Black Walnut (Juglans nigra) leaves. beautiful ~ wonderful resource for eco-dyers.
Very few black walnuts this year, from my Lady Black Walnut (Juglans nigra) tree. I detected no blossoms at all, through out the season. These showed up after a day with very brisk wind (30 Ausgust). Black walnuts are one of my favourites for eating, but the very devil to get the "nut" out. Squirrels hold them in their hands, and gnaw the outer hull off by rolling the nut round and round ~ the yellow outer hull flies right off as if peeling a radish, then they either crack the nut itself open and eat it then,, or whisk it off to their winter pantry. Black walnuts are a PRIZE for eco-dyeing or eco-prints, inks ~ paper, calligraphy, fibers of all types. Where I live, right up there with India Flint's love of eucalyptus!
Some years there is an overflowing bounty for the Gray squirrels, which are native to Washington, and Black Russian squirrels which are not. What I find intriguing is that there have been fewer squirrels, Black or Gray, than any of the last 20 years. It feels odd somehow.
Directly north of Lady Black Walnut, is the most spectacular fir tree, perhaps 200 years old? According to the marvelous woman I purchased this wee bit of land from ~ who was in her late '80s ~ then ~ both the Black Walnut and Fir tree, were on this land when homesteaded by her parents. Now this Woman was one of the most interesting women I've had the privilege of knowing. Another story, for another time...I'm digressing.
The Fir Tree has been the home for over 3 years, of a Mrs. Black Squirrel's very large nest. Her nest has been through 100 mph wind storms, torrential rain storms, winter weather with snow and ice, down to 20 below F. 100 degree heat. It moves with the tree - engineering feat ~ as if it were a small boat on waves. The black squirrels have been active year round, but not for the last couple of months, this year. The mother squirrel may have moved her territory and built a new nest in a different location. But today ~ 2 wee baby squirrels just popped their heads out of the nest! Wow - am I ever tickled!
Lady Black Squirrel's nest is an amazing architectural accomplishment. Watching her build it was a one-of-a-kind experience. It is stunningly beautiful. The nest I am telling about looks much like the one in the photo below, but more symmetrical and very large ~ about 2 feet tall, and maybe about 1.5 feet in diameter at the top.
Photo ©Creasy Mahan Nature Preserve. What's that blob in the tree?
The black squirrel made her nest, in a triangular limb-crotch of the my fir tree, about 50 feet above the ground. She started with a very small rounded, basket-woven style foundation, using very small twigs and dried grasses. It looked a lot like the bottom of a twined Tlingit basket. a rounded basket-weaving style. An example of the rounded base, formed around the limb-crotch can be seen here: Twined Tlingit Basket ***Full attribution at end of post.
Mrs. Black Squirrel actually glued the twigs, dried grasses and fibers together. She made the "glue" by chewing off lichen and mini-mosses from surrounding tree limbs, and applied that as glue to the sticks and grasses, inside of the woven nest structure. Then...layer on layer she built her nest. Incredible to watch, absolutely mesmerizing. Many times a year, I see her do the same thing - nest maintenance maybe, or preparing for winter cold and summer heat, or perhaps physical cleanliness. One thing that really stands out, is how diligent she was/is, in cleaning herself before building or adding on to her nest, or feeding her babies. I have a bird bath/watering bowl close to a plum tree. This is where she collects tiny lichen, chews it up with water, and spreads it on her head and legs. When she has babies, she will lay down on a limb with moss and lichen, as if it were a scrub brush or sponge, scoots around, then goes to water, and rinses herself. Natural anti-bacterial ~ phenomenal genetic memory ~ my viewpoint, not scientific at all.
***Attribution of Tlingit basket photograph and detailed information:
CV-2: Native American Indian baskets, a beautiful twined Tlingit basket, spruce root and maiden fern stems, embellished with a pattern of false embroidery, Alaska, c. 1910. The twined weave is extremely tight, and the decorations are very lovely. Condition is good, considering the age of the basket; there is one very small tear, c. 1/16 inch. Size: 4 3/4 inches high by 6 inches diameter at the rim. SOLD. Native American Indian Baskets.
Curious and want to see more about squirrels and their nests?
squirrel nests black squirrel building a nest video
Here is a very good place to learn more about First Nations' Baskets:
Encoded in the weave: Identifying your relative’s Native American basket
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