Phenology Assignment in Centennial Woods – Katelyn Clark

The spot I chose, much like the rest of Centennial Woods, has pines, intermediate wood ferns, oaks, maples, and of course, poison ivy.

To find a place to observe over the course of the year for this project, I went back to Centennial woods, the place of our first lab. Since it was the first natural area I explored after coming to Vermont, it felt right to show some appreciation for it by planning to spend at least a little bit of my time within these woods during the upcoming months. During the first lab, after arriving at the first clearing, the path opened up  which prompted me to choose to go forward or to the left, I went forward (as instructed by the lab directions). So, this time I decided to enter some uncharted waters, so to speak, and veer to the left. After walking for a short amount of time I paused an looked around to see the undisturbed forest to my left, and a small clearing to the right of me where a downward slope opened up into a miniature valley-like area which allowed me to view the color-changing deciduous trees on the other side. At first I was unsure if this was the spot I wanted to call my own, but after hearing the wind rustle the leaves, almost sounding like a fast paced river, I decided that was as good a sign as any to stake claim.