There's a hole in our forest leading to wonder...

There's a hole in our forest that acts as a doorway to a wonderful canopy of trees, birds and wildlife.

Typical of this part of Hastings County, the landscape has been heavily shaped by glaciation. It combines rolling rock outcrops of the Pre-Cambrian Shield and the more gently-sloped Limestone plain. The diversity of our intact forest landscape is maintained by allowing natural succession to determine species mixture. This is the most effective way of ensuring plant diversity, and thus wildlife habitat. Abiding by Nature time of course, not necessarily human time.

Mature deciduous trees are abundant on the property, and include Red and White Oaks, Sugar Maples, American Beech, Basswood, Hickory, Ironwood and Silver Birch. The endangered Butternut tree is also prevalent.
Our conifer trees offer protection in winter and provide nesting and resting opportunities for migratory birds such as warblers. The super canopy trees that tower above the forest are important to our raptor population of hawks and owls. They also provide roosting trees for our Wild Turkeys. Forest plants abound, including lady-slippers, trillium, violets, jack-in-the-pulpits, and the rare walking fern indicative of areas of undisturbed woodlands.

In spring, we love to go for walks in our forest. The smells and sounds of the earth regenerating itself after long, winter months of hibernation is especially invigorating. When one spends considerable time in a dense forest, you become aware that you are

but a microdot within a deep and mysterious life support system. Studies on Forest Bathing, a term coined by the Japanese, have shown that a leisurely stroll through green spaces lowers the pulse and blood pressure - certainly key determinants of human health.

How trees and plants communicate has also captured scientific attention. A study on how microscopic fungi colonize the root system of a host plant to create a mutually beneficial relationship was first published in the journal Nature. It was also reported in the National Geographic magazine honouring the 2011 United Nations 'Year of the Forest'. Professor Suzanne Simard, a forest ecologist from the University of British Columbia, discovered an underground web of fungi that connects trees and plants together. Called the mycorrhizal network, these networks exist all over the world in all eco-systems. The fungi form microscopic conduits or highways beneath the soil, providing inter-plant linkages for the transfer and distribution of nutrients.

Professor Simard realized that the fungi were not only transporting carbon, water and nutrients between trees, but the fungi facilitated this distribution based upon which tree needed the nutrients most. The older trees were subsidizing the younger trees through this fungal network – and that without this help - many of the new seedlings would not survive. Her discovery has major implications on the restoration of forests. Professor Simard concluded that without Mother Trees – the large ones that dominate the forest – the regeneration of a forest will fail. If all the large trees are cut down, the survival rate of new seedlings

will be very low.

In popular culture, Canadian scientist and Film Director James Cameron featured this web of inter-connectivity most vividly through the Tree of Souls in his movie, Avatar.

Trees literally clean our air, soil and water. Scientists and many folks now agree that our climate is changing, and that many of these changes are caused by human activity, especially the increase of greenhouse gas emissions from burning fossil fuels. The changes in temperature and precipitation are well-documented, along with observations on how these changes are affecting key interactions and timing between species.

One of the best things we can do to combat climate change is to conserve and restore forests. Forests have a cooling effect on our climate because they naturally capture carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, and store vast amounts of this carbon in the tree trunks, branches, leaves and soil. They keep this carbon out of the atmosphere for as long as they remain healthy, intact forests. If they are cleared or degraded, there is a net flow of carbon to the atmosphere, contributing to climate change.

The solutions to climate change are complex and linked to various financial and trade systems around the world. However, at the heart of the issue is whether humans, as a species, can co-operate enough on the scale that is required to help the planet survive their numbers.

So for starters, take a walk on the wild side. Appreciate a forest. Appreciation leads to wonder. And without a sense of wonder, how can humanity be motivated to care enough for the natural inheritance that has been bestowed upon this planet?

Will wonder be a more powerful motivator than fear?  We wonder...

Choosing the Dog for Blue Maples

Before retiring each evening, we tell our dog, Bella Layna, the bed-time story of why we choose her

to be with us here at Blue Maples. She gives us her very best 'kissy face', and then promptly falls asleep as we speak. So this is her story.

Once we had found our beautiful forest retreat, our thoughts turned toward what kind of dog we should get. We already had Sir Renaissance Riley (aka Riley), our sweet, aging Bichon Frise. However, any walk in grass taller than ten inches quickly proved to be his undoing. Every seed, burr, or thatched thingy would get stuck in his fur, causing him to protest loudly and demand to be picked up and carried.  We took to calling him

‘Velcro dog’, and heeding his protestations, left him at home alone on the couch, basking in his favourite position.

