Feralbynaturevt

10/11/2026

Let's talk about the Newfane Heritage Festival!
Yesterday was amazing! It feels like coming home to family every year! I'm surrounded by some of my very favorite vendors, who are more like family. I also get to see my friends and lots of local people that I don't get to see often. I love that everyone comes out for this! It's a magical place to be!

We might get a little rain today, but that's never stopped anyone from coming to the Newfane Heritage Festival! If I didn't see you yesterday, I hope to see you today!

10/10/2026

BREAKING NEWS:

The turkeys heard about the Newfane Heritage Festival and are headed that way.

Apparently they heard there would be food.

I’ll be there too. 😂🦃

10/09/2026

I'm still processing black walnuts believe it or not! I grow, forage, harvest and process food all year and then October comes and I start the process of preparing things for the winter pantry. This batch of black walnuts is almost ready to go into a container so they can be enjoyed this winter. I'm actually working on a recipe using some of these for a Thanksgiving dessert! I'll let you know how it turns out!

10/08/2026

Chipmunks are foraging fiends rights now! Fall is peak hoarding season (I caught this one trying to steal my black walnuts!). Eastern chipmunks spend all day gathering acorns, seeds, and nuts to fill the storage rooms of their underground burrows. A single chipmunk can forage 165 acorns in a single day!

Chipmunks are not fattening up for the winter because they don't actually hibernate. Like raccoons, they go into a deep sleep-like state called "torpor". They wake up every few days to eat some of their secret food stash.

During torpor, a chipmunks heartbeat goes from 350 beats per minute down to 4 beats per minute.

10/07/2026

It's almost time! The Newfane Heritage Festival is happening this weekend! I'm honored to be a vendor there for the 5th year! Look for my giant mushroom tent!

https://vermontexplored.com/newfane-heritage-festival-vermont-2026/?fbclid=IwY2xjawUzewxleHRuA2FlbQIxMABwZG9mBWJyaWQRMUdDSW5HOHFXMTl4aVlET0NzcnRjBmFwcF9pZBAyMjIwMzkxNzg4MjAwODkyAAEeFHO2Rc2ABajdhVlfdi0G1mIMBq_B9zNqk5xZC9Yz5sqBVOuei9Z6AHyOSLQ_aem_UzPzCq5b2rhwYCMgIIKuDw

The 57th Newfane Heritage Festival returns October 10 and 11, 2026, with 65+ juried artisans, 200 homemade apple pies, and a Super Raffle.

10/07/2026

Hobblebush (Viburnum lantanoides) is a native woodland shrub with an appropriately quirky name—the long, arching branches can actually trip you up when you're walking through the woods!

Thanks to Nicki Steel Photography posting about them, I never realized how beautiful the leaves are in the fall!

Its berries ripen from red to a dark blue-black in the fall and are edible when fully ripe. They have a somewhat tart, raisin-like flavor and can be eaten fresh or used in jams and jellies. I missed them this year, but I posted a photo of a few berries I foraged last year. This is another berry that benefits from a food mill as it has a large seed inside.

They're also an important food source for wildlife, so if you find a bush loaded with berries, leave plenty behind for the birds and other forest residents. Remember the 1/3 rule! Only take 1/3 of what you find to harvest!

10/06/2026

Why is October my favorite month? It’s my birthday month, I love autumn, and it’s the month of my favorite holiday… Halloween!

I will randomly be sharing info about creatures this month that I think embody the spirit of Halloween. With that in mind…here comes the loggerhead shrike! They are also called “Butcher birds” and that’s because they’re a little creepy.

- They wear masks
- They impale their prey on thorns, cactus, barbed wire. These collections of
stored food are called "larders" or "pantries" and are used to impress the ladies
during breeding season
- They attack prey with a strike to the back of the neck, using these “tomial
teeth” to deliver a paralyzing jab to the spinal cord.
- A group of shrikes is known as an "abattoir" (a slaughterhouse).

10/05/2026

Turning Queen Anne’s lace seeds into a spice! 🌿

Once the seed heads of Queen Anne’s lace (Daucus carota) dry, the tiny seeds can be collected, ground in a spice grinder, and then passed through a sieve to remove the larger pieces.

The result is a fragrant, slightly earthy spice with a flavor reminiscent of carrot, parsley, and warm spices like pepper. I love finding ways to turn parts of plants that would otherwise be overlooked into something useful in the kitchen.

⚠️ Important: Queen Anne’s lace has several dangerous lookalikes, including poison hemlock. Never harvest it unless you are 100% certain of the identification.

10/04/2026

Happy World Animal Day!

10/03/2026

My view while vending at Apex Orchards in Shelburne MA today!