Category: Environment

Guided Nature Hike at Camp Helen

Debbie Roney Smith on

Today in Panama City Beach, a ranger will be offering a Guided Nature Hike at Camp Helen. Camp Helen boasts nine distinct natural communities throughout the park with varied flora and fauna. Learn about our rare coastal dune lake, Lake Powell, as well as the park wildlife. The hike is suitable for all ages; be sure everyone in your party is dressed for the weather; water and bug spray are recommended. The hike will start at 10 a.m. and will last an hour. Contact scarlett.a.dunn@FloridaDEP.go for more information and/or with questions. 

Can’t make it out today but want to catch the next hike? Be sure to mark your calendars for Thursday, June 03, 2021 from 10-11 a.m.!

Earth Day

Debbie Roney Smith on

Today is Earth Day 2021! Beginning in 1970, it was created to bring awareness to serious environmental concerns and to address the need for environmental reform. It grew to an international level in 1990 and is now practiced in 142 nations. Don’t forget that today is the second Earth Day Live digital event, held on the official website here. The global show begins at 12 p.m. Eastern Time and will include workshops, panel discussions, and special performances that focus on this year’s theme of Restore Our Earth™. 

Earth Day 2021: Take Two

Debbie Roney Smith on

Today, Education International leads the “Teach for the Planet: Global Education Summit.” A multilingual virtual summit that includes multiple timezones, the focus is on the crucial role that educators play in combating climate change and why we need transformative climate education now. There will be prominent activists from every continent. 

Visit the website HERE to stream!

Walk in the Park

Debbie Roney Smith on

Today is National Take a Walk in the Park Day! This is a day to slow down, clear your mind, re-energize, and improve mental and physical health by visiting a local park be it community, urban, national, or state. Did you know that Greenland’s National Park is the largest in the world? It covers an area of 604,000 miles!

Considering visiting a local park such as Marianna’s Citizen Lodge Park, pictured below. 

Spring Equinox

Debbie Roney Smith on

Today is the March equinox! Also called the vernal – or spring – equinox, today the day and night will be of almost equal duration in most time zones in the world. The spring equinox ccurs when the Sun crosses the equator line, heading north, and marks the start of spring in the northern half of the globe. It is the first equinox of the year and marks the beginning of spring. Happy Spring, everyone!

Kayak Local Econfina Creek

Debbie Roney Smith on

The weather is beginning to get warmer here in the Florida Panhandle as the spring equinox draws closer. Looking for something to get you out in the wonderful world of nature or something to occupy the kids on the weekend? Consider visiting the local Econfina Creek and its beautiful canoe trail in Youngstown, FL for a leisurely trip down the calm trail. The local Econfina Creek Canoe Livery LLC is currently offering shuttle services by reservation only seven days a week. They offer one or two-person kayaks as well as a pick-up from the end of the trail to take you back to your vehicle. They suggest bringing lunch and/or snorkeling gear to make the most of the trip, turning the 3hr paddle trail into a lovely, relaxing day-trip along the cool waters. 

Visit their official website HERE for more information or to make a reservation today. 

House Hunting for Honey Bees

Debbie Roney Smith on
The swarm season for bees is underway. A spring phenomenon, this is an event that is growing rarer to see as the global bee population is rapidly declining due to various threats to their life cycles. Swarm season is actually an important step in bee colonies’ natural reproduction. Bees swarm a temporary home such as a tree branch while scouts go out to find new homes (aka hives) for the season. In this process, one swarm often becomes two or more colonies. If you see a cluster of bees, do not panic! Simply contact a local beekeeper if you need them removed or simply leave them be as they are often gone within two weeks.
If you desire to have the bee swarm removed, call a beekeeper, your County Extension Office, local beekeeping club, police department, or a similar organization. Many of them will gladly direct you to a beekeeper who would be happy to pick up these bees and give them a good home. Swarms are usually quite docile as they have no need to defend their hive, so simply walk away and contact an expert to keep everyone – and everybee – involved safe and sound! 

Vegetable Gardening 101 in Tallahassee

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Today was the first Organic Vegetable Gardening 101 course held at Native Nurseries in Tallahassee. New to vegetable gardening? New to Tallahassee? Looking for a refresher course? This workshop is for you! Joe Walthall goes over the basics of organic vegetable gardening – preparing a bed, soil building, what to plant, when to plant, and more. This is an outdoor workshop that features a demonstration in Native Nurseries’ vegetable garden. Missed today’s event? Never fear – this special workshop will occur again on March 6th at 10 a.m. EST. 

PLEASE NOTE: Registration is required by phone. There is a $5.00 fee; your payment holds your spot in the class. Please call (850) 386-8882 to pre-register. Class size is limited to 15 people. Masks are required. When parking, please use the driveway next door to the nursery with ‘Workshop Parking’ sign seen from Centerville Rd.

National Bird-Feeding Month

Debbie Roney Smith on

Here in the Florida Panhandle and surrounding areas, the health of our local ecology plays a huge part in helping migratory (and local) bird populations. February is National Bird-Feeding Month, dedicated to raising awareness about the importance of providing wildlife with necessities as well as encouraging healthier, sustainable bird feeding habits. Birds have it tough in winter as they have new families to feed and the natural resources to do so aren’t as plentiful as at other times of the year.

Want to help? Most importantly, make sure you are only putting out seed that is natural to the diet of birds in your area. Secondly, be sure to squirrel-proof any bird feeders or baths you put out. As birds often gather in places where food, shelter, and water are reliable, being consistent and generous is the best way to get to see a wide variety of species. Furthermore, bird watching in your yard or surrounding land will not only help you relax and make you happier but also help provide the right resources to get those birds coming back again and again. Spotting patterns and identifying species will help you identify what kind of feed is most beneficial, what plants will help encourage birds to land, and what kind of water sources are most useful. 

Special February Full Moon

Debbie Roney Smith on

Tomorrow morning is a special event for those interested in astrology or those who enjoy the beauty of the moon – February 27th at 2:17 a.m. there will be a Full Moon! Also known as a Snow Moon, this modern-day name is derived from a combination of Native American, Anglo-Saxon, and Germanic month names. This particular Full Moon is named after the snow on the ground. 

Interestingly, some North American tribes call February 27th’s full moon The Hunger Moon because they historically had to deal with food shortages and difficult hunting conditions during this period of mid-winter. Other names attributed to the Snow Moon are Storm moon, Chaste Moon, and March Full Moon. Even more mind-blowing is that, about once every 19 years, February does not have a Full Moon at all! This event is known as a Black Moon.