(August 2014) 5. The Living Landscape: Designing for Beauty and Biodiversity in the Home Garden, by Rick Darke & Doug Tallamy
For the August book(s), the BRDC Book Club has chosen: The Living Landscape: Designing for Beauty and Biodiversity in the Home Garden, by Rick Darke & Doug Tallamy. "A home garden is often seen as separate from the natural world surrounding it. In truth, it is actually just one part of a larger landscape that is made up of many living layers."
As a complimentary book we are also recommending: The New American Landscape: Leading Voices on the Future of Sustainable Gardening, edited by Thomas Christopher. "Gardeners are the front line of defense in our struggle to tackle the problems of global warming, loss of habitat, water shortages, and shrinking biodiversity"
Blue Ridge Expeditions: August 23rd, Hike on Garden Mountain
On this hike you will see beautiful moss- and fern-covered trees and top of the ridge line views into Burke’s Garden, and hear calling ravens. There is a 3.7 mile stretch of sandstone cliffs that drops off abruptly in some places.
Trout in the Classroom: Grayson Highlands School
Over the past four months Mrs. Perry’s seventh grade life science students at Grayson Highlands School have been diligently raising native brook trout in their school lobby for all visitors to see. This is part of a program called “Trout in the Classroom” and revolves around the students learning about the biology and ecology of one of the most iconic species of the Blue Ridge Mountains.
K-2 Reading Program coming this fall!
BRDC has received generous support from the Harris Francis Block Foundation to fund a K-2 Reading Program for the fall of 2014 and spring of 2015! We are really looking forward to sharing some great reads with these young explorers!
Blue Ridge Expeditions: The Channels, Clinch Mountain
One of southwest Virginia’s most spectacular and unusual natural preserves will be explored on this Blue Ridge Expeditions (BRE) hike. The part of Clinch Mountain known as The Channels is an area of huge sandstone rock outcroppings where ancient forces have created a maze of giant fissures, some of which now serve as passageways somewhat similar to slot canyons of the western states.
Two GCHS Students attend the National Environmental Summit for High School Students
Blue Ridge Discovery Center sponsored Grayson County High School students Alex and Vincent Benish to attend the National Environmental Summit for High School Students at Catawba College in Salisbury, NC.
Blue Ridge Expeditions: Hike to Dismal Falls, Bland County, VA
On July 19th, Blue Ridge Expeditions (BRE), a flagship program of the Blue Ridge Discovery Center, will host a hike on the Appalachian Trail in Bland County. This 4.3 mile hike to Dismal Falls, on the Bland-Giles border, is the first of four hikes led by BRE program director, Amy Roberts, a Bland resident.
National Fishing in the Schools Program
Blue Ridge Discovery Center President and Guide, Aaron Floyd, has been tapped by the National Fishing in the Schools Program to train ten United States Fish and Wildlife Service employees how to teach the NFSP "Cast a Fly, Catch a Student" curriculum.
(July 2014) 4. The Sixth Extinction: An Unnatural History, Elizabeth Kolbert
"Over the last half a billion years, there have been five mass extinctions, when the diversity of life on earth suddenly and dramatically contracted. Scientists around the world are currently monitoring the sixth extinction, predicted to be the most devastating extinction event since the asteroid impact that wiped out the dinosaurs."
Field trip...not directly associated with BRDC
Join Mount Rogers Appalachian Trail Club on a Full Buck Moon Backpack on Brier Ridge. We will hike about 5 miles from Massie Gap on Saturday, July 12 to Brier Ridge and return on Sunday midday.
Blue Ridge Expeditions: Sullivan Swamp
On June 7th, a small group of us met at the Massie Gap parking area of Grayson Highlands State Park for our second local Blue Ridge Expeditions hike of the year. Roald Kirby led a 4 mile walk around the edges of Sullivan Swamp, sometimes taking us off the trail for a while. Bushwhacking, he said, can bring surprises.
The Summer Season Begins: Independence Farmer's Market
BRDC's commitment to the community extends to frequent participation in local events, such as the Independence Farmers Market. Passing through town on Fridays during the garden months, one cannot miss the festive array of multicolored tents and throngs of vendors and shoppers milling about. When the IFM asked BRDC to share a kids event tent on site, we willingly accepted.
(June 2014) 3. A Natural Sense of Wonder, Rick Van Noy
"The technology boom of recent years has given kids numerous reasons to stay inside and play, while parents' increasing safety concerns make it tempting to keep children close to home. But what is being lost as fewer kids spend their free time outdoors? Deprived of meaningful contact with nature, children often fail to develop a significant relationship with the natural world, much less a sense of reverence and respect for the world outside their doors."
Recent BRDC activities: Farm Days and the Carolina Raptor Center
On the 22nd and 23rd of May, busloads of grade-school kids flowed through a variety of activities at the Matthews Living History Farm Museum. They were treated to live music, story-telling, farm animals, historical farm equipment, a real vegetable garden and insect explorations. Blue Ridge Discovery Center provided kids with bug nets, capture boxes and magnifying lenses for closer viewing.
Lemon Plagodis
This morning I found three Lemon Plagodis and an Oak Besma perched on a Velcro strap that holds my moth sheet tight. Enjoy!
Cecropia
Hyalophora Cecropia isn't a moth that I expected to see at my moth light here in the mountains. I had a brief glimpse of one in Lake Waccamaw State Park in North Carolina fourteen years ago today (5/20/14). The only time I had one to examine up close and personal, I was a kid on the family farm in Delaware, 60+ years ago. Cecropias are the largest of our North American silkmoths and they are spectacular in their own right. Enjoy the pics!
Calico Pennant
Last Wednesday (5?14/14) my wife and I found a number of active dragonflies at Bass Lake on the outskirts of Blowing Rock, Watauga County, NC. We saw eastern pondhawks, common whitetails, Carolina saddlebags, and Calico pennants. The pennants sat still long enough for me to get a decent photo. Enjoy!
Ailanthus
In my neck of the woods, Ailanthus is an invasive alien that looks like a native, but isn't. One of the reasons that homeowners like it is the flowers. Moth enthusiasts know about it because Atteva aurea, the Ailanthus webworm, uses it as its host plant. Here's the photographic evidence.
40th Annual Mount Rogers Naturalist Rally
On May 9th, folks from at least four states began arriving at the Konnarock Community Center for their annual fix of nature and fellowship. Registration tables awaited the throng as Roald and Ellie Kirby scratched out some tunes for ambiance.