More trees, please, and leave the leaves!

Cape Loves Trees
More trees, please, and leave the leaves!

As we enjoy this incredible fall weather, I am reminded of the gift of a perfect autumn day. We are so fortunate here in the Cape. A short walk invites us to marvel at the season’s splendor and the brilliant transformation of our local trees as they give way to an ever-changing palette.

Among the first to turn are the black gums, with bright reds deepening to purple. Then come the maples, flaming in brilliant reds, oranges, and yellows, followed by the tulip trees, grand and stately in yellow, and finally the oaks, with their muted reds and warm browns. We wait impatiently to finish our raking chores as some of the oaks, through marcescence, hold tightly to their leaves, sometimes until spring, just as we hold on to the last warm days as they slip away toward winter.

One landscape maintenance practice we can add to our stewardship efforts is simply to leave the leaves beneath our trees. In our natural forest ecosystems, the forest floor is covered with leaves. They act as mulch, insulating the soil and helping to prevent erosion. As they decompose, they return nutrients to the soil. They also provide much-needed habitat for smaller creatures, including amphibians and beneficial insects.

We may not all have a forested yard where leaves can remain entirely undisturbed, but we can try to keep as many of them on-site as possible. Leaves can be shredded and added to existing garden beds or composted with other organic material, such as garden scraps, for use as a future soil amendment. These practices can help our environment while reducing the energy and resources used to transport and process leaves off-site.

We hope you have had the opportunity to get outside and enjoy this fall, spending time with family and friends among the trees in all their glory. Let’s not take what we have for granted. We need our trees for a livable community, for our own health, and for the health of the Bay.

Back in 2023, CCC asked residents to nominate big trees in our community that are noteworthy, and many folks responded. From those nominations, CCC developed a list of big trees to promote awareness and so that residents could marvel at their beauty. We want to alert you that the list has recently been updated!

Cape St Claire is truly blessed by an amazing canopy of big trees that cool our homes, clean our air and water, and provide homes for countless birds and wildlife.  Once you start paying attention, you just can’t miss these giants on almost every street. We hope you will value and protect these trees in the future.  They help define who we are as a community. Take a bike ride, walk, or drive around the Cape and be awed by these sentinels of nature!

How to view these special trees??

1. Use Google Maps to locate the trees! Brad Knopf, CCC Board member,
   created a map that shows the address and description of the trees. All
   individual specimens should now be in a group of their own. You can filter to any
   layer, or any selection of layers. Anyone with this link can view it, please don’t
   alter it without discussion! Click here to go to the Google map https://www.google.com/maps/d/u/0/viewer?mid=1BH5mPESHnBMdX6xJKOk23M45MWh9QiE&ll=39.042602790212726%2C-76.44394769999998&z=14

2. Self-Guided Driving Tour! Explore some of Cape St. Claire’s remarkable trees. Follow the numbered stops for an easy driving tour. Enjoy the trees from public areas and please respect private property. Drive slowly, look up, and enjoy the trees that make Cape St. Claire special.

***Please note that the numbered tree locations are not necessarily arranged in the most efficient driving order, though we grouped nearby streets whenever possible. Have fun navigating the streets of Cape St. Claire!