A Christmas Tree from Our Woodlot (Blog 465)

One of the Christmas traditions that Elaine and I have is having a Christmas tree from either our land in Botetourt County, Virginia or our property on Johns Creek in Craig County. I know folks don't go into the woods to find a Christmas tree much anymore, but I find it a delightful tradition.

Last week, our grandsons Sam, age 7, and Eli, age 5, and I went into our 38-acre woodlot behind the house. After some tromping around and after several red cedars and Virginia pines were rejected as not being quite right, the three of us finally settled on about a four-foot-tall red cedar.

The cedar is not shaped and trimmed like the trees at those Christmas tree lot, but it serves its purpose well. And the price was definitely right.

Fall Turkey Hunting in West Virginia Mountains (Blog 464)

Saturday, I went fall turkey hunting in Monroe County, West Virginia. I know that the deer activity is intense right now, and I truly love to pursue deer. But my favorite kind of fall hunting is to go after turkeys. The emphasis on sign reading, figuring out what the birds are eating, hearing all the different fall calls that turkeys make, and deciding whether or not to attempt to bust a flock or call it in make this pastime so rich and fulfilling.

I encountered two different fall flocks Saturday and could not call them in. I also couldn't maneuver close enough to the gangs to scatter them. Nevertheless, it was a marvelous day spent in the West Virginia mountains.

Nature Wastes Nothing (Blog 463)

Last week while bow hunting in Botetourt County, Virginia, I decided to set up in a funnel where I had killed a doe five days before. Normally, I like to let a place "rest" for a week or more after killing a deer there. But the spot is so good, and so many deer go through there, that temptation won out against judgement.

While there, I watched individual black vultures, and small groups of this bird, visit over and over the exact spot where I had field dressed a deer earlier in the week. There was nothing at that spot except a  slight greasy slick (as I would describe it) yet the vultures thought it worthwhile to visit and even fight over. When the vultures weren't there, I saw a raven and several crows visit, too. Each creature was apparently trying to extract one little morsel of nourishment from my kill.

I passed on a small buck while hunting that day and should have killed a doe, but it eased by me when I wasn't looking. Two days later, I was back at the spot again and killed another doe there. Interestingly, I field dressed it in almost the same spot as the one I had arrowed earlier. I have no doubt that the vultures, ravens, and crows all found the remains.

Of Squirrels, Cats, and Deer Jaw Bones (Blog 462)

While bowhunting this past Saturday near my home in Botetourt County, Virginia, I heard and saw a very interesting thing. Around 5:00, I heard some gray squirrels give the alarm note, then seconds later a black cat with white paws paraded in front of me with a silvertail in its mouth. For the next half hour or so, various squirrels continued to give the alarm call.

About an hour later, the cat again passed by me -looking to be on the hunt once more. The squirrels in the woodlot again started chattering.

My son-in-law David Reynolds also had a squirrel story. He observed a gray squirrel walk by him with a deer jaw bone in its mouth. The bushytail proceeded to climb a tree and enter its nest, again still carrying the bone. Fascinating stuff.

Sam and Eli: Chess Masters (Blog 461)

Monday evening after school, I played chess with Sam and Eli for the first time. The two boys, ages seven and five, respectively, are learning the rudiments of the game. And, understandably, Sam has a better grasp so far.

No matter, Eli and I were able to defeat Sam in a classic match that surely will be talked about for years among chess aficionados. Sam seemed to take his defeat graciously, though Eli immediately wanted to high five with me, perhaps to let his older brother know that he had game in some sort of activity, too.

I eagerly await the rematch.

Eleventh Grade Stress Due Out Soon (Blog 460)

My ninth book and third Young Adult Fiction novel, Eleventh Grade Stress, is due out in a couple of weeks. I still find that hard to believe. I knew by the time I was an eleventh grader what my major goals were and they were as follows: a great wife, children, a house out in the country, rural land, a teaching career, and a writing career.

