Times-Advocate, 1988-09-21, Page 33LONG FLIGHT - Christa and Karl Riemann realized a dream when they visited Canada for the first time. The
couple flew their single-engine Beechcraft Bonanza from Germany across the North Atlantic to the air field at Cen-
tralia, and renewed acquaintance with Uwe Wisch, (centre) RR 2-Kippen, a'former resident of their home town of
Marne.
Find in trees area
over 27 earsoae
ern Canada. Geneticists can answer mates it would take at (east 30 years
of zero traffic to reverse the cycle.
"Conservation authorities deal dai-
ly with the paradox'of how to teach
people about nature while keeping
it natural," says Larson, who be-
lieves that public access to nature
areas is crucial to their protection.
"We don't want people to think that
paved streets are natural. People
need to experience the natural world
to learn to appreciate it."
Larson believes the knowledge
that an ancient forest can survive in
the midst of Canada's most populat-
ed arca will help to develop an ap-
preciation for nature and will en-
courage hikers to stay onthe trail.
Stimulating people to protect 600 -
year -old cedar trees will also help to
preserve other members of the plant
community, he says. .
• GUELPH - The previous estimate
for the oldest living trees in Ontario
has been more than doubled with
thc r coni discovery of cedars up to
723 years old on the Niagara Es-
carprnent. University of Guelph
botanist Doug Larson happened on
Me ancient forest this summer at a
research site near Milton.
Clinging to the cliff face of the
escarpment, these eastern white cc-
dars are within sight of Highway
4101, says Larson. Marry are located
within conservation areas, where
they, havebeen touched, photo-
graphed; even vandalized by hikers
and cliff climbers. But until now,
no one realized their exceptional age
because most are small and de-
formed in shape. It was a surprise,
says Larson, to discover that some
of the trees growing on the escarp-
ment were roiotc'd at the time of the
1'lagna Carta, more than 200 years
before the first European settlers
landed on Canadian shores.
Sandy Bell, manager of conserva-
tion areas .for the 'Talton Region
Conservation Authority, whose ju-
risdiction includes the Milton arca,
says he would not expect io find
trees in this part of .southern Onta-
rio more than 80 years old..Because
of extensive` logging in the early
1900s, most of today's mature fo-
rests are between 50 and 80 years,
with only thc occasional specimen
that might be as old as 150 years,
he says.,
The .cliff forest probably survived
logging, fire, settlement and paving
becausc,it is inaccessible, says Lar-
son. The oldest of the specimens he
Anis-dated-overhang-the. edge -of .the
escarpment and emerge from cracks.
in the face of the limestone cliffs.
To the scientist, this ancient for,
est offers a source of biological -ma-
terial never available before. "It is
probably the last piece .of. undis-
turbed habitat in Ontario," says L -ar-
son, "and it's in the middle of five mans per hour during June, July and
or six- million people." Through: the • August - has eliminated seedlings
study of annual growth rings, geol-. and undergrowth, resulting in ere-
ogists and climatologists can inter- sion of the layer of organic material
prct weather patterns and climate on the forest floor that normally
changes that have occurred in East- • promotes new growth. Larson esti-
questions about the stability of
DNA over long periods of time.
And environmentalists can acquire a-
better understanding of how chemi-
cals and acid rain have affected plant
growth.
With funding from the Natural
Sciences and Engineering Research
Council, Larson has been studying
the Niagara Escarpment and the cliff
face ecosystem for two years. His
research team has looked at-thebiol-
ogy of thc cedar that enables itto
survive .where no-othertrees'grox"'
"I he eastern white cedar is one of
the most common bees in Ontario,
thriving in wet, swampy areas and
often used in urban backyards as
hedges. It also.grows on bare rocks
without soil along the edge of
cliffs.
These trees are survivors, but not
competitors, says Larson. They can
survive in areas of extreme wet and
dry conditions, but tend to die when
there is competition from other
trees. Cedars have the ability to root
anywhere along the trunk or branch-
es and actually seem to be able to
stop growing in times of stress to
maintain life in the root system, he
says. In core samples taken from
trees more than 400 years old, Lar-
son has counted annual growth
rings that are no bigger than the
width of two cells. In the plant
world, only mosses andlichens are
known to grow that slowly," he
says.
Unfortunately, within the public-
ly owned areas of the escarpment,
there are few young trees and sccd-
-lings-to- maintain the ancient forest,
says Larson. Studies conducted on
both private and public lands reveal
that undergrowth in the undisturbed
areas is 10 times more dense than
along hiking trails.
- Human traffic within the conser-
vation areas - as high as 19.1 hu-
KAIiC1E1R
International Plowing Match
SHOW SPECIAL
1
Ontario Community Newspapers
Association
And
Canadian Airlines International
�W
e uru�y
�;J o
..1 AWARDS
ONTARIO JUNIOR CI IZEN
OF THE
YEAR AWARDS
"011e in every crowd"
Nominations are now being
received for Ontario . Junior
Citizen of the Year awards. Con-
tact this newspaper t� nominate
..an _outstanding young person
ages 6 to 18, who deserves more '
than a pot on the back.
Times -Advocate, September 21, 1988 Page 13
To sell new sheep breeds
OTTAWA - Agriculture Canada
has signed an agreement with the
Canadian -Sheep Breeders' Associa-
tion (CSBA) to promote the sale
and distribution of three new breeds •
of sheep.
The three breeds -- Canadian Ar-
cott, Outaouais Arcott and Rideau
Arcot' -- were developed by Agri-
culture Canada at its Animal Re-
search Center in Ottawa and regis-
tered last spring.
The agreement lays the ground-
work for establishing a minimum
of two nucleus flocks of registered
animals foreach breed. This will
preserve the genetic makeup of the
breeds and provide- a continuing
source of registered animals.
A minimum of 400 ewes and 40
rams of each breed will be availa-
ble, at $200 cach for adults and
$150 each for lambs, to establish
the nucleus flocks. Surplus ani-
mals will, be auctioned off by Agri-
culture Canada and the CSBA at a
later date. , •
Groups or individuals interested
in obtaining one of the nucleus
flocks for their breeding operation
should contact Agriculture Canada
as soon as possible for an informa-
tion package.
Letters of application and com-
pleted questionnaires must be re-
turned to the Animal Research Cen-
ter by October 17, 1988. A
selection committee will choose ap-
plicants best able to carry out, the
procedures and guidelines estab-
lishcd by the CSBA and Agriculture
Canada for maintaining the Arcott
breeds.
Adult ewes and rams representa-
tive of the three breeds, will be ex-
hibited at the 60th Royal Agricultu-
ral - Winter Fair in Toronto
Novembei 9 to 20, 1988.
Don't forget
the 1988
International
Plow Match
this week
near Stratford
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