Monthly Archives: January 2019

Forest Health Conference – day 2

Posted on January 30, 2019 by JohnMatel

Wild hogs are the worst Wild pigs are the worst, or certainly among the worst invasive species. They can destroy a corn field in one night.  They are an especially savage enemies of longleaf pine and are a big factor … Continue reading →

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Healthy forests – Virginia Association of Forest Health Professionals 27th Annual Conference

Posted on January 28, 2019 by JohnMatel

In praise of “non-essential” government employees Coming so close to the end of the shutdown, I am reminded of all the good work that Federal workers do. It is work that is low profile. If they stop working, we do … Continue reading →

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January tree planting

Posted on January 22, 2019 by JohnMatel

I planted more than 400 tree today: 50+ bald cypress & 350 longleaf pine. I understand the professionals are much faster, but it is a lot of me. I also planted in smaller batches and with more thought. For example, … Continue reading →

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Ponderosa and longleaf pine

Posted on January 17, 2019 by JohnMatel

Two of my favorite ecosystems are the longleaf and ponderosa pine. They are maintained by fire and it is getting harder to use fire. The ponderosa is the longleaf of the western mountains or maybe the longleaf is the ponderosa … Continue reading →

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Last day in San Diego – Stay Classy

Posted on January 13, 2019 by JohnMatel

Notice the difference in the photo, not beer but ice cream. The others are more of the usual. We had lunch at a place called Union in San Diego’s Gaslight district. Food was good, but we wanted the ambiance of … Continue reading →

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Salton Sea, Borrego Springs, California

Posted on January 11, 2019 by JohnMatel

We had a beer-less lunch today in a little village called Borrego Springs. We drove from Palm Desert to Temecula in a very round about way, first going south the Salton City and then west through Borrego Desert Park. The … Continue reading →

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Joshua Tree again

Posted on January 11, 2019 by JohnMatel

Joshua Tree National Park protects a unique environment where two environments meet. The Joshua Trees grow in the high desert of the Mojave. As you go downhill, you get into the Colorado Desert biome. The Colorado is a subset of … Continue reading →

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Young men are stupid

Posted on January 8, 2019 by JohnMatel

Next note in my story. This one asked about my first big trip alone.   It was not a good idea, but did it anyway. I had planned to hitchhike to Arizona over spring break with a couple of young … Continue reading →

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