Nature Trail

Girl Scouts

Louisiana East

Camp

Whispering

Pines

Welcome to Camp Whispering Pines Nature Trail!

Tread carefully! You are entering a sanctuary where all plant and animal inhabitantslive in protection from needless harm. Do not disturb any animal’s home. Thisincludes holes in the ground as well as cocoons and spiders’ webs. Don’t become a“collector” – others would also like to see it, too. Please always remember “outdoormanners” when walking on the nature trail.

You will learn about the plants and trees, maybe see their pretty flowers and evensome that were used for medicine a long time ago before we had modern medicine!Each plant or tree has its COMMON NAME and scientific name. You can alwaysfind the plant by its scientific name in books, because common names like“STARBUSH - Illicium floridanum ” may also be known as a Polecat Tree orSwamp Laurel in other parts of America or the world. If you search the scientificname on the internet – you can see color pictures of the plants and trees.

We have not labeled every single plant or tree along the trail – that would be a thickbook!! If you see plants or trees that are not in this book be sure to share yourknowledge with your sister Girl Scouts.

There are numbered markers (1-20) along the trail to the cable bridge marking specialtrees and plants that we thought you would enjoy. Remember to take nothing butpictures – leave nothing but footprints!

Before you begin – be sure to put on your bug repellant, especially around yourankles!! Enjoy your nature hike!

Compliments of: Kaytin Cox

Bailey Jones

Autumn Payn

Addie Watkins

Bronze Award Project – Completed May 2012Suzanne Belletto – Troop Leader / Bronze Award AdvisorSheila Belletto - Co-Leader / Assistant Bronze Award AdvisorGirl Scout Junior Troop 30819 – Holden, Louisiana

** Leaders – you may want to read the Lagniappe section in the back of the bookfor extra information.

#1 - - You are at the beginning of the nature trail!

This is a cross section of a tree trunk. You

will see alternating light and dark rings

radiating from the center. A tree produces

a new ring every year. You can tell the age

of a tree by the number of rings and you

can tell the history of the tree by the

thickness of the rings. If there is a thick

ring, the tree grew well and had a good

year. If there is a thin ring, the tree had a

difficult year, and didn't grow as much. This could mean drought, a harsh winter or

competition for light and nutrients by other trees.

#2 - - PINE CANDLES

This is a big space of baby Long Leaf Pine Trees. You

will see more BIG Long Leaf Pine Trees along the way.

Theses trees are only 2 or so years old at the time of this

writing. See the long white / yellowish fuzzy things on

them? These are little branches starting to form off

the main trunk and are called “Candles” on a pine

tree. Come back in a few years to see how tall they have

grown!

# 3 - - CONTROLLED BURNSYou may see in areas of Camp Whispering Pines some of the areas look like they

have been set on fire. This is known as a “controlled burn”. Meaning burning the ar-

eas on purpose with supervision so the fire does not get out of control. Ranger Larry

and his crew burn sections of CWP during the off season.

The purpose of the controlled burn is to eliminate the fuel load on the ground re-

ducing the risk of wildfires (like in California) and to kill invasive species of bushes

and ferns that are not native to the area. The Long Leaf Pines are actually stimulated

to grow using fire.

Controlled burns also help control insect population – like chiggers and ticks.

#4 - - CHINESE PRIVET – Ligustrum sinese

Besides the trees there are many shrubs called Chinese

Privet that is seen often on the trail. The Chinese

Privet is a green treelike shrub of China, Korea and

Japan having lots of leaves and flowers on long

erect limbs. It is a very invasive plant and can take

over quickly! However, lots of people use them in

their landscaping to make a quick hedge. In some

parts of the country – it’s a WEED that no one likes!