And, amazingly enough, I have been more than fortunate to gain all those things over the years. Everything all started with a great wife, Elaine, who has been my side for over 41 years of marriage. Sarah and Mark are awesome adults now, Elaine and I live out in the country on 38 acres of wooded land with a stream flowing through it, and I am nearing 2,500 magazine articles sold. At 67 years of age, I am still teaching high school English and still loving to go to school every day and work with young people.

One of the writing genres I was never interested in ever, and that includes my time as a high school student, was Young Adult Fiction. And now thanks to Secant Publishing and my editor Ron Sauder, I have a four-book series in the works for that genre. Again, I am amazed at that. I am also teaching the first two books, Ninth Grade Blues and Tenth Grade Angst, to my high school students. And from what I understand a half dozen or more teachers are using them in their classrooms.

If you should like to reserve a copy, e-mail me at bruceingramoutdoors@gmail.com.

Making Wild Grape Jelly ((Blog 459)

Yesterday after I arrived home from school, Elaine and I went to pick summer grapes on the rural Botetourt County, Virginia road where we live. Earlier, I had spotted summer grapes, the most common species of wild grape in Southwest Virginia, growing on a neighbor's land. I asked him if we could pick the grapes, and the gentleman said yes.

Today, our grandsons Sam and Eli will help us remove the grapes from the stems, then Elaine will begin the process of turning the fruit into jelly. We think summer grape jelly has a pleasant tartness, making it superior to store jelly. Sam and Eli's reward for their labor will be a jar of jelly to take home.

Dolgo Crabapples are Ripe (Blog 458)

The highlight of my dining week was Elaine fixing Dolgo Crabapple Cobbler several days ago. Folks have no idea how good crabapples can be in breads, pies, cobblers, cookies, and jelly. Our tree produced fairly well this year, but not in an epic way as it did two years ago. In 2017, the tree truly produced gallons of fruit.

I am going to pick again this weekend. This time my goal is for a pie. As is true with crabapple cobbler, crabapple pie tastes very similar to a sour cherry pie. It's even better with vanilla ice cream.

The Delights of Rome Apple Walnut Bread (Bog 457)

One of the simple joys of life is eating the many good things that my wife Elaine cooks. Our Rome apple tree didn't produce much fruit this year, but I was able to pick enough apples for Elaine to cook something.

Rome apples aren't known as a great eating out-of-hand apple, but they are superb cooked. So I asked Elaine to make a bread from them. What "made" the bread were the walnuts that she added to it.

Our next harvest will be the fruit from our Dolgo crab apple tree. We have an article on all the ways     crab apples can be prepared in the current issue of Grit magazine. In about two weeks, the first of these fruits should be ready to pick. And ready for Elaine to turn into something scrumptious.

American Barberry Found on our Johns Creek Land (Blog 456)

Monday evening neighbor John Hudson and I went on a photography foray in Botetourt and Craig counties in Virginia. We stopped first on Elaine's and my 30-acre parcel on Johns Creek in Craig County. I wanted to determine if the oaks had produced acorns with deer season approaching.

When John and I were leaving, we took photos of various plants on the way back to the vehicle. I took some shots of interesting looking plants with bristle-tipped leaves that were growing in small colonies. When I arrived back home, it occurred to me that the plant was American barberry, a native Southern Appalachian plant that is endangered.

I sent a photo of  the plant to friend James Hancock who confirmed that it was indeed an American barberry. That identification is one more reason I'm glad that Elaine and I put the land under a conservation easement with the Virginia Outdoors Foundations and the Blue Ridge Land Conservancy. We have a vernal pool on the land, a spring, and the land also adjoins Johns Creek - so there is much to preserve about the land, now, including, an endangered plant. Also, in the November/December issue of Virginia Wildlife, I am supposed to have a story on conservation easements and their importance to hunters, anglers, birders, and anyone who values wildlife and wildlife habitat.

Wild Turkey Poults Spotted This Morning (Blog 455)

This is the first week of school where I live in Botetourt County, Virginia, so I have been walking earlier than usual in the morning. This morning while doing so, I spotted four mother hens and approximately 16 poults bugging for grasshoppers in a field. No doubt they were eating a wide variety of wild plants as well.

