Site Discussions

Hi Michael. Thank you for writing this article. I am grateful to know this, and reading about how the tree is in a wild conversion process in the fall and winter, what effect does tapping maple trees have on their preparation for the summer and overall health of the tree? My guess is that it could even be good for the tree to let off some of the sugary antifreeze to get ready for warmth.

We have heated with a Timberline since the middle 1970’s.  Timberline is like a Fisher, but with a baffle plate.  Our Timberline is the largest model (560 pounds).  We heat a Lindal chalet (high ceilings).  We did a major roof insulation project 5 years ago, and we have a heat pump for back up.

Advantages of the old Timberline:
Any size wood will fit into the double doors.
It will heat the house no matter what the temperature or wind.

Creates very little creosote because we burn it with the vents wide open as much as possible.
The 5 gallon water pot on top of the stove acts as a humidifier.

I looked at the new high efficient stoves:  they are not built very heavy duty compared to the old Timberline.

How do you put waterbars in the corduroy road? Do you dig waterbars first, then lay the logs?

I have a mucky part keeping me from accessing a stream and the other side. Need a “path” of sorts, plus a bridge. But, I am wondering about the “Waterbar” bit.

Thanks!

There has been a small population of mountain lions present in New England since the 1940s at the least. Some of the older evidence, including an excellent booklet put out by a bobcat hunter in Massachusetts that occasionally would run into them, has been lost or forgotten. Tracks were confirmed several times in the past that are not listed anymore. With the documented population of mountain lions increasing JUST over the border in Canada, if they are not here now, they will soon be. The standard explanation is “escaped pet”, but the evidence thus far shows that’s not the case.

The procedure discussed is faulty in two ways.  A cord of wood is defined as 4’x4’x8.’  When you cut it to firewood length it will shrink significantly because the cutting “straightens” out the pieces.  The second error is that the original measure was used for pulp wood which was not split. 

The Woodburners Encyclobedia claims a 25% reduction in size when 4’ wood is cut “to length” because of closer stacking and sawdust loss. It also says that maximum amount of wood is obtained when smaller pieces are fitted in between larger ones in the pile.  They claim the volume of a cord varies between 60 and 100 cubic feet depending on the shape of pieces and how they are stacked.

I note that my wood piles settle over time.  I do not know if it is a result of shrinking from moisture loss or just settling in with time as the pieces of wood get to know each other. 

Years ago I read a Forest Service Report that stated that splitting firewood some times fluffed up the pile and sometimes caused it to shrink. 

We all know that branch wood does not tally up the way trunk wood does.  Also, it seems that trees with thick, rough bark do not stack as tightly. 

Ted Cady

Here we have as many as 170 or more per square mile. I have seen 15 at a time in my yard lately. It’s insane. They eat most of our plants every year if I am not on the ball with repellant. I’m going to hunt them next fall finally.

Saw one in 1975 in Brookline.  It was right outside (5’ away) my kitchen picture window—tawny color, long tail out behind, and much bigger than a bobcat.  I went outside and followed it for 500 yds. before it melted into the understory.  I was able to get a very good look at it for a decent period of time.

Nice article.  Friends of mine who hunt insist they have seen mountain lions.  I think this article goes a long way to explain these sightings…or non sightings.  Nice job.

As one who has tapped tress for forty years, I have never seen the likes of this year.  Wells around the trees prompted me to tap January 30, 2016 and sap is flowing. Thank you for your information.  I found it very useful.

Doug, I haven’t been sugaring for 30 years, but correct me if I’m wrong…the sap we collect comes from the crown of the tree not the root system. As the sun warms the tree gravity or suction pulls the sap from the crown. I don’t believe frost 9 feet deep will effect yield.

