Roadside Keepers: Talking with Tree Wardens a Week with Edwin Way Teale
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CONNECTICUT Woodlands ROADSIDE KEEPERS: TALKING WITH TREE WARDENS A WEEK WITH EDWIN WAY TEALE. DAVID LEFF ON PROTECTING STATE LAND The Magazine of the Connecticut Forest & Park Association WINTER 2016 Volume 80 No 4 The ConnectiCuT ForesT & Park assoCiaTion, inC. OFFICERS PRESIDENT, ERIC LUKINGBEAL, Granby VICE-PRESIDENT, WILLIAM D. BRECK, Killingworth VICE-PRESIDENT, DAVID G. LAURETTI, Bloomfield VICE-PRESIDENT, STARR SAYRES, East Haddam TREASURER, JAMES W. DOMBRAUSKAS, New Hartford SECRETARY, ERIC HAMMERLING, West Hartford FORESTER, THOMAS J. DEGNAN, East Haddam DIRECTORS BRETT BOSKIEWICZ, Simsbury STARLING W. CHILDS, Norfolk JESSI CHRISTIANSEN, Killingworth R. RICHARD CROCE, Killingworth RUTH CUTLER, Ashford CAROLINE DRISCOLL, New London PETER KNIGHT, Bloomfield MICHAEL LECOURS, Farmington SCOTT LIVINGSTON, Bolton MICHAEL DINAN/NEWCANAANITE.COM JEFF LOUREIRO, Canton Arborist Bruce Pauley, who served as tree warden for New Canaan for several years, is one of four ERIN McGRATH, Wesleyan University LAUREN L. McGREGOR, ESQ., Hamden who talks about a tree warden’s commitment to public trees. See page 7. JEFFREY O’DONNELL, Bristol DAVID PLATT, Chester RAYMOND RADIKAS, Glastonbury Annual Membership ALEX J. SIEBERT, Wesleyan University Connecting People to the Land Individual $ 35 RICHARD WHITEHOUSE, Glastonbury Our mission: The Connecticut Forest & Park Family $ 50 HONORARY DIRECTORS Association protects forests, parks, walking Supporting $ 100 GORDON L. ANDERSON, St. Johns, FL trails and open spaces for future generations by HARROL W. BAKER, JR., Bolton connecting people to the land. CFPA directly Benefactor $ 250 RICHARD A. BAUERFELD, Redding involves individuals and families, educators, RUSSELL BRENNEMAN, Westport community leaders and volunteers to enhance GEORGE M. CAMP, Middletown Life Membership $ 2500 ANN CUDDY, Ashland, OR and defend Connecticut’s rich natural heritage. SAMUEL G. DODD, North Andover, MA CFPA is a private, non-profit organization that ASTRID T. HANZALEK, Suffield relies on members and supporters to carry out JOHN HIBBARD, Hebron its mission. Corporate Membership JOSEPH HICKEY, Wethersfield JEAN CRUM JONES, Shelton Our vision: We envision Connecticut as a Club / Non-profit $ 75 EDWARD A. RICHARDSON, Glastonbury place of scenic beauty whose cities, suburbs, Sustaining $ 100 L.P. SPERRY, JR., Middlebury and villages are linked by a network of parks, SALLY L. TAYLOR, Mystic Landmark $ 250 SIDNEY VAN ZANDT, Noank forests, and trails easily accessible for all people to challenge the body and refresh the spirit. We Stewardship $ 500 STAFF picture a state where clean water, timber, farm Leadership $ 1000 EDUCATION DIRECTOR, LORI PARADIS BRANT, Rockfall fresh foods, and other products of the land make TRAIL STEWARDSHIP DIRECTOR, CLARE CAIN, Old Lyme a significant contribution to our economic and EVENTS AND VOLUNTEER COORDINATOR, ELIZABETH FOSSETT, Meriden cultural well-being. MEMBERSHIP & MARKETING DIRECTOR, MARTY GOSSELIN, Durham Connecticut Woodlands EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, ERIC HAMMERLING, West Hartford DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR, JAMES W. LITTLE, Hebron Published quarterly by the ADVANCEMENT ASSISTANT, KARA MURPHY, Guilford Connecticut Forest & Park Association, LAND CONSERVATION DIRECTOR, LINDSAY SUHR, North Haven 16 Meriden Road, FOREST & PROGRAM DIRECTOR, GOODWIN FOREST CENTER, Rockfall, CT 06481-2961 BETH RHINES, Coventry Indexed in the Connecticut Periodical Index, Printed on 60% Recycled, OFFICE MANAGER, TERESA PETERS, Durham ISSN 00106257 FSC and Green-e Certified Paper EDITOR, CHRISTINE WOODSIDE Telephone: 860-346-TREE COPYEDITOR, ROBIN GOLD GRAPHIC DESIGNER, KAREN WARD Fax: 860-347-7463. E-mail address: [email protected] Web site: ctwoodlands.org 2 | CONNECTICUT WOODLANDS | WINTER 2016 CONNECTICUT Woodlands The Magazine of the Connecticut Forest & Park Association WINTER 2016 Volume 80 No.4 CONTENTS FEATURES DEPARTMENTS 7 ROADSIDE KEEPERS: 4 PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE. TALKING WITH TREE WARDENS. A glimpse into the startling views Their job was created 115 years of the global conservation movement. ago to have “care and control” of By Eric Lukingbeal. public trees in Connecticut. By Chris Donnelly. 5 EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR’S MESSAGE. Conser-vision: Today’s land, 11 THE WAY IN THE WOODS: tomorrow’s legacy A week with Edwin Way Teale. By Eric Hammerling. By Katherine Hauswirth. 6 EDITOR’S NOTE. 17 TEALES’ WAY. A sad tale about a beloved tree. Life lessons from a silver birch. By Christine Woodside. By Judy Benson. 13 CFPA IN THE COMMUNITY. 18 BUILDING A MORE P DIVERSE FOREST: Only a Constitutional Amendment How the Whitney Forest Will Save the Places We Love. timber harvest will aid By David K. Leff. biological diversity. P Meet the CFPA Board Members. By Jessie Rack. P Eric Hammerling Wins Award. 22 TRY THIS HIKE. Looping through McLean Game Refuge. By Diane Friend Edwards. 24 FROM THE LAND. Forgotten tales of onions. By Jean Crum Jones. 