The Felling of a Mighty Oak Tree

   Back between the original greenhouse and the shed, there stands the remnants of a tall oak tree.  The tree stood strong through hundreds of storms only to fall to a tiny bug.  Insects can do more damage than the raging hurricane sometimes.  A couple of years back, Son noticed that a lot of our living oak trees were infested with termites.  Yep....living trees.  This was a bit disturbing, to say the least.  He set to work trying to save the trees by using the same spray that we have had to resort to for the house, shed and any other outbuildings around here.  As much as I hate to use chemicals around the place, there comes a time when it is absolutely necessary if we want to save the place.  So, he mixed his concoction and set to work.  Well, that was a lot of work as we have a lot of trees.  Some, like the aforementioned one, were too far gone to try to save.  He still sprayed thinking maybe he could contain the infestations. Hopefully.

 Needless to say, the tree died and was soon infested not only with the termites but with black carpenter ants that were eating the termites.  We quit spraying to allow the ants to do their job.  They worked tirelessly in the dead tree but were, at the same time, preyed upon by the woodpeckers.  The entire tree soon became riddled with the drillings of the birds.  The food chain was at work.  Soon, the tree started falling bit by bit. Now, a new form of life has come to the old tree.  On one of the upper parts of the tree, there is a large hole that appears to be the nesting site of either the pileated woodpecker or a family of squirrels.  Down below among the roots, lizards, snails and beetles are enjoying life hidden under the palmettoes and shards of tree bark.

  While out back, I noticed that bracket or shelf mushrooms are rapidly taking down the tree.  The entire southern side of the tree is literally a ladder of orange mushrooms.  These mushrooms are doing the final takedown of the old oak tree.  The fungi will rot the tree as it, itself, thrives.  Soon, the old oak will come tumbling down and that will be the end of it.  However, in the meantime, the tree, even in death, is providing for the life of others.