Long Point - growing in sand, new trees from St Williams Nursery and Ecology Centre

In my posts on "growing in sand" I have yet to mention much about trees. We have been trying to build up the dune between the cottage and the walkway with trees as well as plants. Some of these are transplants: cotton wood poplars from the beach and sumacs from roadside ditches. About 2 out of 10 cottonwoods survive the transplanting process. They have very fine, extensive root structures and it is difficult to get them all or provide them with enough surface to draw sustenance from. We have only been transplanting sumacs for the last 2 years, just a few at a time, but so far they are surviving.
This last winter was very hard on the trees. The wind was strong and frequent, the snow was deep and the critters were hungry. A spring inspection revealed that the apple tree George had planted 2 springs ago had been eaten all the way around the trunk and up about 3 feet (the depth of the snow there). I am told it will not make it.

This apple tree wasn't grown in sand. George had filled a big barrel with top soil and
planted it in that. We had blossoms but no fruit the last 2 years.

This was a High Bush Cranberry. It was about 2ft high but was eaten to the ground
this winter. There are some live shoots coming up so I hope it will recover.

Last weekend I went to the biannual sale at the St Williams Nursery and Ecology Centre (Hwy 24 and Forestry Farm Rd). They are a wholesale nursery and specialize in native species. They grow for the Nature Conservancy and the Windsor Wetland Project among others. George and I went last spring and were amazed at the prices, knowledgeable staff and masses of native species. This year I went with a better understanding of what I needed, hoping to not get caught up in impulse buying. I had limited success. Nurseries do that to me in the spring.

This was my haul from the St Williams Nursery

I bought a Red Oak, a Bur Oak, a Pin Cherry, a Serviceberry, a Prairie Brome and a Prairie Dock. The last 2 are ornamental grasses. I bought Chris a Jack in the Pulpit for her terrarium planter. The whole lot cost me $48 plus tax. I think one tree would have cost me that elsewhere. They are now planted, scattered along the dune and next fall I will get collars to protect them all.
Rasta is recovering nicely from his neutering and de-clawing (just the two between his pads and his thumbs as they were curling under and going to give him trouble). He slept a lot and wanted to be on my lap. He's up and about more now and seems to have had no ill effects (aside from it taking him 5 days to poop which was a little worrying)

Rasta was happy to have Chris to nap with.

He had to help build his new play house.

And try it out.

The domestic cat.