Site Discussions

We started selling firewood in North Jersey and from what I’ve seen and counted in the past years is there should be 480 pieces of wood in a cord.

Thank you for your experience! I am looking forward to having my own tree farm. I can have my own Christmas tree!!!

I witnessed something today that I have never even heard of.  On December 31st, I witnessed a whitetail doe give birth to a fawn.  How is this possible?

Just wanted to add a little two cents worth, having been successful on three occasions of capturing a wild hive.

  Bees have a distinctive method for setting direction and distance. They use the angle of the Sun at a particular time of day, primarily, but setting this often requires circling, if it is more than a quarter mile away. They will then fly straight.

  If you sit by a trickling creek or stream, you will often see a bee drinking, especially if it is a hot summer. If you carry a small vial of flour and sprinkle a little on the bee, she will look like a dot when she flies. The flour will require her to need to circle anyway, but will give you a direction of the hive. Keep sitting there and wait for another which should not take long. This time, since you know which direction the bee will wind up going, just focus on that direction. If it circles, it is more than a quarter away, if it goes straight, it is less. In either case, you must, must follow a strict compass bearing in the direction that bee traveled and look carefully as you go.

Dave,

This is a beautifully written piece. You put us right there and you did so in a most artful way. Thanks.

Ed

Thanks again Dave lll, The cold is back again but your beautiful words remind us of the great things we have to look forward to. Our woods, our rivers freezing, our forest wonderland! Thanks

I just stumbled upon this, and found it very interesting!  Tomorrow (Dec 30, 2014) my partner and I are closing on some land in VT, and I think a greenhouse would be an excellent way to start ‘building’ on the land (we’re planning on using it, primarily, for camping).  Thank you!

Thanks, great article and very helpful.

Your comparison of shaping a door with shaping an article is spot on.  I understand the analogy and get the point.  As a teacher, I appreciate the shout out to formal writing.  It is important.  Creative writing is important.  Writing is important.  When kids are exposed to the various styles and when to use them, they are better off.  Thanks for the honesty, the humility, and craftsmanship of your work.

I always enjoy Dave Mance III’s lyrical, thoughtful writing. And the Eye on the Sky guys’ encouraging reassurance that back into the freezer we go, soon.

I have beautifull 200+ acres that hunters use but think would be fair to rent out for at least to pay taxes.

In our location, we’ve had a long run of overcast—2+ weeks—and then a single day came, approx. the solstice, when the skies cleared and the sun blazed. Suddenly we gained about an hour at either end of the day! It was like jumping forward in time by a few months. Then back to gray, gray, followed by dark.

THE TREES WITH LEAVES IN WINTER REALLY MUST DRIVE THOSE LEAF BLOWER FANATICS CRAZY. OMG - A LEAF MAY BLOW OFF MID WINTER ONTO A LAWN. Another example of nature deficit disorder. Some people prefer the noise of leaf blowers over the beauty of colorful leaves-or even brown leaves on trees in winter. THEIR MINDS DON’T appreciate real beauty.

These clinging leaves must be driving my neighbor across the street crazy since he is out there almost every day once leaves start to drop sucking them up with his leaf blower LOL.  This is the first winter where his leaves have remained on the tree and we were wondering why they are still there.  We thought that it was from the regular fertilizing he does EVERY 6 Weeks.  He is totally anal when it comes to his property and will go out there to hand pick leaves if he see’s them on the lawn.  Even having just one leaf on his lawn is a no-no.  This article gives me some better insight as to why this is happening now.

Starting a small Christmas tree farm is something I have been considering and researching the past year. Your article had been very helpful.

I think the longest, darkest night calls for a fire to go with the meteor shower. Living in the woods, we have little light pollution so it should be a good show if the clouds cooperate. Thanks for pointing this out to us.

Thanks Laura. We counted it as good luck we were able to watch these toads and see one get eaten by a snake! It was so intense. Glad you enjoyed.

I was Commissioner of Mass.F&W in the 80s and then worked at Malden Mills, producer of Polertec.  In the early 90s there was a move to tax outdoor sporting equipment (not organized sports).  The hiking, camping, etc. industries (I forgot the name of their lobbying organization) easily killed it.  I say, let’s give it another try and be forceful about keeping the fringe liberationists out.
Walter Bickford

I saw a few nests on a mango tree in Bhopal India.The leaves of a branch were almost moulded together with cobwebs & they were big & oblong.Which birds nest could that be?

The illustration doesn’t make clear how the outer walls are connected to the bottom of the pond or bank. It looks like it is floating which I know can’t be. Can anyone help me understand this better?