The Great Willamette Valley Ice Storm of '16 - 3 - Blue Spruce and Redcedar Trees
How did the incredible ice storm affect the Blue Spruce and Redcedar trees here at Haphazard Homestead? Come into my post and see!
Here's the first post on the Great Willamette Valley Ice Storm of 2016. And the second post looked at my Icy Sequoia and Larch Trees. I'll be showing how the ice affected other trees in future photosets, too, including River Birch, Douglas-fir, Eastern White Pine, and more.
Blue Spruce
I think the ice looks pretty on individual branches of my tall Colorado Blue Spruce (Picea pungens). Those branches held onto a lot of freezing rain - that turned into a thick coating of ice. You can tell the freezing was fast, by the air bubbles in the icicles.
But as the ice adds up, across larger branches, the burden on the tree becomes more clear.
I was really impressed with the strength of the Blue Spruce! The branches didn't have any trouble holding up to all that weight. They didn't even droop much. You can tell the branches aren't drooping, because the icicles point straight down. The branches didn't change their angle of hanging from the tree - not at all!
Western Redcedar
I was really surprised at the amount of ice that clung to the branches of my Western Redcedar (Thuja plicata). These branches are like a fan, rather than the short, pointy needles of the spruce.
Western Redcedar isn't really a cedar, but an Arborvitae. It's related to the Eastern Arborvitae (Thuja occidentalis) of the Great Lakes and New England regions of the US and southern Canada, also known as the Northern Whitecedar. That species is a common landscaping ornamental, too -- that often gets devastated in ice storms.
But the shape of the Western Redcedar can handle the ice much better! The branches have a downward slope that holds the weight of the ice really well. Look how so much ice accmulated on these branches! That is a solid sheet of ice!
Have you seen trees affected by an ice storm? Have you had trees in your yard affected by ice?
Here's the first post on the Great Willamette Valley Ice Storm of 2016. And the second post looked at my Icy Sequoia and Larch Trees. I'll be showing how the ice affected other trees in future photosets, too, including River Birch, Douglas-fir, Eastern White Pine, and more.
Follow me to see more ice storm photosets, including the effect on other kinds of trees and plants, and more!
Haphazard Homestead
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Yes, I did a post about ice rain in my area about two month ago too )
https://steemit.com/photography/@svamiva/ice-rain
Thanks for that link. Those are some nice photos. It's all pretty, until things start breaking. It sounds like 2011 was a tough time for your region!
It looks like we have some similar plants, too, with the roses, birch, and conifers. My birch trees bent almost completely over, but a week later, I can't tell it even happened, lol. I'll be posting their photo soon.
Back in October of 2006 we had the "October Surprise" storm in Buffalo NY. It was absolutely crazy. It was pouring rain all day and by nightfall the temperature dropped and the rain began to freeze. It knocked down trees, knocked down power lines, and just caused extreme mayhem throughout the entire city.
At the peak of the storm I decided to go for a walk. It was so weird because it was pitch black in the city from all the power being out. As I walked past the park, it sounded like gun shots as thick branches snapped from the trees giving way to the weight of the ice. I only made it about two blocks from my house before I nervously turned back. In the distance you could see power lines dancing through the darkness as sparks arked each time it hit the wet ground.
It's incredible the amount of damage ice can do in the right conditions.
Wow! I'm glad you went back home! When the power lines are coming down, walking around the neighborhood is not the smart choice. And even a smallish tree branch can kill -- my neighbor's son experienced that recently with his own neighbor being killed. Went out in a windstorm to check out the trees in the yard and got hit with a branch. That was just before this ice storm.
Mayhem is a great word to describe the impact of a big ice storm. My town will still be cleaning up a month from now. When your storm hit in October, I bet it was even worse, because of leaves still on the trees. Some trees live a long time and it's mind-bending, for me, to think about them experiencing ice storms and other hazards, just standing in place.
Sorry about your neighbors son, that's terrible. When I seen the power lines that was when I realized how bad things were and turned around. The leaves were a huge factor and was a big cause of all the problems.
Just to clarify - It was the neighbor of the grownup son of my neighbor. But it was hard for me to say that clearly. Regardless, it is just too bad about the man that died. So pointless and it happened so fast. And it wasn't even a very big branch. Just hit him in the head. So sad. I'm glad you turned around yourself!
Wow! Those pics are surreal!
I'm glad it comes through in the pictures, @norbu. There was a lot of ice! I'll be posting some more, too. It really was interesting how the different kinds of trees handled the ice.
Cool post and photos @haphazard-hstead!!! If we get a significant snowfall, I'll usually get a broom and use it to shake the snow off the trees that I know have trouble with the weight. But, with ice like that, I think you're best to leave it be.
Thanks, @cognoscere! You are right about leaving the ice alone. The ice was so thick, that any movement just broke off the plant inside. Walking through my grass, every blade was snapping off. The same was true for smaller branches. I was glad that we didn't have any big winds during the 4 days that ice just held on, with no melting!
Very impressive photos. Thanks for sharing, i've never saw anything like this.
Thanks! It was the worst ice storm in our town in 30-40 years. I was impressed with our National Weather Service - their forecast was spot on, 2 full days ahead of time, for the timing and location. Wait until you see the pine trees! :O
I will, I will!! I've been a few days lacking time for Steemit...but I'm back :)
The blue spruce looks beautiful :)
Thanks! That tree has a really pretty blue cast to it. I'm glad it wasn't damaged.
That is have been a shame, you caught it at the right time :)
How nice it all... :)
Thanks for re-steeming my ice storm photos, @jumowa! I'll be posting some more soon.