Activity 2-2: Tune in to the Rhythms of the Land
Motivation
Once you have gotten acquainted with some of the inhabitants of your park, you can get to know them better by paying attention to how they change over time. You can think of it as listening to their conversation as they speak in a language of leaves, flowers, song, and activity. This conversation plays out in cycles of day and night, around the seasons, and over the years. It is shaped by sun, wind, and rain, and by other beings. Noticing how your more-than-human neighbors change over time can shift your perception of them from static objects to dynamic beings. In addition to deepening your relationship with your particular neighbors, tuning in to the rhythms of the land can help gently disengage your brain from human-imposed schedules and step into the flow of cyclical, relational time.
Once you have gotten acquainted with some of the inhabitants of your park, you can get to know them better by paying attention to how they change over time. You can think of it as listening to their conversation as they speak in a language of leaves, flowers, song, and activity. This conversation plays out in cycles of day and night, around the seasons, and over the years. It is shaped by sun, wind, and rain, and by other beings. Noticing how your more-than-human neighbors change over time can shift your perception of them from static objects to dynamic beings. In addition to deepening your relationship with your particular neighbors, tuning in to the rhythms of the land can help gently disengage your brain from human-imposed schedules and step into the flow of cyclical, relational time.
What to do
Time scales - Changes take place over multiple time scales, from minute-to-minute in shifting winds and the play of light as clouds pass the sun, to the decades it takes a tree to grow and mature. Try visiting your park
Trees - The most noticeable changes in trees (especially deciduous trees in temperate climates) are from season to season. Note when the following changes occur:
Notice that seasonal changes happen at different times, and even different sequences, for different types of trees. Different trees of the same type will also have their own schedules, depending on their circumstances.
Of course, trees also change over shorter and longer time scales. Over shorter time scales, watch (and listen, and smell) how each tree responds to wind and rain. Over longer time scales, if you continue to visit your park over the years, you will find yourself mourning the loss of trees due to storms, drought, disease, or other causes, as well as welcoming new friends.
Flowers - Flowers follow similar seasonal cycles as trees. Notice when leaves sprout, flower buds form, and flowers bloom and then fade. Do many blooms open at once and then disappear, or do blooms appear or continue over many weeks? Some flowers have clear daily cycles, closing overnight and opening to greet the morning. Biologically, the purpose of flowers is to produce seeds, which take many different forms. Look for berry-like fruits, seed pods of various shapes, and other forms, such as rose hips.
Creatures - As trees and flowers change with the seasons, so do the creatures that visit them. Pay attention to bees, butterflies, and other insects. Do certain insects seem drawn to different types of flowers? When do the first butterflies arrive in the spring? Are different insects active at different times of day?
Birds also follow daily and seasonal cycles. What types of birds are present in different seasons and at different times of day? Listen for seasonal changes in birds' songs, especially in the spring. Outside the park, you may also find particular yards or other locations where birds tend to congregate.
Nearly every park in America probably has squirrels. Does your park have different types of squirrels? Watch as they forage, scamper, and play.
Recording your observations - Writing down your observations can help you digest and internalize them. It is also interesting to refer back to previous observations as a reminder of what you noticed a week, month, or year ago. Feel free to record your observation in what ever way works for you.
The attached printable worksheets provide tables for recording observations of deciduous trees and shrubs, coniferous trees, flowers, and creatures. Use as many or as few of the tables as you like.
For trees and other plants, each table is designed for observations of an individual tree or patch of flowering plants over the course of a year. Record the name of the tree or plant and a note about its location to remind you which individual/patch you will be watching. Then note the dates you observe each of the events listed in the table as the year goes on. The events are listed in the approximate order they usually happen. But keep in mind that not all trees follow the same schedule, so sometimes an event lower on the table may happen before one higher up.
For creatures, the worksheets include two table formats. The first is structured to focus on particular types of creatures. For example, you might designate one table for a favorite species of bird and record the dates you see them, along with notes about how many you see and what they are doing. The second structure has space to list many types of creatures in the same table, so you might note everyone you see on a given day, for example.
