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Fun & philosophy from the pages of Woodlands & Prairies


If you want people to know about your past, run for public office.

Ole thinks about places to go

Ay haff been to a lot of places, but Ay’ve neffer been in Cahoots. Apparently yew can’t go dare alone. Yew haff to be in Cahoots vit anutter guy – or girl.

Ay’ve also neffer been in Cognito, eider. People tell me dat no von recognizes yew dare.

Ay vould like to go to Conclusions, but Ay hear dat yew haff to yump to get dare.

Ay haff, however, been in Sane. It does not haff an airport; yew haff to be driven dare. Ay haff made several trips, tanks to my friends and family.

Man is the best computer we can put aboard a spacecraft, and it’s the only one that can be mass produced with unskilled labor. Wernher von Braun

Humans need continuous and spontaneous affiliations with the biological world, and meaningful access to natural settings is as vital to the urban dweller as to any other.---Dr. Stephen Kellert, Yale University

Strength does not come from physical capacity. It comes from an indomitable will.---Mahatma Gandhi

Hospitality is making your guests feel at home even when you wish they were.

There are worse things than getting a call for a wrong number at 4 a.m. Like it could be the right number.

A paleontologist is the best husband a woman can have. The older she gets, the more interested he is in her.

A diplomat is someone who tells you to go to hell in such a way that you look forward to the trip.

There's no trick to being a humorist when you've got the whole government working for you.---Will Rogers

If we had no faults, we should not take so much pleasure in noting those of others.---Francois VI, Duc de La Rochefoucauld
Previewing the Summer/Fall 2012 issue.
Spiders like you’ve never seen them pose for their portraits this issue, while author Jennifer L. Hopwood, explains the many benefits of these misunderstood invertebrates. She writes how spiders play an important role in maintaining the balance of nature by feeding on insects and other arthropods.
Group action offers new hope in the battle against invasive species. In the special report, “A Tale of Two Species,” you’ll read how organizations such as The Friends of the Platte River are mounting organized campaigns on watershed basis. The series focuses on Japanese hop and Japanese knotweed, notorious invaders of riparian areas, but the stories could spark ideas for fighting any invasive species in your area using the group approach.

Who knew? Jumping spider with iridescent mouth parts.
Becky Trewartha and Mark Sethne gang up on Japanese Hop in the Platte River Watershed.
David Gossman has learned a lot during his 20 years of bringing back to health a farm he bought in the hills of east-central Iowa. You might learn something as well as Gossman explains how he’s restoring the farm’s woodlands, savannas, and some of its original prairies. He enjoys sharing with visitors what he's learned, and would like to expand the farm’s educational role as an outdoor classroom for the study of the farm's treasure trove of native ecosystems. It’s all in the story, “Student – Teacher.”
David Gossman: Sharing what he’s learned.
In the next story, the scene shifts from the Gossman farm to a 3-acre suburban lot in Stillwater, Minn. That’s where Roger Miller and Mary Zweber are working with landscape designer and ecologist Diane Hilscher to bring nature back into the traditional landscaping put in by the previous owner. The scale is a far cry from the 670-acre Gossman farm, but the objectives are the same---restoring biodiversity. In this case natural areas become elements in an overall landscape design.
Roger Miller and Mary Zweber: Natural by design.
Fall colors may have faded, but in Naturalist’s Notebook this issue the unerring eye of photographer/naturalist arl Kurtz reveals the beauty of the browns of autumn, while birds and other wildlife appreciate the food and cover in a more tangible way.
"Our industry is committed to the environment. All of our lobbyists are 100% recycled congressmen."
Harris’s Sparrow: Brown is beautiful.
Midwest Woodlands & Prairies is published four times a year by Wood River Communications.

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