Re: [aroid-l] Symplocarpus

From: "G. D. M." <doji at interpac.net> on 2004.04.18 at 19:50:45(11410) I could not agree more with Julius. More descriptions of this sort would be most welcome. Thank you, Gary +More > >Dear Rand, > > What a wonderful story! Do you write professionally? I can not tell you > how much I enjoyed this oh-too-short tale! Do you know from where the > words you were taught by the old ones are derived? Would 'hoosey' be a > sort of tiny house?? From the Scotts?? > Thanks so much for sharing this with us! > > Sincerely, > > Julius Boos > WPB, > FLORIDA > > Thanks to Peter, Petra, Don and all who replied to my question on growing > Skunk Cabbage. > > > >Most observations pretty much match mine, here in Eastern Canada, where > >Symplocarpus foetidus grows natively. The driest I have personally seen > >skunk cabbage growing and thriving was, perhaps, three feet above the > >summer water level of a riparian intervale on the Saint John River in New > >Brunswick, Canada and this subject to inundation by spring freshets each > >year. S. foetidus is not nearly as abundant as it used to be in this area, > >with the draining of wetlands, swamps and fens, but, with some effort, it > >still may be observed in the wild, though I have not had the opportunity to > >see it for years. > > > >As a child I was struck by this plant that would burn its way through solid > >ice in late winter and early spring to form its "faerie hooseys", which > >were warm to the touch and usually inhabited by a bug or beetle or so and, > >very occasionally, a tiny green peeper when they were not to be found > >elsewhere. These little melt circles, sometimes numbering in the hundreds > >alongside a slough or pond, certainly did seem to be magical places in the > >eyes of myself and my young friends. But then, we had help ... > > > >The Old Folks had it that these tenants "slept" the winter at the roots of > >the skunk cabbage and "woke up" when the plant thawed the ground around it > >and bloomed. Of course, the custodian faeries stoked little fires to keep > >the plant warm and husbanded the accompanying creatures on their wee farms. > >These particular faeries, in these special places, made the magic of "quiet > >hearing", fashioned and spun from the fabric of breezes caught in the doors > >of their houses - a lesson for children - If you stood very still, you > >could hear all the small, wild noises made by every living thing separately > >and distinctively from each other. Then you would know their names, which > >was very important: the wind carried names, yours as well, near and far. We > >had to be careful where we walked and try not to damage any of the plants > >or the faeries could bring us bad luck. And, we would not want the wind to > >speak ill of us. > > > >This made certain sense to me then and I may still believe some of it > >today. I wonder: Are there any scientific observations on microclimates > >created by Symplocarpus that compare with the Old Folks' lore? Aside from > >the increasingly homeless faeries, of course. > > > >Rand > > > > > >-- > >Rand Nicholson > >Zone 5b Eastern Maritime Canada > > _________________________________________________________________ > Check out MSN PC Safety & Security to help ensure your PC is protected and > safe. http://specials.msn.com/msn/security.asp > >

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