Canoeing, kayaking, floating, swimming — I was born to be on the water. Lucky us: We LIVE on West Chickamauga Creek, the boundary between Walker County and Catoosa County in Northwest Georgia. Our 6-acre Spirit Tree Farms property is across the creek from the #ChickamaugaNationalMilitaryPark (actually in the Southeast corner of the park, where there’s a […]
Category Archives: Nature Observation
Heeding Nature’s Calls To Love Her: My Nature’s Guy Manifesto
Nature’s calls resonate all around me. Whether I’m home on the banks of the West Chickamauga Creek in Northwest Georgia, at my Dad’s on Lake Winneconne, Wisconsin, or visiting my children, friends and relatives in Arizona, Utah, Lake Tahoe area or the Pacific Northwest, Nature’s calls reach out to me, grab me and hold me […]
Observing Nature with a Purpose
I spend a lot of time observing nature as I wander and work in the woods, creek and fields. Whether on my property near the #ChickamaugaNMP in Northwest Georgia, at my relatives in Arizona, Wisconsin or Washington, or traveling around this fantastic country (and world), I’ve always loved seeing God’s creations, and how they work […]
Frost Flowers from Crownbeard Wildflowers
Our Wildflower Spiral on SpiritTreeFarms is home to crownbeard wildflowers in the summer and frost flowers with the first hard freezes of late autumn. But what are frost flowers and how do they form? Watch the video to find out! (Or read more). Dead Crownbeard Stems Wick Up Water Which Freezes Into Frost Flowers Crownbeards […]
Feel Nature: Get Outside Often
We need to get outside, to breathe fresh air, to see the sun, to feel nature. There was a time, when I worked at Microsoft near Seattle, where I never saw the sun. Even now, memories of sitting in a closet-like room with no windows, where I had to walk out a door and look […]
Getting to the Root Issue
Getting to the root of thistles is a lot like getting to the root of your self-defeating behaviors and negative self-talk. While clearing my garden spot this morning, I had to remove two very large thistles. Thistles are spiky things and they can go through your gloves. The best way I’ve found to remove them […]
Robin Totem & My Supermodel for Joy
Last week Dave and I were outside and saw a flock of robins – twenty or so. We were both shocked to see robins at the beginning of February in Northwest Georgia. Anytime Dave spots something in nature that’s unusual, he takes note and points it out to me. Years ago a friend taught me […]
Setting Of October’s Super Moon: Haiku
I’m cross-posting these poems in my CyranoWriter.com creative writing blog.
Wildflowers And Pollinators: A Hopeful Prose Piece
I posted this piece on Wildflowers and Pollinators in the “Pollinator Friendly Yards” Facebook page. After only 4 days, I had dozens of comments and over 1500 likes! Obviously I hit a nerve; many people said that my post and what I was doing gave them hope. Most importantly, it shows that changing your lawn […]
Why Make And Maintain A Natural Yard: For The Birds, Bees and Butterflies
Natural yards for the birds, bees and butterflies — and for the pleasure they brings human senses — are nothing new. I personally have created my own natural yard for decades, as has my brother. Where did that inspiration come from? Our forest ranger father, who taught all my siblings that lawns were silly, foolish, […]