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Merit Badge Awardees - Woo-hoo Sisters!:  Farmgirl Sisterhood Merit Badge Awardees |
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MaryJane
Queen Bee
16458 Posts
MaryJane
Moscow
Idaho
USA
16458 Posts |
 Posted - Aug 16 2021 : 11:37:13 AM
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Allison Clark (Allison Clark, #8292) has received a certificate of achievement in Make It Easy for earning a Beginner Level Carp-hen-try Merit Badge!
“I did a simple project in my home. I built some shelves in a closet. They were very easy to build and I had fun building them for my grandson to put his clothes in. We painted his room a few months before I joined the Farmgirl Sisterhood and started workin on Merit Badges, so I knew this would not count. We painted a mural of radiator springs from the car's movie. I think it turned out pretty incredible—I know my Grandson liked it. I bought him a cars bed to go with the room. I replaced the carpet also. The only thing that was left was to build the shelves so I completed that and now the room is completely remodeled. A friend gave him a movie poster from the Cars movie for his wall. It turned out good.”
MaryJane, Farmgirl #1 Plowin' Thru ~ giving aprons a good wrap for 45 years and counting ~
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MaryJane
Queen Bee
16458 Posts
MaryJane
Moscow
Idaho
USA
16458 Posts |
Posted - Aug 16 2021 : 11:39:10 AM
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Allison Clark (Allison Clark, #8292) has received a certificate of achievement in Outpost for earning an Intermediate Level Outstepping Merit Badge!
“I live in northern California, so I took a trip and found a lot of lighthouses, historical sites, museums, and mines in my area within a 100-mile radius. These are just a few of them: Antioch Historical Society, Point Bonita lighthouse, Alcatraz lighthouse, old marsh Creek hotel, Marin headlines, Fort point National Historic site, Fort Cronkhite, Golden Gate Bridge, Black diamond mines, East Contra Costa Historical Society, Brentwood Veterans Memorial Building, Mount Diablo, Waterfront park in Martines, St. Francis church. I know how to read a map with a compass and landmarks. I was a Boy Scoutmaster and a Cub Scoutmaster and had to teach the boys. I also did my overnight camping in a tent that I set up. I stayed up all night watching the meteor shower that particular night. However, because of all the fires in California and the clouds, I did not get to see any of the meteors—I was very sad. But I did my night of camping in my tent with my head out the door. And in my chair trying to find that one meteor, but there were none to be seen.”
MaryJane, Farmgirl #1 Plowin' Thru ~ giving aprons a good wrap for 45 years and counting ~
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MaryJane
Queen Bee
16458 Posts
MaryJane
Moscow
Idaho
USA
16458 Posts |
Posted - Aug 16 2021 : 11:48:32 AM
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Candy Hogan (Tigger9777, #8283) has received a certificate of achievement in Farm Kitchen for earning a Beginner Level Kitchen Renegade Merit Badge!
“For my kitchen adventure, I'm going to grow mushrooms. Some of the most common safety concerns are the contamination by bacterial pathogens including Listeria, monocytogens, Salmonella and Escheria Coli.
Mushroom workers can get lung issues from the spores, yeasts and molds. Gathering wild mushrooms can be fatal—for example, the death cap mushroom. You need to practice good sanitary procedures, use gloves, and have good ventilation . If you can do a sterile room that would be ideal. For added safety, grow only the known safe types of edible mushrooms. It was informative.”
MaryJane, Farmgirl #1 Plowin' Thru ~ giving aprons a good wrap for 45 years and counting ~
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MaryJane
Queen Bee
16458 Posts
MaryJane
Moscow
Idaho
USA
16458 Posts |
Posted - Aug 16 2021 : 11:49:56 AM
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Candy Hogan (Tigger9777, #8283) has received a certificate of achievement in Farm Kitchen for earning an Intermediate Level Kitchen Renegade Merit Badge!
“The equipment you need to grow mushrooms are shoeboxes or tub totes, pearlite, vermiculite, brown rice flour, spawn, filter patch bags, substrate, steamer, flow hood, sawdust, soybean hulls, wheat bran, gypsum, and indirect light.
It did not turn out well my product got contaminated. Next I will try buying a mushroom growing kit.”
MaryJane, Farmgirl #1 Plowin' Thru ~ giving aprons a good wrap for 45 years and counting ~
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MaryJane
Queen Bee
16458 Posts
MaryJane
Moscow
Idaho
USA
16458 Posts |
Posted - Aug 16 2021 : 12:09:11 PM
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Carrie Williams (Carrie W, #147) has received a certificate of achievement in Make It Easy for earning a Beginner Level Jewelry Making Merit Badge!
