December 2012 – Page 2 – My Chicago Botanic Garden

Most people recognize a squirrel nest, called a drey, when they see one. The eastern gray squirrels in our region build dreys in trees for shelter and protection from the elements. What you see as a messy clump of leaves is actually a structure formed from sticks and then lined with leaves and other materials to make it a dry and cozy home.

This month I was walking around my neighborhood in Chicago, and I noticed that three out of four squirrel dreys on my street were located on branches that reach over the street. I had to ask myself why squirrels would build their homes in such a dangerous place. If the squirrel or its babies fell out, they would not only land on hard concrete but also risk being hit by a car! Are my neighborhood squirrels somehow related to the Three Little Pigs?

Since I know that is not the case, I started to speculate:

Perhaps squirrels are attracted to that particular view. Maybe thermal currents rising from the asphalt make that spot warmer than a branch over a lawn. Could it be that this spot also puts their predators at risk and therefore is actually a safer place to live? I don’t know!

So, I started looking around to see if there was a pattern in locations of squirrel dreys. To date, my findings are inconclusive. While searching for squirrel dreys, I did notice two other interesting things I would like to share.

PHOTO: This close up of a squirrel drey has an arrow pointing to the green plastic sticking out of the bottom of the drey. — Look carefully to see the bit of green plasting in this photo of a drey.

First, there are fewer squirrel dreys on the Learning Campus than there are in my neighborhood. I suspect that is because the Garden is home to our friend the red-tailed hawk (from a previous blog post) and other predators that are more scarce around my home.

Second, I found a squirrel drey at the Garden that was built with something unusual. If you look carefully in the picture, you will see a green material, possibly shredded plastic like Easter basket grass, sticking out of the bottom. Now, I wonder where it found that! This drey is located on the Garden’s entrance road, near the entrance to the Barbara Carr Administrative Center, before you reach the Gatehouse. You will only notice it if you are looking at squirrel dreys as carefully as I am.

PHOTO: The same drey seen from another angle shows the green plastic. — The green plastic is circled in this view of the squirrel drey.

Take a look at the squirrel dreys around your home, nearby parks, and at the Garden. Are the the squirrels building over the road in your area? Have you seen a squirrel enter or leave a drey? What is the strangest material they have used to build it? If you notice any patterns, post a comment in this blog.

Say “prohibition” and lots of other interesting words immediately spring to mind. Speakeasy. Bootleg. Moonshine. Now add a new phrase to that list: Repeal Day.

Repeal Day is December 5. Why that date? Because on December 5, 1933, Utah cast the ratifying vote to repeal Prohibition, bringing to an end more than 13 years of a national ban on the sale, manufacture, transportation — and consumption! — of alcohol.

Although the Eighteenth Amendment was intended to reduce crime and poverty by curbing all things alcohol, Prohibition didn’t quite turn out that way:

Speakeasies became more numerous than the saloons they replaced.
Average citizens became illegal “bathtub gin” distillers.
Violence and crime skyrocketed.
Gangsters found a foothold in society by transporting and selling liquor.

By the time the Twenty-first Amendment repealed the Eighteenth (the only time in history that’s happened), citizens had realized that prohibiting alcohol also prohibited:

Toasting your son or daughter on his or her wedding day.
Pressing the grapes you tended all summer into the wine you served all winter.
The simple enjoyment of a cold beer on a hot day.

With that in mind, the folks at repealday.org decided to mark “a return to the rich traditions of craft fermentation and distillation, the legitimacy of the American bartender as a contributor to the culinary arts, and the responsible enjoyment of alcohol as a sacred social custom.”

In the spirit of Repeal Day, we are hosting our first-ever Holiday Cheers! Seasonal Tasting event on December 5, from 6 to 8 p.m. A who’s who of Chicago distillers, brewers, and winemakers will be there to offer tastings and teachings about the city’s burgeoning spirits scene.

Join us to raise a glass to the grapes and the grains and the hops that make it all possible.

Fun reading/resources at our Lenhardt Library:

The Encyclopedia of Chicago keeps you flipping from topic to topic, 100 Years of Brewing takes you back pre-Prohibition, and The Home Brewers Garden helps you plan next year’s garden.

Month: December 2012

Squirrel Drey Query

Raise a Glass to Repeal Day!