#5 - CHINESE TALLOW TREE - Triadica sebifera

Also known as Chinese Maple, Chicken Tree, Pop­corn

Tree. This tree is native to eastern Asia and mostly

associated with eastern China, Taiwan and Japan. It is

very fast growing and invasive tree. (Can choke out

and kill other shrubs or trees). These trees were

introduced to the United States by way of South Carolina

in 1700’s. It has heart shaped leaves with a pointed tip

and light gray bark. In the spring it has yellowish-

green, slender drooping soft spikes up to 8 inches long

that appear from April to June. From August to January

this tree has wax-coated seeds resembling “popcorn”

when they turn brown and open. It hurts if you walk on

them barefoot!! A single mature tree can produce up to

100,000 seeds!

The waxy coating off the seeds has been used for candle and soap making. The

leaves are used as an herbal medicine for skin aliments. In the fall the leaves turn

beautiful fall colors of dark reds and oranges!

# 6 - - FRENCH MULBERRY – Callicarpa Americana

Also known as Sour Bush and American Beauty Berry in

Louisiana. The large shrub reaches up to 9 feet tall, but

mostly stays smaller. Simple leaves are yellow green and

hairy underside. The small flowers are rose to pink to

pale blue that appear in May and June. The fruits are lit-

tle balls that are purple to violet from August to No-

vember. The fruits are eaten by different kinds of birds,

quail, squirrel, deer, raccoon, opossum and gray fox. Re-

member the song “All Around The Mulberry Bush”?

This is a Mulberry Bush!

# 7 - - LONG LEAF PINE TREE - Pinus palusris

The Long Leaf Pine, as the name suggest,

grows pine needles as long as 18". Seed

cones of the Longleaf Pine take almost

twenty months to fully mature and

sometimes grow bigger than an adult

hand!

Th i s p in e t r e e i s n a t iv e t o th e

southeastern United States and grow

more than 100 feet tall! They have thick

bark that is red-brown in color and scaly in texture. Their needle-like leaves are

dark green and occur in bundles of three. They are slow and steady growing trees and

take more than 100 years to reach their maximum height.

Pine trees are used for making turpentine, paint, soap, building materials,

telephone poles, ship masts, and many other products. Native Americans weave

baskets from their needles. Do you remember seeing all the young Long Leaf Pine trees

earlier that had “candles”?

# 8 - - SWEET GUM TREE - Liquidambar styraciflua

This tree is native to warm temperate areas of

North America, Mexico and Central America. It is

recognizable by the combinat ion of i ts

five-pointed, star shaped leaves and hard spiked

fruits called gumballs with over 80 spikes! Don’t

step on these barefoot!! In each of the holes in the

gumball is a tiny seed resembling sawdust. In the

fall, the leaf colors change beautiful fall colors like

other deciduous trees, (trees that loose their

leaves in the fall,) Before there was

“store-bought” chewing gum, children used to

chew the amber colored sap that would seep from

damaged bark.

Way down in Central America this is an evergreen tree that does not change color or

loose its leaves. The “plates” on some of it’s branches have given it the name of

Alligator Wood.

The trees handsome hardwood is put to a great many uses including railroad ties,

veneer and plywood for making furniture.

# 9 - - BLACK CHERRY TREE (Prunus serotina)

The Black Cherry Tree can grow to 100 feet; is a

deciduous tree that bears fruit. It has white flowers in

the spring. The fruit are round with a depression at

the apex (bottom) – like a cherry! The fruit skin is

smooth and ranges from pale to very deep red and

is bittersweet to the taste. The fruit is a favorite of

many birds and wildlife. The wood is much

sought for use in furniture, toys and specific musical

instruments. American Indians found many ways

to make medicine from the Black Cherry Tree.

# 10 - - HORSE SUGAR - Symplocos tinctoria

The Horse Sugar, also known as “Sweet Leaf”, is

a large shrub or small tree up to 35 feet tall

with clusters of yellow five petal flowers that

bloom in the spring (March to May) before the

leaves appear. The stems are leathery to the touch

and the base of the stem is wedge shaped. The

leaves have a sweet apple peel taste and can be

used to relieve thirst. It is native to North Carolina

and the first settlers to America used this tree to make medicine.

