Clean up, clean up, every body do your share

 Spring has roared in with massive storms, the most recent of which covered the entirety of our state!!! 😱We have been VERY lucky with every storm (knock on wood), both here at home and at the land, to not have any damage. It feels weird to be concerned for two places, while we are here and the storms are heading East, I always wonder how the land is holding up. I was telling Woodchuck how surprised I am that there was no damage, just a couple of dead trees that got snapped, and I feel like the land is responding to our efforts to get it healthy. 

On one of our recent trips out there, we put up more signage on the watershed. We had extra signs that were given to us by the NRCS, so we made sure to post every single one. We will be going back in and posting regular no trespassing signs as well. While out there, I trapsed through the vegetation to shake hands with one of my favorite kinds of trees. Willow! They have their catkins right now and are fuzzy and adorable. We met our goal of getting as much done out there as we could before April 1st. Now we let the animals nest in peace until August 1, with the exception of keeping the fire break path mowed.

Speaking of met, we meet with the County Surveyor about the ditches and overflowing pond. She was very nice and open to meeting with us on the land to take a look at some of the areas of concern! We weren't dressed to do it that day, but made an appointment with her for the following week. The consensus was that we can't do anything that causes flooding on anyone else's property, and vice versa, so that one pipe that leads from the North into our back ditch was going to be a key topic to discuss. It was a cold day when we met on the land and we walked her from the back ditch that leads into the pond over to in between the neighbors where the ditch winds from the pond, through three properties, under the road and into a county overseen ditch. Again, she was so kind and open to spending her time to figuring out to handle the situations of flooding on our land from issues from surrounding properties, as well as how to enhance certain features on ours that might make the flow of water/drainage better. 

I continue to try and streamline my side hobby business for this new year. Trying to find things that work, let go of the things that don't, and create a more authentic presence. So, I changed the name! We went from Soapwood Art Studio to Of Forest and Heather. I also had new business cards printed since I was down to just a few from the previous name. I LOVE them!!! I think the new name and the new look of the business card really reflects me and my art better. They are also printed on a hemp-blend paper.

Although I was accepted into an adorable little plant shoppe that also highlights local female artists, I had to reject the offer once I got their contract. I just can't afford their fees. I've noticed, when checking into shows too, that nobody wants to state their prices/fees upfront. They make you contact them with a a basic website application and then if THEY like what they see in YOU and your art, they send you the details. I feel like it's such a waste of time on the parts of both parties. So I am continuing to find new ways to try and move my art, but also work around my availability while my son isn't driving himself and within my financial parameters. I was kind of put-off too that when I took the time to thank them, but said that I would not be able to move forward with them because I would not be able to afford their fees, I did not hear back from them. That's not the vibe nor respect that I am looking for in a business partnership and I think the Universe understands that and keeps me from the things that don't align.

So while my days are long and hard in a Winter and hardship kind of way, I tuck myself into the evenings with my cat and some hand-sewing. Better do it while I can! Once we start working the land more, my days will be even longer in a different kind of way.

Dirt Crawler

 We finally, FINALLY, got to meet up with some friends out at the land to walk them around and talk about wiring up the barn with electric. We had been trying to coordinate for awhile, so not only was it nice to move forward on some shop talk, but to also show them around! It was chilly and wet, but we bundled up, walked, and then went out for dinner.

Unfortunately though the second CRP was not in as a good of condition as I thought it would be. Walking the whole thing made me realize just how far behind I am, especially in removing the garlic mustard. I tried not to let it bother me too much though, I'm doing what I can as fast as I can, but dang!!! I have been finding a few morels here and there, but overall the yield has been WAY down. None to be found at home and hardly any at the land. 

Life is in a such a weird back and forth out in nature, such a give and take. The goose eggs did not hatch and the goose mates were gone, but I did find one egg floating in the water just off of the shore of the pond. I didn't have anything with me at the time to fish it out, so I had to leave it. I figured worse case scenario, if something could get in the water and get it, more power to it!

I also found this dead bird in the clearing of the forest by where we'll be building the house. We are thinking it's a crow. The amount of blue jay feathers in the forests that I find laying on the ground has been insane lately, and now this dead crow. So much to observe and wonder about! 

On the next full day trip out there, we went our separate ways again but I stood in the opening of the forest and knew that someone had been on our land somewhere. I could not tell where, or what they'd been doing, but clues always get revealed in time and as you know, I don't take kindly to trespassers.

I headed out into the forest and immediately found a patch of lily of the valley. There are dozens of patches out there. As you can see, the wildlife (deer) have been munching on it already. While I like having food sources for them, I want them to eat natural and native plants. So this shit has to go. Most were not even developing flowers yet, but I caught some just in time.

Because a shovel is hard to pull around in the woods in my work cart, I opted for a hand spade and crawling around in the dirt. Still not feeling 100% made it a little hard after awhile to keep getting up and down, but getting up and down I did. Next time I go out though? I'm taking some thing that will let me dig larger areas out while standing. 

Only a few moments into the forest and I noticed that one of our wooden arrows had been knocked off of a tree. The wood split from the around the screw, and while others would have assumed the elements got to it or a squirrel launched off of it, etc., me? My spidey senses started tingling and I could feel that someone knocked it. And there next to it was a cigarette butt that had not been there only a few days previous and looked to be just days fresh. So that is where the trespasser had been. Not only do I not want them touching anything of mine, I don't want them setting any of that forest on fire. Because it has been divided up, all it will take is one person to set a blaze in theirs and all of ours will go up. It would be horrible to lose the back one, but a tragedy if it would jump into our front one where the barn was built and eventually the house will be too. Some thing I don't want to think about, but guess I should with all of the draught status we have been in over the past recent years.

