Trees, a Blessing and a Curse

by John Finney

One of the blessings of lake life is the wide variety of trees we share. Trees can be a blessing and a curse, and like most everything they require maintenance and eventually die.

Years ago I’d heard morel mushrooms will grow near dead Elm trees, and so when I found my first one while mowing our lawn, I looked up. Yep, I hadn’t noticed one of our 50-foot Elms towering over our driveway was dead...and so I tell the story of my $700 mushroom, tasty but expensive.

Fortunately I’d warned my wife that if she ever heard a loud cracking sound to run for shelter... Then two years ago it happened as she read on the deck. Into the house she went, just as a 40-foot oak limb crashed into the neighbors driveway 30 feet away.

That windless summer day we got a crash course on those large black carpenter ants. While the limb appeared healthy, the ants had quietly hollowed out where it met the main trunk. Under different circumstances it could have been fatal...so watch your trees for those destructive ants.

I tell folks that dead trees and limbs will eventually succumb to gravity, it’s a matter of letting mother nature decide or we decide the time and place.

EDITOR’S NOTE: There’s lots to say about trees around the lake. So much of Lake Beulah’s character is defined by trees along its shore. From willows, to oaks, to tamaracks, no matter what time of year, trees help make Lake Beulah special.

Yes, trees can be very expensive, but imagine a lake without trees. I’ve seen some private ‘lakes’ right here in Walworth County, surrounded by dwellings, and with no trees anywhere near the water.

The character of a tree like this is indispensable in setting the character of Lake Beulah