# 11 - - ON THE RIDGE

STOP! Don’t go anywhere!! LOOK down the RIDGE. How is it different from up

here? The trees are different! Up here and along the way you have mostly walked

among the pine trees and other “softwoods”. Down in the ridge are basically

“hardwood” trees like hickory, oak and magnolia which is also in this booklet. Its

cooler and the trees are bigger! Does it smell different from when you were out by

the pine trees?

Before you continue on the trail - LISTEN! If it is a little windy you will hear a

“whisper” as the wind blows through the pine trees. This is how Camp Whispering

Pines got its name!

You may also hear many song birds and if you are real quiet you may hear a

Red-Headed Woodpecker. They are black and white with a red head. These birds are

endangered so we need to protect their environment. They sound like knocking on a

hard floor really fast or when you blow bubbles with a straw in a drink. They are

“drilling” into trees looking for small insects to eat that live in tree barks.

At this point there is a trail to the Lake, but this Nature trail Booklet continues on the

trail to the Tangipahoa River.

#12 - - SOUTHERN MAGNOLIA - Magnolia grandiflora.

Down in the ridge a huge Southern

Magnolia tree looms upward. It is leaning

because it’s so big and the limbs are only on

one side! The Magnolia is an evergreen

hardwood with big broad shiny leaves. Its big

white flowers bloom during the summer and

is the Louisiana State Flower. It’s on the

cover of this booklet, too. When the flower

petals turn brown and die the cone shape

center produces red seeds that are a favorite

food of birds and squirrels. There are many other smaller Magnolia trees you can see

along the trail.

# 13 - - GREEN BRIAR – Similax liliaceaeThese woody vines with prickles are usually found in the

bottomland hardwood area. They sure do hurt if you rub

against them or your feet get tangled in them! The tender

tips and fruit are eaten by many animals. These plants are

rhizomatous (spread underground). The tubers (roots)

were eaten by Native Americans and early settlers for

food.

# 14 - - LOUISIANA BLACKBERRY – Rubus argutus

Louisiana Blackberry vines are a trailing plant that

usually has prickles (not thorns). There are many

varieties of blackberries in the world and are called

“brambles”. They have dark green leaves and grow

white flowers in the spring (April to May). The berries

are usually ready to harvest in the late of summer. Many wildlife love blackberries!

The fruit are eaten fresh or made into jams, jellies, pies, cobblers and other deserts.

Have you collected and eaten blackberries? YUM!

# 15 - - BAMBOO – Arundinaria gigantean

Also known River Cane, Southern Cane and Switch Cane.

This variety of bamboo is a woody grass with long, slender,

light green with yellowish color at the base of the leaves. It is an

evergreen plant that can grow 2 to 12 feet tall. It can grow

sparingly or in big thickets. Some people use this in

landscaping as a wind break or natural fence. Unlike other

bamboo found in Louisiana, this one is native. It does flower and

seed, but usually is spread through new plants sprouting from

its roots. Early settlers and Native American ate the seeds. The

stems are used to make mats and whistles.

#16 - - - LOBLOLLY PINE

Also known mostly as a Southern Yellow Pine it is

called by 20 other names in Louisiana. Loblolly Pine’s

name is derived from a word (old English origin)

meaning a wet or muddy place. It seems they

associated the moist depressions and swamps that these

trees grew near with a lumpy gruel type food called

“loblolly” that was served for seasickness on their

voyage in big ships across the oceans.

This type of pine tree can grow to be 170 feet tall and

up to 300 years old under the right conditions.

The wood from this pine tree is used more than all other

southern pines put together in Louisiana for lumber, poles, plywood, boxes, and fuel.

Your house, the buildings and cabins at CWP was probably built using this type of pine

tree!

#17 - - HICKORY TREE – Carya alba

This Hickory Tree is also known as “Mockernut

Hickory” is a very popular hardwood that has

compound leaves. (One leaf with multiple leaflets).

Notice the diamond shape pattern on the bark.

