The Dirt Blog

TLC’s New Strategic Plan

November 25, 2014

Several weeks ago, I took my daughter Harper to our Horton Grove Nature Preserve in northern Durham County to hike some of the new trails our Conservation Corps just completed. It was a gorgeous, sunny fall day and the beeches beamed bright yellow. We stopped at the new wildlife viewing platform by the “prairie” and […]

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Building Trails at the New Horton Grove Nature Preserve

November 21, 2014

Photo by Chelsea Clifford It was a perfect afternoon as the three Duke Conservation Society volunteers and I stepped out of the car. It was just after 12 p.m. on a Wednesday, with the temperature hovering around 70 degrees. No clouds blocked the sky, and the sunlight streamed through the leaves that were just beginning […]

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Land Protection Wins in Last Week’s Election

November 11, 2014

Although people are generally dismayed with politicians and Congress, there is real, broad support for open space protection around the country. In total, voters approved over $29 billion in funding for land and water protection across a range of states and local governments last week. Some of the examples include: ●  Rhode Island – voters […]

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Tales from the Field: A Walk Among Giants

November 9, 2014

by Kyle Obermiller Earlier this week, I spent an entire workday by myself at White Pines Nature Preserve  in Chatham County, and by the end of the day, my handheld GPS unit had logged 7.5 total miles of walking. This trip continued my mega-monitoring-Monday extravaganza, designed to complete routine maintenance of the hiking trails on […]

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In the Kitchen with TLC: Do Chua and Spring Rolls

October 27, 2014

I immediately fell in love with the Durham Farmers' Market when I spotted one of my favorite, often overlooked vegetables, the pale, knobby daikon. This Asian radish, also known as Japanese horseradish, has a milder flavor than the more common red radishes while retaining a nice, crisp crunch perfect for many different applications. (This Wikipedia […]

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Fire in the Field

October 24, 2014

by Kyle Obermiller A few weeks ago, I attended the North Carolina Certified Burners course offered by the North Carolina Forest Service, at Montgomery Community College in Troy, NC. State employees, federal employees, private landowners, private business owners and workers, and one lone non-profit employee (that would be me!) all attended the class. The purpose […]

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Remembering TLC’s Membership Day

October 16, 2014

There was a faint fall chill in the air as the hikers for TLC’s Members-Only event gathered in the Irvin Farm parking lot. While the J. Logan and Elinor Moor Irvin Farm Preserve is home to the Learning Outside education program as well as the Transplanting Traditions farm, its beautiful woodlands are closed to the […]

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Eating Fresh from the Farm

October 14, 2014

All week, I’ve been feasting on delicious fresh vegetables and eggs from the Transplanting Traditions Community Farm CSA housed at our Irvin Farm Preserve. Last Friday was the first pick-up in the four week fall series. My daughter Harper and I went out to pick up our box, which was super full with sweet potatoes, […]

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