In November 2000, Tina Barney and Sara White purchased a 169-acre parcel on the south side of Clay Hill Road in Hartland, Vermont. The recently partnered couple had been searching for land suitable…

White-tailed deer typically shed their antlers in December or January. After autumn’s breeding season, hormonal changes cause a weakened connection between the antler and the pedicle, where the…

The first time I met most of the CNWE board of directors was at a summer board retreat at Seyon Lodge in Groton, Vermont. Arriving late at night, I ignored the printed directions in favor of Google…

Assessing forest health can be challenging for state and federal agencies, which often rely on limited staff to survey vast forest acreage. One of the most efficient ways to monitor large areas is by…

In the Winter 2024 issue of Northern Woodlands, writer Brett Amy Thelen describes heroic efforts to rescue stranded loons from iced-in lakes throughout the Northeast. With heavy bones built for…

At age 4, living with his family in Oklahoma, Eric Orff would spend as much time as he could catching horned toads and tarantulas. “I knew that someday I would work with animals and become a…

As microbes and plant roots metabolize organic matter in the soil, they release carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, a process called soil respiration. In the Northeast, where forests store more than…

Every year in the United States, road crews dispense more than 24 million metric tons of de-icing salts. In the snowy Northeast, where plows and salt trucks ply the roads for months on end, sodium…

Laura Waterman’s latest book reflects on an extraordinary life as a wilderness steward, homesteader, mountaineer, and writer. It also offers heart-wrenching insight into the death of her husband…

Spending time in the woods can prompt reflection, especially when one has decisions to make. For forester and writer Ethan Tapper, who also pens the Forest Insights column for this magazine,…

For conservationists seeking to reverse the global decline of bumble bee populations, pesticide contamination of soils is a significant concern. Although there has not been extensive research on how…

For the Winter 2024 issue of Northern Woodlands, outgoing Executive Director Elise Tillinghast and her husband, photographer Tig Tillinghast, put together a brief feature article focused on the work…

Years ago, my three siblings and I discovered that we shared a recurring nightmare: We are running for our lives down our childhood street in Brooklyn, being chased by a subway train broken free of…

On the road to wisdom, behave like a raven and observe everything carefully! – Mehmet Murat Ildan The raven (Corvus corax) is an intelligent, gregarious bird that exhibits a noteworthy variety…

In the last column we discussed tips and tricks for hand splitting gnarly firewood. Hand splitting is cheaper than a gym membership but may not be practical based on the type or amount of wood you…

I just bought a parcel of forestland and I don’t know where to start. Do I need a forester? Even for people who have owned a parcel of forestland for a long time, caring for a forest can be…

On days when I drop off my wife at her dance class, I explore Red Rocks Park in South Burlington, Vermont. I meet dog walkers and a few hardy birders but as far as I know, I’m the only one out…

(If You Know How and Where to Look) Groundnut (Apios americana), an herbaceous, perennial member of the pea family (Fabaceae), is native to most of the eastern United States and adjacent areas of…