There are many Hickory Trees in Camp Whispering

Pines. Hickory is in the same family as pecans and

walnuts. The nuts have a smooth, very thick husk and

usually has four ridges. The Hickory is used for

making furniture, axe handles, wagons and

baseball bats just to name a few. This is a very popular fuel for fire because it burns

for a long time. Some Hickory Trees can live to be 500 years old!

#18 - - STARBUSH - Illicium floridanum

The small dark evergreen shrubs or small trees

are growing and are very special. Take a leaf and

crush it. (Just one!) It has a very strong aroma!

Whew! These plants have a beautiful red flower. A

walk through the Starbush is spectacular in the

spring! The green “fruit” look like star icing that

you see on birthday cakes – Just bigger!

# 19 - - SOURWOOD TREE – Oxydendron arboretum

The Sourwood Tree is native to Louisiana. It’s a small tree

that is common along stream beds in piney woods. In late

May, the white flowers extend on long drooping racemes

(each flowers has a stalk). The leaf has a pleasant, yet

sour taste and it is used by hikers to quench thirst. These

trees attract butterflies and serve as hosts for butterfly

larvae.

# 20 - - PARSLEY HAWTHORN (Crataegus marshallii)

This is a small tree with leaves that look like

parsley. It reaches up to 20 feet tall that

has smooth and gray to brown bark that will

scale off exposing reddish-brown underbark.

In March through April it has white flowers

that have a foul odor and is attractive to

flies. The fruit is red that stay on the plant

until next spring. Game birds, like wild

turkey, and mammals, like deer, eat this

plant for food during the winter.

TAJAR CROSSING

Looks like you all have come to the end of the Nature Trail with reading this

booklet.

You are now at Tajar Crossing! Down the ridge is a 97 foot suspended cable bridge

that was designed and built in 1994 by CWP’s “Ranger Larry” Ehrlich with the help of

his assistant “Ranger David” Brown and the Louisiana Air National Guard stationed

in Hammond, LA. It was built in ONE DAY so that the Girl Scouts would have

access to the Tangipahoa River that was not available before.

It was named after a legendary camp story of Tajar (circa 1930's) that counselors often

read to campers. A special CWP Tajar story was written during a Summer Resident

Camp session. Check your library, camp libraries and Girl Scout Council for their story!

This is always a favorite with Girl Scouts to cross this special bridge!

LAGNIAPPE – (something extra)

CRITTERS!!!

Have you noticed any CRITTERS on the trail? These woods are full of animals, bugs,birds, butterflies, spiders, ants, black grasshoppers, etc. Why do we see so few ofthese? Some animals hide; some are camouflaged by changing their color; somebecome quiet – like birds do when humans come around.

Think of the different bugs or animals that disguise themselves. Almost everyanimal or bug wears some type of camouflage. Why? Right! So bigger insects andbirds can’t see them and eat them for food!

Some insets that prey on humans are too tiny to be seen. Can you think of one?Almost every Girl Scout who has visited CWP has gone home with at least onechigger bite!

CHIGGERS / RED BUGS

If you don’t know already, chiggers are mites that live in

woodland edges during warm weather. They live close to

the ground and under plants. If they get on you Chiggers will

crawl round looking for a tight spot such as waistbands,

socks, and shoes. They chew their way into the skin and

cause severe itching. If you do get chigger bites, don’t

scratch it! Use one of the over-the-counter creams to reduce

itching. Applying one of the old “home” remedies can result in severe secondary in­fec-

tions. So be careful when sitting on the ground in the forest! A Red Bug is actu-

ally smaller than the period at the end of this sentence.

You can avoid chigger bites if you’re careful to avoid sitting on the bare ground or logs

and walk only on well-trod paths. Wearing bug repellant around your ankles and legs

can help a lot. Some Girl Scouts pat sulfur powder on their legs to keep the “red

bugs” off.