Stone piles, cairns, walls, and mounds occur all over the eastern seaboard states, inland to Ohio, Kentucky, Tennessee, and perhaps others of which I am unaware. These man-made features on the landscape have been shown, through archaeological investigations, to be associated with prehistoric native Americans and historic-period colonist-settlers. Recent investigative methods such as aerial photography, ground penetrating radar, and LiDar have provided means to demonstrate historic-period origins for some of these features. Others remain enigmatic and more difficult to attribute to a specific time period. Early archaeological investigations, circa 1880 to 1930, have shown that, even when excavated, some of these features can not be confidently attributed to a specific time period. Some of these features have been shown to have astronomical alignments and association with prehistoric mortuary practices. In my opinion, it is best to consider stone features as cultural resources that may have played a significant role for prehistoric people while also understanding that stone features on the landscape may be as mundane as historic-period walls associated with property lines, debris from field clearing, or storage of construction material. All of these possible functions should be considered possibilities and perhaps significant in local, state or regional prehistory or history.

Wow! Never see these butterflies! I hope will see these butterflies in my country.

Hello. I stumbled upon this article when conducting some research for general information about Great Horned Owls, because yesterday morning at 6:00, I was on my front porch chatting with one! I was headed out to start my car and in the predawn quiet of my oceanside neighborhood, I caught the distinctive hooting of this beautiful bird. No other houses had lights on, so I was not shy about mimicking her calls.She answered me immediately and we had a brief conversation. I was truly thrilled and enchanted.

We have snowys here in southern Maine now too.

Cindy Nilsen

Large western federal land holdings are always going to be a burr in the saddle of ranchers, timber interests, miners and drillers. No matter how those lands are managed, there will always be those who see untapped natural resources they wish to access for profit.

Those wishes and what is best for the lands involved—and the public interests in those lands—are difficult to combine and accommodate successfully.

The bottom line is there will always be those who resent federal land ownership.

I’ve read your article dated 2005 and wondered if you were still available on that subject.

I believe I’ve identified the critters to be shrews because of the sound they make…echolocation?? We have them in between our roof (metal) and insulation. They run along and then make this short ‘brrrr’ sound. We’ve set traps outside and caught mice, voles and only 3 shrews. We’ve been able to identify through your article…mice with white bellies, voles with golden brown fur and four ‘fingered’ toes and then finally the shrew with the pointed snout and five ‘fingers’. We’ve cut the noise down considerably with the catching of the three shrews but can’t seem to get the last (we hope) one. Now, with the cold of January on us and some snow on the ground, we don’t hear them much at all.

My question was about the noise we hear….about every 2 feet or 10 seconds…is it the echolocation or are we not able to hear that frequency?

Thanks
Jon & Patricia

Thanks so much for this article. I have a group of crows that greet me most mornings as I’m going off to work. I call them my guards. I love their calls.

Dave, once again you masterfully write about a sensitive subject that avoids victimizing your politically diverse audience.  I appreciate the many comparisons to various happenings around the country; VT and the expansion of the National Forest, SD and the legal disputes over land management and compensation, to the events currently happening in OR.  Unfortunately, Bundy and his extremists actions, have stolen the headlines from a legitimate dispute between two parties.  We must not allow extremists to fog the glass of legitimate legal disputes.  What the rancher in OR needs more is an action network of lawyers and activists no different from organizations that stand up for the rights of the less fortunate and minorities.  Then, the arguments presented in the case to the media will have firm ground to stand upon.  Perhaps ranchers and farmers out west should consider starting an organization to help them fight for common ground or perhaps there is one whose voice is unheard.

Nice to see someone thinking their way through a complex problem and putting it into broader perspective.

just read your article about live tree cells adapting to very cold, freezing temps.  More pliable cell membranes, increasing osmolarity with retained sugars, and finally the viscous state of the cytoplasmic proteins when frozen.  Would be nice to know how to convince human cells to adapt similarly.

I plan on cutting logs for a cabin, and thank you for the information you have given. I have a large selection of trees, but most are only around 10” in diameter. The one thing that I have going for me is they are pretty straight. Thanks again for the tips on peeling a tree. I will look into the best time to cut trees in my area.