26 OBITUARIES. David B. Schroeder, Prudence Pease Cutler, Suellen Kozey McCuin. On the Cover: Hartford Tree Warden Heather Dionne examines the trunk of a large elm tree removed under her authority. See page 7. PHOTO BY CHRIS DONNELLY Correction: Tom Ebersold’s job was incorrectly listed in the last issue. He is an elementary school teacher. WINTER 2016 | CONNECTICUT WOODLANDS | 3 PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE A glimpse into the startling views of the global conservation movement BY ERIC LUKINGBEAL failing. The fight to protect nature is being of the Anthropocene [the term proposed by lost, even though the number of protected some to reflect humans’ impact on climate ike most readers areas in the world has increased 1,000 per- and geography] is both anachronistic and of this magazine, cent since 1950. The evidence of failure is counterproductive.” I think of myself simple: worldwide biodiversity is in decline. Instead, they write, conservation ought L as a conservation- One example cited is that more tigers live in to consider measuring achievement by its ist, but without paying captivity than in the wild. As far as I know, relevance to people, including city dwellers: particular attention to no one disputes that biodiversity is in a steep “Nature could be a Garden—not a care- the definition of con- decline. Take a look at Elizabeth Kolbert’s fully manicured and rigid one—but a tan- servation. With no for- book, The Sixth Extinction (Henry Holt, gle of species and wilderness amidst lands mal training in any scientific field, that may 2014) for the details. Even though areas used for food production, mineral extrac- be too bold a claim. But the idea of conserva- of beauty and abundant wildlife will con- tion, and urban life.” tion, and the related idea of preservation, has tinue to attract generous donors and occa- Dr. Kareiva also says, “None of this is to been at the center of many of my daily activ- sional government attention, these pro- argue for eliminating nature reserves or no ities for a long time—even more so now that tected areas are islands in “a sea of human longer investing in their stewardship. But I am retired. Conservation and preservation transformation.” we need to acknowledge that a conservation are, of course, at the heart of the Connect- Dr. Kareiva and his coauthors say that that is only about fences, limits, and faraway icut Forest & Park Association’s activities. the real issue for modern conservation is places only a few can actually experience is Our doings here in Connecticut on behalf not what islands to fence in and protect, a losing proposition. Protecting biodiversity of conservation for the past 120 years are just but what to do with the rest of the land, for its own sake has not worked.” a small part of the global conservation move- which is hardly wilderness but has conserva- The eco-pragmatists’ arguments are con- ment. Our efforts focus on the Blue-Blazed tion value nonetheless. (All of Connecticut troversial. The Breakthrough article has Hiking Trails and on protecting parks and falls in this category). The authors go on to resulted in repeated volleys back and forth forests. We have a firm conviction that keep- claim that a pragmatic approach is needed in professional journals and even in the pop- ing the trails clear and connected will con- ular press. The recent U.S. Environmental nect those who follow them to the serious and that conservation will have to “jettison Protection Agency decision not to list the matter of protecting them, and that public the idealized nature of nature, parks and wil- greater sage grouse as endangered under open space protects the natural environment derness,” and instead forge a “more opti- the Endangered Species Act has roused without which we have no life. mistic human-friendly vision.” Some call Dr. both praise and scorn. E. O. Wilson, the We believe that our policies should be Kareiva and his supporters eco-pragmatists. evolutionary biologist, was quoted as say- based on sound science. I cannot recall a seri- The second point in the article is that ing, “Where do you plant that white flag ous dispute among the ranks of our Board conservationists exaggerate the fragility of you’re carrying?” of Directors about what our conservation nature because the data do not support the We have no true wilderness left here in goals should be. That is not the same thing notion that ecological change such as the Connecticut. Our ancestors cut or burned as saying we haven’t disagreed on the tac- loss of a single species will lead to a larger practically all of our trees for fields or fuel. tics needed to achieve those goals. But our collapse of the ecosystem. The authors cite Most of our forest cover (which is quite goals have not been in dispute. the loss of the American chestnut and the abundant at about 60 percent) is only about Our consensus on goals stands in sharp passenger pigeon as events with “no cata- 100 years old. No islands of pristine wil- contrast with the global conservation move- strophic or even measurable” effects. derness remain to save. So in this sense the ment.