Author Archives: kkovarik

I’m not sure what’s been going on with me the last few weeks, but I wonder if the cold weather has sucked all the words from my brain. I’ve thought about writing for this blog so many times in the past week, but nothing seemed to come to mind. And it wasn’t just for the blog; I wasn’t making much headway in writing at work, either. I tried to write but didn’t feel inspired, and what I did write I felt was just awful. This has happened to me before, so I’m not to worried.

But isn’t this cold something else? I remember in 1994 (I think it was) when the air temperature was -22 degrees. We’ve been working at making sure the birds have something to eat and that other creatures in our neighborhood are taken care of. Saturday was relatively warm, and after the past polar vortex temperatures, I’ve never heard the word “balmy” used so often to describe 32 degrees. My mom gave me the sage advice of letting the water run in a sink that is on an outside wall and letting my car sit a few minutes with the lights on before starting it when it’s so cold. I hope it works tomorrow! Although OSU has cancelled classes, staff and faculty are to come in as scheduled. After seeing all of the students walking around in negative wind chills, without hats and gloves and coats undone, that’s probably wise! I, on the other hand, will be wearing many, many layers.

Chris O’Leary spotted a red fox while walking his dog in the park late at night about a week before Christmas. It was walking on the path just east of the Indianola underpass. It froze when it realized he was there and then ran back towards the bird mural. I’ve seen a few foxes, and they are so beautiful. It must have been quite a sight in the snow.

NRP had a nice audio story on daylighting. You can link to it here.

Cornell University has a great website, eBirds, that lets members record the birds they find and keep track of bird lists. And all of this helps contribute to science and conservation efforts.

And finally, even though the thought of flowers blooming seems a distant dream, researchers are working on ways to reduce the use of pesticides that might be harmful to honeybees, which are an important form of pollination for US crops.

Well, I hope you all stay warm over the next few days.

Until next time!

Now that the holidays are over, all of the decorations, including our tree, have come down. The house seems a bit empty without everything, and I really miss the smell of the tree filling the whole house. When I was a kid, we always had a pine tree to decorate. I only remember that once December was over, the branches became deadly pokey things that scratched me as I tried to remove the strings of lights. Once I started to be in charge of finding my own tree, I gravitated toward fir trees. My dad always said that they had a nice handshake.

So when I read that the Canaan fir (one that I love, along with the Fraser fir) was being attacked by the Balsam woolly adelgid, I was concerned. The trees only grow naturally within the Canaan Valley in West Virginia and losing them would greatly change the ecosystem in that area. A lot of the tree farms in Ohio and elsewhere grow these trees.  But the  adelgid also attacks other trees such as Frasers and conifers. And like the ash borer, the damage that the Balsalm woolly adelgid does isn’t seen until it’s too late.

Bottom line is that both the ash borer and the balsalm woolly adelgid are changing ecosystems. The species that will stand to lose the most are those that are reliant on the trees that those two insects attack. And that bugs me.

Until next time.

This is always the time of year, at least for me, where I look back at the past 365 days, reflecting on all that has happened. It’s a time to remember those who are no longer with us, and of course, decide upon my New Year’s Resolutions, most of which last about a week, especially when it comes to eating better and exercising more! This year was especially nice as I had my mom visiting for the week of Christmas. Pete and I went up to Louisville on Monday morning to pick her up. We really didn’t have too much of a plan for things to do except visiting with friends one day and looking forward to my brother and sister-in-law coming down from Cleveland on Friday. It was very nice to have family in town.

Friday, we all headed to a shop in German Village that carries some products from France that my brother likes; this shop in the only one in the United States that carries that particular line. We then hit the Franklin Conservatory and Jeni’s Ice Cream. On the trip back to Clintonville, we started talking about the Arboretum and all the trees we had planted as we drove up Crestview Road. It really hadn’t hit me how many trees we had planted on just that one street until I started pointing out each tree we had put in the ground. So many trees! And the ones we had planted a few years ago had become so big. Michael and MaryJo were impressed.

Another thing we saw while downtown were the covered bike racks that had living roofs. They were planted with various plants to help mitigate storm water. Sorry I couldn’t snap a photo, but I was driving at the time. I did get a photo of the COGO bike share in the Short North by Jeni’s Ice Cream. You can rent them for a day or a year. What a great way to get around town that’s both good for the rider and the environment.

Well, I hope you all have a wonderful New Year, full of joy and happiness.

Until next time!

Is anyone else feeling this crazy weather? Last Thursday, I was perusing my closet, trying to figure out the appropriate clothing for a 64 degree morning followed by a 34 degree afternoon with snow! And we haven’t even left fall yet – winter doesn’t start until December 21st. But I do like snow – everything looks so beautiful.

This past week has been busy decorating the house and tree for the holidays. I’m always on the lookout for more World War II paper cap ornaments, but they are getting harder to find; Pete kids me that I’ve managed to buy every one in Central Ohio and Michigan. This year’s tree trimming was especially poignant as it was December 7th, and I was decorating with ornaments that were made during the Second World War, with “I’ll Be Home for Christmas” playing on the stereo, a song that was released in October, 1943. Here’s the end result.

For others who will have a tree in their home, you can check out this previous post on how to keep your tree fresh. (Notice from last year’s photo that the trim still isn’t up around the dining room windows!)

The building where I work at Ohio State, Hale Hall, is located right next to the South Oval. For the past year or so, the Oval has been fenced off while they did some work to create a geothermal area. Well, it’s finally done – actually has been done for quite some time – but OSU took the fences down. They put up a nice sign that explains what they’ve done.

If I understand the sign correctly, this is what is heating my building. Pretty cool!

Until next time!

