SITKA SOAKING

After a night of heavy and very noisy rain, the second "official" day of summer, blessed us with sunshine, so we went exploring a footpath (mostly) knee deep with fresh green grass. This area was magical, rain drops shone like jewels on the leaves of all the trees, flowers and ground vegetation. Spiders webs just glistened with shining diamonds. Wonderful.

  

But, the main reason I went to this area today was to see how a local  farmer's Sitka seedlings are doing. I wrote about them in a post on April 15th "Brashing About" when we had just had a very dry spell. They were doing well unlike the Forestry Commission ones I had seen the day before. This area was harvested last year and the difference the sun and rain has made to the area is quite amazing, gone are the deep shaded carpets of pine needles and as you will see, the variety of plants that have emerged from what was seemingly dead ground over a year ago. This used to be a shady place to walk on hot summer days, but now open to the skies, long dormant seeds are reaching for the sun.

But the reason I came here today was to see how the saplings are doing, so go compare ..

 As you can see, after just two months there is a big difference and the same goes for the thousands of Sitka seedlings that were planted. Not due for harvesting for about 45 years, the young farmer that planted these will be around retirement age just as his father was when he stood and watched the last fully grown trees give way to machines last year. I felt privileged to stand there beside them last year, watching the speed with which a modern, computerised. monster machine, manned by one man, made short work of a whole Sitka stand. I know I won't be here to witness the next harvest, but I just hope another son, or daughter stands by their Dad to see this crop reach it's full maturity.

Meanwhile, the mad mutt, once again fed up with me taking lots of photographs, amused himself by managing to struggle with a large chunk of trunk and getting it across the narrow, two plank bridge to meet me, patiently waiting in the other side. This is a place I've often sat, especially after rain, when the water flow runs again into a small pool, then onwards and downwards towards the bottom of the valley where it will join the river.

That's the power of all the rain we've had, to rejuvenate growth &  flow eventually  seawards.