Tag: spring
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Predator Potpourri
You can’t imagine anything like nature as we know it without predators. ~Dale Jamieson I’ve been out in the yard a lot these past couple of weeks doing the spring chores of removing the dead stalks from last year’s wildflowers, adding some mulch to walkways, etc. The spring wildflowers are showing themselves as are the Read more…
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May Days
I’ve got sunshine on a cloudy day. When it’s cold outside, I’ve got the month of May. ~Smokey Robinson May is chasing April as my favorite month of the year…and it’s a close race. Though we have been really busy here, things are happening that keep bringing my attention back to the marvels of the Read more…
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Almost Normal?
…It is always my place to come back and feel normal again. ~Alana Blanchard That quote referred to a special place for its writer, one of the Hawaiian islands. For me, one of the special places I seek is Pocosin Lakes National Wildlife Refuge in Eastern North Carolina. I had not been in many months, Read more…
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Completing the Circle
I’ve always loved butterflies, because they remind us that it’s never too late to transform ourselves. ~Drew Barrymore Last year I finally had success in photographing a chrysalis of a beautiful spring-time butterfly, the Falcate Orange-tip. I collected four eggs and their host plants and brought them inside to rear because I had no success Read more…
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Changes
Science has never drummed up quite as effective a tranquilizing agent as a sunny spring day. ~W. Earl Hall It’s coming. We can see it and hear it in our woods. The big change is near – the approach of spring in the Piedmont! The first warm days last weekend ushered in a host of Read more…
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Mulberry Moments
Green gives and red receives. Nature is colour coded! ~Sonali Mohan Some of you may have known him, and, even if you didn’t, you may have one of his bluebird boxes in your yard. Jack Finch started a non-profit, Homes For Bluebirds, to help restore his beloved Eastern Bluebird to the skies of the southeast. Read more…
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Keepin’ On, Goin’ On
No matter what happens, or how bad it seems today, life does go on, and it will be better tomorrow. ~Maya Angelou There has been a lot of talk these past few weeks of the value of connecting with nature, especially during these stressful times where everything “normal” seems unattainable. There is definitely solace in Read more…
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Attention to Detail
Details create the big picture. ~Sanford I. Weill Back in the day, I worked for a truly remarkable visionary, Mary Ann Brittain. I learned a lot from her and (I think) we made a good team for the museum as educator/naturalists. I remember when I first started going on the road with her to do Read more…
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Haw River Saunter
…whenever I felt emotionally overwhelmed, I would take a walk in the woods. Being in the stillness and grandeur of trees had always calmed me. ~Brenda Strong We hiked (I suppose sauntered is a better word, really) along a short section of the Haw River with some good friends on Saturday (practicing social distancing, of Read more…
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Redbud Critters
A breath of fresh air after a long winter… ~Michael Dirr That quote is in reference to one of my favorite native trees, the Eastern Redbud, Cercis canadensis. And right now, they are at their peak in our woods, casting sprays of pink blossoms in the understory. We have quite a few of these dazzling Read more…
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Roads End Naturalist 