This past Monday, Pete and I, along with two dear friends, went to see “The Hunger Games: Catching Fire.” We had seen the first movie at Pete’s sister’s house. He liked it enough to want to see the rest of the movies when they came out. It was a really good movie (in my opinion), well-acted and making good use of the best parts of the book. One of the things that these movies are noted for are the elaborate costumes that the characters wear – they are over-the-top colorful. Effie Trinket is one such character, always dressing in amazing styles with futuristic hair and make-up. (Yes, this eventually will turn into something that fits in with our Arboretum!) She came out in one scene wearing this:

When I first saw it, I thought, “What a remarkable dress!” But then as I looked at more, it made me sad because of the plight of the monarchs.

Pete had sent me a link to an article in the The New York Times about monarch butterflies and bees and other insects that are losing their habitats. It also spoke to the importance of increasing the number of native plants and trees, how that would help these provide these insects with food and shelter. It was so sad to only see two monarch this summer.

Our yard is full of native plants, and Pete is always coming to me with some new insect that he’s found, one that he never expected to see in our backyard. The native plants and trees that we have planted in the Arboretum are making a difference. And I’m very thankful for that.

And speaking of being thankful, with tomorrow being Thanksgiving, I’d like to say that I am thankful for all of my friends and family, and for all the supporters and volunteers of this little Arboretum we’ve all worked so hard to make happen. We couldn’t have done it without you.

Until next time!

And the sky is grey.

I went for walk
On a winter’s day.

And here’s what I saw – leaves that were every color BUT brown.

What is amazing to me is to see the smaller trees that we just planted this fall putting out so much color on the leaves that they have. Just imagine how it will be next fall. And this spring, all of the dogwood and red bud trees in bloom will make Clintonville the place to walk.

Until next time!

A primary reason for the existence of LOUA and its volunteer efforts is the proximity of two forested ravines. These persistent geological features were formed thousands of years ago and are both beautiful and functional and home to many species of plants and animals. As of last evening, one of these areas, Glen Echo Ravine faces a new threat. The Clintonville Area Commission Zoning and Variance committee approved an application by the Goo Goo Car Wash company to occupy the parcel of land owned by the White Castle Corporation, located at the intersection of Arcadia and High Street at the entrance to Clintonville.

This lot is currently free of any structures and sits on a commercial strip of landfill that once was a part of Glen Echo Ravine. The parcel is currently commercially zoned (C-4), but not zoned for a business such as a car wash.  Members of our steering committee are opposed to a car wash occupying this site for a number of reasons. First of all, this C-5 business runs counter to the Clintonville Neighborhood Plan, which explicitly calls for preservation and restoration of the ravines. Too many impervious surfaces currently abut Glen Echo Ravine, and a car wash with lots of impervious pavement will continue to contribute large amounts of storm water runoff at a critical point of Glen Echo Ravine. A car wash would be especially harmful, as the runoff would likely contains hydrocarbons (known carcinogens) and other forms of pollution.

This is in direct contrast to the current plans of The City of Columbus to reduce storm water runoff and pollutants by increasing green space and infiltration. LOUA has another vision for this property sitting atop Glen Echo. We would someday like to see Glen Echo Ravine a prominent feature on High Street, as it once was when a simple bridge ran over it. This would ultimately involve removing the landfill in order to restore the stream currently routed underground through a culvert. Once the channel is cleared of debris, the slopes could be planted with native trees.

We have begun the process of seeking grant funding and private donations in order to accomplish these tasks. The completed project is intended to attract visitors and beautify the primary commercial corridor in Clintonville. This park will be also be an access point for a planned walking trail that would connect Glen Echo Park with the bike trail on the Olentangy River which is called for in the Neighborhood Plan for Clintonville. Such a trail would give our children a place to explore, get exercise, and learn about nature. A restored, uninterrupted, and forested corridor would also facilitate the movement of wildlife from the riverine forests bordering the Olentangy River to Glen Echo Park.

The Clintonville Area Commission is meeting on Thursday, November 7, 2013 at 7pm in the Whetstone Library meeting room. If you are opposed to the car wash, please contact your Clintonville Area commissioner and let them know your feelings before then.

Contact information for area commissioners can be obtained at the following link: http://www.clintonvilleareacommission.org/index.php/meet-our-commissioners.html

My office at Ohio State is in what used to be Enarson Hall, now known as Hale Hall, on 12th Avenue. They have been working on the space where the old Hale Hall was located (right across the street), making the lot where the building stood into inviting green space.

Today, the first nine trees went in the ground. Not sure what kind of trees they are (the area is still fenced off to allow the grass time to root), but they are nice-sized. They used a backhoe and a tow motor to get the trees planted very quickly. I just kept thinking to myself how many trees we could have planted in LOUA if we had that kind of equipment! Here’s a picture of the trees going in.

I was reading in Sierra Magazine about the damage that pets can do to birds. I’ve blogged several times about cats and how bad they are for birds, killing between 1.4 and 3.7 million birds a year, not to mention all of the other small mammals they catch. But what I didn’t know is that dogs are as bad. They chase birds, tear up nesting sites, and exhaust them during migrations. Dogs have been responsible for killing half of a kiwi colony in New Zealand, and five dogs killed off Italy’s largest flamingo colony in one day. Even leashed dogs can reduce the number of bird species by 35 percent in parks and wooded areas.

That’s something I never knew. We just need to be mindful of our feathered friends when we are out with our four-footed ones!

Finally, this Friday, several members of LOUA are going to be out and about looking at the last of the trees planted, checking to see that all is well with them. This rainy weather has been hard on trick-or-treaters, but it’s been great for our trees!

Until next time!