“I've been collecting little beading items for about 10 years now, since my two daughters got interested in making beaded bracelets and bangles. In preparation for this badge, I collected all the different things that I had and put them all in a drawer of an organizer in my “sewing” room so that when the desire to make something pretty hits me then I can find what I need…all in one place! I picked up some lobster claw closures and some memory wire and jump rings. I had some pieces of chain and different beads and pieces from broken jewelry that I had stashed away. Ready to go!”
MaryJane, Farmgirl #1 Plowin' Thru ~ giving aprons a good wrap for 45 years and counting ~
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MaryJane
Queen Bee
16458 Posts
MaryJane
Moscow
Idaho
USA
16458 Posts |
Posted - Aug 16 2021 : 12:10:07 PM
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Carrie Williams (Carrie W, #147) has received a certificate of achievement in Make It Easy for earning an Intermediate Level Jewelry Making Merit Badge!
“I was fortunate to have two bead stores near me where we were welcome to go and sit and play with the tools and equipment free of charge. All we had to pay for were the materials that we used to make our pieces. The owners of both places would come and help us as needed. I spent many hours with my daughters making Christmas gifts and we learned a lot from the store owner. (Unfortunately, both stores have since closed.)
For this badge I added a pair of round tip pliers to my tool kit, and bought heavy gauge wire. I found some spiral wire jewelry videos on YouTube and successfully made some wired pieces. It really wasn’t that hard to do, but I did scratch up the wire a little with my death-grip on the pliers. I also tried to hammer down the pieces but that’s something I’m going to have to practice more.
For the beaded project I made two memory wire beaded bracelets. These were simple to do but I learned that I need a lighter gauge wire to make a bracelet with several rounds because the wire I bought doesn’t loosen up easily and is better for 1½ wraps. I'm happy with my finished items!”
MaryJane, Farmgirl #1 Plowin' Thru ~ giving aprons a good wrap for 45 years and counting ~
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MaryJane
Queen Bee
16458 Posts
MaryJane
Moscow
Idaho
USA
16458 Posts |
Posted - Aug 16 2021 : 12:11:30 PM
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Carrie Williams (Carrie W, #147) has received a certificate of achievement in Make It Easy for earning an Expert Level Jewelry Making Merit Badge!
“For this level of the jewelry badge, I made three long boho-style necklaces. The two I made for myself were made with pieces of old jewelry; one was all pieces of jewelry that had belonged to my maternal grandmother who LOVED costume jewelry, and the other was pieces from old jewelry of my own and my daughters. I used pieces of broken chain and jump rings to attach all the pieces. I gathered my grandmother's pieces onto a large lobster clasp and the other pieces I attached to a loop so that both sets could hang from long chains around the neck. The piece I made to sell was a collection of spiral wire pieces that I fussed over and added beads to. I attached chain to each piece and gathered them onto a loop on a long neck chain. I'm pretty darn proud of all three necklaces.
I was having so much fun with my projects that I also spent a few hours repairing some broken jewelry that I had collected over the years. Now I have several “new” pieces to wear!”
MaryJane, Farmgirl #1 Plowin' Thru ~ giving aprons a good wrap for 45 years and counting ~
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MaryJane
Queen Bee
16458 Posts
MaryJane
Moscow
Idaho
USA
16458 Posts |
Posted - Aug 16 2021 : 12:13:12 PM
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Carrie Williams (Carrie W, #147) has received a certificate of achievement in Outpost for earning a Beginner Level Farmgirl's Best Friend Merit Badge!
“I cannot remember a time in my growing up years when we did not have a dog. We had a poodle when I was in grade school, and during my high school and young adult life, my family raised purebred Boxers and Golden Retrievers. We had at least one litter of pups every summer for at least 10 years, and due to the fact that baby dogs (especially Boxers!) are so adorable, my family kept a pup from several litters so that we had 4 adult Boxers and an adult Golden for many years. My favorite from those years was our first Boxer, whom we called Sam although her registered name was Lady Samatha Wicam. Later, when I had a family of my own, I had dogs, a Golden Retriever we got as a pup, an adult Boxer who was rehomed to us, and an awesome French Bulldog who was rescued and then rehomed to us. The Frenchie was such a fun dog and she quickly captured the hearts of our whole family.
We also had cats now and then, both when I was young and during my child raising years. My kids all love cats but I don’t like having them on my counters (how do you get them to stop this?!?!?!) so it was always hard for me to live with them indoors. I had a couple fish tanks, too, for my kids to learn to care for, and one of my daughters had parakeets, although I am very much against permanently caged animals so I always felt bad for the poor things. My oldest son wanted a reptile tank but we encouraged him to wait until he was living on his own for that one, mostly because we found an eastern milk snake in the house one time and that kept me from sleeping well for a long time! We also had chickens which were sort of like pets, and I would very much like to live in a place where I can have hens again. I also grew up with goats and would enjoy having one again someday, as soon as my dream for a big piece of country property comes true.
