No gale disturb the trees
nor aspen leaves
confess the gentle breeze.
...John Gay
I love the aspen tree with its white bark and beautiful quivering leaves. The sound is music to my ears and the leaves shimmer in the sunlight. I video tape the leaves in motion...so pretty!
A grove of aspen trees is a unique thing. Seemingly a collection of individual trees with dancing leaves and brilliant golden fall color, an aspen grove is actually one organism connected by a root system.
Trees grow the grove by sending off sprouting roots, often triggered by a forest fire or sunlight pouring into the gap in the canopy created by a fallen tree. This interconnectedness gives the aspen grove incredible resiliency and long life.
Although one tree may not live more than 150-200 years, a grove can exist for upwards of 10,000 years, with one grove in Utah celebrating 80,000 years of life. This grove has a name: Pando.
Pando measures more than 100 acres in size and weighs more than 14 million pounds.
I *love* this shot, Cathee! So pretty and powerful with the white trunks sided by the yellow leaves and little bits of blue sky! (And fascinating info about aspen groves!) Fav!!!