Here are some other styles you may want to try:
Time scales - Changes take place over multiple time scales, from minute-to-minute in shifting winds and the play of light as clouds pass the sun, to the decades it takes a tree to grow and mature. Try visiting your park
- At different times of day
- Every day for a week
- With several days between visits
- In different seasons
- Over multiple years (eventually)
Trees - The most noticeable changes in trees (especially deciduous trees in temperate climates) are from season to season. Note when the following changes occur:
- Buds form and open into leaves
- Flowers bud and bloom (Do the leaves come before the flowers, or vice versa?)
- The canopy fills out as leaves reach full size
- Fruits form, grow, and ripen (For some trees, you may not previously have thought of them as having fruit. A guidebook or website can be helpful in knowing what to look for.)
- Leaves change color in the autumn (What is the pattern in which leaves on the tree change first? Are they clumped or scattered? How do colors vary within a given tree?)
- Leaves fall (Do they fall gradually or within a short span of time? Do some leaves stick around through the winter?)
Notice that seasonal changes happen at different times, and even different sequences, for different types of trees. Different trees of the same type will also have their own schedules, depending on their circumstances.
Of course, trees also change over shorter and longer time scales. Over shorter time scales, watch (and listen, and smell) how each tree responds to wind and rain. Over longer time scales, if you continue to visit your park over the years, you will find yourself mourning the loss of trees due to storms, drought, disease, or other causes, as well as welcoming new friends.
Flowers - Flowers follow similar seasonal cycles as trees. Notice when leaves sprout, flower buds form, and flowers bloom and then fade. Do many blooms open at once and then disappear, or do blooms appear or continue over many weeks? Some flowers have clear daily cycles, closing overnight and opening to greet the morning. Biologically, the purpose of flowers is to produce seeds, which take many different forms. Look for berry-like fruits, seed pods of various shapes, and other forms, such as rose hips.
Creatures - As trees and flowers change with the seasons, so do the creatures that visit them. Pay attention to bees, butterflies, and other insects. Do certain insects seem drawn to different types of flowers? When do the first butterflies arrive in the spring? Are different insects active at different times of day?
Birds also follow daily and seasonal cycles. What types of birds are present in different seasons and at different times of day? Listen for seasonal changes in birds' songs, especially in the spring. Outside the park, you may also find particular yards or other locations where birds tend to congregate.
Nearly every park in America probably has squirrels. Does your park have different types of squirrels? Watch as they forage, scamper, and play.
Recording your observations - Writing down your observations can help you digest and internalize them. It is also interesting to refer back to previous observations as a reminder of what you noticed a week, month, or year ago. Feel free to record your observation in what ever way works for you.
The attached printable worksheets provide tables for recording observations of deciduous trees and shrubs, coniferous trees, flowers, and creatures. Use as many or as few of the tables as you like.
For trees and other plants, each table is designed for observations of an individual tree or patch of flowering plants over the course of a year. Record the name of the tree or plant and a note about its location to remind you which individual/patch you will be watching. Then note the dates you observe each of the events listed in the table as the year goes on. The events are listed in the approximate order they usually happen. But keep in mind that not all trees follow the same schedule, so sometimes an event lower on the table may happen before one higher up.
For creatures, the worksheets include two table formats. The first is structured to focus on particular types of creatures. For example, you might designate one table for a favorite species of bird and record the dates you see them, along with notes about how many you see and what they are doing. The second structure has space to list many types of creatures in the same table, so you might note everyone you see on a given day, for example.
Here are some other styles you may want to try:
- Phenology journal - Phenology is the study of natural cycles of change. A phenology journal can be as simple or as elaborate as you like. You might note the temperature and weather conditions along with any of the types of observations mentioned above. You might identify specific seasonal events, such as the first time you see a monarch butterfly, the first ripe tomato from your garden, or the first red leaf on a maple tree in your park, and record the date that it happens each year. You might include sketches or poems.
- Citizen science contributions - Two large projects--Nature's Notebook and iNaturalist--assemble observations from people around the country/world and make them available to scientists studying phenological phenomena, especially how they are shifting with climate change. Both of these projects have apps you can use to record your observations and submit them to the project's database. See more details in the Resources section, below.
- Gratitude/delights journal - For a more personal approach, you might keep a journal of things that delight you or for which you feel grateful. Noticing your response of joy and wonder at finding a flower that wasn't blooming the day before or hearing a cardinal's sunrise song heralding spring can also be great for mindfulness and mental health.