I am, however, through and through, a dog person. I simply cannot live happily without a canine companion.”
MaryJane, Farmgirl #1 Plowin' Thru ~ giving aprons a good wrap for 45 years and counting ~
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MaryJane
Queen Bee
16458 Posts
MaryJane
Moscow
Idaho
USA
16458 Posts |
Posted - Aug 16 2021 : 12:14:36 PM
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Carrie Williams (Carrie W, #147) has received a certificate of achievement in Outpost for earning an Intermediate Level Farmgirl's Best Friend Merit Badge!
“I have done a lot of pet sitting over the years. I kept a friend’s puppy for two months while she was in Florida. Her hound mix was just about the same age as my lab mix and they had a blast together. This photo is of the two of them napping after wrestling for hours! I have also had another friend’s cat at my house for a few weeks while he was on vacation and I have often cared for my Aunt’s cat while she was away (at her house because she lives close to me). I certainly enjoy both dogs and cats but I find that most cats are stand-offish and don’t really care to mingle, although I have had a couple “lap cats” in my life. Cats are definitely easier to leave home for the day, particularly if they use a litter box. Most of my cat-owner friends have no problem leaving their cats home alone all day or even overnight. Dogs, on the other hand, require more attentiveness and are harder to leave alone all day. They usually require boarding or more arrangements to take along on vacation. But, dogs just happen to have personalities that are more similar to mine and they love to go for car rides, or really do just about anything with their owners. They are like adventure buddies! And for that reason, they will always be my Best Friend of Choice.”
MaryJane, Farmgirl #1 Plowin' Thru ~ giving aprons a good wrap for 45 years and counting ~
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MaryJane
Queen Bee
16458 Posts
MaryJane
Moscow
Idaho
USA
16458 Posts |
Posted - Aug 16 2021 : 12:16:14 PM
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Carrie Williams (Carrie W, #147) has received a certificate of achievement in Outpost for earning an Expert Level Farmgirl's Best Friend Merit Badge!
“In 2015, I adopted my male lab mix as an 8-week-old puppy from a local “rescue” who claimed that the litter was from Georgia. Unfortunately, I did not realize that this organization had a terrible reputation, and within 5 days of adopting him he was hospitalized with Parvo, a potentially deadly illness. He survived, but it was an expensive lesson. Since then, I encourage all potential adoptive pet-owners to do their diligence and only support responsible shelters and adoptive organizations.
Since then, I have found a couple of good organizations, and I support them with donations of blankets and towels and other necessities. They also let you come and take pups outside for walks or to play in the yard. The dogs enjoy the time outside so much that it is pure joy to be with them.
My pup went everywhere with me, including work and recreation. We walked nature trails, explored the Adirondacks, trekked around Maine…all kinds of adventures! Then my family business closed and I started a college program while working part time. He still went with me to most of my jobs as a housekeeper and home health aide, but he couldn’t go to school with me and eventually my schedule got so busy that he was getting left home alone too much. So, in June of 2018 we adopted another pup: a two-year-old hound mix that was in need of re-homing. It took some time for her to settle in and to learn the rules of the house. She had not received any training and had spent far too much of her life in a crate. She still needs to be in a crate when I am not at home, but she now can run free in the woods with her big brother and she is SO happy being able to be an adventure dog! She had never previously been outdoors except on leash to go potty. Now she has a fenced yard and gets lots of trips to the woods and to the dog park. We are a big, furry, happy family <3”
MaryJane, Farmgirl #1 Plowin' Thru ~ giving aprons a good wrap for 45 years and counting ~
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MaryJane
Queen Bee
16458 Posts
MaryJane
Moscow
Idaho
USA
16458 Posts |
Posted - Aug 16 2021 : 12:24:01 PM
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Rea Nakanishi (Lacey, #8284) has received a certificate of achievement in Garden Gate for earning a Beginner Level Backyard Farmer Merit Badge!
“Since I can't raise my own flock of chickens, I buy organic farm raised eggs. We have a wonderful farmer's market that has many booths that sell farm fresh eggs. The only animal I have right now is my dog and she gets chicken and turkey as well as beef a mixture of farm raised and organic raw and dry feed.
It would be fun to have the space to raise my own chickens again. I have had in the past 60 egg layers and about 20 show chickens!”
MaryJane, Farmgirl #1 Plowin' Thru ~ giving aprons a good wrap for 45 years and counting ~
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MaryJane
Queen Bee
16458 Posts
MaryJane
Moscow
Idaho
USA
16458 Posts |
Posted - Aug 19 2021 : 11:10:58 AM
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Rea Nakanishi (Lacey, #8284) has received a certificate of achievement in Garden Gate for earning an Intermediate Level Backyard Farmer Merit Badge!
“My friend Candy set up a time with her friend Angela at Angela's place to help milk her Nigerian dwarf dairy goats.
