The dance of life
I woke up late, exhausted by another week of slogging through the mire as a slave of commerce. My heart and my mind were already in the woods, but my body required extra rest.
Encountering the magnificent monarchs
En route from San Miguel de Allende, Guanajuato, Mexico, to the Monarch Butterfly Sanctuary in neighboring Michoacan we share…
This is why we garden
The ice is gone from the lake, the buds are swelling, and the days are longer. Go out into the garden and brush away some leaves or dirt and behold the emerging buds. These buds will turn into lush growth in just a few weeks.
On trails and water
I often visit woodlots where it’s clear that some active management, often through the strategic harvesting of trees, would benefit the health and resilience of the forest, the quality of wildlife habitat or some other important objective.
Sign of spring
New life is everywhere. Sometimes we have to slow down to see it: snow fleas bounding across the dirty-white canvas of melting snow or hepatica leaves peeking from beneath leaf litter.
The monarch butterfly challenge: Can we reverse its population decline?
The monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus) has been in the news recently. The populations of these colorful and much loved butterflies have declined 90 percent in the past 20 years, and people are alarmed. Why has the monarch disappeared, and what can we do to reverse this trend?
It’s Opening Day: Time to dance.
Even us whacky ice fishermen who love the cold barren environment on the frozen lake, share a certain affinity for the second Saturday in April. Known in some circles as the “Glorious Opening Day of Trout Season,” for many of us it is simply the celebration of swiftly flowing water and the hope of hooking up with nice holdover rainbow.
Charlotte’s proactive response to the emerald ash borer problem
Foresters, homeowners, local leaders and environmentalists have few choices when confronting the emerald ash borer (EAB). The damage wrought by this exotic beetle, first detected in Michigan in 2002, is devastating.
Composting: the humane alternative
Houseplants are the bane of many very accomplished gardeners. Perhaps there should be a bumper sticker—Houseplants: Compost Them.
Raven Ridge Natural Area Trail Closure Notice
The Nature Conservancy owns and manages the 365-acre Raven Ridge Natural Area, spanning the towns of Charlotte, Monkton, and Hinesburg.
Gardening reading to carry through to spring
While there is still plenty of winter left and days by the fire go on, I’d like to suggest some reading inspiration for you. I hope to revisit many of the books and magazines my garden has benefited from over the years. Sometimes catalogues are good reading as well.
Value of the great outdoors
Consider the pleasure of being on a Vermont trail: Long Trail, VAST, Catamount, Town Link Trail or Charlotte Park and Wildlife Refuge, Burlington Bike Path. There’s the beauty, relaxation, wildlife and fresh air. There is also an economic value. How do we calculate the value of outdoor recreation to the State of Vermont? And how can we help to maintain these assets?
Let’s go fishing
Come join the party! All are welcome—just make sure you have your fishing license!
A winter escape
Do you need a garden oasis about now? Someplace quiet and filled with plants happy to see you? You…
Charlotte Rec News – Spring Program Guide
Youth Lacrosse. Players in grades 3 through 8 will participate in the US Lacrosse league and will need a…
BIG at the stock show
At the National Western Stock Show in Denver, which runs for 16 days each January as it has since 1906, big is on display. In exhibitions and competitions and for sale are irrigation systems, hay balers, cowboy boots and hats, belt buckles, “concealed carry” purses, Dodge Ram pickups and cow washing stations (keeps the flies at bay and improves hide quality).
A tree’s second act
Somewhere encoded into our DNA is an appreciation for forests with evenly spaced, uniformly sized trees and a completely bare understory. If you identify with that idyllic vision, you’re not the only one; most landowners I meet picture healthy forests in that way.
Preposterous
Gardening is always an act of faith and hope, but looking at both the thermometer and snow and ice, well, it seems preposterous that we will have the abundance of flowers, fruits and vegetables ever again. We will.
Best day of ice fishing
Indulge me for a moment and allow me to write about the same topic as last month. I am obsessed. It started off innocuously, like a mere sniffle at the beginning of a common cold. It soon developed into a fever pitch with me tossing and turning in my bed at night.
The Charlotte alchemist: An interview with Steve Wisbaum
“The medieval chemical science and speculative philosophy that focused on the attempt to change less valuable metals into gold, to find a universal cure for disease, and to discover a means of prolonging life indefinitely is called alchemy.