It is silent in the woods, isolated. The only sounds being the crunch of snow underfoot and the rustling of branches overhead as the wind pushes them around. A path leads deep into the woods but you must venture off eventually to find the peaceful isolation of the phenology site. All the leaves have dropped from the trees, scattering spots of brown and gold onto the bright white snow. There is not much tree species diversity in this area. All that was found were American beech, and white and red oaks. A single Red Maple stood, dead for who knows how long. Another fallen tree lays across, half buried in snow and covered in fungi. Evidence of bird and deer passing through can be spotted but there is no sign of them now. Standing in the cold, surrounded by the silence of nature, watching ones breath, one feels completely alone yet surrounded by peace and comfort.
There are obvious similarities and differences between the phenology site in Franklin, Ma, and the one in Burlington, Vt. They both have a peaceful feel but in Vt it’s a busy peacefulness due to the constant movement and happenings of the stream and in Ma it is an isolated peacefulness with nothing around to break the silence. Oaks are the only trees that overlap with these areas and while Ma does not have much diversity, Vt has a wide variety of plant life and different species of tree. The predominant species in Vt are the maple whereas on this site, the main species in the American Beech. There are deer in both places although there was more evidence of their passing in Ma than in Vt. This could be because the snow in Ma made the tracks more obvious. There are more tree types that keep their leave in the winter in Vt, making it look denser than Ma, especially now that all the leaves have dropped form the trees.
(All photos taken personally by Jenna Goodman)
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