March in Southern Missouri
To began our “month of March”, we headed out on a Sunday afternoon family hike to the newly opened Bryant Creek state park. We took the trail that was about 2.5 miles. I kept my eyes peeled for any signs of spring. The only things I saw waking up was the moss. The tiny sporophytes were cute. One thing that I was disappointed with was the trail didn’t actually go by Bryant Creek. But we could see a little bit of it from the top of the ridge and through the trees.
I headed out to your woods in search of fiddle head ferns and to check on the daffodils that we planted along the path. No ferns yet, but there was one small patch of daffodils blooming. Down by our family campground I saw a nuthatch on one of the cedars. I also saw a shrub that was budding out.
It has rained the last couple days and I’ve notices how the grass has grown. It’s the first thing to get green and lush.
The red-bud trees are just starting the get a pink blush. They’ll be fully out before long.
In our front yard in a circumference around a half dead soft maple tree, we found quite a number of false morels. I guess they come out earlier then the true ones. I don’t remember ever see one before.
This morning the grass sparkled with frost. I used my reverse 18-55mm lens to get a macro shot of the frost.
I decided to take another walk in the woods to see what new I could find. The fiddle heads still aren’t out. But as I continued to walk down the trail, I came to the rock outcroppings. There I saw icicles that formed from the water that was seeping out. I hadn’t expected to see any, I guess it’s because it’s been colder the last couple of days. I set down on a log and begun to listen to the sounds of the woods: the wind rustling the oak leaves that still clung on from last fall; a flock of noisy crows; a chattering squirrel in the distance; the chirp of a woodland bird; the dripping of the icicles on the ledges; the longer I sat the more I heard.
Farther down the path I come upon a blooming trout lily. I had forgotten that my brother had told us about them the other day, but I’m glad I saw one.
I noticed that the almond tree has a couple of blooms on it. Hopefully the rest of them will wait until it’s warmer to bud out so they won’t get frosted. Yesterday morning it was only 18º.
As I been taking the last couple of weeks to observe the little signs of spring it has seemed as if spring has come slower then I was expecting it to. I’ve enjoyed taking note of the little details around me in my Southern Missouri home.
-Hannah