First wash hands, then use the teat dip, this cleans and disinfects. You need to strip some milk from the teat and look for any blood or clotting or off coloring. Then each of us got to take turns milking Angela's goats. This was a fun day.
As for being involved in heritage breeds I use to have flock of 40-50 Barbados Blackbelly Sheep. I hope to own them again one day.
This day reminded me of the goats, sheep, and llamas I use to have. When raising and breeding livestock you will ultimately always have a bottle baby or two. Learning to milk was always a given in livestock 101.”
MaryJane, Farmgirl #1 Plowin' Thru ~ giving aprons a good wrap for 45 years and counting ~
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MaryJane
Queen Bee
16458 Posts
MaryJane
Moscow
Idaho
USA
16458 Posts |
Posted - Aug 19 2021 : 11:14:12 AM
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Rea Nakanishi (Lacey, #8284) has received a certificate of achievement in Garden Gate for earning a Beginner Level Bee Good to Your Mother Earth Merit Badge!
“Zucchini, tomatoes, carrots, and radishes! That was the start of my backyard vegetable garden. The radishes came in first, then tomatoes, baby zucchini, and carrots.
I use organic products-—neem oil and diatomaceous earth for pest control. I've shared my uses and applications on our Farm Girl meeting night. Most of use have animals and/or little children, so, keeping chemicals out of the garden and food supply is always a good idea.
The book Montrose: Life in a Garden was an interesting read. It was a book that a botanist would surely enjoy. After reading the book, I went online and looked up the website for the Montrose Gardens. I think if I ever get to visit North Carolina I will be sure to visit this beautiful garden estate.
After planting and waiting for the garden to grow I knew that the shade from the trees might limit the amount of sunlight to much of my garden. So to remedy my sun problem I signed up for a plot in the community garden, It always good to keep learning and growing.”
MaryJane, Farmgirl #1 Plowin' Thru ~ giving aprons a good wrap for 45 years and counting ~
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MaryJane
Queen Bee
16458 Posts
MaryJane
Moscow
Idaho
USA
16458 Posts |
Posted - Aug 19 2021 : 11:28:11 AM
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Allison Clark (Allison Clark, #8292) has received a certificate of achievement in Stitching & Crafting for earning a Beginner Level Scrapbooking Merit Badge!
“I made a scrapbook for my grandson. The book was of his birth. He was born on September 2, 2017. I had fun making it for him. It turned out nice.”
MaryJane, Farmgirl #1 Plowin' Thru ~ giving aprons a good wrap for 45 years and counting ~
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MaryJane
Queen Bee
16458 Posts
MaryJane
Moscow
Idaho
USA
16458 Posts |
Posted - Aug 19 2021 : 11:31:29 AM
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Allison Clark (Allison Clark, #8292) has received a certificate of achievement in Stitching & Crafting for earning an Intermediate Level Scrapbooking Merit Badge!
“I made two scrapbooks for two different people. The scrapbooks were about beekeeping. I added different kinds of elements to my scrapbook. The scrapbooks were for men so I did not add flowers or anything like that. I spent several hours designing the book from scratch. I really enjoyed making it them as opposed to just putting pictures on some paper and putting them in a photo album.
I read chapters 1, 3, and 11 in the book Saving Stuff: How to Care for and Preserve Your Collectibles, Heirlooms, and Other Prized Possessions. I learned different terms about scrapbooking like vellum and lignin. Lignin: A naturally occurring binding element that holds wood fibers together. Lignin breaks down over time, becoming yellow and brittle. Vellum is a unique type of paper used for arts and crafts. Though it used to refer only to a type of paper made from calfskin, modern vellum is made from cotton and wood pulp. It can be used for making greeting cards or scrapbooking, as well as for tracing designs. When I make my scrapbooks, I usually do not write in them when it's a smaller one like the one I made. In my larger scrapbooks, I do write what's going on in the picture so they will get a sense of the picture. I took several pictures of the scrapbook and posted it in the Farmgirl Connection under Merit Badge Chit Chat. I also made a card to go with it. I really liked making the scrapbooks. They turned out very well.”
MaryJane, Farmgirl #1 Plowin' Thru ~ giving aprons a good wrap for 45 years and counting ~
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MaryJane
Queen Bee
16458 Posts
MaryJane
Moscow
Idaho
USA
16458 Posts |
Posted - Aug 19 2021 : 11:58:53 AM
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Cindy Kinion (AussieChick, #6058) has received a certificate of achievement in Each Other for earning an Expert Level Civic Heritage Merit Badge!
“I visited the Laidley District Historical Society and inquired about the oldest non-residential building in the town. Of those still standing, the Exchange Hotel is the oldest, constructed in 1902. There were very few old photos of the hotel, but I did manage to find one, which I have attached. The Exchange Hotel is still is used as a public bar.
