This episode of “Nature Calls, Conversations from the Hudson Valley” is a retrospective look at one of the early radio interviews from our precursor show, “Digging in With Master Gardeners,” aired on WGXC, 90.7 FM. Teresa and Jean interviewed Master Gardener Volunteer Kathryn Schneider about birds. Kathryn was introduced to the joys of birding by her mother who was a birdwatcher. She took it about as far as you can, since she now has a PhD in Ornithology and has written a guidebook called “Birding the Hudson Valley.” The purpose of the book was to allow people to understand their area and go birding. She started by covering the basics on bird identification and the recording of observations, where to find particular birds, and the importance of knowing the bird's biology. Learning about how birds feed and what they do helps guide successful birders.

The second half of the book is a list of sites in the Hudson Valley where birdwatching is rewarding. Actually feeding birds is the second biggest hobby in the country. But we don't feed birds for ecology and the good of nature. We tend to feed them to amuse ourselves watching them. We can prevent getting bored by providing the correct food for the birds we want to watch, so a little research can improve the view.

Planting your garden to draw birds is another way to enhance your enjoyment. In a nutshell, native plants are best, and the careful choice of trees can be helpful. Birds don't just eat seeds. They eat bugs, worms, caterpillars, berries and even nectar. Bird feeders are best used when the flowers are not blooming because birds will ignore feeders if they have more interesting things to eat. Winter is prime time because they can use the extra nutrition to keep warm. Late November to early April are safer months to put out feeders, especially if you have bears for neighbors. But keep in mind that they're not always sleeping when you think they should be in these times of climate change so adjust based on the weather. Bears don't tend to hibernate until they can no longer find food. After the first significant snowfall might be the safer bet to put out your feeders.

Going down the list of pesky critters, we also have: squirrels. Baffles above and below the feeder can help to keep them away. Grackles, cowbirds and starlings usually travel around in flocks. Hawks and cats can also be problematic. Kathy says cats shouldn't be outside because they are killing millions of birds and have even made some of them extinct, while it should be remembered that hawks need to feed their babies, too. It's best to give blue jays their own feeder with peanuts in the shell to keep them distracted and away from your other feeders.

Kathy then reviews the best ways to observe birds and how to identify them. Sibley and Peterson Guides are her favorite, and the Merlin phone app is an excellent resource. She also suggests you research the type of binoculars to use. Many will work fine, but many are just wrong. Once you've outgrown watching your feeder visitors, it's time to go to them. She suggests that you look for a local bird club and ask to go along on a walk. Figure what birds to expect there and look for them specifically. Bird clubs are relatively easy to find, including the Audubon Society, so join groups in your area. Guided bird walks are everywhere, including Cornell Cooperative Extension (CCE) sponsored ones, often led by Kathy herself.

The conversation concludes with specific topics including the population biology for birds, the Christmas Bird Count, and specific discussions about robins, bluebirds, ravens and vultures. Hosts: Teresa Golden and Jean Thomas Guest: Kathryn Schneider, PhD. Photo: Jean Thomas Production Support: Linda Aydlett, Deven Connelly, Teresa Golden, Xandra Powers, Annie Scibienski, Jean Thomas

Jean and Teresa interview fellow Master Gardener Volunteer Tim Kennelty about pollinators. Tim is also a Master Naturalist with Cornell Cooperative Extension, and has served as a board member for the Columbia Land Conservancy.The conversation starts with the definition of a pollinator. Tim explains that a creature that goes from flower to flower to feed will get pollen stuck to itself. The creature then carries the pollen to the next flower and “delivers” it in exchange for the nectar. This is an arrangement that has developed over millennia to benefit both the flower and the creature. While most pollinators are insects, there are birds and bats that serve as pollinators, too. The insects are most commonly of the bees/wasp groups, butterflies/moths groups, and beetles. The Xerxes Society is a valuable resource to learn more about native pollinators and plants.

The discussion then moves to why we should care. It all boils down to the food chain. Insects are at the bottom of the food chain, and many rely on plants for life. Their symbiotic relationship helps both to thrive and serve as food for others further up the chain. This is so basic as a foundation for our existence that any disturbance in the connection will ripple upward, affecting the entire food chain. Risks included are mostly man made. Habitat disturbance leaves gaps between the links, and climate change disrupts the balance of timing between plant and insect (or animal) synchrony. Flowers blooming at the”wrong” time or migrators arriving too late for the usual diet can result in disaster for whole populations. Indeed, the statistics are alarming. Forty per cent of all insects are in steep decline, resulting in decreased populations all along the interconnected chain of life forms, ultimately in extinction for many. Specifically, Tim mentions bees which are mostly “designed” for pollination.

Honey bees must be considered separately because they are actually treated and considered as livestock. Interestingly they are not native but are handled by beekeepers, and are essential for much commercial fruit production. Sadly, they, too, are at risk from climate and pollution caused threats.