As we spend considerable time in the forest, we agreed that a larger dog was necessary. A guardian-type dog would be ideal, but our son's allergies to short-haired dogs such as Labs and German Shepherds ruled many of the breeds out. Could we find a large dog that would be good with family, be fairly hypo-allergenic and be a guardian?  We read everything there was to read on dogs. We visited kennels and humane societies, and thought carefully about each breed.

One day, we came across the story of the Kuvaszok (plural), a guardian dog breed with a past history that filled us with wonder. Rumoured to be originally from ancient Sumeria, the breed had travelled  through the mountains into the area of Hungary. It soon became a favourite of peasants and farmers as it guarded their livestock with great care. The fur of the breed was also usable, and could be spun and knitted into warm mittens, hats and scarves. And strangest of all, the breed had huge webbed paws and loved to swim! 
However, great misfortune was to befall the Kuvaszok. During World War II, invading armies plundered the areas of Hungary and Poland. So fierce were the Kuvaszok at defending their families and flocks, the invading armies sought them out and shot thousands of them, almost completely wiping out the breed. 

One can only humbly marvel at such nobility in sacrifice by an animal for their master. When I learned of the fate of the Kuvaszok, my heart filled with great sadness. History is replete with the horrors that befall the innocent by humans devoid of virtue, and bent on control through destruction. 

I was now determined to meet one of these noble dogs, and bring the breed to Blue Maples. As luck would have it, a nearby farmer raised alpacas and had a Kuvasz (singular). He allowed us a visit. While the friendly alpacas headed gaily towards us from behind their corralled fence, the Kuvasz watched us intently from behind the same pen. Soon it began what could only be called a series of stealthy,strategic maneuvers as it moved toward us. Never taking its large, brown eyes off of us as we walked along the fence, the Kuvasz kept subtlety inserting itself between us and the alpacas.The dog never barked, but that steady gaze and purposeful movement left little doubt about who was in charge of this visit. Pointing at the Kuvasz, my son said simply, 'Mom, that's the one'.

Within a month, we had found a reputable breeder in Canada, ordered our puppy, and picked her up in June 2010. May we introduce you to our eight-week old Bella Layna of Huron Reg'd Kennels, just weighing in at twelve pounds! 

Little did we know that within two years, she would weigh-in at 140 pounds (63.50 kilograms), with the upper body and shoulder strength that would be the envy of many a hockey player!

Stay tuned for more postings on our lovely Layna, as we grew to understand more about this  intelligent dog breed, and the service this breed performs for humanity.

Rediscovering our nature within Nature

Some may wonder what possessed us to move from a bustling city to a small, quiet town in rural Ontario. Well, it has proven to be an unfolding process for sure, and each day we

discover more reasons that support why we made this trek. After what felt like many life-times lived, we had searched for a place that would best represent the values we had gleaned over the decades. Always naturalists at heart, we had yearned for a forest in the Canadian Shield where wild things could flourish, and wherein we could have the honour of observing, painting, photographing, and enjoying the natural world in its sentient state. And, as lovers of the Socratic dialogue, we wanted to share our joys and truths with those of common interests.
A country bed and breakfast situated in wild nature seemed ideal. When we first walked the property that was to become Blue Maples, we knew we had found something special. The Nature was wild and overwhelming; the residence ethereal and beautiful to behold. Much

love had built this home in the forest, and I knew I could write here. Thoughts were put to pen, visions of possible futures sketched. I say possible because, at that time, it was not evident how these thoughts could ever become relevant, let alone be captured in a book worth reading, or in a nature venture worth sharing. Also unbeknownst to me at that time, would be the unexpected death of my partner, and that our son and I would have to continue our life journey without him.
Time spent in silent reflection in the forest can help heal one from profound loss. I suppose my inner nature is one of hope and optimism, similar to the new seedlings that

break forth in spring, despite dying every winter.  In time, a website was written with words and pictures born from the dream that we had shared so long ago. A Bed and Breakfast on a somewhat smaller scale also took form.

This Blog will be an ongoing tribute to a host of people, animals, birds, bugs and odd critters that have made our reality so rich and full of natural wonder. Some posts will focus on the health of trees and the role of intact forests and climate change, or on the comings and goings of our forest wildlife and beautiful birds. A few posts will interview some of the wonderful people involved in wildlife rehabilitation and forest restoration, while others will feature significant artists, writers or scientists who seem to have the virtue of a special vision that speaks to our collective soul.

And last but not least, a few posts may be akin to a rant at the Philosophers' Pub - ably refereed by our girl of the barrow - Stella the Toad. 

We hope you will enjoy our adventures, as we rediscover our nature within the Nature here at Blue Maples.  

Happy St. Patrick's Day, Michael, RIP.  No doubt you are probably entertaining the Heavens!