The Exchange Hotel at Laidley, a two-storeyed brick building, was constructed in 1902 for publicans Julius and Hansine Jocumsen, and replaced an earlier hotel of the same name on the site. It was erected during one of the most significant growth periods in Laidley's history, and although modest in size and scale, reflects in style and materials the confidence and optimism of a small, prosperous, turn-of-the-century country town.
It survives as a substantially intact example of the work of respected Queensland architects Eaton & Bates, in rural hotel design. The building is significant also for the retention of evidence of the former banking office located within the hotel.
When completed, the Royal Bank of Queensland, which had opened a Laidley branch north of the railway line c1890, occupied premises on the ground floor of the new hotel. The Royal Bank had been established in Brisbane in 1885 as a competitor to the enormously successful Queensland National Bank, and was the second bank to open an office in Laidley, the first being the QNB on 16 July 1886. These were still the only banking institutions in Laidley in 1902 when the new Exchange Hotel was erected. The branch office in the Exchange Hotel became an office of the Bank of Queensland following the merger of the Royal Bank and the Bank of North Queensland (established in Townsville in 1888) in 1917. In 1922, the Bank of Queensland was taken over by the National Bank of Australasia, and the Exchange Hotel office again changed name. The National Bank maintained its Laidley branch office in this building until 1956.
The Exchange Hotel, possessing a finely articulated street elevation consisting of recessed and projecting awnings, bays, entrances and veranda, is the dominant member of a group of masonry commercial buildings constructed in Laidley at the turn of the century.
The Exchange Hotel, a two-storeyed brick building with corrugated iron skillion roofs concealed behind parapet walls, is located fronting Patrick Street, the main street of Laidley, to the west. The building has been built to the property alignment on the north, west and south, and has a T-shaped plan with a long projecting central wing to the rear.
The street elevation is constructed of flemish bond brickwork and has a wide awning to the ground floor and a semi-recessed veranda to the mid-section of the first floor. The veranda has a raised central gable section, with timber battens to the gable and arched timber valance, over a corrugated iron skillion awning. The veranda has paired timber posts with curved timber brackets, timber louvres enclosing the southern end, and cast iron balustrades. Opening onto this veranda are french doors with fanlights from bedrooms, and a central arched timber door, sidelights and fanlight assembly from a main hall. Either side of the semi-recessed veranda are projecting brick bays housing paired casement windows with timber and iron hoods, and surmounted by arched parapets with rendered cornice details and circle motif.
Internally, the ground floor has a central hall leading to the rear dining and kitchen area, a public bar on the south and a lounge on the north. The building has rendered walls, boarded ceilings, and a timber staircase with turned balustrade and newel posts. The public bar and kitchen have been recently refitted, and the lounge and dining area have undergone earlier alterations.”
MaryJane, Farmgirl #1 Plowin' Thru ~ giving aprons a good wrap for 45 years and counting ~
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MaryJane
Queen Bee
16458 Posts
MaryJane
Moscow
Idaho
USA
16458 Posts |
Posted - Aug 19 2021 : 12:00:19 PM
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Cindy Kinion (AussieChick, #6058) has received a certificate of achievement in Each Other for earning a Beginner Level Lend a Hand to Farm Families Merit Badge!
“My husband and I have been helping our neighbour, Martin, pull fireweed on his property. Fireweed is particularly bad this year with favourable weather conditions for it's spread. So far, we have dedicated several days of pulling the weeds, bagging and disposal.
Fireweed is an annual or biennial herb 10–60 cm tall. Flowering is mostly from spring to autumn. All stages of the plant from seedlings to flowering may be present at any time of year in some locations. Flushes of seedlings appear after rain in warm weather.
Each plant can produce up to 18,000 seeds. Wind spreads the light, hairy seeds. Most seeds fall within 5 m of the parent plant but some can be blown much further. Spreading beyond one kilometer is more likely through human activity. Fireweed is spread:
• in contaminated hay, silage and grain products
• by livestock birds and other animals
• by sticking to clothing, vehicles or machinery;
Fireweed invades pastures and disturbed areas. It:
• reduces productivity
• is poisonous to livestock and can cause death
• is difficult to control.
Fireweed contains chemicals called pyrrolizidine alkaloids. Livestock that eat it get liver damage. The damage is irreversible and gets worse the more fireweed an animal eats. Hay, silage or grain contaminated with fireweed plants or seeds can poison livestock.
The best way to eradicate fire weed is by mechanical control. Pull out and bag the weeds. Bags can be left in the hot sun for a few days to help kill the plants. Then burn any isolated plants or dispose of them at council-approved landfill tips. You should not burn any toxic plants in household wood-burning stoves or heaters. Remove chipped-out plants from paddocks because they may still set seed and poison stock.
