I am not sure when I first noticed the return of the turkey vultures this spring. They are present all year long, with one or two spiraling high in the skies on warm days, but for the last three weeks a colony of more than thirty buzzards circled the skies just before sundown, and ultimately … More Lessons From a Buzzard Roost
This past winter was a strange and disappointing one for me. Temperatures were much too cold to work in the orchard, and even if I could have managed to tough out the freezing conditions, a state-wide burn ban left me without any means to burn the wood I’d manage to gather in an effort to … More A Little Show of Ice
We released Daisy deer to roam free and wild in January of 2012. Because she was a lone fawn, I still spent most mornings accompanying her on walks through the woodland below our home. Raising a single fawn had been worrisome for me, as deer are herd animals, and fawns are used to the company … More Scarlet Doe – Matriarch of the Woodlands
In the days following my foiled attempt at finding clues after sighting a deer poacher on the neighboring property, I found myself keeping close to home. The weather had become cold and blustery, with occasional fog and drizzle, and I was anxious about continuing my investigation before the coming weekend when rifle season would open. … More Keeping a Low Profile
I was ready to head out early the morning following the discovery of an illegal hunter on the property next to ours. I intended to have a closer look at the area that I call “the island”, where I saw the hunter disappear to. This stretch of woodland juts out into a soybean field, creating … More A Foiled Attempt
The sky was showing the first signs of light as FD headed off to work last Thursday morning. I generally walk him to our metal building where our vehicles are kept, and see him off to work each day. As I walked back through the building towards the house, I stopped by the electric buggy. … More Sunrise Hike to the River
My work clearing downed branches and limbs in the orchard had come to a standstill for a few weeks, since early Autumn rains arrived as they generally do in September. But with the wind and rain, even more limbs came down. Many trees were already on overload with too many pecans and the rain only … More The Ebb and Flow of Life
This past weekend, FD and I decided it was finally time to close the pool for the season. We were still enjoying the warm dog days of summer, but it was evident that autumn was just around the corner. Evenings were cooler now, and a few hints of fall color were making a splash in … More Nodding Off
Exasperated, I carefully made my way back up the slope, watching behind me as I made the ascent to the house. Foolishly, I had gotten a little too far away from the protection of the buggy and left myself wide open as a target. Just the day before, I had been working on a little … More A Force to be Reckoned With
A series of late-summer rainstorms brought more than four inches of moisture to our area of Oklahoma last weekend. We surely needed a reprieve from the heat, but now the humidity was sweltering. As FD and I drove the buggy around the property on Sunday morning to check on storm damage to the pecan trees, … More Who’s The Boss
When we purchased the pecan orchard last August, FD and I were both aware the property had a thistle problem along its south and west boundaries. For much of the autumn and winter months, when the thistle plants were in the rosette stage, FD would pry the dinner plate sized plants up with a shovel … More A Sticky Situation
