About tedmanzer
I grew up in Old Town Maine and got a B.S. at the University of Maine in Plant Sciences/ minor in Botany. From there I moved to West Virginia and earned a M.S. in Agronomy at WVU. I also met my wife there. She grew up in rural WV as the daughter of tenant farmers who raised cattle and hogs. Their lifestyle at times was one of subsistence and I learned a lot from them. I've always been a foraging buff, but combining my formal botanical knowledge with their practical 'Foxfire-type' background opened up my eyes a little more.
I recently retired from teaching high school agriculture after 25 years teaching with my wife. Until recently I wrote a weekly nature/foraging column for the local paper (dailyadvance.com). I also have written several Christian nature/adventure novels that can be purchased on Amazon in paperback and in Kindle format. One is a five book family saga I call the 'Forgotten Virtues' series. In the first book, Never Alone, a young boy comes of age after his father dies in a plane crash, and he has to make it alone. The second book, Strange Courage, takes Carl from his High School graduation to his recovery from a nasty divorce. The third book, Second Chances, takes Carl from his ex-wife's death and the custody of his son to his heroic death at age 59. The fourth book, Promises Kept, depicts how his grandchildren react and adjust to his death (this one is not yet published). In the final book, Grandfather's Way, his youngest and most timid granddaughter emerges from the shadow of her overachieving family and accomplishes more in four months than most do in a lifetime. I use many foraging references with a lot of the plants I profile in these articles in those books. I also wrote a romance novel titled Virginia, set in rural West Virginia in the early 1980s. It is available on Amazon and is a different type of romance from a man's perspective.
A friend of mine brought in a mushroom sample recently for me to identify. I smiled when I saw it. When I was a teenager, it was one of my favorites to collect. My dad and I usually found it … Continue reading →
Posted in foraging
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Tagged angel wing mushroom, dead or dying hardwoods, edible, mycology, no stipe, oyster mushroom, parallel gills, Pleurocybella porrigens, Pleurotus ostreatus, prolific, questionable fungus, white spore print
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Recently, someone asked me about shrubs that were showy in winter. Obviously, camellias fit that bill as do winterberry holly and a few others. Mahonia, often known as grape holly, is an underused adaptable shrub that also has winter attributes. … Continue reading →
Posted in general nature
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Tagged adaptable, bright yellow flowers, evergreen shrub, few pest problems, flavorful jelly, grape holly, low maintenance, Mahonia, partial sun, showy in winter, winter flowering, yellow dye, yellow wood
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I was trimming a wax myrtle the other day when I caught a whiff of its sweet fragrance. It reminded me of my many treks through the Maine wild landscape. Walking through waist-high patches of sweetfern gave my clothes an … Continue reading →
Posted in foraging
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Tagged Comptonia peregrina, edible nutlets, fern-like foliage, flowering plant, full sun, insect repelling qualities, nitrogen fixing, spice, sweetfern, sweetfern blister rust, two and three-needled pines, wax myrtle
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This time of year, along the highway in full sun we see a tan upright grass with thick feathery tops. When other vegetation is growing, we rarely notice it. Until seed heads develop, this grass is easily ignored. It’s called … Continue reading →
Posted in general nature
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Tagged Andropogon glomeratus, bunch-type grass, bushy bluestem, conservation grass, feathery tops, floral design, floral design use, heavy seed producer, landscape potential, pest resistant, prairie grass, requires little care, warm-season grass
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These flat-leaved plants with pretty and normally red flowers are everywhere during the holiday season. Most folks see one and call it a Christmas cactus. Actually, many are Thanksgiving cacti. The true Thanksgiving cactus (Schlumbergera truncata) usually blooms earlier and … Continue reading →
Now that we’ve had several hard frosts, many of the herbaceous wild plants have withered. There is one native woodland fern that is still bright and green. It’s called Christmas fern (Polystichum acrostichoides) and it’s a native with untapped potential. … Continue reading →
Anyone who has ever taken a walk in a brushy pasture in fall has probably encountered agrimony (Agrimonia sp.). Often, people run into it before they see it. Before you realize, you’re covered with little spiny balls that stick to … Continue reading →
Posted in foraging
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Tagged agrimony, compound leaves, medicinal use, native plant, ornamental potential, pollinators, rose family, spiny balls, sticky burrs, well drained soil, yellow flowers
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I always look forward to this time of year when citrus supplies are plentiful. My favorite one has always been the tangelo, but that is changing. It’s not because I like them less, it’s because they are nowhere to be … Continue reading →
Everyone has heard the expression to be careful what you wish for. Sometimes a cure for one problem can cause another. Rose rosette disease is a prime example. Years ago, multiflora rose was planted as natural fencing and for soil … Continue reading →
It’s nice to be able to go on vacation and not worry about houseplants or flower gardens. There are two ways to accomplish this. The first is to set up an automatic watering system. The second is to choose plants … Continue reading →
tedmanzer 