It is important to wear gloves when pulling fireweed. Prolonged exposure can also lead to liver damage in humans. Fireweed is particularly troublesome because it possesses small, but visual, stinging stiff hairs that easily embed in skin. Once exposed to the toxin, severe irritation can occur for several hours.”
MaryJane, Farmgirl #1 Plowin' Thru ~ giving aprons a good wrap for 45 years and counting ~
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MaryJane
Queen Bee
16458 Posts
MaryJane
Moscow
Idaho
USA
16458 Posts |
Posted - Aug 19 2021 : 12:44:43 PM
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Carrie Williams (Carrie W, #147) has received a certificate of achievement in Outpost for earning a Beginner Level Speak for the Trees Merit Badge!
“I live just below the Southern Region of the gorgeous Adirondack Mountains, and I typically spend quite a bit of time in the mountains during each of the seasons, so I have been signed up for NYSDEC email updates and newsletters for many years. These emails apprise backcountry users of any weather or storm damage news as well as recent emergencies and rescue missions, wildlife events, etc. I usually check in on the website before heading into the mountains just to be aware of the current events and situations. I am familiar with BLM.gov since 2001 when I took my kids on an around-the-country RV trip and we stopped at and explored several backcountry areas, including one of the Wild Horse and Burro facilities in Nebraska. The Bureau of Land Management has a strong presence in 12 Western states, and I did not realize until working on this badge that they also cover the rest of the nation. New York is in the Northeastern States District and is coordinated by the District Manager, Stephanie Carman, whose office is in Milwaukee, WI. I did not reach out to either of these organizations for tree identification materials since my library had several resources available.
The resource that I settled on for this project is National Geographic’s Field Guide to the Trees of North America: The Essential Identification Guide for Novice and Expert. I like how this guide is organized with color photos and a lot of details for identification purposes.
I have a tree line along the side yard of my home and was able to identify a few different species growing there:
• Norway Spruce, native to central and northern Europe, popular Christmas tree
• Shumard oak, distributed all over eastern New York, used for lumber
• Green ash, eastern and central North America, threatened by the ash-borer beetle
• Staghorn sumac, edible fruit, native to the northeast, invasive
My guide helped me identify trees I was completely unfamiliar with! I had no idea there were so many different ones right at the edge of my yard.”
MaryJane, Farmgirl #1 Plowin' Thru ~ giving aprons a good wrap for 45 years and counting ~
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MaryJane
Queen Bee
16458 Posts
MaryJane
Moscow
Idaho
USA
16458 Posts |
Posted - Aug 19 2021 : 12:45:27 PM
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Carrie Williams (Carrie W, #147) has received a certificate of achievement in Outpost for earning an Intermediate Level Speak for the Trees Merit Badge!
“Planning and Growing a Windbreak:
• Determine the direction of the most prevalent winds on the property. Plant your windbreak on that side of the property.
• Windbreak will cut windspeeds over a distance equal to 30 times its height, so measure a distance 5x the mature height of the tallest tree you plan to plant.
• Windbreak should be L shaped and run the length of the property, with the shorter arm of the windbreak approximately ½ as long as the main arm.
• Prepare the area for the windbreak in the fall.
• Plant the windbreak in the spring with a variety of trees that are hardy for your zone, including both evergreen and deciduous. Space the deciduous trees far apart and place the evergreens in between. A strategically placed hedgerow will serve as a snowcatch; this should be about 20 feet from the windbreak. (In my area, willows grow very fast, so having a few of these interspersed in the windbreak will help to fill it in quickly while the slower growing trees mature.)
• Be sure to plant trees according to nursery instructions and be sure that it gets water at least weekly during the first summer. Also, fertilize and maintain proper PH for the trees.
In my current (temporary) situation, I have a windbreak that is constructed in an L shape. It helps drastically during hard storms in the summer, but also cuts down on the bitter cold winds in the winter. I am situated such that I get full daytime sun, so with the reduction in winter winds from my windbreak, my furnace rarely runs on sunny winter days. This is a tremendous gift! Unfortunately, the windbreak is closer to my home than I wish it was, and I do worry about one of the tall trees coming down on the house someday. When I move here, which I hope will be very soon, my desire is to purchase a chunk of land to build on, and I am every excited about designing and planting a windbreak with these guidelines.
I took the dogs to the local dog park and we looked at some trees growing there. We found:
• Sugar Maple, very common in New York,
• Mulberry (white), of Chinese origin, used for furniture, rope, textiles, baskets
• Eastern white pine, native to eastern US, susceptible to blister rust
• Sessile oak, deciduous, native to Europe
• Chokecherry, native to North America and Canada, grows at edges of forests and streams
We always enjoy the dog park, but this time we paid more attention to the trees. Well, I did, anyway. My pups just chased chipmunks :-)”
MaryJane, Farmgirl #1 Plowin' Thru ~ giving aprons a good wrap for 45 years and counting ~
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MaryJane
Queen Bee
16458 Posts
MaryJane
Moscow
Idaho
USA
16458 Posts |
Posted - Aug 19 2021 : 12:47:45 PM
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Carrie Williams (Carrie W, #147) has received a certificate of achievement in Outpost for earning an Expert Level Speak for the Trees Merit Badge!