Native bees are a fascinating study. There are about four hundred species in North America, with several hundred living in New York State. Ninety percent are solitary, which may be contrary to popular expectations due to our familiarity with honey bees. Most are dedicated pollinators that have co-evolved with particular flowers. Also unlike honeybees, most can't sting. Those that can, will only do under great threat of their own death.

The “cousins” to bees, the wasps, yellow jackets and hornets, are more often communal. They build nests attached to structures or shrubs, or in the ground. These guys are far more aggressive, and will not hesitate to sting, so beware if you spot any of their habitats, like paper nests or overly active holes in the ground. They're so fierce they even have a meat eating stage. But, to circle back to the topic at hand, they are also very active pollinators.

Hosts: Teresa Golden and Jean Thomas Guest: Tim Kennelty Photo: Teresa Golden Production Assistance: Linda Aydlett, Deven Connelly, Teresa Golden, Jean Thomas, Xandra Powers

Resources

Tracey Testo-Smith returns to Nature Calls: Conversations from the Hudson Valley to share her knowledge and experience about foraging. In this episode, Tim and Jean sit down with Tracey Testo-Smith, Agroforestry and Natural Resources Program Manager at Cornell Cooperative Extension (CCE) of Columbia and Greene Counties, to discuss the practice of foraging. This interview was originally recorded as part of the Digging In With Master Gardeners radio show on WGXC 90.7FM and now repurposed for a podcast format.

Tracey reviews some of the misconceptions about what foraging actually is. Foraging doesn't need a vast array of information about everything in the forest. The main thing to know is whether a plant is useful, either for food or medicinal purposes. Tracey leads foraging walks in the spring at the Hudson CCE campus and in the fall at the Acra campus. Her classes before the walks teach folks how to identify individual plants before they even step into the woods. She often brings in co-presenters to expand their access to expertise. The public can enroll online and sign up for quarterly newsletters at http://ccecolumbiagreene.org.

There are always common sense caveats:

know the history of the site you're collecting from... for example, a former farm may have residual pesticide contamination. don't forage along a roadside where contamination happens daily from passing cars. Another factor to be aware of is the name of the plant. Often a common name will be misleading. Hemlock, for instance, can be a benign evergreen tree or a poisonous weed. Knowing the botanical name avoids any such confusion and danger. To start as a forager on your own, Tracey suggests that you really get to know a plant, even for as long as a year. Familiarity with the plant's different stages lets you know the most useful times to “harvest”, She cites the dandelion as an example, whose different parts are useful in different seasons. Then leaves can be harvested first in early spring, then the flower buds, then petals, and finally the roots. Their values range from food to dying tints to medicinal, all varying according to part and season.Some plants, like pokeberry and elderberry, have certain parts that are edible while the rest of the plant is poisonous.

Tracey finds salad greens in chickweed and blue violets, and bittercress. While these can be eaten raw, always stay aware of the possibility of pollutants when using plants near water. Ramps are famously a popular dish in restaurants, in season. These are wild leeks, and very specific as to their growing conditions. They are very slow growers, taking up to a decade to reach maturity. Tracey advises that you be exceptionally thoughtful if collecting in the wild. The leaves and bulbs are both edible. Don't try to take them home to grow because they will not survive the removal. There are now growers who can sell you bulbs to start at home without disrupting fragile populations.

Teas are another way to use foraged plants. Most mints are amenable to teas, as are clovers and yarrow. These are all amenable to drying as well, so can be stockpiled for winter use. Plants are not the only target of foragers. Tracey covers the practice of mushroom hunting. Different seasons produce wild crops of different varieties of mushrooms. Early spring is for Morels, midsummer for Chanterelles, and autumn for Chicken (or hen) of the woods. Tracey reviews what the warning signs are of poison mushrooms, and reviews the possibility of growing your own, with CCE classes available. Every mushroom, by the way, is safe to handle, even if toxic.Going deeper into the subject of what's poisonous, the environment can alter the nature of a plant. Stinging nettle can absorb heavy metals from a polluted site. Know your location's history if possible. There are plants that are a contact risk, like poison ivy or water hemlock. It's wise to know the plants that grow around your foraging target plants.

Tracey advises to harvest moderately, so as to insure the future of the plant. The exception to this practice is invasives. If a plant is invasive... eat it all. The example she uses is Japanese knotweed. Sprouts taste like asparagus blended with rhubarb, it's full of antioxidants. The leaves can even be utilized in a paper making process.

Hosts: Tim Kennelty and Jean Thomas Guest: Tracey Testo-Smith Photo by: Jean Thomas Production Support: Linda Aydlett, Deven Connelly, Teresa Golden, Tim Kennelty, Xandra Powers, Annie Scibienski, Jean Thomas