Yesterday after school, Elaine and I released our two mother hens with their eight chicks and watched them bug and search for clover. Once again I was reminded how similar the behavior of chickens and turkeys is. After all, they are both gallinaceous birds. They scratch the same way, flock and roost in similar fashions and have a shared passion for bugs, clover, and dandelions. The hens even share joint mothering duties, as was evident in the turkey flock I observed this morning, and the actions of the two mother hens in our run.

Cockerel Behavior (Blog 454)

The eight chicks that our hens Mary and Wednesday have been nurturing are all about six to seven weeks old now. As is usually the case, half are cockerels and half are pullets. The truth and reality are that we can't keep all four of the cockerels in the run but a month or so longer. Posturing and small skirmishes are daily events for the four young roosters, but before too much longer, these skirmishes will likely become more intense and more disruptive to the overall flock.

We already have two good roosters, four-year-old Don, the patriarch of the flock and one of his offspring, Friday, who will be a year old in October. We really don't need a third rooster since we only have two pens. Elaine and I  have named the biggest of the four cockerels, appropriately enough, Mr. Big. The other three will remain nameless and will be eaten by the end of August. Whether we will keep Mr. Big beyond Labor Day is the point worth pondering.

St. Gall Farm Honey (Blog 453)

Earlier this week, good friend Paul Hinlicky dropped by our house to deliver some honey. Paul and his wife Ellen operate St. Gall Farm in the Catawba Valley of Roanoke County, Virginia (https://www.stgallfarm.com/).

Elaine and I are big proponents of living like locavores and purchasing honey from a neighbor is part of that philosophy. We have long believed that one of the best ways to keep Rural America rural is by supporting local small farmers, and the meat, vegetables, eggs, fruits, and, honey they sell. So if you have farmers' markets in your area (and around here we have ones in Botetourt, Roanoke, Salem, and Catawba just to name a few) consider supporting them and the folks who have local foods and goods to sell.

By the way, those foods, like Paul and Ellen's honey, are delicious.

Timber Stand Improvement Projects (Blog 452)

I have spent parts of the past three days working on Timber Stand Improvement (TSI) on our 38 acres in Botetourt County, Virginia. There has been so much to do: freeing up young oaks, cutting down dead ashes, removing non-mast producing trees to open up the forest floor, and spraying for invasive plants.

These activities are some of the most pleasant things I do. I honestly think I could do this for several hours a day, every day for a month, and not run out of things to do. Performing TSI is one of the most pleasant aspects of land ownership. The knowledge that I am making land better for wildlife is deeply satisfying, plus I'm gaining some firewood for the winter.

Summer Berry Season (Blog 451)

Elaine and I have been picking berries for a month or so now, and we now have picked 9 1/2 gallons of wild raspberries, wineberries, and blackberries. Tomorrow our son Mark and I are going to our Gap Mills land in Monroe County, West Virginia to hopefully pick at least two quarts, so that we can reach our annual 10-gallon goal. That way we will have enough fruit for Elaine to make most of the pies, cobblers, and jam we will use in the year ahead.

Mark and I are also going to clear brush and shooting lanes around my ladder stand there. Bow season starts the last Saturday in September, and I won't go back to the land until then. I will also check out the condition of the stand and the belts that keep it in place. I hope to kill a nice doe there on opening day.

Chestnut Tree on Our Potts Mountain Land (Blog 450)

Elaine and I recently went to our Potts Mountain land on the border of Craig County, Virginia and Monroe County, West Virginia to pick raspberries. While there, I checked on the progress of two American chestnut trees that continue to grow taller.

I noticed the two trees several years ago - they are not very far apart. I have been waiting for them to die, but they have not. Of course, I am guessing that they are afflicted with the blight that has impacted our native chestnuts since the early 1900s. However, they must have some immunity to have lived this long and grown some 40-feet tall.

Anyway, they were good to see.

Locavore Living in the Summer (Blog 449)

Elaine and I have been busy enjoying the bounty of our garden and the wild berries we are gathering. Today, Elaine made three loaves of zuchinni bread, two were frozen for the winter, and we began eating the other.

