The Naturalist's Corner
Crepuscular by nature The sun knows the secret. Beginning and end Are the beautiful times. The soft warm And sensual…
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Under siege: Saving the sequoias of the East
Jesse Webster consulted his GPS and eyed the tangle of rhododendrons stretching out of sight up the mountainside. Somewhere beyond…
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Smokies relies on outside support to maintain what makes it special
When Steve Woody and Barney Coulter got a mysterious call from Smokies Superintendent Randall Pope in the early 1990s asking…
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Do you have a gardening question?
By Jim Janke The purpose of Master Gardener programs is to increase the knowledge of horticulture among home gardeners. Master…
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The Naturalist's Corner
What’s that buzzin? “Daddy, daddy, there’s a yellowjacket in the bedroom!” cried Izzy. And somehow, the dusty old synapses fired…
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School serves as model for dealing with runoff
Innovative techniques for dispersing runoff and protecting neighboring streams will be highlighted during a program at 6:30 p.m. Monday, May…
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You, too, can bike to work
Whether it’s for fitness, for fun or to save the planet, there’s plenty of reasons to bike to work. There’s…
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Gate goes up, Gorge community blocked out
By Julia Merchant • Staff writer One day last October, Bud Dills, a longtime Nantahala Gorge resident, headed down to…
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Celebrating 75 years
More than 200 state and local dignitaries gathered for a ceremony atop Clingmans Dome in the Great Smoky Mountains National…
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Smokies prepare for bat-decimating disease
In response to a growing concern about a new malady that has killed an estimated 400,000 bats north of here…
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The Naturalist's Corner
Hats off to Avram and the activist spirit Avram Friedman, executive director of the Canary Coalition, is not afraid to…
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When to celebrate
Depending on how you slice it, the 75th anniversary of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park could be celebrated on…
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HCC student finishes second at lumberjack event
A Haywood Community College wildlife student brought home a second-place finish in the STIHL Timbersports Mid-Atlantic Collegiate Challenge this month.…
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The Naturalist's Corner
A picture is worth a thousand words When the 1968 Apollo astronauts rounded the moon for the first time the…
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Hiking the AT: A journey of mind, body, spirit
By Josh Mitchell • Staff Writer The bad economy may be good for business along the Appalachian Trail. The AT…
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Local activist arrested at Cliffside protest
Avram Friedman, leader of the Sylva-based air quality group the Canary Coalition, was arrested during a protest march in Charlotte…
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When is it safe to plant?
By Jim Janke When is it safe to plant tender annuals and vegetables in Haywood County? The standard answer we…
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Haywood Chamber of Commerce helps businesses achieve green goals
When most business owners cast their eyes about the office — noting the reams of white paper spilling off the…
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Smokies brace for disease known to decimate bat populations
In response to a growing concern about a new malady that has killed an estimated 400,000 bats north of here…
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The Naturalist's Corner
Canaries in the coalmine As I passed the kitchen windows last Friday (4/10), a brilliant red streak caught my eye.…
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Lake Junaluska Duathlon: Athletes give rave reviews to new race
Between blue skies and blue water, the inaugural Lake Junaluska Duathlon won over dozens of runners and bikers this weekend.…
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Local couple recognized for land stewardship
John and Jane Young of Haywood County have been recognized by the North Carolina Forest Stewardship Program for their commitment…
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The Naturalist's Corner
Watershed dreaming Last Saturday (April 4) was another sojourn into the town of Waynesville’s 8,500-acre plus watershed. The town initiated…
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The Naturalist's Corner
Caving moratorium sought Three weeks ago (Naturalist’s Corner 3/11) I wrote about a mysterious malady dubbed White Nose Syndrome (WNS)…
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Finding a home for fresh water mussels
Barrels of mussels being bred at the state’s fish hatcheries are awaiting release into the region’s rivers, helping to restore…
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Do not plant Bradford Pear
