I stopped my car. Something was not right, I told Elizabeth and David. I thought to myself, “When all else fai ls, look at the directions!” Elizabeth pulled the National Park Service (NPS) notification for Longleaf Pine planting in Big Sandy Creek Unit of Big Thicket National Preserve (BTNP), and flipped through the pages. There was a map. Ah-ha! Just as I thought. Boy did I get turned around. I had driven to the wrong site! We turned, as did Pedro and Regina in their vehicles, drove back, turned onto FM 1276, headed south, went ¼ mile, and there were signs, a park ranger, and a parking area for our vehicles.
We got out, pulled our gear together, and started on a long walk to the registration area, where there were picnic tables and port-a-potties. We signed in again (Three sign-ins, Holy mackerel!) and were just in time to hear a park ranger give instructions about how to plant Longleaf Pine seedlings with dibble bars (What the heck is a dibble bar?) and safety.
It was good to see Maxine, Ellen, Tom, and others. There were about 80 to 100 people and a lot of “young, strong, bodies” to go with the “getting a bit older bodies”. We were ready to plant! Regina and I decided to work together. We walked for awhile and came to a truck with boxed Longleaf Pine seedlings, bags, and dibble bars.
We filled our bag with seedlings, walked out into the cleared area (except for some tall pine trees), and began to plant. Regina and I took turns. I used the dibble bar to make a hole, Regina came behind me and placed a Longleaf Pine seedling in that hole, and tamped the soil down around the seedling. After planting a bag of seedlings, we switched jobs. There were 15,000 seedlings to plant and we were going to do our share.
But wait! Why are we concerned about the restoration of Longleaf Pine to the BTNP? Longleaf Pines used to cover many of the uplands in the Big Thicket Area. In the United States, Longleaf Pines existed on 90 million acres, from East Texas to Virginia, and were almost all cut down from about 1880 to 1930.
Longleaf Pine is one of the best lumber trees in North America. It is easily accessible, grows straight and tall, has great strength, and has an attractive grain. Today, only about 3 million acres Longleaf Pine forest exist and much of this forest is in a degraded condition. We were here today to do our part because we want to restore Longleaf Pine to its natural place in BTNP.
We walked with difficulty over the ground which was strewn with dead tree limbs and the remains of small trees, shrubs, and woody plants that had been cut down by the NPS to prepare the area for planting. It was rough going and difficult to find a good place to plant seedlings. After planting three bags of seedlings, about 40-50 seedlings per bag, it was nearing noon and Regina and I decided to stop for lunch.
We walked back to the registration area and found we were not the only people who were hungry. The tables were all taken. People were talking and eating Subway sandwiches, chips, and cookies. I ate my sandwich next to Tom and talked about this and that and enjoyed lunch and not planting seedlings.
Chris came over and we talked a bit about Longleaf Pine ecology. This tree is unique because it is very fire tolerant. Longleaf Pines do not grow immediately into young trees but stay near the ground in what is called “the grass stage” for three to five years as it puts down a deep taproot. When it is time, Longleaf Pine seedlings quickly grow above the height of natural fires and are safe from death by fore. Fire is the friend of Longleaf Pine. It’s thick bark protects this pine from fire while other pine and hardwood trees succumb. A pretty neat trick!
After lunch I wanted to loll around but we had more work to do. We went back and planted two more bags of seedlings. It was almost two o’clock and we were tired. We called it a day. It had been a delightful day with sunlight, cool temperatures, good food, and even better company. The “young, strong bodies” and “getting a bit older bodies” had done their part and the BTNP was in better shape than it had been. I can’t think of a better way to give back. I got so much more than I gave. Grow Longleaf Pines, grow!
Brandt Mannchen
January 16, 2018