So far, we have gathered three gallons of wild berries. Our goal, as always every summer, is to gather 10 gallons before July is over. Tomorrow, I will try to pick a half gallon as Elaine is planning to make wineberry jam.

We also have eight chicks between one week and two weeks old. They are doing well except they have not learned how to walk up the gangplank to the hen house when night starts to fall.

Much is going on around here.

Gobbler Seen Strutting (Blog 448)

Today, June 18 around 10:30 here in Botetourt County, Virginia, I observed a mature gobbler in strut. This particular tom is amazing to watch and listen to. He gobbled frequently all spring. I often heard him while I was walking before going to teach school.

When the season concluded, he still kept gobbling and he only stopped doing so a week or two ago. However, he is still strutting, even today near noon. I have heard birds gobbling as late as Independence Day one year, when a tom sounded off 22 times behind our house. I guess it was his own version of setting off firecrackers.

Rhode Island Red Chicks Hatching (Blog 447)

This week, the chicks from our heritage Rhode Island Red hen Mary are starting to hatch. As I write this, chick number two is almost out of its shell. Chick number one came out on Thursday. We are hopeful that the other five eggs will start to shimmy and pip soon, but who knows.

One thing we learned last September was that hatching chicks are in grave danger from the other birds. We left Mary in the hen house, and the first chick to come out of the shell was killed. We found the dead creature when we came home from being gone for the afternoon. That's why we have Mary in our basement.

How Will This Rainy Period Affect Turkey Poults? (Blog 446)

Here in Southwest Virginia, the past two days have seen rain, and the wet weather is supposed to continue for another four or five days. Right now in this region, wild turkey poults are either a few days old or are just hatching. I have to wonder how this rainy spell will affect them.

One thing in the poults' favor is that the air temperature is not abnormally cold. A few nights in the low 40s, for example, could cause widespread death from hypothermia. But most nighttime lows are supposed to be far above that. I guess we'll have to wait and see how turkey reproduction might be affected by this precipitation spell.

Tom Still Gobbling (445)

Virginia's and West Virginia's spring gobbler season has been over for several weeks. In fact, some poults, no doubt, are hatching now. Yet, there is a gobbler on our rural Botetourt County road that is still gobbling. When I am walking in the pre-dawn murk, I often hear him sound off.

If he is not gobbling, I give him a couple yelps with my mouth, and he gobbles at that. One morning, I didn't yelp until I walked past his roost area. Then I yelped at him as I was walking away. This seemed to make him even more charged up. The gobbling became so intense that I thought he was  going to pop  out onto the road and look for the "hen."

I wonder how long into June this tom will continue to gobble?

Heritage Rhode Island Red Hen Goes Broody (Blog 444)

Mary, our heritage Rhode Island red hen, "went broody" yesterday afternoon. Elaine and I were very excited because that means in three weeks or so Mary's chicks will hatch. One of the joys of raising heritage chickens is that the hens know how to sit on a nest and hatch the eggs. Mary is now three years old and this is the fourth time she has become broody.

Mary is an excellent mother and is very attentive to her chicks. So we are sure that she will be the same with this bunch. She has already been doing the harsh "chrrrr" sound when her fellow flock hens approach her nest. Chickens have this penchant of all wanting to lay their eggs in the same nest no matter how many nesting boxes are within a coop. Mary's protesting chrrrrs is her way of telling her fellow hens to stay away.

Strawberries and More Strawberries (Blog 443)

Our Surecrop strawberry plants continue to produce in great abundance. This week, Elaine made jam, a second pie, and clafouti out of our haul, which has been averaging about a quart per day. Yesterday, my wife froze a quart or so of berries, which will eventually become part of smoothies and topping for oatmeal and cereal.

We are hoping for another week of production, as it would be good to have another pie and perhaps we could make jam one more time. There's no such thing as too many garden fresh strawberries.

Below is a picture of strawberries being turned into jam.

First Strawberry Pie of the Spring (Blog 442)

To my astonishment, strawberries from our garden are already ripening, and Saturday I picked enough for Elaine to make a pie. Pies made from Black Twig apples are high on my list as are pies made from wild raspberries. But pies consisting of garden fresh strawberries also rate in the top three. I'm not sure which of these three pies would come in first.

