Summer Ends, Fall Is Here

It is time to get green fields planted and the remainder of the bush hogging completed.  Fall is such a busy time. 

All four of the grand children getting a lesson in rattle snake anatomy.  They were very observant to me pointing out the fangs.  We skinned the snake out and are going to use the hide in the exhibits at the lodge.

OTHER HAPPENINGS 

Congressman Rogers,  his Agriculture person from Washington DC, and Sherri Rollins his District Director were all at the lodge for a meeting with his local Agricultural Advisory Committee from East Alabama,  The main discussion was the new Farm Bill and hopes of getting it passed.

This picture, made in our backyard last fall, has been named the runner-up in The American Tree Farm Photography Contest 2013.  The winner was from Michigan, it was a great picture.  Go to the American Tree Farm Facebook page to see the winners.  This was the email wordage.

Lamar,

Congratulations!!!  Your photo, Steam in Forest, was selected as the Category 1 runner-up of the 2013 Tree Farm Photo Contest, Sponsored by STIHL, Inc.

Be on the look-out for your photo on our website, our Facebook page, and in future ATFS publications.  Also, keep your eyes on your mailbox for a $250 STIHL product certificate, which should arrive in the next 4-6 weeks.

Thank you again for participating in this year’s photo contest, and congratulations!

Best,

Sara E. Anrrich

Operations Manager, American Tree Farm System

1111 Nineteenth Street NW, Suite 780

Washington, DC 20036 

Road Kill:(

We lost one of our young bucks last night to Highway 48.  He was in good shape but he was wasted to some vehicle.  I always hate to see this.  His rack was still in full velvet and he was going to be a 6 pointer.

Heritage of the Land

Last week my grandson James helped me place grave markers on James Dewberry and Jane Graben Dewberry's graves.  They are my grandsons' great, great, great, great grandfather and grandmothers. James is a family name that goes way back.  They worked and took care of the land and now we get our turn in this  thing called time. 

James and his little sister Eden had a fun time learning about where they came from.  It was a rainy day but we got it done and had fun doing it. They have many other ancestors in this resting place. 

Nathan helped me with bush hogging roads and firelanes.  It takes several days to complete but it was good to have him helping me.  He is young and can do much more than I.

Taking care of the land.  Here engineers are laying out a stream crossing in our forest to help keep the water clean for the drinking water.  We hope to complete this project in the near future. I warned the workers to watch for our many rattlers on the property. 

This one got in the way while we were bush hogging.  We skinned it out and plan on adding its skin to our exhibits in the lodge.

Not Seen Very Often

Last week James was catching and observing cicadas.  He was letting this one crawl on him.  

There were several shells on the pine that they were observing.

Wow an eagle in the City Limits of Lineville!  We were traveling to our lodge a week ago when at a crossroads I saw something down one road that looked like an eagle on the ground.  I quickly turned around and turned into the other road when an eagle flew up from the road into a tree.  It was beautiful sitting in the pine tree.  A car came up behind us and it flew down the hollow away from the road.  This eagle was only a short distance from our property and what made it more special was watching a video on youtube just this day of a black bear not far from our property also.  That is how I came up with the title for this post.

You can go to youtube and search "black bear in Talladega National Forest" and see this video.

Trees and Flowers

I have add several pictures of wildflowers and trees to the Blog.  I have other information I am going add soon when time permits.

Animal Rescue to Huckleberries and Summer Food Plots

The other morning while we were eating breakfast we saw something in the pool, it was a young chipmunk.  He was desperate to get out because he swam right up to me for me to get him out.  He stayed on the concrete for a short time then scampered off to his home.

We found a patch of huckleberries the other day after a rain while out.  We picked several for eating.

WHAT KIND OF BERRY WILL EAT ANOTHER BERRY?......... A Dewberry!  

James and Selah enjoyed the berries right out of the hat.  James said these were the best berries he had ever eaten, I agree!

Between rains we were able to get one soybean/browntop field in.  The deer are working on the soybeans but the turkeys will be fat on all the seed that are to come.

A sampling of the deer tracks.

Lots of Rain

It has been a wet and rather cool year so far this summer. We were not able to get corn in this year and only have one field planted in soybeans, browntop, and sunflowers.  We still plan to plant chufas and more summer crops if weather will permit.  Had a welcomed site where we were unloading the tractor the other day before all this rain, it was where young turkeys had been dusting in the road.

Last week I spoke to loggers school and certification.  I spoke on prescribed fire, a landowners view.  It seemed to go over real well.  I was one of three presenters that day.