Launching Into Nature Interpretation
Hey Everyone! My name is Evan, in my last semester here at Guelph. Welcome to my blog:)
My current relationship with nature seems to be transitioning from a purely physical perspective to one that strives to learn more about the ins and outs of what makes things possible, and the purpose behind it. Why do certain trees grow in certain environments? Why are certain plants and mushrooms edible and others poisonous? Did we really go through thousands of generations with people eating a certain plant, dying as a result, and now being taught not to eat that certain plant through word of mouth? These are some of the types of questions I ponder as my current relationship with nature grows.
Besides this, my physical relationship with nature now consists of going on hikes with friends, foraging or just finding different shrubs, trees, or fungi, and since the completion of my program, viewing the natural landscape as a medium for sustainable designs. I just finished my program in Landscape Architecture and now finishing up electives. My hope is that I can take what I have gained and apply that knowledge to interpreting nature for others.Ā At this point in my life I feel so educated about nature and at the same time feel like I have barely scratched the surface.
I discovered these little guys on a walk when I was living in my student house in Guelph. Based on the fact that it was during winter months and growing on a dead piece of hardwood, I'm fairly certain these are Flammulina velutipes, commonly known as velvet shank or enoki mushrooms (they are edible and choice but I'm only a beginner so I just got this cool picture instead)
The wonderful thing about my current relationship with nature is that I never used to think this way. As a kid, I never thought about the purpose behind things in nature, I just assumed a thing is a thing because it grows and thatās it. I believe my perspective towards nature has evolved through experience. Experiencing climbing trees, falling off trees, trying to catch frogs in a local pond, or using a torch to burn a leach off my leg because I was trying to catch frogs in a local pond. I was fortunate enough to grow up in a middle-class household, and so my old home used to back onto a small ravine and mixed deciduous forest.
Every day after school, my brother and I would put on our waterproof boots, maybe pack a granola bar in the pocket for a snack later, and we would just walk. Walk into the forest, straying away from any desired lines, making your own path, jumping in puddles, listening to birds chirping, or getting hit in the face with a buckthorn branch because your brother didnāt wait for you. We would just walk and talk until there was no more forest to be found or until we stumbled upon the next subdivision of neighborhoods.Ā I truly believe this is where my appreciation and curiosity for nature was born.Ā
A little blurry but I think it still gets the point across lol. My brother on the right and myself on the left after one of the many afterschool hikes.
When thinking about how one develops a sense of place, it typically can happen in more than one setting, and even under different contexts. For me, my sense of place stems from two major experiences in my life so far. The first, already mentioned above, but I really found such bliss going on hikes and walking in the forest behind my childhood home. Itās hard to describe the feeling, but it feels like you are transported into an entirely new world, where you experience taking your first steps past the forest edge, the wind no longer hitting your face and this calm silence grows until it becomes a peaceful white noise. I really felt like this forest was part of my home; I used to call it my backyard when I was younger because it really allowed me to find comfort in nature.
The second experience is going to my cottage every year. For context, my cottage sits on the shores of Georgian Bay, in Lionās Head, Ontario. My grandadās father bought the property in 1939, where they moved their little old trailer onto, and built the most vintage-looking bungalow which I now call my cottage. Georgian Bay is an incredible location, I may be biased but if you havenāt been there I highly suggest it. Connected to the Bruce trails and a part of the Niagara Escarpment, this environment offered a radically different landscape than where I grew up, even though itās only about four hours northwest. The rocky limestones coupled with blue shale make this environment unforgettable and have allowed me to experience having a sense of place in a completely different environment than what Iām used to. Thanks for reading and see you on the next blog:)
View of the Niagara Escarpment at Lion's Head Provincial Park, Ontario