Today, there won't be enough for a second pie, but they will go great with breakfast cereal. Later in the week, hopefully it will be time to make strawberry jam.

Smooth Green Snakes and Grandsons (Blog 441)

Yesterday, my six-year-old grandson Sam, who lives across the hollow from Elaine and me with his family, came running into our house and said he had just seen a snake. He has been taught not to touch snakes but not to be fearful of them, either. To respect them and come find a parent or grandparent when he encounters one.

So Sam and I walked up the driveway to where the snake was entwined in a small tree. I  identified the reptile as a smooth green snake and Sam received a lesson on how beneficial these small creatures are. All in all, it was a nice little moment in life and a teachable event for Sam.

Longbeards and Morels in West Virginia (Blog 440)

This past weekend, I had one of those perfect spring days in the mountains of Monroe County, West Virginia. While trying to maneuver around a flock of gobblers and hens, I came across some black morels growing along a highland creek. I had brought a plastic bag for just such a random chance encounter. So I quickly gathered the morels and continued after the turkeys.

Later, I was able to kill my biggest ever West Virginia gobbler, a tom that weighed 26 pounds, 8 ounces. That night for dinner, my wife Elaine fixed a tasty scrambled eggs, vegetables, and morels dish. It was a perfect day and a perfect dinner.

Oh, by the way, I saw large patches of ramps growing on that mountainside. I know ramps are popular in many places, and I know this is heresy to say it, but neither Elaine nor I can understand their appeal. So I left them for someone else to gather.

Spring Gobbler Hunting in Virginia and West Virginia (Blog 439)

I first started turkey hunting in 1986, and in all those years, I cannot recall the gobbling intensity that I have experienced from Saturday through Thursday in Virginia and West Virginia. While afield in Virginia, I did not have a shot on Saturday or Sunday, although I saw approximately 20 different gobblers those days. On two occasions, I had multiple gobblers, one day five, another day three, within 50 yards of my position.

On Sunday, I had a gobbler, jake, and a hen within 20 yards of me, but I was afraid to shoot because they were so close together. Finally on Monday, I called in and killed a mature gobbbler, tagging out for the season because I had killed two birds back in the fall.

I didn't hunt Tuesday or Wednesday, the former because I was exhausted from climbing a mountain three straight days, and the latter because of two book signings/talks.

On Thursday I went to West Virginia and once again heard intense gobbling. I killed a mature bird at 8:00 A.M. I didn't go on Friday because of the rain but am heading for West Virginia on Saturday morning. I hope this gobbling frenzy keeps up.

The Thrushes are Singing (Blog 438)

One of the many joyous aspects of spring is listening to the various members of the thrush family. This week, the wood thrushes returned to Elaine's and my land in Botetourt County, Virginia. The flute-like tunes of the wood thrush, I believe, are the most beautiful of all the bird songs.

But also this month on our 38-acre spread, we've heard other thrush family members such as the veery, hermit thrush, and gray-cheeked thrush. They, too, have glorious voices, and, of course, are just passing through on their way northward. But it's the wood thrush, which breeds on our land, that I most look forward to hearing and seeing.

The Vagaries of Spring Gobbler Hunting (Blog 437)

I spent Saturday through Monday in Tennessee spring gobbler hunting with good friend Larry Proffit of Elizabethton. Larry is one of the best callers I have ever hunted with, and I didn't see a gobbler the three days I was there. Such is life sometimes in the spring gobbler woods.

This morning as I was letting our chickens out of their coops, I heard one gobbler - about 60 yards away in a pine - gobbling repeatedly. The tom was so talkative that he caused our alpha rooster, Don, to crow and all of the hens to be on edge.

Finally, I saw the tom fly down and land in our hollow - and still keep gobbling. In fact, the bird did not cease for another 10 minutes.

Why were the woods in Tennessee so quiet when I was there, and the toms so raucous behind our house. Will that gobbler still be behind our house when opening day arrives. Who knows?

