Another delightful day, had lunch outside after spending the morning trying to find names for some of the plants and trees here. Woody made a trip into town then after lunch, sharpened Dave’s knives and mowed some grass, he has to be busy! I spent some time on the exercise machine, had a massage, we both went for a walk, had dinner, etc. The evening passed quickly with a visit from Dave.

One of our goals while traveling is to learn a little about the areas we stay at and thought I would share some information I found on PA.

The State Flower is the Mountain Laurel, as enacted by the General Assembly on May 5, 1933.
Mountain Laurel bloom between May and June. Mountain Laurel flowers are pink, sometimes white. Blooms first appear in late spring and continue into early summer. The Mountain Laurel flowers bloom in showy clusters. Such gorgeous flowers!

Mountain Laurel flowers are also called Ivybush, Calico Bush, Spoonwood, Sheep Laurel, Lambkill and Clamoun. The Mountain Laurel plant is naturally found on rocky slopes and in mountainous forest areas.

Mountain Laurel and other Laurels have poisonous leaves, which may be grazed by hungry livestock. Milk produced by cows that eat the leaves may be poison as may honey produced by bees that visit the flowers.

State tree is the Eastern Hemlock.

Eastern hemlock is a slow-growing long-lived tree which unlike many trees grows well in shade. It may take 250 to 300 years to reach maturity and may live for 800 years or more. A tree measuring 193 cm (76 in) in d.b.h. and 53.3 m (175 ft) tall is among the largest recorded. Hemlock bark was once the source of tannin for the leather industry; now the wood is important to the pulp and paper industry. This tree also ranks high for ornamental planting.

Ruffled grouse, wild turkey and songbirds find food (seeds) and shelter in this tree. Deer browse it heavily when deep snow makes other food scarce.

Common Names: Abete del Canada, American hemlock, black hemlock, Canadese hemlock, Canadese hemlock-den, Canadian hemlock, eastern hemlock, hemlock spruce, Huron pine, kanadensisk tsuga, New England hemlock, Pennsylvania hemlock, perusse, pine, pruche de l'est, pruche prusse, red hemlock, sapin du Canada, schierlingstanne, spruce, spruce hemlock, spruce pine, tsuga canadese, tsuga del Canada.
Habitat: The sites they occupy are universally characterized as being moist to very moist but with good drainage.
Description: is a slow-growing long-lived tree which unlike many trees grows well in shade. It may take 250 to 300 years to reach maturity and may live for 800 years or more.
Uses: Eastern hemlock is used principally for lumber and pulpwood. The lumber is used largely in building construction for framing, sheathing, subflooring, and roof boards, and in the manufacture of boxes, pallets, and crates.

The Capital of Pennsylvania is Harrisburg. Pennsylvania gained statehood on December 12, 1787. Pennsylvania was the second state in the USA.

The Pennsylvania State Flag became the official state flag in 1799, a banner fringed in gold with the Coat of Arms embroidered on a field of blue.

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  Geographically Pennsylvania is positioned between New England, the Appalachians, and the Great Lakes.
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  Pennsylvania is bordered by New York, West Virginia, Maryland, Delaware, and New Jersey. Pennsylvania meets Ohio and an arm of West Virginia on the West.


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  Pennsylvania means Penn's woodland, named after William Penn.


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  The total area of Pennsylvania is 46,058 square miles. [Pennsylvania is the 33rd biggest state in the USA]


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  Major Industries of Pennsylvania are steel, farming (corn, oats, soybeans, mushrooms), mining (iron, portland cement, lime, stone), electronics equipment, cars, pharmaceuticals.


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  The state's nickname is Keystone State.


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  Pennsylvania is well known for its quality wood products such as furniture, sheds, gazebos and play sets.


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  Population is 12,429,616