“I found that my National Geographic guide to trees did not have all the tree species that I was finding so I added the Picture This app to my phone to help me more accurately identify trees at the local Nature Preserve. I went about a mile deep into the woods and started picking out trees of different ages. I found:
American hazelnut—a young sapling along the path edge, enjoying brief periods of sun.
White oak—very young saplings throughout the woods, also many much older trees reaching to the canopy for full sun.
Virginia pine—many very old trees, enjoying the surface of the canopy, and many young saplings, many dying trees destroyed by recent ice storms and strong winds.
Eastern white pine, many very young and very old, also a lot of damage from recent storms
American beech—dense throughout the forest, most growing beneath the canopy and along the paths, although a lot of saplings growing all over.
Wild sasparilla—flowering bush common to hardwood forests, filling in the undergrowth.
Tulip poplar (actually a magnolia tree)—very tall, enjoying full sun above the canopy, distributed throughout the forest, found among hardwoods and pines.
Eastern hemlock—very dense and many large groves of these trees, many tiny cones on the ground perfect for crafts, all enjoying the sun above the canopy.
Red maple—very common and numerous, good for syrup, beautiful in autumn, tall and healthy with a lot of saplings throughout the forest floor.
Unfortunately, we have a fungus attacking a lot of trees in the area, particularly evergreens. I see a lot of hemlock that are dead or dying. Also, our ash trees are being destroyed by borer beetles. And if that isn’t bad enough, the last few years have seen many hard winter storms and three tornadoes in our area, so much of the forest is full of blowdown. The DEC teams have been hard at work everywhere keeping trails clear and I see evidence of clean-up efforts in many areas. I did not see ANY trash on the trails! The dog park had recently been cleaned, and the Wilton Preserve is well kept anyway. I always pick up trash when I see it because I always have poo-bags on me, and I am pleased to say that I rarely see trash when I am out. What I mostly find, and carry out with me, are bags of poo that dog owners collect but then leave along the trail! This makes me angry as it would be better that they leave the poo and keep their plastic bag. **sigh**
Anyhow, this was great fun to work on and it has me paying more attention to the beautiful trees that grow in my favorite places on earth!”
MaryJane, Farmgirl #1 Plowin' Thru ~ giving aprons a good wrap for 45 years and counting ~
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MaryJane
Queen Bee
16458 Posts
MaryJane
Moscow
Idaho
USA
16458 Posts |
Posted - Aug 19 2021 : 12:48:51 PM
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Carrie Williams (Carrie W, #147) has received a certificate of achievement in Outpost for earning a Beginner Level Fishing Merit Badge!
“The knots I learned for this badge were fairly simple to learn using some good graphics that I found online. The barrel knot is one that I had learned previously when making friendship bracelets as a teen; it makes the end of the material secure but allows the knot to slide along the main strand so that the end product can be loosened and tightened as needed. The clinch knot is fantastic for materials that are difficult to knot such as fishing line or fine wire, both of which seem to have a mind of their own; I used this knot to secure a piece of jewelry wire that would not seem to hold any other way it was tied. I use double surgeons knots all the time because they are great for a strong temporary hold, like the terminal tackle on fishing line; once the knotted loop is created, any other loop may be added to it or disengaged easily from it. The palomar knot was new to me. It was not difficult to learn and it gave a really great double strength knot for attaching any kind of loop, like on a lure or hook. The turle was the most difficult to figure out and I’m not sure if I would be able to recreate it without directions, but I liked the finished look of it; it was like a variation of the barrel knot with a “pass through” similar to the palomar.
These were fun to learn and will come in handy for more than just fishing needs.”
MaryJane, Farmgirl #1 Plowin' Thru ~ giving aprons a good wrap for 45 years and counting ~
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MaryJane
Queen Bee
16458 Posts
MaryJane
Moscow
Idaho
USA
16458 Posts |
Posted - Aug 19 2021 : 12:50:11 PM
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Carrie Williams (Carrie W, #147) has received a certificate of achievement in Outpost for earning an Intermediate Level Fishing Merit Badge!
“I accessed the fishing regulations for Pinepoint in Scarborough, Maine since that is where I fish each year. The website is easy to navigate and incudes everything you need to know to fish in fresh water or salt water, inland or offshore. I fish saltwater from inland so I made a list of possible “catches”: various sharks, dogfish, skate, sturgeon, herrings, smelt, Atlantic salmon, brown trout, cod, bass, bluefish, eel, wolffish, mackerel, and flounder. The southern zone, where I was fishing from, allowed live bait/smelt, artificial lures and flies. The northern zone was limited to artificial bait and flies only. On the website there were some great resources for identifying your catch, in case you weren’t sure what you had caught; it listed 18 different attributes (like snout, length, or fin type) to help sportsmen clearly and easily identify the catch.