I found a huge patch of garlic mustard that will need to come out on our next trip out there. Technically I would have preferred to have pulled it before it flowered, but I didn't know yet this patch was there.

I stopped again though to see the Packera! It makes me so happy to see something native and beautiful in the forest. It grows in a patch of sunlight and the color always makes me smile when I feel beaten down by the amount of work ahead of me.

I fished out the goose egg from the pond and was surprised at how heavy it was, considering it was floating! I left it on the side of the path and the next time we looked, an animal had utilized it, which was our goal considering the outcome of the nest.

On the very edges of the forests, there are some invasives still yet to take down. They're big because of the space and sunlight they have there, and some of them I need help from Woodchuck with, but I tackled this beast all on my own. The thorns on this Autumn Olive were no joke! 

As some bird found out!

While the top soil of the forest is super dry, underneath is nice and moist! So many worms, which is something I need to study more since there are invasive jumping worms making their way into forests and causing all kinds of issues. I was always enamored with worms as a kid, and my mother would just shake her head at me. After rains I would ask for a can and go outside and collect all of the little friends. I don't know what I did with them after collecting them though!

I saw a recent post on FB about day lilies and how they are invasive. Stopped me in my tracks. Wait! What? They are invasive? I had no idea!!! So I researched and found out the difference between tiger lilies and day lilies. Tiger lilies have the dark splotches on them, resembling the look of a tiger, and they are native. Day lilies are just the variations in shades of oranges (and some have yellows), have no splotches, and are invasive. We have day lilies at the land, by the front, that were there when we bought the land. Then when I worked at the resale shop before, a lady brought a bag of day lilies in to be separated out and transplanted. So I took them, planted them here at the house and then at the land. So now I have a new plant that I need to add to the list to remove. But I am grateful to learn it now, and to always be learning something new along the way! I don't ever want to stop adding to the correct information I can absorb and use!

Speaking of, I start a new job soon! Something I have never done before and but am excited to learn! Stay tuned!

 

Trespassers beware

 Close to the end of 2021, Woodchuck and I went out to the land for a quick walk and we decided to try to get out on to the Watershed Preserve. I knew I could get out there, as I had done it recently, though just stayed on the edge of it, but I didn't know if he wanted to tackle it. He did! And I am glad we made the trek.

I constantly get the feeling that someone has been on our land. In the woods, on the land itself, all over. But I have never been able to find hard proof. Until this trip. Almost immediately after getting on to the preserve, we ran into the Aspens that I had been wanting him to see. Young trees yet, but still lovely! 

I took a right, the way I did last time I was out there showing my oldest son around, to get closer to the watershed pond and not too far in found truck tire tracks. Hubby dismissed it, saying that they must be old. But I had that feeling. That spidey sense feeling. That feeling that someone had been on our land, and I trust that feeling. Not finding any proof changed this time.

As I walked around the pond, I tried getting pictures of the phragmite, and to find a way to get closer to them. Seems I will need to wear my waders next time and come up from the other side of the pond. We walked farther and I began to notice broken branches and plants. Ohhh, someone has absolutely been here. This isn't from wildlife. And there it was, spread out over a large area. Flattened native grass (this happens naturally too over the Winter, but the rest of the preserve was still standing at this time), garbage, and deer bone and antler galore. I dropped some intense cuss words, though that's nothing out of the norm for me, and I was pissed that someone dare to come on to our land without permission AND not even bother cleaning up after themselves.

Pictured above: a plastic piece of a decoy and a metal can that had been shot at and mangled up.

Pictures above: one area of flattened grass. There were several all around the same area.

Above: more flattened grass, another shot up and mangled can, and one of the pink flags that the DNR recently put out to mark the ingress/egress to the watershed. However, there are no pink flags ON the watershed, and this tells me that they were all over the property or at least farther out than just on the watershed, and on the opposite side than where the tire tracks were found.

Above: and then I started finding the bones. Lots of bones strewn around. Possible eventually utilized and moved around by a scavenger, but considering they were right where we found evidence of humans, I'm going to say that they had something to do with them being out there in the first place. We were completely unprepared to find any of this out there, but we grabbed what we could, because being a Nature artist and deeply connected with wildlife, I will honor the life of this creature.

Above: a can of Scotchguard. This tells me that they were possibly camping, given the large area of flattened grass. To say I was infuriated would be an understatement. Again, take your shit out with you, don't leave it.

We had to leave some of them, there were so many. But we will be back, and soon, to finish picking up what was left behind, to look farther out than where we did this time, and to start placing signage. Signage that we had to buy ourselves, because even though the DNR said they would provide those for us, when I contacted them to request them again, they said to try trail cams. Note taken. Now I know who I'm dealing with in them as well. Tell us everything you can do to help us when we are buying the land and then not follow through. Fabulous. Whomever goes out on to any of our land without permission had better hope that they get caught by hubby and not myself. I won't wait to see if they are going to be nice about being told not to come back, they should not have been there in the first place. Even the previous owner said he didn't allow anyone to hunt or to be on the land, so they can't use that excuse. We want that land to be a safe haven for wildlife, and for us. Trespassers will be met by a 5 foot tall fire breathing nature witch, with a dragon and all of her ancestors as her guide. Stay the hell off my land.