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WHAT’S GOING ON IN THE FOREST? 6 or so years ago, I transplanted a wild sycamore tree from the side of the road to my front lawn. It’s a somewhat poorly drained area where no other tree could probably grow. It’s also far enough away from the road and nearbyContinue Reading

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WHAT’S GOING ON IN THE FOREST? We’re in full swing with pruning apple trees. The weather seems to be holding well too. I consider good pruning weather to be slightly below freezing. These colder temperatures reduce the chances of bark tear while pruning. When it gets too warm, the barkContinue Reading

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WHAT’S GOING ON IN THE FOREST? Last fall I failed to get a buck, but whatever. The 2 fat does I got were some of the fattest and healthiest I’ve gotten in years. Healthy deer have quite a bit of clean, white fat over their rump. Although deer fat isn’tContinue Reading

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WHAT’S GOING ON IN THE FOREST? After more than a decade, CFA’s John MacNaught is moving on from CFA to Sportsfield Specialities in Delhi, Delaware County. John & I began a new chapter at CFA years ago by steering CFA towards field-based programs or services. After John was hired full-time,Continue Reading

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WHAT’S GOING ON IN THE FOREST? My wife and I just finished this “Indiana Jones” hat. This leather was hemlock-tanned from a deer taken 2 years ago. I do the tanning process on the deer, taking it from blood and guts to leather. She does the sewing which takes quiteContinue Reading

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WHAT’S GOING ON IN THE FOREST? This is apparently a lithograph of the hamlet of Samsonville, Ulster County in 1855 which Historian Harry Haring said was “the most important town in the entire Catskills” in its heyday. The largest employer was Henry Samson’s tannery that employed over 70 men! HeContinue Reading

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WHAT’S GOING ON IN THE FOREST? This map shows states with Prescribed Fire Councils (PFC). Forming a PFC is one step a state can make to bring “good” fire back to field and forest to meet a variety of goals (i.e. ecological, safety, wildlife, forest health, etc.). It’s also aContinue Reading

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WHAT’S GOING ON IN THE FOREST? Never tried this before. This year will be the first year I’ll be hanging my deer for at least a week–with the hide off–in a walk-in cooler at around 36 degrees to improve tenderness and taste. I’m curious about the results. If it doesContinue Reading

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WHAT’S GOING ON IN THE FOREST? Old “crop walls.” Find a lot of these in the woods while hunting. Instead of neatly squared off rock walls that were probably used to fence in livestock, these walls were just thrown together after plowing. Sometimes they are really wide and sometimes lookContinue Reading

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WHAT’S GOING ON IN THE FOREST? This was certainly a historical find. One of our members in Otsego County has existing on his property, perhaps the last pile of hemlock bark leftover from the barkpeeling days of the 19th Century. Hemlock bark was used to extract tannins to make leatherContinue Reading