Trees

I’ve never thought of a loblolly plantation as a bona fide forest. The rows of neatly spaced and stalky trees seem more akin to a long-rotation corn crop. In most pine plantations, trees are thinned in 15 years, and the rest are harvested at 30. Like other agricultural land, pine plantations provide open space, but […]

In the early 1970s, a group of artists rebelled against the market-driven forces in New York. They moved out West and began to use the earth as their canvas. In time, their works became known as earth art or land art. The Lightning Field by Walter De Maria is one of the best examples. On […]

Ask an outdoor enthusiast to name a special natural area in the state and he might mention mountain bogs, Carolina bays or longleaf pine savannas. If pressed to identify one in the piedmont, he might squint and scratch his head and stammer. The piedmont is often described as fragmented, cultivated and compromised. The gentle hills […]

The ground between Roberdo and Wadeville sometimes shakes when the Warrior football team of West Montgomery High takes to the field, but last October the tremors were due to a special project on land adjacent to the campus. The “West Montgomery tract” includes an 80-acre stand of mature longleaf that the US Forest Service has […]

In fall, native plants in the Uwharries offer up a bounty of fruits for wildlife and humans alike. Muscadines seemed to ripen a little early this year. My mom and I picked dozens of deep purple berries in mid-August. Their musky scent helped us locate several vines. Their flavor is just as intense. There’s nothing […]