Seed Saving

Saving and sharing seeds have been part of human history for millennia. Recent studies have found evidence that humans were selecting and saving seeds as many as 30,000 years ago, beginning with regionally available grains (Southern Exposure Seed Exchange).

Learn more and find resources for saving seeds from your garden HERE>>.

Raise Backyard Chickens

Learn all about raising backyard chickens with Natalie Kendrach, SHLT board member. This slideshow presentation was used as part of a presentation during the 2023 Winter Wednesdays series in partnership with the Worthen Library. Click HERE>> to view the slides

Build a Home for Pollinators

There are lots of ways we can help pollinators, from making sure they have good sources of food, to providing them with places. A thick layer of mulch and leaf litter can be home to all kinds of insects over winter, but have you heard of a bee hotel? Check out this resource from the Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation, all about building homes for native bees and other pollinators.

(photo from istock)

Explore a Vernal Pool

Vernal pools are seasonal pools of water that provide important habitat for amphibians and insects, including frogs, salamanders, fairy shrimp, and fingernail clams. Learn more about vernal pools and watch videos of spring coming to life with the Vermont Center for Ecostudies. Then head to the woods to see if you can find a vernal pool yourself!

(image from istock)

Find a Geocache!

Scattered across South Hero is a series of secret geocaches, and it’s up to YOU to find them! Each geocache is made up of a small box hidden near a particular kind of native tree. Learn more about the Trees of South Hero Geocache Adventure HERE >>

Bird Inspiration

After 35 years of recovery efforts, the Bald Eagle has been removed from Vermont’s list of threatened and endangered species. A young member of the Friends of Bay Minette was inspired by our collection of bird resources, and shared this great article, All About Bald Eagles with her volunteers team and with us. Thanks Hailey! You can learn more about this bird’s comeback in our region in Bald Eagle Recovery in Vermont from Audubon Vermont.

Image by Richard Lee on Unsplash.

Natural Communities of the Champlain Islands

From the limestone cedar-pine bluffs at Round Pond State Park to the sand dunes of Alburgh Dunes State Park, come watch this virtual tour of rare and special natural communities of the Champlain Islands with local author and ecologist Liz Thompson. Liz is the director of Conservation Science at the Vermont Land Trust and co-author of Wetland, Woodland, Wildland: A Guide to Natural Communities of Vermont. Learn about the plants, animals, geology, soils and more that define some of the natural communities found in the Islands, as well as tips for where to go to see examples of many of them up close!

The Winter Wednedays series is a partnership project of the Worthen Library and South Hero Land Trust, with support from C.I.D.E.R. Funding made possible by members and donors of each organization

Connected, A Journey Through the Champlain Adirondack Biosphere Network

Learn about the Champlain Adirondack Biosphere and some of the organizations in the region working to protect the land, waters, and communities of this special place. This short film was created by Lia Nydes for the Champlain Adirondack Biosphere Network, of which South Hero Land Trust is a member. SHLT Executive Director Emily Alger and board member/local farmer Steve Robinson of Islandacres Farm are both featured in the film.

Emerald Ash Borer Walk at Tracy Woods

Join SHLT Programs Director Guy Maguire, Grand Isle County Natural Resource Conservation District Coordinator Molly Varner, and SHLT board member and naturalist Chuck Hulse for a virtual walk at Tracy Woods in South Hero. Learn more about the Emerald Ash Borer and local efforts to manage this invasive pest in our forests.

Indigenous Perspectives on Thanksgiving

The National Museum of the American Indian has some great resources for learning about our Indigenous people in North America, and some of their perspectives on Thanksgiving. Take some time to learn about the Abenaki people, who originally stewarded the land we live on, and are still among us today. And the find an outdoor space to give thanks to the Abenaki and other Indigenous tribes for all of the foods, ways of caring for the land, and knowledge that they have shared with us.

Go for a Book Walk

There is a new book walk up at the South Hero Recreation Park! The book for Winter 2022 is “Over and Under the Snow” by Kate Messner. Learn more HERE >>

Fall Leaves Coloring Page

Print a copy of our Fall Leaves in the Champlain Islands and go on a leaf walk at Tracy Woods! How many of these leaves can you find?

Round Pond Natural Area Scavenger Hunt

We created a fun scavenger hunt perfect for exploring Round Pond Natural Area, for our August Activity Calendar. Print a copy and explore the woods, fields, and beach at Round Pond! You can print a copy with pictures to help your search, or print a blank copy and draw what you find.

