Moving camp - adding winch to off road machine pg. 7

Whatcha huntin’ up there, the blue ginseng?

The mountain laurel are beautiful 1dave! I had one in my yard under my pinoak, but it didn't thrive and eventually died. The white rhododendrum in the mountains here are awesome, too. They seem to glow at night. Our fav camping spot is in a little holler. Both sides are lined straight up with the rhodos. At night, they give the holler a glow of light. I assume they are just real good at reflecting the moonlight. Gorgeous.

This stand of laurel is directly behind cabin site and a big part of the lot's selling point. Shady damp north facing slope is pushing up crazy giant laurel for some unknown reason Dave and Tela.
Never did have luck transplanting or growing laurel Tela. On this lot it grows like a weed, plants in photo over 20 feet tall with 6-10 inch trunks. Unheard of. Allowing easy passage unlike most laurel.
I saved some trunks and will try to count the faint growth rings, they may be really old. Strange puppy poop colored clay may also be a contributor to their large size.
When burning cut down trees and stumps the leaf mulch was deep and difficult to exterminate when caught on fire, another possible growth contribution.
Yes, the glow comes from the reflective glaucous leaves set at many angles.

A few dying rhododendrons on a parcel close by. Burning up in the sun as the shade trees were cut down over them.
These are hybrids and unfortunately most were cut down when a cattle farmer bought this once rhododendron hybridizer's famous nursery and converted to pasture.
Nursery was on a north facing slope with a large hill sloping down to the site draining moisture to it.
Topography controls all plant life in the area. Namely altitude and orientation to the sun's light. Add a high density of creeks and springs creating yet more micro environments.
This is why there are more varieties of shrubs in the Appalachians than any place on earth.
Massive stands of Azalea, Rhododendron, Laurels, etc with many different colored blooms. In most cases naturally hybridized to a one only bloom color.
One creek valley may be a monoculture of Laurel, the next creek valley may be a monoculture of a given Rhododendron.
One slope may have red/orange Azalea and the next slope yellow/orange Azalea. Same plant, but varying bloom color.
And then there are the forest floor shade loving perennials in the lily/orchid/trillium/etc families. Again dominated by topography, soil, shade, moisture etc.
A sloped rock exposure may have high granite dust and organic deposits at its base with a spring head flowing down it creating a microhabitat below it forcing a particular family of perennials.
A mountain deer hunter would start hunting at high altitude where the acorns begin to fall first. Then follow the acorn fall as cold weather moves to lower altitudes.




A native orange Azalea being nursed behind this old farm house



An early blooming Laurel with dwarf blooms and leaves.

flickr is screwed up.

Those twisty limbs look like they would make interesting walking sticks.

Yes they do Dave. Some are way more gnarly. Especially smaller ones in dryer conditions. Some locals consider them a weed. I say shear beauty. Wife says I have to make the porch bannister posts out of them.
They burn like crazy, must have an oil in them. Locals say it is poisonous to burn, internet say not. They are shallow rooted, easy to pull up t's stumps with machinery.
If hiking you avoid mountain laurel stands, go around them at any cost. They are man traps, impenetrable in most cases.

I have some Laurels on my land. The blooms are identical to Mountain Laurel, but much smaller. Love the scent.

As a child, my Mom and I were always transplanting trees, bushes and flowers from the woods. My Mom always stressed the importance of bringing as much soil as we could from the area where the plants/trees were dug. She knew that this was so important when transplanting. It was also important to have large, well watered holes ready to go upon return.

Imagine this: My Mom and a 5-10 year old me. Walking through the woods. My Mom pulling my toboggan which had digging tools tied on it. I was pulling a wagon with pails to get the extra soil. The wagon usually contained a picnic lunch. We always made initial trips to select what was to be transplanted prior to bringing the equipment.

On the trip back, which was sometimes across 60 acres, my Mom tied the Toboggan behind the wagon and pulled both. The toboggan contained what had been dug. Everything had a tarp over it to keep it secure, help prevent drying out and limit soil loss.

Most of the land was cattle pasture, so there were many trails. Some areas had farm roads, which we used to access a hay field on the edge of the property.

When we got back to the house, everything was carefully planted. There was about a 75% survival rate. I had to inspect and water most plantings as needed.

Most days it was about a 6 hour time from start to finish, but well worth it. My Mom did not drive at the time, so we walked everywhere on the land. Most had adjoining roads, which would have cut the time considerably, but we walked cross country. Sometimes found mushrooms/berries ready to harvest. Left those for the next day.

My 200 acre playground as a child, which I loved.

There must be a lot of perfect soil where you are. Specific to certain plants/trees. I love everything horticulture. Have experimented with cross pollination, tree grafts and specific soils to enhance growth.

Thank you for posting this journey in your life and the amazing area.

Hit the rock 5 to 6 feet down into the clay right at ridge centerline. Count on ridge centerlines having rock up there. Clay then rock, or just rock.

Laurel is soft when green, hard as heck when dry. Heavy either way.

I see big Sassafras in the hills, but none colonized on my place. It is common around Atlanta, makes a popular tea. Diuretic tea, best for that.
Its is the thick bark on the Sassafras roots that is so intense for spice and teas. If you dig one you will smell it.