By Jim Janke We moved here from Chicago, where there are only two seasons: winter and road-under-construction.* By comparison, the…
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Homecoming on the Pigeon River
After decades of paper mill pollution, the Pigeon River is coming back to life — literally. Aquatic biologists embarked on…
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Guns in parks? Court says not so fast
The ban on guns in national parks will continue to remain in place for the time being, despite a move…
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The Naturalist's Corner: Going to Grandfather Mountain and back
By Izzy Hendershot (age 7) • Notes in italics by Dad We hopped in the car and started off. The…
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Heritage you can taste: Cherokee savor apples of their ancestors
Preserving Cherokee heritage goes beyond baskets, blow guns and pow-wows to the very foods and crops once grown and savored…
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Hiking every last trail in the Smokies, and then some
By Danny Bernstein For the past year, I’ve kept a trail map of the Smokies and the trusted manual Hiking…
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Basil: king of herbs
By Jim Janke Sweet Basil (Ocimum basilicum) is an incredible herb. Essential for tomato sauces, basil has plenty of other…
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The Naturalist's Corner: Cornell knows birds – and I don’t
The Great Backyard Bird Count (GBBC) is a citizen-science venture conducted under the auspices of Cornell Lab of Ornithology and…
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Environmental groups poised to win long battle
Following a prolonged debate, the national forest service wants to close a system of four-wheel drive trails in the Tellico…
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The Naturalist's Corner: Bat–tling for survival
A mysterious malady is decimating bat populations across the Northeast and spreading south. The malady, called white-nose syndrome (WNS) because…
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Dillsboro ups the ante as a green town
Two electric vehicles will soon be tooling around the town of Dillsboro thanks to a state grant aimed at reducing…
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Give your vegetable garden a head start
By Jim Janke The last frost date is many weeks away, but everyone is anxious to get vegetable seeds and…
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Climbers asked to relinquish cliffs for peregrine falcons
Wildlife biologists are asking rock climbers to avoid known nesting habitats of the peregrine falcon as breeding and nesting season…
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The Naturalist's Corner
Peregrine pads protected Rock climbing trails across the Carolina mountains near known peregrine falcon nest sites have once again been…
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New park visitor center to showcase stored artifacts
A design has been finalized for a new $3 million visitor center at the North Carolina entrance to the Great…
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Smokies keeps status as most visited national park
The economy and high gas prices last summer led to slightly fewer visitors in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park…
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The Naturalist's Corner: Black oil sunflower seed is king
One thing became clear during my little bird feeding experiment. If you’re looking for one birdseed that will attract just…
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Could hops be one of WNC’s new cash crops?
Tobacco is no longer the cash crop it once was in North Carolina, but its partner in crime — hops…
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The Naturalist's Corner: 4TH Annual Hendershot Birdapalooza
The results are in and the fourth annual Hendershot Birdapalooza at Black Bayou Lake National Wildlife Refuge in Monroe, Louisiana…
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Spare me some spears
By Sandi Simons-Crawford Asparagus (Asparagus officinalis) is one of very few perennial vegetables. A properly managed bed will produce for…
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Guarding the Little Tennessee from exotics
Environmental groups in Macon County are joining forces to tackle the scourge of exotic plants along the Little Tennessee Greenway…
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Smokies’ mania: 75 hikes for the 75th anniversary
Jerry Span stared down the sign post for Old Settlers Trail. The temperature registered a mere 6 degrees, and the…
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Environmentalists come in many forms at fair
Standing next to a display that showed pictures of West Virginia mountains scarred by mountaintop removal coal mining, Austin Hall…
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Building better, conserving energy
Western Carolina University is leading the way in a state mandate to cut energy production on college campuses. WCU has…
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The Naturalist's Corner: Birder bucks
The mountain section of the North Carolina Birding Trail (NCBT) is complete and the Mountain Region Trail Guide, describing, with…
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