Sunshine, warm weather, birds singing, more daylight, picnic lunches… what’s not to celebrate during Spring! So if you’re coming up to shop for furniture, bring your boots and build in a little extra time to enjoy Spring at Stonehurst. It’s beautiful! A couple things you can do here that you never thought of doing at a furniture store:
Take A Hike
Hike through our 100 acre woodland at Stonehurst. We located our sustainable furniture store here so you can experience the kind of responsibly-managed forest where your furniture originates. Read More
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We brought Jose Luis Alvarez to the Milkweed Symposium in Canada so he could teach attendees about the need to reforest monarch habitat in Mexico.
The 1st International Symposium on Milkweed
Last Friday I traveled to Becancour, Quebec with our friend Jose Luis Alvarez for the 1st International Symposium on American Silk (aka milkweed). The symposium was put together by Francois Simard. He’s a textiles engineer who’s developing technologies to use milkweed fibers as a down substitute in winter jackets. Francois is trying to persuade farmers to plant milkweed as a commercial crop in the USA and Canada.
Book cover Illustration by Vermont artist Kathleen Kolb. View additional artwork by Kathleen at http://www.kathleenkolb.com
Sustainable Forestry Exhibit Lights Up BMAC
The Brattleboro Museum and Art Center BMAC is currently hosting an innovative new exhibit, showcasing the beauty and value of Vermont’s sustainable working forest. Local painter, Kathleen Kolb shares her view of the Green Mountain state’s forest industry through various works of art she’s been creating over the past couple decades. Kathleen’s artwork is enhanced by poetry and prose contributed by Guilford artist, Verandah Porche. Verandah interviewed loggers, and their family members. The resulting stories are rich with emotion expressing the bond these Vermonters have with the forest.
BMAC Schedule of Events
The forestry exhibit started October 2, 2015 and it will run until January 3, 2016. This Thursday the museum (October 22, Thursday, 7 p.m) is hosting a panel discussion: Turning Local Wood Into Local Good. I will be joining other representatives of forestry-related businesses in Vermont to discuss the importance of sustainable forests products to Vermont’s economy. Please stop by and join us for a lively discussion!
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These are the amazing people in my cohort at last week’s Vermont Coverts workshop: “Woodlands for Wildlife”. The word “covert” (pronounced cuh-vert) is an old English term meaning a thicket, home or hiding place for animals.
After locating our fine furniture and home decor store on a 100 acre wood in the foothills of Vermont’s Green Mountain National Forest (see my last post), I found myself in the familiar position of trying to do something I knew little about. How would we properly manage this woodland for wildlife and sustainability? My friends Kathleen Wanner (Executive Director of the Vermont Wood Manufacturer’s Association VWMA) and Lynn Levine (a professional forester) suggested that Ken and I attend the Vermont Coverts:Woodlands for Wildlife Cooperator Training. What a great idea!
One of the key points we learned about managing our woodlands is that “mess is best” when it comes to creating habitat for wildlife. Forests need to be thinned with plenty of coarse woody debris remaining on the floor to provide cover for animals.
The program was last weekend at the Woods of Wikahowi in Northfield, VT. Ken had to cancel at the last minute but I attended along with a dozen or so like-minded landowners from all across Vermont. Because 80% of Vermont’s forestland is owned privately, the Coverts organization concluded that the key to sustaining our state’s forests & wildlife is education of private landowners. They provide a free 3-day training course every Spring and every Fall, focusing on classroom and field studies in forest and wildlife management.
Kim Royar, VT Department of Fish and Wildlife shows us bear claws on a beech tree.
The course was taught by Vermont’s foremost experts in forestry & wildlife including:
Lisa Sausville, Executive Director, Vermont Coverts
Mary Sisock, UVM Extension Forester
Kim Royar, VT Department of Fish and Wildlife
Dan Singleton, Washington County Forester
Steve Hagenbuch, Audubon VT
Kathy Decker, VT Forest, Parks and Recreation
Rich Chalmers, VP VT Coverts
The Maple is Vermont’s most important tree. Here Rich Chalmers is showing us his newly built sugar house– made from timbers logged in the surrounding forest.
VT Coverts is so committed to their mission that they offer the course for free, including food and lodging! Dedicated Coverts members work hard to meet expenses through grants and fundraising programs. If you own woodlands in Vermont or know someone who does, please refer them to the Coverts program. It’s an unforgettable weekend with fascinating people and thought-provoking discussion. The graduates of the program hold the future of Vermont’s forests in their hands.
Hike through our 100 acre woodland at Stonehurst. We located our sustainable furniture store here so you can experience the kind of responsibly-managed forest where your furniture originates.
