What in the Woods Is That?

Play our biweekly guessing game!

Whatever draws us into the forest—be it birdwatching or logging, hiking or hunting—all of us are unified by the sense of wonder we feel in the outdoors. The forests, fields, and streams of our region are full of mystery, and if you stop and look closely, you’ll see all sorts of oddities.

Below find a picture of one such woodlands curio. Guess what it is and you’ll be eligible to win a Northern Woodlands woodpecker magnet designed by artist Liz Wahid. A prize winner will be drawn at random from all the correct entries. The correct answer, and the winner’s name, will appear when the next column is posted and in our newsletter (sign up here!).

Eli’s Mystery

Reader Eli Sagor from St. Paul, Minnesota submitted this picture -- the objects have both a Midwestern and Northeastern woods connection. What are they and what are they used for?

Answer

Brown ash strips used to make baskets.

This photo shows brown ash (also called black ash) strips that were traditionally used by Ojibwe Indians in the Upper Midwest to make baskets and other items. Northeastern artisans carry on this tradition as well – check out the profile we did of basketmaker Bill Mackowski in our Summer 2009 issue: http://northernwoodlands.org/articles/article/at_work_making_baskets_with_bill_mackowski/

Thanks to Eli Sagor for sharing this great photo. Eli works for the University of Minnesota Forest Resources Extension – they maintain a cool webpage that our readers may find useful: http://www.myminnesotawoods.umn.edu/

This week’s contest winner was Casey J. Callahan from Morrisville State College. We had 7 correct answers.