Some of the regulations included: no advance baiting except in traps, no disposable polystyrene containers for live bait, no small lead sinkers (less than 2.5 inches), no explosives or other stupefying means of catching fish. Fishing is also allowable 24 hours a day as long as the lines are supervised.
I was really surprised how much info was on the website. It's not just regulations, but there is a lot of just good educational links and information.”
MaryJane, Farmgirl #1 Plowin' Thru ~ giving aprons a good wrap for 45 years and counting ~
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MaryJane
Queen Bee
16458 Posts
MaryJane
Moscow
Idaho
USA
16458 Posts |
Posted - Aug 19 2021 : 12:51:12 PM
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Carrie Williams (Carrie W, #147) has received a certificate of achievement in Outpost for earning an Expert Level Fishing Merit Badge!
“I bought my license, and because of a lack of tourism in the fall of 2020, I only had to pay $1 for the license, instead of the usual season license at $64 for non-resident. It was basically just a filing fee and I could fish for the entire two weeks that I was there.
I spent a lot of time out on the jetty, being battered by winds, but did not catch any fish. I did, however, catch a seagull. He was one of many that tirelessly trolled my baited hook, loaded with mackerel, and which eventually got hold of the hook and had a nice snack! While I was dealing with this annoyance, another seagull was nosing around the cooler where the rest of the bait was stored. Oh, my!!
This fall when I head to Maine, I’m hoping to have a fishing set up for my kayak and I’ll try to get out away from the pesky seagulls!
Fortunately, my “Father Figure” is an avid fisher and he gifted me with a pound of perch which I immediately cooked up in a big batch of Lake Erie Perch Chowder, recipe at https://honest-food.net/perch-chowder-recipe/ This recipe is super easy to make, and since the perch is added at the very end there is little risk of overcooking the fish. I used an uncured, 100% grass-fed beef polish sausage in place of the kielbasa.”
MaryJane, Farmgirl #1 Plowin' Thru ~ giving aprons a good wrap for 45 years and counting ~
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MaryJane
Queen Bee
16458 Posts
MaryJane
Moscow
Idaho
USA
16458 Posts |
Posted - Aug 19 2021 : 12:52:20 PM
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Carrie Williams (Carrie W, #147) has received a certificate of achievement in Cleaning Up for earning a Beginner Level Recycling Merit Badge!
“In Saratoga County, NY, we are required to recycle newspapers, glass, plastic, and metal. We are also supposed to separate batteries and other devices like appliances and computers which area allowed to be turned in for free a couple times a year. We have 4 different recycling facilities that take recyclables for free in my county, although we can have them picked up at our homes for a fee. If items are picked up by a service, there is a Single Stream Recycling can that accompanies the trash can. There is no need to sort the recycling for this service. However, if items are taken directly to the Transfer Station, there is a small amount of sorting that is required. Paper and cardboard go in one area, plastics in another, and metal and glass each have their own areas, too. This is a major change from several years ago when we had to take our items to a station and everything had to be completely sorted; plastics were always a source of confusion for people and even the glass was divided down into a few different categories. This system was changed about 9-10 years ago to the Single Stream Recycling program we use currently. Recycling has become much easier and more widely accommodated!”
MaryJane, Farmgirl #1 Plowin' Thru ~ giving aprons a good wrap for 45 years and counting ~
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MaryJane
Queen Bee
16458 Posts
MaryJane
Moscow
Idaho
USA
16458 Posts |
Posted - Aug 19 2021 : 12:53:20 PM
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Carrie Williams (Carrie W, #147) has received a certificate of achievement in Cleaning Up for earning an Intermediate Level Recycling Merit Badge!
“The community that I moved to has trash pick-up, but they do not pay for recycling pick up, so for the first few years that I lived here, I separated my recyclables and toted them to the Transfer Station about a mile from me. Now I have a job where we have special pick-up for “single stream” recyclables, meaning that they do not need to be separated before pick-up, and so I collect my recyclable items in a large crazy-quilt style bag that my eldest daughter made for me and I take them to work when it is full.
We also collect refundable bottles and cans at work to help fund mission trips. People seem to be happy to help and get in line with the program!”
MaryJane, Farmgirl #1 Plowin' Thru ~ giving aprons a good wrap for 45 years and counting ~
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Merit Badge Awardees - Woo-hoo Sisters!: Farmgirl Sisterhood Merit Badge Awardees |
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Farmgirl Sisterhood Merit Badge Awardees
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