Lewis Weil

Last week Eric Paulus and I planted a Bald Cypress tree at Circle Acres. I was really happy to get that tree a good home near some water. They need a lot of water, more than I could responsibly give it at my house. I had it for a few years, it was a replacement tree from Jonsteen trees. I had bought a baby Redwood at Muir Woods a few years ago. It died from me overmulching it. Even though it was my fault Jonsteen kindly sent a replacement tree and suggested a Bald Cypress which is found in Austin. In a way this tree had a very circuitous route to being planted in a forest in East Austin. Hopefully it roots well and thrives. Picking spots to plant trees is a funny thing.

(ignoring my finger in the shot, it's an otherwise good photo of Eric in action)

I was so motivated from planting with Eric that I went home and planted a Chinquapin Oak that I had waiting to go in the ground. It is a replacement for the Redoak in my yard that failed last year. Chinquapin Oaks are native to the area, produce acorns that wildlife love, and I read are “stately” trees. I look forward it becoming a giant in my backyard.

Here is some bonus pics of some mushrooms we saw growing on a log.

And another fascinating cypress from Circle Acres, it is a clone of the 2000 year old Árbol del Tule in Oaxaca