Leaf Art!

We love these ideas for creating fall leaf art: Mirror Leaf Drawings with the Imagination Tree, Preserved Leaf Mobiles from Buggy and Buddy, and making Leaf Prints with A Piece of Rainbow. Head outside to collect fall leaves and get started with an art project today.

(Photo by Patrick Hendry on Unsplash)

A Virtual Field Trip to Pomykala Farm in Grand Isle

Join us to explore Pomykala Farm in Grand Isle with second generation farmer Ben Pomykala. Jane and Bob Pomykala started farming in 1977. With their son Ben, they grow a wide variety of vegetables, fruits, and herbs for retail and wholesale markets. Longstanding members of the Champlain Islands Farmers’ Market, the Pomykala also run a bustling farm stand during the summer and fall.

Pomykala Farm is also a critical part of the Healthy Roots Collaborative Gleaning Program, providing hundreds of pounds of gleaned produce to feed families in Grand Isle and Franklin County each year.

Black, Indigenous, and People of Color in the Vermont Outdoors

Join us to hear perspectives from BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, People of Color) on being outdoors in Vermont. This panel discussion highlights access challenges and systemic racism in outdoor recreation.

Speakers
Debbie Archer, Audubon Vermont
Kenya Lazuli, Radical Imagination
Hana Saydek, Vermont Releaf Collective and Unlikely Riders
Candace J. Taylor, Conscious Homestead

The Winter Wednedays series is a partnership project of the Worthen Library and South Hero Land Trust, with support from C.I.D.E.R. Funding made possible by members and donors of each organization, as well as grant funding from the American Libraries Association 'Libraries Transforming Community Grant.'

Nature Scavenger Hunt: Be a Junior Naturalist

Last year Folsom's 7th and 8th grades worked with SHLT to create a nature guide to the Water Wigglers trail behind their school. It has pictures and descriptions of common plants and animals you can see in the Islands. PLUS it has a scavenger hunt- try and find as many of the species as you can!

You can view the field guide HERE. Complete the scavenger hunt at the trail behind Folsom, on any of the trails in South Hero, or in your own backyard!

Start a Nature Journal

Use an existing notebook or craft your own journal out of paper and twine. Go outside and draw or write about what you see. Be creative! Write poetry, get inspiration for a work of fiction, or draw whatever comes to mind.

Thimble & Twig is a really fun blog with all kinds of ideas for adventures with kids. Their post on starting a nature journal with kids has suggestions for activities, stories, and examples.

Restoring Water Quality in Lake Champlain

Join the Worthen Library, South Hero Land Trust and the Grand Isle County Natural Resource Conservation District forvirtual panel and discussion on the many ways we can all make a difference and improve water quality in Lake Champlain. The webinar featured farmers and residents of the Islands who are also involved in the work to clean up the lake; sharing their perspectives on what we can all do right now. Watch the recording and see how you can get involved in caring for water quality in Lake Champlain.

Panelists include: Mark Naud, Chair of the VT Citizens Advisory Committee on Lake Champlain's Future, and resident of South Hero. Bob Buermann, Farmer and member of the Northwest Regional Planning Water Advisory Committee. Moderated by Molly Varner, Grand Isle County Natural Resource Conservation District. The Winter Wednedays series is a partnership project of the Worthen Library and South Hero Land Trust, with support from C.I.D.E.R. Funding made possible by members and donors of each organization, as well as grant funding from the American Libraries Association 'Libraries Transforming Community Grant.'

Hunting and Forest Stewardship

South Hero Land Trust, Vermont Land Trust, and the Backcountry Hunters & Anglers co-hosted this panel and discussion on the history of wildlife conservation in Vermont and North America, with a specific focus on the role of hunting in conservation, both in Vermont and in the Islands specifically. Our own county forester Nancy Patch joined us to talk about the impact of deer pressure on healthy forest regeneration in the Islands. Watch the recording, and stay tuned for more events on this topic. We hope to host a walk in the woods with a hunter, to see the forest through their eyes, sometime in the fall of 2021.

Why do Leaves Change Color? The answer is hidden here…

As the leaves change color across Vermont, let’s learn why! Arizona State University’s “Ask a Biologist Series” gets us started. Learn a little more with SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry’s article on the topic. Appalachian State University digs into how climate change will affect leaf color. Add the US Forest Service has more information and some fun activities for kids!

Vermont Center for Ecostudies Field Guides

The Vermont Center for Ecostudies publishes a monthly field guide with all kinds of interesting articles. The September Field Guide includes articles on the Nighthawks, Fall Webworms, mushrooms, and more.

