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Throughout most of the twentieth century, our local communities were thriving. We had sawmills, gristmills, fruit and vegetable farms, butcher shops (with butchers that may have known or raised the animals), dairies (many offering local delivery), and bakeries. Much of the food (and many other items) found on store shelves was from area farmers and producers. Today we import most of our food. We depend on grocery chain stores to make it available to us. And while it’s clear that we’ve become very effective at producing affordable food for much of the world, the COVID-19 pandemic, among other recent / current geopolitical events and climate change issues, brought to light an unexpected lack of security in our food chain (and several other consumer product distribution chains, too).
Farmers were unable to ship produce or livestock to distributors, processors, market outlets, or slaughterhouses. And American consumers experienced (and to some degree are still experiencing) panic buying, empty store shelves, rationing of food staples, and the inability to obtain certain food items and consumer goods altogether.
To better endure a crisis in the future, we need to build more sustainable, more resilient food systems. One way to accomplish this is to bring producers and consumers closer together.
Summer’s here. And people are getting back to traveling. However, in recent weeks, tens of thousands of travelers have found themselves stranded at airports due to flight delays and cancellations. And for almost everyone else, rising gas prices and travel costs in general, have become a major barrier to taking that dream vacation.
Squirrels are a common sight throughout the North Country. They live in wooded areas and forests, but are most-often seen in yards and parks. They’re easily able to survive even the hardest of winters and very well-adapted to living among people. In fact, gray squirrels frequently occur at much higher densities in urban and suburban settings, where there aren’t many natural predators and they can easily take advantage of the abundance of human food sources.
The Ruby-Throated Hummingbird (Archilochus colubris) is the only hummingbird species commonly seen in northern New York. Like all hummingbirds, they belong to the avian family Trochilidae. They’re our region’s smallest breeding bird, only growing to about 3 inches long, with a wingspan of around 3 to 4 inches and a body weight of just 2 to 6 grams (roughly the weight of a teaspoon of sugar).
This is a wonderful time of year for most people. Days are warmer. Evenings are longer. And the trees and flowers are growing again. But for those who suffer from seasonal allergic rhinitis; more commonly known as hay fever and sometimes simply called allergies; this time of year can be challenging.
April 26 is National Help a Horse Day; an initiative launched in 2013 by the American Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) to create and raise awareness of ways to take better care of these often-beloved animals and to promote protection of neglected and abused horses across the country.
The eastern bluebird is our official state bird. It became so on May 18, 1970, making New York the last state to acquire an official state bird.
I have good news for readers who’ve never visited a working sugarhouse or seen maple syrup being made, but are curious about the process and would like to know more. Maple Weekend is coming. During the weekends of March 19 and 20 and March 26 and 27, from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m., member producers of the Northeastern New York Chapter of the New York State Maple Producers Association (NYSMPA) are joining maple tree-farming families across New York State in opening their sugarhouses to the public.
Two recent studies; one published in December in Nature (
Whether we shop at the supermarket or the farmers market, the foods we purchase bare a wide variety of labels. And we rely on those labels to provide us with information on, among other things, how the food was grown and/or prepared, or in the case of meat and meat products, how the animals were raised.
There’s no getting around winter. So you might as well get into it. Right? Enjoy a good book, binge-watch Netflix, savor warm drinks, and cozy up beside the wood stove or fireplace for hours with your music (and your sweetie).
As winter sets in across the North Country, devoted bird-enthusiasts resume feeding overwintering birds. They take both pleasure and pride in helping their feathered friends survive the harsh winter months, by dutifully providing them with food, water, and shelter.
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Controlling an Invasive Plant Without Herbicides
Invasive species are plants, animals, fungi, or microorganisms that spread rapidly and cause harm to other species. They are introduced species that can thrive in areas beyond their natural range of dispersal.