My phenology site has developed for me such a strong sense of place lately. The meaning of sense of place has changed dramatically over this week. Since learning about what sense of place truly means, I have been pondering all of the places that have a special place in my heart and what those places mean to me and do for me. These places include Portugal, Toronto, Rhode Island, and Vermont for me, among many others. However, my phenology spot is the closest to my current place of residence and it is definitely the easiest to get to. It’s also by far the smallest geographical size, which makes it very manageable for me to really get to know it.
As for phenological changes, the first snow has arrived! This has marked a big regression of animal species to the point where I could find none at my last visit. Being a Pine stand, there is not much change in the evergreen trees and they maintain their bushy, beautiful branches. The other trees that share an area with them, though, are completely bare now.
I consider my site the central dogma of my life here. Since I spend lots of time on Athletic campus and Redstone, it is kind of like the epicenter of where the bulk of my life at UVM is. As a component of a larger place, it feels like just a tiny chunk of an escape from the everyday stressors that a college student must go through. Since it is so close to me, it still feels like home- but a little bit removed from that. I often don’t feel like I am still on campus when I’m there.
Regarding the history of the pines, I learned from The Cynic that there was a Redstone Pines restoration project that a group of students in 2015 completed. The purpose of the restoration was to, well, restore the area from invasives and other harmful neighbors that may have been living with the pines. There are tags on some of the trees that date as far back as the 1800’s. I learned that the pines were planted as an afforestation effort after the land they sit on was cleared for agricultural purposes, as was most of the land in Vermont during the 1800’s.
I look forward to my next cold and snowy visit to these lovely pines!