Here’s a snippet to get your appetite whetted: “One morning, you wake to a nip in the air, and notice subtle changes in the quality of the light. Suddenly, it’s September. High in the sky, Broad-winged Hawks kettle and Common Nighthawks peent as they whirl southward. And high in the trees, Fall Webworms busily build their sticky hammocks and munch on late-summer leaves. Down at eye-level, butterflies like Monarchs and Painted Ladies glide by on their way to…”

Find a Nature-Themed Coloring Book

The Salmon Sisters have created some beautiful free coloring pages for kids (and adults!).

Photo by By Andrés Nieto Porras from Palma de Mallorca, España - CC BY-SA 2.0

Bring Spring Indoors: Start Some Windowsill Seeds

Whether you are getting a jump on the summer gardening season with some vegetable starts, or growing a pot of herbs on the windowsill, starting seeds indoors is a great activity with your kids.

Get tips and ideas from Kids Gardening.

Seed Sprouting with Moretti

Moretti is one of our favorite people, and we think you will love him too! Join him for a very fun seed sprouting adventure, and then check out his other seed videos on our YouTube channel. There is one on seed recognition and another on seed dissection.

This is a great video and activity to do with the kids, enjoy! If your kids go to school in Grand Isle or Franklin County, Moretti may be an old friend. If not, we think he will be soon.

Meet the Lambs at Paradise Bay Farm (Virtually!)

Farmers Ann and Bob Buermann of Paradise Bay Farm have shared some great pictures and video of the new lambs at their conserved farm.

Each year the Buermann family welcomes spring with a new generation of Border Leicester sheep, born at the farm. The ewes (mama sheep) usually give birth in March, to one, two, or even three new lambs. Enjoy this little glimpse of spring on the farm here!

Join us for (another) Virtual Wildflower Walk

South Hero naturalist Chuck Hulse has created a SECOND virtual introduction to the wildflowers of the Landon Community Trail for you, this one on late spring flowers! If you enjoy the video, you can visit the Landon Community Trail, where he has flagged several flowers.

Chuck is also the creator of the Guide to the Wildflowers of the Landon Community Trail, a comprehensive guide to all of the flowers found on the trail in a year.

Go Foraging for Wild Edibles

Learn about sustainable foraging in this article from Yankee Magazine, and then check out some more resources (recipes included!) from The 3 Foragers. Or catch up with our friend Ari of the Mushroom Forager.

Image By Fungus Guy - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0

Join us for a Virtual Wildflower Walk

South Hero naturalist Chuck Hulse has created a virtual introduction to the spring wildflowers of the Landon Community Trail for you! If you enjoy the video, you can visit the Landon Community Trail, where he has flagged several flowers.

Chuck is also the creator of the Guide to the Wildflowers of the Landon Community Trail, a comprehensive guide to all of the flowers found on the trail in a year.

Vermont Center for Ecostudies Field Guides

The Vermont Center for Ecostudies publishes a monthly field guide with all kinds of interesting articles. The March Field Guide includes articles on the first butterflies of the season, winter stoneflies, redwing blackbirds, and more.

Here’s a snippet to get your appetite whetted: “The spring equinox marks the moment the sun crosses the celestial equator – an imaginary line in the sky above Earth’s equator – from south to north. It is also at spring equinox that people all over the world can see the sun rise exactly due east and set exactly due west. While the sun may be predictable, March weather is not. In fact, March is appropriately named for the Roman god of war, Mars. March is a month of battles between warm and cold…”

Backyard Bird ID with the Merlin Bird App

The Cornell Lab has created the free Merlin Bird App to help you identify birds in your backyard in two ways: you can answer 3 simple questions about the bird you see and get suggested matches, or you can take a picture and the app will give you a short list of possible matches. There are 28,000 bird images and 15,000 audio recordings to explore!

Photo by (Photo by John Yunker on Unsplash)

Be a Bird Helper with some Migration Art

The National Audubon Society suggests helping migrating birds avoid the danger of window collisions by breaking up the transparency and reflections of your glass windows. You can create pictures and, colorful shapes, and other art of hang in the window, and help birds stay safe.

(Photo by Jongsun Lee on Unsplash)

At-Home Activities for Young Learners

Mud labs, fort building, and other activities ideas fill this guide for young learners from Shelburne Farms. Plus, they've got some cool links to Storytime from Space, Lunch Doodles with Mo Willems, and more.