At this point, I think we’ve all gotten into a good groove. Phenology on half of the sites went smoothly this morning. Ben and I worked at Landfill. I enjoyed watching the nearby herd of cows get chased out of a wetland by an angry man in an ATV while I methodically selected “Done Flowering” for a head with no more female or male florets. The sun was out but the grass was dewy. I worked on the East hill for the first time. By 11:20am, we headed back to the Hjelm house to work on phenology in p1. People trickled in from all the different routes, and by lunch all the phenology was complete. After a calm lunch, where I thought for the first time about brome-derived ethanol, the team split up to complete a few jobs. While Amy and Danny headed out to prepare for the next step in the Compatibility study, the rest of us worked in p1 or the Hjelm house itself on various tasks. I started painting bracts: Lavender along the western edge of each head’s center divide, Pink along the eastern edge, and white for pre-shriveled styles. It was the perfect afternoon for that kind of task. The sky was bright blue but punctuated with small white bursts of cloud. The air was warm and the sun turned my rubber boots into little foot ovens. But time felt purposeful and productive. When everyone had finished their jobs, we met back on the porch and debriefed the day. It was busy, fruitful, but most of all it felt comfortable and settled. We are hitting our stride as a team, working smoothly to divide tasks and communicating clearly. And I think I’ve found my new passion in field work.
Pollinator Exclusion Bags On!
Bracts Painted!
Pollinator at work!
Dinner Time!!
