It was confirmed: oak wilt had claimed the lives almost all the red and black oaks across this section of woods. Oak wilt is a disease caused by the non-native fungus Ceratocystis fagacearum, and is lethal to oak trees. But as devastating as oak wilt
If you asked Bruce and Ellen Vartian, they would tell you that the land where they live has taken care of them for nearly 40 years. Last summer they decided, after all the time the land has taken care of them, it was time to
Long before the state of Michigan was made up of a patchwork of geometric farm fields, sprawling cities, meandering highways, and stretches of forest, the state was made up mostly of a dynamic mixture of three landscapes--prairie, oak savanna, and oak forest. Those habitats shifted
The Hemlock Woolly Adelgid (HWA) is an invasive species that has devastated the hemlock forests in the southeast United States. It was first detected in West Michigan in 2016 and now threatens the hemlocks of our own lakeshore and northern forests. The known extent of HWA
Recently I have been reading stories of polar explorers. I have long been fascinated by the men and women who strike out into the most desolate places on earth. I love the pictures of their hardened, stoic faces poking out through furry hoods, covered in
A little extra celebration was had this holiday season as a flurry of land protection happened in the last days of 2017. Two conservation agreements were completed as the year wrapped up, bringing the 2017 total to six new conservation agreements and the total acreage
On a bright clear morning in early December, I watched a bulldozer tear up the land. Back and forth it worked, methodically stripping vegetation from the ground and skimming off the soil. Behind it, an excavator ripped into a hillside and piled the dirt a few
It has been just under a year since The Highlands, a partnership project with Blandford Nature Center, was turned toward a new future as a natural area. Already the landscape has experienced some significant changes. The manicured greens, fairways, and tee boxes that could be
The following post is from Preserved! artist Randi Ford. The post was originally posted at randifordart.com where you can see more of her work. Learn more about the Preserved! art program here. I visited the Flower Creek Dunes for the first time recently, to become inspired for the Land
The following post is from Preserved! artist Kathy Mohl. The post was originally posted at kathymohl.fineartstudioonline.com where you can see more of her work. Learn more about the Preserved! art program and purchase tickets to the Grand Rapids gallery opening here. Einstein said; “The most important decision we make