There's plenty to do in the garden and yard as November begins and before the heavy snows covers the landscape for the next several months. The autumn storms, like the recent east coast storm, bring down a lot of branches and trees.

These fallen branches can be used to build a brush pile for native wildlife. A brush pile provides many smaller animals and insects shelter and protection. It's always fun to check the pile when the snow is on the ground and examine the tracks to see what is using the pile.

The brush pile doesn't have to look like an ugly pile of broken sticks. Vine plants can be planted in and around the pile which offer nourishment to many animals and insects throughout the year besides making the pile look attractive. Morning glories are a good choice; they provide excellent coverage and a rich source of food for bees and butterflies.

While this region of northwestern Pennsylvania escape the brunt of the Great Halloween Storm, the weather was blustery and cold. The first hard frost was on October 27 – 28. Some inland areas had an inch or two of snow (Corry, PA and Jamestown, NY). The great snow machine will kick-in soon enough.

It is time for woodstoves and fireplaces and the wood ashes can be a valuable resource to enrich the soil in the yard and vegetable garden.

Change the Clocks

The first Sunday of November turn the clocks back, it is the end of Daylight Savings Time in much of the U.S. This year the first Sunday is November 6.

The clocks were moved forward earlier this year on the second Sunday of March. The latest timetable for the changes is the result of a 2005 federal law which went into effect in 2007. The nation has observed some form of Daylight Savings Time since World War 1 in an effort to save energy.

There are a few places which don't bother changing the clocks. They are: Arizona, Hawaii, American Somoa, Guam, Puerto Rico, and the Northern Mariana Islands.

The Navajo Nation also remains on Standard Time because of it's sprawling size in the western states. The Nation covers a wide area which encompasses three different states.

Old Mossback

I had a story on Old Mossback and the LeBoeuf Creeper published in the newsletter PALMS, the newsletter for the Pennsylvania Lake Management Society. It is on page four of the newsletter. There is also an excellent article on the Brown Bullhead. To get to the newsletter, just sign up.

Previously, I had an article published on Old Mossback at Associated Content. It is a fascinating story of man verses big fish. PALMS does a lot of great work in helping to maintain and restore our valuable lakes and watershed areas. Check them out.

Rose Hips

Rose hips are rich in Vitamins A and C and in the wild are readily available. Rose hips, actually the fruit of a rose, were used in many Native American cultures and by the early settlers. Picking them can be a little tricky, the throns are still sharp on the wild bushes.The bright red berries are also a source of food for many bird species and smaller animals throughout the long winter months.

The hips can be used to brew a flavorful tea and can also be used as vegetable, just be careful not to use any hips which have been sprayed with pesticides.

For the next several months, the rose hips are about the only color in the woods except for the green Christmas Ferns.

Rose hips, like broken branches, downed trees and leaves are more than a nuisance; they can be used resourcefully.

Energy Plant (or tire incinerator)

The Meadville Tire to Energy Plant, a large tire incinerator by another name, has received all of the needed permits and officials of the company claim construction could begin very shortly on the complex.

The complex will receive thousands of tires every day, which will be burned, and the electric produced sold. There have been a lot of environmental questions about the plant and what course of action environmentalists take next is uncertain. I don't think this story is over by any means.

It was an incinerator, which was partly to blame for the financial mess in the state capital of Harrisburg. The financial problems were correctly called by Mike Ewall of Energy Justice (link below in Blogs to Read). The Harrisburg story,

Harrisburg: a city at war with itself

from Reuters is well worth the read.

Civil War

John Brown was an abolitionist who raided Harper's Ferry just prior to the Civil War. He wanted to start an insurrection in the Appalachian Mountains. Unknown to many, Brown for many years farmed several hundred acres in northwestern Pennsylvania and operated a tannery. He was staunchly anti-slavery and some say his actions were the actual beginnings of hostilities. Learn more about Brown's hidden life and the events at the federal fort, here.

Good Blogs and Web Sites

Corning New York Stepby Step

Step by Step in the Kitchen

Energy Justice

Uncle Sam’s History