Invasive Plant Elimination (Blog 436)

Wednesday after teaching school, I walked the seeded logging road behind our 38-acre parcel in Botetourt County, Virginia. I was looking for invasive plants that were just starting to bud. With loppers in hand and a spray bottle of herbicide, I was ready to do battle.

It was disappointing to find so many plants to target.  There were a few of Russian olive, but the most common one that I encountered was multi-flora rose, which seemed to be growing just about everywhere.

I spent about an hour on this task, which, frankly, has just begun. I've got a lot more work to do, but at least it was a start.

Virginia Toms Gobbling Every Morning (Blog 435)

Almost every morning year round I walk three miles in the dark before going to teach school or begin my summer day. This month is my favorite to walk in the dark because a morning ritual is to see how many gobblers I hear on my pre-dawn rambles.

Two mornings ago, I yelped with my mouth which sent one tom into a frenzied gobbling sequence. Several hens also responded to my yelps. This morning, the longbeard was gobbling on his own as I walked past his roost in the dark.

I conclude my walks on our 38-acre parcel in Botetourt County, Virginia. We have at least two toms gobbling behind our house, but they do not do so every morning. I don't think they have settled into a roosting pattern yet.

Soon, Elaine and I will head to Tennessee for me to turkey hunt, then, of course, come the Virginia and West Virginia seasons. I can hardly wait.

Don and Friday Crowing in Tandem (Blog 434)

One of the most interesting things about raising chickens is observing their behavior. As noted in last week's blog, Friday, our five-month-old cockerel finally began crowing. Our previous cockerels all have started earlier than Friday.

But what is so interesting is that though Friday began late, when he finally did start greeting the dawn it was in a voice similar to that of a mature rooster. In fact, Friday's cock-a-doodle-do is very similar to that of Don, our four-year-old rooster and the biological father of Friday.  Is the way a rooster crows inherited? I have no answer to that, but already I am having difficulty discerning between the crowings of Don and Friday.

Gobblers Gobbling, Cockerel Crowing, Veeries Passing Through (Blog 433)

One of the many great things about late winter/early spring is all the changes going on. The turkey gobblers are in full throat, sounding off every morning that doesn't bring rains or high winds. Cold temperatures are irrelevant to them now, the toms have to gobble.

Two days ago, our young heritage Rhode Island Red cockerel, who Elaine and I named Friday because that was the day of the week he hatched, finally started crowing. Friday also has become caught up in the spirit of the spring.

And several days ago, one of the many gifted singers of the thrush family - a veery - broke into song at dawn one morning. I was walking past a woodlot one and I heard the melodic tune of a veery. Great sounds to hark to here in rural Virginia.

Wood Cutting Season in Virginia (Blog 432)

Here in Virginia, small game seasons are over now, and spring gobbler season is more than a month away. But now it is wood cutting season here on our Botetourt County land. Last week, Elaine and I hired logger Jeff Britt to cut down a number of dead or dying ashes that were near our house and chicken runs. He also cut down some massive scarlet and red oaks that were too big for me to handle.

The next three weekends will be devoted to cutting up this wood so that it will fit into our stove next winter. With our solar panels on the roof and with the wood stove, our electric bill is less than $50.00 a month, sometimes much less.

Rhode Island Reds Resume Laying (Blog 431)

One of life's little joys occurred this weekend. Elaine and I raise heritage Rhode Island Reds, and it is natural for our chickens to stop laying eggs some time in late fall. The laying typically stops when the birds are in the molting process. The last egg came around Thanksgiving time.

Friday, I found an egg inside the chicken coop. Monday morning, I found two more. One of those eggs was on the ground, probably the work of one of our pullets which probably hasn't figured out when her body is telling her it is emitting an egg.

So it was time to put the nesting boxes back in what we call "The Little Red Hen House," which consists mostly of our younger chickens.  And to make sure that the nesting boxes in "The Big Red Hen House" are clean.

Virginia Gobblers Heralding the Season (Blog 430)

Last week, I heard the first gobbler  of the season sound off, which caused a crow to caw. Then another longbeard gobbled. That woke up every turkey in our Botetourt County woodlot. So for the next ten minutes or so, I heard gobble after gobble.

