*********************
A TOUCH OF NATURE
March 1, 2003 Issue
*******************************************

SEARCH previous issues and SUBSCRIBE

*******************************************
DONNA'S COMMENTS
**********************

It's March - the month of Spring. Will it arrive here in Virginia? We moved here for cooler weather [from Alabama] but chose this central Virginia area because of its mild winters. Admittedly, we have had two nice winters after moving here, but this is the winter we're building the home we came to build. Last year's snowfall was a total of 5.6 inches for the entire winter. So far this year, we've had 34 inches! Just a bit more than we'd planned. The house building is not moving along as you might guess.

Yesterday I was going so stir crazy I told my hubby we had to hike up to the grocery store just for the walk through the woods. It's just over the hill through the woods behind us. What a refreshing time! Crisp air, snow for snowballs, deer and turkey tracks.....it's amazing what a few minutes in nature can do for your spirit! The beets and grapes were really good too!

Hang in there where ever you are! Spring is on its way!
Donna

*****************
CRITTER FACTS
*****************

SEASON OF THE BAT

In this site, you will learn everything you ever wanted to know (and didn't) about bats. From their natural history, anatomy, and different species, this site welcomes bat experts and novices alike! Please visit to learn more!

NOTHING SCAREY ABOUT BATS BUT THEIR DECLINING POPULATIONS

Myths about these winged mammals have inspired fear through the ages, but the truth is that bats not only are largely harmless, but they actually help with insect control, pollination and play a key role in the development of vaccines and navigational devices for the blind. In fact, the scariest thing about bats is that so many of them are threatened by habitat destruction and declining populations.

Discover more about this unique animal

*************************
THOSE AMAZING BIRDS!
*************************

BIRD FACT: Grosbeak

These birds can consume 96 sunflower seeds in less than five (5) minutes.

BIRD PROFILE: EASTERN PHOEBE

This bird eats great quantities of wasps, ants, beetles and moths. In colder weather, they will eat fruits and seeds. Their tail twitches up and down when sitting and they have an enunciated call in two syllables, first strongly accented: fee-be. Phoebes will return year after year to the same nest site. Favorites are bridge girders, house eaves, farm sheds, and unused machinery. They lay 5 white eggs on a nest of mud and moss lined with hair and grass. This bird winters in southeast and Gulf Coast of the USA.

More information on Eastern Phoebes and photos too

**********************************************
GARDENING FOR WILDLIFE- Restoring the Balance
**********************************************

Adding native food producing plants and trees to your yard will provide "free" food for years to come. The following two examples grow in the Appalachian area in which we live, and in other areas also. We have found one of these trees on the land that we're building on - a persimmon tree. I hope there are more. Since we do have a creek bordering the property, we may have some Paw Paw trees also that we've not yet found.

PERSIMMON

Persimmon is the common name for almost 200 species of the Ebony family. In the Appalachian Mountains, the species Diospyros virginiana is found growing throughout the region, from mountain tops to river bottoms. The tree produces a plum-like berry that is green before ripening, turning orange to black when ripe. Although very bitter when green, it is sweet and edible when ripe. Persimmons are sometimes called "the sugar plum of the mountains" and also have medicinal value.

Read - DEAD LINK REMOVED - More about persimmons and wildlife

PAW PAW

Pawpaw (Asimina triloba) is another native fruit of the Appalachian Mountains. The taste of pawpaws is often compared to that of bananas, mangos, pineapples, and papayas. It is sweet and kidney-shaped, and is North America‚s largest native fruit and the only temperate member of the tropical custard apple family. The fruit grows in clusters that ripen in the fall. A deciduous, large shrub or small tree, the pawpaw grows in mixed hardwood forests, on the slopes of ravines, along streams, and in flood plains. The pawpaw is similar to the banana in its nutritional composition. It is high in potassium, magnesium, calcium, phosphorus, zinc, and iron, as well as being a source of vitamins A and C.

More info and a sketch of a paw paw tree

***********************************
"GREEN" INFO- Making It a Way of Life!
***********************************

FLORIDA ROAD TRIP WITH HYBRID

It seemed like a typical all-American road trip from Tampa to Tallahassee, Florida: Over 700 miles and five days, Darden Rice and Joe Murphy sampled local cuisine, sang along with Van Halen on the radio, and played spot-the-SUV's until they ran out of fingers and toes. This journey had a serious purpose: to show their fellow Floridians how to help the environment by changing what they drive.

Who they collaborated with along the way was with county sheriffs, city commissioners, and other officials with the power to purchase fleets of gas/electric hybrid cars like the Toyota Prius that Rice drove. Murphy drove a GMC Yukon for comparison's sake.

Here is the comparison:
                      Toyota Prius           GMC Yukon
Base Price:         $20,450                $35,552
Gas mileage on trip: 44.5 mpg        16.3 mpg
Gallons of gas used: 16.24               43.01
Cost at the pump: $22.84                  $60.21
Est. lbs of CO2 produced: 308.56        817.19

Hybrid fleets are a win-win situation. They save taxpayer money and reduce carbon dioxide emissions. Officials like the idea because it allows them to be a champion for something positive. Miami's board of county commissioners has already ordered a feasibility report on switching the entire Miami-Dade fleet to hybrid power. And sheriff's departments in Alachua and Martin Counties have put hybrids on the beat. When officials test drove Rice's car, they like what they saw.

People were surprised to see you didn't have to plug in the Prius. Somebody actually asked if you could drive it in the rain. People are just beginning to realize that it can do anything a regular vehicle can.

To read their trip journals and learn more about hybrid cars and global warming, check out the "Drive Clean Only" campaign at the Sierra Club's site.

***************************
MUSINGS: POETRY & PROSE
***************************

"The future belongs to those who
believe in the beauty of their dreams."
-- Eleanor Roosevelt

*********************************
GOOD NEWS ABOUT OUR PLANET
*********************************

AMISH FARMERS IN CONSERVATION

John Fischer has been called one of Lancaster County, Pennsylvania's "most cutting-edge agricultural innovators." Fischer, an organic dairy farmer and a member of the Old Order Amish, has donated the stream-bank of a creek that runs through his pasture for a conservation experiment. Shrubs and perennials are planted along this stream buffer to see whether they can reduce the soil erosion and improve water quality and wildlife habitat, while providing a source of income from the berries and plant harvesting.

Read the rest of the story

******************************************
DISCLAIMER:
The content, suggestions, and web links in this newsletter are for informational purposes only and not necessarily endorsed by our sponsor "The Herbs Place.com" This is a personal publication by Donna Watkins. The ideas and information expressed in it have not been approved or authorized by anyone either explicitly or impliedly. In no event shall Donna Watkins or "The Herbs Place.com" be liable for any damages whatsoever resulting from any action arising in connection with the use of this information or its publication, including any action for infringement of copyright or defamation.

Subscribe to A Touch of Nature