How to Follow Morel Ettiquette (and Find Morels)

I’m not sure how the unspoken morel hunter’s etiquette spreads, but seasoned foragers can spot a violation of the “code” faster than an elusive morel mushroom. With luck, a morel newbie has already started to absorb the “rules” by the time they’ve learned how to find morels and what they look like. If not, they’re bound to stumble into a…

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How to Start a Nature Journal

I lead a homeschool hiking group that meets in nearby state parks and natural areas at least once a month. We’re working on nature journals this year and I decided to turn the student tutorial I was writing for next Friday’s hike into a blog post. When beginning a nature journal, you don’t need much. Prior to setting out, we…

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How to Join the Blog Carnival (Called How to Find Great Plants – HtFGP)

In November 2010 I decided to host a monthly carnival called “How to Find Great Plants.” (HtFGP for short). Posts in this carnival should be about a food or ornamental plant that you’d recommend to others. For example, you might want to describe your love affair with sedums or your preference for ‘Rattlesnake’ pole beans. Photos-only posts are fine as…

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How to Identify Indian Pipes

I was inspired to feature these weirdos after a friend of mine mentioned that she found some recently. Indian Pipes (Monotropa uniflora) are also referred to as ghost plant or corpse plant. They are in fact plants, though some people mistake them for mushrooms. They aren’t fungus but do prey upon it. They are parasites of mycorrhizal fungi associated with…

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How to Identify Eastern and Forest Tent Caterpillars

Tent caterpillars aren’t the end of the world. They may attack your ornamental or orchard trees but unless a tree is already suffering from other stresses it should recover quickly. These native, spring ephemeral caterpillars are often confused with fall webworms (Hyphantria cunea) or gypsy moths (Lymantria dispar). Fall webworms also have a brief life cycle (in the fall instead…

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How to Train Your Eyes to Spot Morels (Photo Essay)

I decided to write a photo essay with variously camouflaged morels from the southeastern woodlands. I’ve also written a couple other tutorials on morel hunting which you can find here: How to Find Edible Morel Mushrooms (With Recipes) How to Follow Morel Etiquette When I first became interested in morel hunting I spent some time on Google images trying to…

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How to Find Edible Morel Mushrooms (With Recipes)

I promised! Here’s the morel hunting post. If you don’t want to hunt for your morels you can still use the recipes by buying fresh morels here, buying dried morels here, or by checking the dried mushroom section at your local grocery store. If you’re really lucky you might find them at your farmer’s market. If you just want to…

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How to Tell a Carolina Mantis Eggcase from a Chinese Mantis Eggcase (What’s an Ootheca?)

The Bunched Arrowhead Heritage Preserve is one of my favorite late-day stops when I need to get a nature fix. It’s about 20 minutes from my house and offers a range of habitats to explore — including forest, rare wetland seepage areas, and maintained meadows. Meadow habitats have become so scarce in the Carolinas that DNR uses mowing and controlled…

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How to Get Your Neighbors Growing Natives

I’ve been thinking about guerrilla gardening lately. I’ve done it… but why not delegate and get your neighbors to do the work? If you’re a butterfly gardener, birder, or simply a lover of native plants it is a good way to increase the species diversity in your area. Studies show that birds thrive in areas rich with native species. Butterflies…

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How to Find and Enjoy Black Walnuts

You may have noticed a tree in your neighborhood that rains dull green baseballs each fall. In most locations these heavy fruits are ignored by residents, unless a group of children utilizes them in a mock battle – or better yet – discovers the joys of walnut-stained body parts and clothing. Often my mother threw up her hands in despair…

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