Hello fellow forest stewards.

What follows is my contribution to the blog describing what I like about volunteering as a forest steward and why.

As far back as I can remember I have been drawn to the forest. As a child my yard was bracketed by wooded lots on both sides, and  I spent much of my leisure time playing, dreaming, and imagining in this environment. Now that I am retired, I feel fortunate to be able to return to these familiar green spaces through my  volunteer work.

In the following photos I have attempted to  highlight some, certainly not all,  of the activities I enjoy when I volunteer.

The first picture is of a small waterfall on Pipers Creek.
Maintaining and improving water quality is one of the goals of stewardship

The second is the forest canopy, mostly Alders.

The Third  is a nurse stump. I counted a Salmonberry, Huckleberry, Bracken and Ladyfern being nourished by this stump.

The fourth is my gloves and claw tools for Ivy removal.

The fifth is plant identification. In this case a Stink Currant compared to a Thimbleberry.

The sixth is Cutting Stink Currant preparing live stake.

The seventh is Stink Currant live stake planted and marked.

The eighth is Ivy liberation.

The ninth is Surviving Cedar in the Mountain Beaver experimental plot.