm. Not to be confused with damage from the emerald ash borer.

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Jefferson salamanders are the earliest vernal pool visitors, arriving even when there’s lots of ice.
Tonight an opossum crossed the road from an abandoned house that may have kept it safe and dry through the winter.
About one in a thousand ash trees is able to kill some emerald ash borer larvae and forest geneticists have crossed these rare trees with each other in the hope of finding an ash tree that can kill all the larvae.
Most wild plants can be encountered on an every-day walk, but usually not showy ladies slippers. The time is now for a pilgrimage, to a place where they are in masses among lesser – but also beautiful – bog plants.
It seems impolite to mention it, but it’s not inexpensive to keep our fleet of little birdfeeder birds fed.
Hobblebush leaves are nice in the summer, colorful in autumn, but now, as they unfurl, they might be at their best: an intricate tapestry, white against tan. An elegant tan that we’re probably supposed to call ecru.
The hot, hot weather in late May took a toll on apple blossoms. They seem to have opened up on one day and disappeared the next. Of course, my sense of time, and most everyone else’s, may be a bit off, due to isolation and discombobulation.
Nice warm weather has gotten carpenter ant queens up and about. Lots of winged females looking to start a new colony in any rotting wood that’s lying around.