Every spring one of the nice things to look forward to is the first gobbling of the soon to come spring. I rarely hear hen talk among all the gobbler outbursts. It's always been clear that the males are raring to go earlier than the females are.

As far as what all this means for the season to come, well, the answer is usually very little. Still, it's nice to hear the sounds of turkeys gobbling.

First Woodcock of Season Appears on out Botetourt County, VA Land (Blog 429)

This morning, February 8, I went for my daily three-mile walk in the dark, here in Botetourt County, Virginia. As I was walking up the driveway, I heard the characteristic "peeent," which is how I describe the sound of a male woodcock.

I immediately stopped in mid-stride, wanting to make sure that I had indeed heard what I thought I had. Then came another peeent, and my suspicions were thus confirmed.

We've lived on this land since 1989, having bought it in 1988. We never heard woodcocks until we did a timber cut in 2010 and created some young forest. Beginning in 2011, woodcocks have been present every March. Three years ago, they started coming in February. I wonder when the first female will show up?

Finding the Shed Antler of an Eight Pointer (Blog 428)

During Virginia's deer season, my son-in-law David Reynolds and I encountered a fine, young 2 1/2-year-old buck. David saw him several times during the rut and afterwards. I glimpsed him several times in December. The whitetail had the characteristic long legs of a 2 1/2-year-old, but also sported four points on each side.

Yesterday, I was in our 38-acre Botetourt County woodlot, gathering wood from an oak I had sawed up earlier  but had not had time to bring into our garage. There lying near the tree I had cut was one of the antlers. It was nice to know that the young buck had made it through the deer season and would be around next fall. Hopefully, either David or I will have a chance at him.

Ash Trees Continue to Die (Blog 427)

Saturday afternoon, I spent much of my time cutting down and cutting up dead ash trees done in by the emerald ash borer plague. Our 38 acres in Botetourt County, Virginia hosts many ashes that are dead or succumbing.

It is a sad thing to see  beautiful hardwoods like the green and white ash quickly disappearing from the mountains here in Southwest Virginia and across their range. There is no cure on the horizon, either. And on our land, I can find only one mature tree that, to my surprise, has not been affected yet.
That will probably change this summer.

Chickens "Complaining" about Cold Weather (Blog 426)

Here in Botetourt County, Virginia, the wind chill is below 0 this morning and our heritage Rhode Island Reds are not happy. Chickens have a way of... perhaps fussing the right word... when things do not go to suit them. They march up to Elaine and me, and the whining begins.

This is usually after we give treats to the other chicken run's fowl - the two separate flocks have pens that border each other -  and the other flock does not receive any. Of course, both flocks will complain simultaneously if we walk by and don't give anyone anything.

This morning there was quite a bit of ruffled feathers, both literally and figuratively. Literally because the birds were constantly "fluffing" because of the cold and figuratively because they were complaining about the frigid conditions.

Preparing for Snow in the Virginia Mountains (Blog 425)

Elaine and I were supposed to have given an outdoors-related talk at the Bridgewater public library this morning, but the impending snowfall cancelled the event. Instead, we are cleaning both chicken runs, and I am going to cut some more fire wood before the snow starts.

Human nature is strange. We have plenty of firewood already in the garage and more is out at our woodpile.  But cutting wood in front of snowfall just seems like a constructive thing to do. Elaine is going to cook venison tenderloin for lunch and a wild blackberry cobbler is hopefully on the menu, too. Let it snow.

Deer Scarce during Virginia's Late Muzzleloader Season (Blog 424)

I had five different "settings" during doe days in Virginia's late muzzleloader season and only saw deer (two fawns) on the first of the five. I am often amazed when I see stories about trophy hunting for big bucks during the late season, and I struggle to see deer most years during this time period.

Maybe my poor success year after year is because of my hunting so much in the mountains where the weather is colder. Or, frankly, my poor hunting could be because I am clueless on how to pursue late season deer.  In any event, another late season has come and gone, and I struck out again.

On the January and February Saturdays to come, I'm going to look forward to squirrel hunting behind the house and doing Timber Stand Improvement projects on our Botetourt County land.