Watching the green crawl up the mountain ravines, I know that I am looking at the poplars along the mountain streams. It is the magnificent tulip poplar, Liriodendron tulipifera, which sends out the most leaves first. The other major population in these forests is the oak tribe. They are a bit more reluctant to leaf, not wanting to risk the loss of all of their foliage to frosts. They are tentatively hanging out their "flowers" adding more pollen to the sex-filled air.
