WHAT’S GOING ON IN THE FOREST? Finally got some time to take the fishing pole further upstream where colder waters abound and find one of my favorite forested creatures–the brook trout. He was just a tiny little guy, but nice to see. Down below on the same stream, I normallyContinue Reading
WHAT’S GOING ON IN THE FOREST? Well, it happened again. I almost stepped on a rattlesnake. It’s been awhile since that has occurred, thank God. This time, I wasn’t bushwacking, but walking down a forest road or trail, coming back from fishing. Loudly in front of me was a soundContinue Reading
WHAT’S GOING ON IN THE FOREST? I found this little sycamore about 2 years ago down the road and transplanted it in the front yard. This year it seems to be “warming up” to my place and beginning to put on some growth. I love American sycamore. They have thatContinue Reading
WHAT’S GOING ON IN THE FOREST? I live in Samsonville, central Ulster County, that was hit hard by the emerald ash borer earlier than other areas of the Catskills. Most of the time, ash is a smaller component of the forest; Roughly 4 to 10%. However, in some areas onContinue Reading
WHAT’S GOING ON IN THE FOREST? I had to install some green carpeting a few weeks ago. I know what you’re thinking. It’s a sin to carpet over wood, right? I’m talking about my firewood-pile. Where I live, I get some pretty fierce wind. I’ve tried tarps, metal sheeting, bungieContinue Reading
WHAT’S GOING ON IN THE FOREST? I seem to know which stores have gumball machines throughout the Catskills & Hudson Valley due to my sweet-tooth; I also know where the “sweet-trees” are as well. Some of my favorite finds are found near parking lots. I found this white mulberry behindContinue Reading
WHAT’S GOING ON IN THE FOREST? Recently, I was fortunate enough to see 1 of 3 of the largest ash trees I know of in the Catskills. This Fleischmanns giant measured approximately 53 inches in diameter at the base. It was chemically treated 3 years ago, 2 years ago, andContinue Reading
WHAT’S GOING ON IN THE FOREST? Recently there has been ample “rainbow weather.” Rainbow weather seems to occur when sunlight shines through scattered water droplets or mist. I didn’t catch it on camera, but I saw the largest rainbow I have ever seen last weekend. It was so large, itContinue Reading
WHAT’S GOING ON IN THE FOREST? Spring in transitioning into summer fast and furious. Some of my apple and blueberries are already showing young fruit in the making. The swelling at the base of apple flowers normally indicates a future apple fruit is growing. The blueberries are already visible. IContinue Reading
WHAT’S GOING ON IN THE FOREST? It’s pretty warm out right now, but a few days ago we had some low temperatures reaching below 30 degrees. I have three different fruit trees flowering right now: peach, apple, and Asian pear. Peach and Asian pears seem like they were too exposedContinue Reading