Resources
Nature's Notebook - Nature's Notebook is a project of the U.S. National Phenology Network. Within the app, you can set up entries for sites (such as your park) and specific plants and animals at that site. You can then record observations for each plant/animal. For each observation, the app prompts you to note "phenophases" as yes/no, and in some cases you can enter additional details. For trees, phenophases include the presence of leaves, colored leaves, flowers, and fruits. For animals, you can record how long you observed, how many individuals you saw, and details such as whether young animals were seen or if the animals were feeding. Nature's Notebook includes targeted campaigns you may choose to participate in, such as observing the first leaves to appear on key species, with the goal of assembling nationally representative datasets that can track changes from year to year.
iNaturalist - iNaturalist is an international project that focuses on species identification. Data from iNaturalist has been used to track the spread of invasive species, identify shifts in species' ranges due to climate change, and protect rare species. Through iNaturalist, you can share photos and descriptions and get identification help from experts in the network. You can also search for on-going projects in your area focused on gathering particular types of observations.
International Nature Journaling Week - International Nature Journaling Week (INJW) takes place during the first week of June each year, but you can use the resources on the website any time of year. Resources include blog posts from journalers, age-specific tips for parents and teachers, books and websites for more information and inspiration, and more. During INJW, you can participate in live workshops, follow along with daily prompts, and sign up for daily emails.
Suggested Reading
Braiding Sweetgrass chapter: "Witness to the Rain" - As a graduate student at Oregon State University, I became very familiar with the pervasive dampness that settles in from October to March. The unrelenting rain can seem monotonous and dull. But Kimmerer's description of the rain falling around Lookout Creek reveals the unique journey of each raindrop. By paying close attention to how the rain interacts with the land, trees, and plants it falls on, she transforms the common rain into a kaleidoscope of experience. (Sadly, the old growth forest that is the setting for this chapter, along with much of the surrounding Long Term Environmental Research station where I studied, burned in the Lookout Fire in the summer and fall of 2023.)
Book of Delights, by Ross Gay - While not exclusively focused on the more-than-human world, Gay's delights reflect on observations drawn from each day over the course of a year.
Nature's Notebook - Nature's Notebook is a project of the U.S. National Phenology Network. Within the app, you can set up entries for sites (such as your park) and specific plants and animals at that site. You can then record observations for each plant/animal. For each observation, the app prompts you to note "phenophases" as yes/no, and in some cases you can enter additional details. For trees, phenophases include the presence of leaves, colored leaves, flowers, and fruits. For animals, you can record how long you observed, how many individuals you saw, and details such as whether young animals were seen or if the animals were feeding. Nature's Notebook includes targeted campaigns you may choose to participate in, such as observing the first leaves to appear on key species, with the goal of assembling nationally representative datasets that can track changes from year to year.
iNaturalist - iNaturalist is an international project that focuses on species identification. Data from iNaturalist has been used to track the spread of invasive species, identify shifts in species' ranges due to climate change, and protect rare species. Through iNaturalist, you can share photos and descriptions and get identification help from experts in the network. You can also search for on-going projects in your area focused on gathering particular types of observations.
International Nature Journaling Week - International Nature Journaling Week (INJW) takes place during the first week of June each year, but you can use the resources on the website any time of year. Resources include blog posts from journalers, age-specific tips for parents and teachers, books and websites for more information and inspiration, and more. During INJW, you can participate in live workshops, follow along with daily prompts, and sign up for daily emails.
Suggested Reading
Braiding Sweetgrass chapter: "Witness to the Rain" - As a graduate student at Oregon State University, I became very familiar with the pervasive dampness that settles in from October to March. The unrelenting rain can seem monotonous and dull. But Kimmerer's description of the rain falling around Lookout Creek reveals the unique journey of each raindrop. By paying close attention to how the rain interacts with the land, trees, and plants it falls on, she transforms the common rain into a kaleidoscope of experience. (Sadly, the old growth forest that is the setting for this chapter, along with much of the surrounding Long Term Environmental Research station where I studied, burned in the Lookout Fire in the summer and fall of 2023.)
Book of Delights, by Ross Gay - While not exclusively focused on the more-than-human world, Gay's delights reflect on observations drawn from each day over the course of a year.