Red Cedar: Our Only Local Native Conifer, and the Birds Love It
March 1, 2018 7:00 pm Leave your thoughtsOur native red cedar has two noticeably different varieties. In the eastern states, with more rainfall and less drying winds,... Read More →
Author Archives for Lon Drake
About Lon Drake
This old guy's favorite large-scale conservation projects include integrating soils, water, plants, and animals, especially native species. I still bike through my South Sycamore stormwater management system from 2001.
Our Rare Butterfly Plantation in 2017
February 22, 2018 7:00 pm Leave your thoughtsYou may already know that back in 2010 we started developing a patch of habitat for the rarest of our... Read More →
Prairie Preview Returns Yet Again
February 15, 2018 7:00 pm Leave your thoughtsWell, another year is rolling around to Prairie Preview time, another opportunity to network with conservation-minded people; and get help... Read More →
Ancient Species Still Shape Our Lives
February 8, 2018 7:00 pm Leave your thoughtsIn the early pioneer era, Midwest rivers were the major means of transportation, whether canoe, flatboat, or steamboat. And so... Read More →
If It Doesn’t Kill You, It Will Make You Stronger
February 1, 2018 7:00 pm Leave your thoughtsIn a former career, I used to work on oil spill sites, planting fast-growing tree thickets to do the final... Read More →
The Baldfaced Hornet
January 25, 2018 7:00 pm 2 CommentsThese are nasty females you do not want to meet in summer, so now is the time to get a... Read More →
Answers to Holiday Conservation Crossword Puzzle
January 18, 2018 7:00 pm Leave your thoughtsConservation Friends, If you entirely filled the holidays with family and friends, and long walks in the woods, and a... Read More →
A Hummingbird Honeysuckle for Your Cold Microclimate
January 11, 2018 7:00 pm Leave your thoughtsMy microclimate blogs over the past two years have tended to emphasize our warmer sites. This is because a significant... Read More →
Audubon’s Mammals
January 4, 2018 7:00 pm Leave your thoughtsEveryone knows about John James Audubon’s masterful portrayal of North American birds. Less well known is that shortly after completion... Read More →
Greetings from the Land
December 28, 2017 7:00 pm 1 CommentConservation Friends, New Year’s greetings from our family to yours. We have been most fortunate to have a little piece... Read More →
