Variegated fall leaves?
Hi, guys! Love the pod, as always. Here's my current question: why does it seem that trees with variegated leaves (I'm not sure that's the right term) don't have pretty fall foliage? There's a tree in my neighborhood that has beautiful green leaves with white outlines (I think it's a version of a Norway Maple) in the summer, but in the fall it just goes drab and brown. What gives?
What happens environmentally where there’s a ton of down trees?
Hey guys! Katie here - I live in Florida. Tough times over here lately. My area got hit by both of the hurricanes pretty bad and we lost a TON of trees. even a month later there’s down trees on the side of basically every road, and there’s so much other debris like huge branches that fell and such that are lining the roads. while i know eventually this stuff will decompose, there’s too much to really clean up and it’s just sitting there. the fact that there’s just SO much of it got me a bit curious - how does this affect our local environment? while down trees may be the least of some of our concerns after these horrible storms, many lost their homes and livelihoods, as a tree lover im curious how this affects our environment as well. as always, love the pod and glad to have a nice distraction from the world we live in 😵💫
Closing cones?
Hi guys love the pod! Inspired by Casey, I’ve started collecting cones around the national forest I work in. So far I have a couple cones from western white pines, a cone from a white bark, some hemlock cones, and a ghost/gray pine cone. I haven’t acquired jars for them yet and some of them are pretty pitchy so I have them outside on my porch until I can get jars. I’ve noticed that when it’s rained the past couple of weeks, all the cone scales close up. This is absolutely fascinating to me and I am dying to know how and why that happens. It almost feels like the cones are alive even though I found them all on the ground already so I’m dying to know… how does this work??
Favorite falling leaf
Hey Alex and Casey! After getting out of class last week I noticed a couple bright yellow leaves falling from a massive black walnut. I realized that those leaves were the most satisfying leaves to see falling. They were spinning very quickly about their long axis, but the actual leaf was falling very slowly in lazy circles. Do you guys have a favorite leaf to see falling? Thanks! Adam
Wood used for Grilling
Hi Casey and Alex! Hope you’re both well, I wanted to ask about wood used for cooking. What is it about certain trees that make them better for adding flavor through the smoke they create when burned? I’m thinking species like mesquite and how that can be preferred for barbecue. Do either of you have any favorite grilling flavors that use a certain type of wood? Also, really enjoying your recent introspective episodes like Curlleaf Mountain-Mahogany!