Nepalese browntop, bamboo grass, Mary’s grass, Chinese packing grass, Japanese stiltgrass. It goes by many names, but the people who engage it in an ongoing battle to be rid of it refer to by it’s Latin name: microstegium. It is among the most egregious of the invasive plants, a ground cover who’s mere mention elicits a low growl reminiscent of that offered by the Addams Family’s Lurch.
Category Archives: Nature
Trout lilies! Let Spring Begin
I’d just finished leading a hike at the Butner Game Lands along Falls Lake. I had 5 miles under my belt, a good day in my book, and besides, I had a boatload of chores to do at home. But the sky was a cloudless blue, the temperature was on its way into the mid-70s, and I was 15 minutes from the only place in the piedmont where I was 99 percent sure I would find the thing that, for me, means spring has truly arrived.
From Imbolc to Equinox
Spring officially is three weeks away; is it too soon to start the countdown?
Actually, it’s a bit late.
Here’s how my spring countdown unfolds, beginning with …
Imbolc, Feb. 1. This traditional Gaelic observance marks the mid-point of winter, halfway between the winter solstice (Dec. 21) and the spring equinox (March 20).
Dec. 7, and other dates to get you through winter
The days are growing darker by … well, by the day. And while most folks don’t see this situation improving for another 20 days until we hit the low point with the Winter solstice, the optimists among you no doubt have your hopes pinned to this Sunday, Dec. 7.
Lessons learned in the land of Pooh
The following piece first appeared in 2015, following author Kathryn Aalto’s appearance at Raleigh’s Quail Ridge Books to promote her then-new book, “The Natural World of Winnie-the-Pooh.” Aalto reflected on the joy’s of walking-at-will in her new home of England, about how little is off-limits in a country that grants a legal right to roam. Her observations and wanderings seem especially pertinent in fall, a time when all we want to do is roam and take in this season of color.