DEER TICKS / WOOD TICKS

In Camp Whispering Pines, there is a bug crawling

around. It’s called a tick. There are about 200 species in

the United States. Ticks live in tall grass or shrubs. They

do not jump or fly, although they may drop from

their perch and fall onto a host like dogs, cats, deer,

foxes or even you! They feed on blood of their host.

Ticks can live as long as 200 days without food or

water and they can live from 2 months to 2 years,

depending on the species. If you get one on you be sure

to remove it including its head. If the head remains on you or your pet’s body it can

cause an infection. Wood Ticks are half the size of Deer Ticks, but all ticks are not

good to have on you or your pets.

POISON IVY - Toxicodendron radicans

Poison Ivy is known to grow anywhere! Leaves grow in

clusters of three usually found growing in groups. Its

“fuzzy” vine can grow up trees or trail across the ground.

There are three different types - Poison Ivy, Poison Oak

and Poison Sumac. The part of it that causes the itching

is the natural oil made by the plant. Remember - Leaves

of three – leave them be!!

Poison Ivy Poison Oak Poison Sumac

If you are continuing to the river (past Tajar Crossing) you will notice that the

trees change again. These trees thrive in areas known as “flood plains” or areas

that will flood often due to spring or heavy rains that cause the river to rise often.

The following are trees and plants you may see along the way and on the Tangipahoa

River.

IRON WOOD TREES - Carpinus caroliniana

Ironwood trees have many names. One name is

“Musclewood” because the trunk and large limbs

look like flexed muscles. Another name is the

“American Hornbeam” which comes from the

German word for tough tree. They grow less than a

foot a year and only get to be about 50 ft tall and

over 30 ft wide. Their bark is a gray color and

smooth. The leaves are about 2-1/2 inches wide and 5 inches long with jagged edges.

Iron Wood at one time was used for golf clubs when they were made of wood!

SPRUCE PINE – Pinus glabra

Spruce pine has softer needles, smaller cones (2 to 2-1/2

inches) and different bark from true pine trees. You

will spot the tree mostly by its bark because it looks

more like the bark of an oak tree than a pine. Unlike

other pine trees, the pine cones remain on the trees and

turn gray with age. The first Spruce Pine tree was

discovered in 1765 near Savannah, Georgia. That’s

Juliette Gordon Lowe’s birthday place!

CRY BABY TREE – Erythrina crista-gallii

The Cry Baby Tree is also known as “Christ

Tears”, Fireman’s Cap and Dragon’s Teeth. This

tree is known as an “heirloom plant” that has

grown in the south forever. Its name comes from

the nectar that drops from the flowers. The

flowers vary from dark red to reddish - pink in

color attached to the green leaf plant. The wood is

soft and can be used for corks or art carvings.

NARROW LEAF WILLOW – Salix interior

Long slender light green leaves. There are lots of these

bushes along the river! The river current has moved

seeds from parent plants way up the river. Each seed

has found a new home and grows quickly. They are

about 15 feet tall and help reduce erosion.

While you are on thesand bar look for animalfoot prints like opossum,squirrels, white tail deer,turtles, raccoon, frogs,beaver and lots others.

Look for special rocks thatyou like. Look for ones thathave holes in them – thoseare “friendship” rocks.Put those on a specialstring for a necklace orbracelet.

Raccoon

DeerBeaver

Turkey

Black Bear

Duck

Coyote

Bobcat

Like nature itself, this trail and guide have evolved through the years to be what they

are today. The original path was cut by Girl Scouts long before any buildings were

constructed at the camp. There have been many through the years who have helped

with its development, including Soil Conservationist, Junior, Cadette and Senior Girl

Scouts, Naturalists, Resident Camp Staff, Troop Leaders and Foresters. They gave from

their hearts, hands and talents so that Girl Scouts could wander in wonder.

Girl Scout MissionGirl Scouting builds girls of courage, confidence,and character, who make the world a better place.

This Publication is a service ofGIRL SCOUT COUNCIL OF LOUISIANA EAST

P.O. Box 10800New Orleans, LA 70181-0800

GSLE 06/12

Printed on recycled paper