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Hickory Elixir
2025 looks like a mast year for hickory nuts. I used to make hickory "milk" from nuts that fell in Scott's yard. His tree has been swallowed whole by English Ivy. When it succumbed the neighborhood lost its most prolific hickory source. I don't have a good source for hickory nuts--the hickories at my place are in the woods and when the harvest is on I always lose out to wildlife. Best to have a yard, or a driveway where you can spot the fruit when it drops. George has a tre
lyleestill9
Oct 282 min read


First Pecans
When I moved to Chatham in 1990, the land I bought came with a farmhouse they threw in for free. One day when the sellers and I were out...
lyleestill9
Oct 72 min read


Pittsboro Pedestrian Coalition
Last Thursday night 31 people showed up at the Fair Game Wheelhouse for a second "edition" of Greenway Conversations. Earlier that day...
lyleestill9
Sep 292 min read


First Plantings
It doesn't look like much right now--but I think this is huge. It's a yellowwood tree ( Cladrastis kentukea ) planted by Chatham County...
lyleestill9
Sep 231 min read


Nature and the Mind
I just finished Marc Berman's wonderful new book, Nature and the Mind . Although he appears to be a scientist first, and an author...
lyleestill9
Sep 151 min read


Greenway Conversations Revisited
I plucked this image off Next Door. Two things struck me about the post: The writer calculated the number of acres of hardwoods that...
lyleestill9
Sep 62 min read


Public Input Opportunity
This just in from Josh, Chair of the Pittsboro Parks and Recreation Advisory Board:
lyleestill9
Sep 41 min read


What's the Move?
I dragged my maps down to West End restaurant last Wednesday and had a fantastic meeting with a couple of dozen greenway/tree...
lyleestill9
Aug 302 min read


Losing Our Northwood
It appears my last blog entry about Greenway Conversations hit a nerve. In general the Tree Museum Blog enjoys about 150 readers. That...
lyleestill9
Aug 201 min read


Greenway Conversations
There’s a new park going in next to the Plant. It will cover both our southern and western edges. It’s the result of a deal the Town...
lyleestill9
Aug 92 min read


Mulch Ado About Nothing?
Most of what I have learned about mulching has come from the guidance of Leaf and Limb . In his book, Wasteland to Wonder , Basil Camus...
lyleestill9
Jul 61 min read


Piedmont Prairie
I first heard the term "Piedmont Prairie" from Matthew Arnsberger , the landscape designer out of Carrboro. We built one together in...
lyleestill9
Jun 282 min read


Eradication and the Neighbors
Eradication and the Neighbors My invasive plant eradication effort in the neighborhood ebbs and flows. When I am in a flow state, I...
lyleestill9
Jun 142 min read


The Eastern Edge
Today I had the privilege of attending The Local Church service that was held in the field at Little Pond Gardens @ the Plant. It was at...
lyleestill9
Jun 81 min read


Info Graphic Fail
At the opening of the Tree Museum on January 25, 2025, I had several conversations about canopy loss with some of the attendees. It made...
lyleestill9
May 221 min read
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