All Outdoors
Keep off the grass.
Good advice for the grass that is the only type of turf that I would ever advocate for. I am no lover of lawns; wildflowers and weeds are more valuable for the wild things in our neighborhood.
The grass of which I speak never needs trimming. In fact, the attempt to mowit would be something tosee. While it grows rapidly in the spring, it should never be cut atall. No matter, as no one has yet built an aquatic lawnmower.
Eric Brown of Edgartown has a secret.
Like many fishermen, when it comes to his favorite angling spot, Eric does not fish and tell. But, he did call last week to share a fish tale.
The star of the story is an unusual animal: an American brook lamprey, which, to be accurate, is not a true fish. True fish, taxonomically-speaking, have jaws, while lampreys are jawless. Lampreys also do not have bones, scales or paired fins.
Naturalist Nicholas Culpepper made a valid observation when he noted that “God and nature made nothing in vain.”
He was speaking of honeysuckles, one of the first plants to leaf out in early spring, when he identified one of its detriments. Culpepper’s unfortunate observation was that “the chewing of a leaf is more likely to cause a sore mouth and throat than cure it.”
“The Redcoats are coming, the Redcoats are coming.”
This isn’t a flashback to 1775, although I am writing on the historic Patriots Day holiday. And, no, you don’t have to hear of the midnight ride of Paul Revere. I will save you from that poetic prose, but will tell you of the Redcoats that have invaded the woodlands.
“Look up, it’s a bird, it’s a plane”
No, it’s not Superman, but it is super-natural. The superheroes of the sky this week will be the Lyrid meteors, showering the night sky with a light show from April 16 to 22.
This is fair warning, the article that you are about to read is a primer on poop, a discussion of droppings, and an explanation of excrement. There is no penalty if you choose to stop reading here.