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Big construction work, pine needles falling into spring

April 10, 2015

We often hear the term evergreen for pines and other conifers that keep their needles and color all year long. And we don’t think of evergreens as losing their leaves or going through the great changes of color we see with deciduous trees. But this week, many of the long-needled pines of the area are undergoing a kind of fall in the spring.

This is the time of year when the old green needles turn. At first the appearance is of dying trees. Hey, what’s up? This isn’t California. No drought here. Why are these pines turning brown?

Closer examination reveals new green needles jumping in behind the browning needles that give the appearance of a dying tree.

In a few weeks, the old needles will have dropped and the new needles coming behind will bring back the fresh green appearance of the trees that we’re used to and that we like so much, even if we don’t notice in particular.

In the hardwood forests of Sussex, the beeches do something similar. They’re the last trees to lose their leaves, holding them brown and all winter long, often not dropping them until the tightly folded new green leaves emerging from buds force them off in the spring.

I’m a big fan of the treelines of Sussex that provide a natural backdrop to everything. I like the holly understory, particularly noticeable in the winter and early spring. And if I had another cause to adopt, it would be save the hedgerows of Sussex. They’re a thing of beauty and a haven for wildlife. Ask the rabbits, groundhogs, foxes and quail that find them particularly attractive for habitation. Why do you think groundhogs are sometimes called hedgehogs?

Many of the hedgerows consist of Osage orange and wild cherry trees which constantly plant, replant and sustain themselves. There are many in Sussex that date back to the late 1600s and early 1700s as natural property lines between farmers’ fields.

As simple a concept as are hedgerows, they are something to be cherished, marked with plaques and preserved as part of our historical landscape.

Lots of construction

If it feels like there’s a lot of construction in the town of Lewes at the moment, it’s because there is.

Winter weather broke, and contractors are getting into high gear. The $11 million Lewes Public Library and trailhead project along Freeman Highway is moving forward.

The Gills Neck Road to Freeman Highway bicycle trail extension is finally becoming a reality. The Margaret H. Rollins School of Nursing - another multimillion-dollar project - is nearing completion. A repaving of Savannah Road from the beach almost to town limits is temporarily congesting different areas as contractors race toward completion before the summer season, and Beebe Healthcare is in the midst of a several hundred thousand dollar reroofing project.

According to Sandy McCurdy, director of Beebe’s engineering department, contractors are replacing the flat roof surface on the clinical building known as the west wing. Next to the Rite Aid Pharmacy, that wing houses the main entrance to the hospital next to the parking garage entrance.

McCurdy said that project also involves the placement of two new air handling units atop the roof for the clinical building. Travel through that area is being restricted by a crane in place to hoist materials to the roof. She said the top-of-the-line, torch-down roofing material has welded seams and a 30-year warranty.

There’s nothing more important to a building than a good roof.

McCurdy said the project should be complete by the end of June.

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