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September 10, 1992 - The Surprises of Sears Bellows ParkSA • The Suffolk Times • September 10, 1992 The Surprises of Sears Bellows Park By Paul Stoutenburgh Having been a teacher during my work- ing years, I can safely say the best way to educate anyone is to have the student become involved with the subject. I guess that's why I spend so much time in the outdoors for it's there the real learning and enjoyment come in. Caser in point: I wanted to get closer to the pine barrens we have here on Long Island and so Bar- bara and I spent a day and night in one of our lesser -known parks in the Town of Southampton, Sears Bellows Focus County Park. Many of us have on Nature passed the signs just outside Hampton Bays as you head west on Mon- tauk Highway or on the Hampton Bays - Riverhead Road (Route 24) just west of the Troopers Headquarters. You know, the area everyone slows down for. The beauty of this park is that it is not overcrowded on weekdays as far as what we could see and it has the added attrac- tion of having a lovely kettle pond with a small swimming beach and picnic area. I recommend you become familiar with this park and take lunch in and sit by the pond and feel and smell the pine barrens that surround you. The pine barrens that most of us see whenever we take the Expressway are only a remnant of what was once a quar- ter of a million acres of pine barrens that spread from east to west throughout the heart of Long Island. Today, with our ever- expanding development, there is less than 100,000 acres of this mag- nificent and little -known area left. Per- armer c.� i ke's Farmstand Main Road, Peconic s R /SUGAR ET CORN 1 each Potatoes Onions 10 lbs. $ 150 3 lbs. $1 20 lbs. $250 10 lbs. $2 50 lbs. $5 25 lbs. $4 Boiling Onions Watermelon Cucumbers Arugula Coriander Eggplant Beets Fall Squash Frying Peppers Cabbage Flowers (Asters) Peppers 204 each 6 for $1.00 {�... GARDEN TOMATOES 00 all items when available haps, to many, magnificent is too flow- ery a word for what just looks like scrub pines and bushes but there's more to this scrubby area than meets the eye. Pine Barrens Left Alone Most of the soils which are a result of the outwash plains of past glaciers are sandy, dry and poor for growing things, except for those that through the process of evolution have adapted to this harsh environment. Because of their restricted type of growth and because the soil was never suitable for farming, the pine bar- rens for many years were left alone. Of- ten fire rages through them but again because of the particular type of plants that grow there the charred, burned areas soon spring back. A perfect example of this is the resis- tance to fire of the pitch pine. Most fires pass quickly through the "tinderbox" makeup of the pine barrens and because of the thick bark on the pitch pines many live through the inferno that sweeps through every 10 to 20 years. The cones on most pints mature in the second year and therefore there's a continuous release of seeds. This is true with pitch pines but they have another trick that helps to insure their survival. Some of their cones hold their seeds tightly closed until fire heats them and releases the winged seeds. Fire is also essential in that the scrub that grows among and below the pines is killed off by fire. If there was no fire then the scrub oaks would soon outgrow the pines and shade them into oblivion. So here we see that fire is an essential ingredient in keeping the pine barrens in a healthy state. Along with the scrub oaks that make up the understory we find low -bush blueberry and black huckleberry min- gled with sheep laurel, staggerbush, bracken fern and others. When condi- tions are right a solid mat of bearberry covers the ground along with a wide variety of lichens that can survive in this hot, dry area. Each of these plants has its own special way of meeting the different growing conditions found in the area. Wet Areas Throughout Many would be surprised to see that the pine barrens contain ponds, streams and bogs that blend in and out of this unique area. Bellows Pond at the park is a gem of crystal -clear water that one would not expect to ' find amongst the pines. We Fi had brought our canoe in hopes of putting it in the pond ke but were told it was not he allowed but we could put it in Sears Pond two miles up a "By permit only" road. Naturally, we signed in and were soon off to Sears Pond. I'd been in there years ago, even before the county had taken it over, and yet it seemed all new to me. The roads are sandy but firm and we had no trou- ble in getting there and soon had the canoe in the water. There was only one other boat on the pond with two men fishing and so we headed to the south Photo by Paul Stoutenburgh PAINTED TURTLE —In many of the ponds, steams and rivers here on Long Island we can see this turtle sunning himself on a log or other high ground above the cool water below. edge. The water along this edge was lined with waterlilies and a beautiful, tiny purple flower on a single stem. Later we looked it up and found it to be one of the bladderworts that have underwater bladders that capture minute organisms, one of the many carnivorous plants found throughout these pond and swamp areas. Further along we'd see a yellow bladderwort that had its feet in the muddy bog of the edge. In back of the re is an essential ingredien t aping the pine barrens in a althy state.' wet edge was the swamp loosestrife that aggressively took over and in back of that the tall, sweet pepperbush with still a few white spikes of its sweet - scented flowers blending in with the greenery that surrounded the pond. Dominating the woods around the pond were swamp maples that will soon be turning into their crimson and gold fall foliage. But the most impressive Joseph. L. Townsend INS CE Serving the North Fork Since 1950 HOMEOWNERS • MARINE • AUTO • LIFE 800.564 - 0933.216 Main Street, Greenport • 477 -0153 trees in this wet edge were the white cedars that are remnants of what was once a most sought -after tree for the timber trade. The white cedar is unique in that it can grow with its feet in the water. Long Island is at the edge of its northern range. We saw no deer al- though their tracks around the water's edge were everywhere. We saw a few hunters' duck blinds along the shore, telling us that during the season ducks must use the area. It was good to see the park was still in its pristine condi- n tion with only a few roads and many hiking trails throughout. Except for the camp area there was little sign of man's distur- bance. Once again we had to salute those politicians who had the foresight to set aside this valu- able natural resource for the people of Suffolk. In these economically depressed times we can be thankful that the peo- ple's lands are still safe and hopefully will always be there for us to enjoy. My only hope would be that more people would drive in with a picnic lunch or tent to stay over in our county parks for they are there for you to enjoy. Abuse Workshops The Victims Information Bureau (VIB) of Suffolk Inc. provides 16 workshops for men who have been verbally orphysically abusive to their mates. Men interested in participat- ing in the program can call 360 -3730 for information and schedules.