THE GRATEFUL GARDENER

by Tim Kennelty

The Habitats of Columbia County

Have you ever thought about the habitat in your back yard or wood lot, or wondered where you might take a hike to see particular plant, animal or insect species in the County? Well, the authors of the recently released, From the Hudson to the Taconics: An Ecological and Cultural Field Guide to the Habitats of Columbia County, have the resource to answer all your questions. We are incredibly fortunate to have this gift that anyone interested in the plants, animals and ecotypes of our area should have. The Field Guide is the product of decades of research by the Hawthorne Valley Farmscape Ecology Program and Hudsonia Ltd.  It is an amazing work, beautifully illustrated with more than 750 photographs, maps, graphs tables and charts. The Field Guide is broken down into 32 habitat types, with each habitat including where to find it, and the defining and distinguishing characteristic plant species as well as the bird, mammal, reptiles, and amphibians you’re likely to find there. It is an essential resource for a wide variety of users -– from the novice backyard nature enthusiast to the expert birder, botanist or naturalist. 

I am happy to report that the Field Guide will be the subject of our next installment of our Forest in Your Backyard series of Taghkanic Talks.  Details of the talk follow:

Not all Forests are Created Equal: A Closer Look at Our Forest Habitats and Their Biodiversity by Claudia Knab-Vispo, Conrad Vispo, and Kyle Bradford.

Saturday, November 15, 10AM - 12PM

Taghkanic Fire Company

631 Old Route 82

Taghkanic, NY 

The presenters will

• introduce their book “From the Hudson to the Taconics: An Ecological and Cultural Field Guide to the Habitats of Columbia County, New York” and describe how it can be used to recognize a variety of forest habitats, including various types of upland forests, as well as floodplain and swamp forest

• highlight some of the plants and animals found in these different forest types

• introduce the concept of “ancient” forest (which is not equivalent with “old growth” forest) and the recently completed map of the potentially ancient forest remnants in Columbia County

• share some thoughts about how land use history has shaped our forests, as well as some results from recent biodiversity inventories comparing ancient and post-agricultural forests in Columbia County.

We are excited to have the following co-sponsors of the talk: the Conservation Advisory Committees of Copake and Gallatin, the Climate Smart Committees of Ancram and Claverack, and Columbia Land Conservancy

I hope to see you on November 15.

If you are interested in a deeper dive to learn about the origins of the Field Guide and more about the authors, you can listen to my conversation with them on the the podcast, Nature Calls, Conversations from the Hudson Valley. Listen to Part 1 of our conversation at:  https://ccecolumbiagreene.org/gardening/nature-calls-conversations-from-the-hudson-valley/episode-198-habitats-of-columbia-county-part-1 Part of the interview will be available next Thursday. 

That’s all for now. Remember to plant native! 

For comments about this column, gardening topics you’d like to read about, or general gardening questions, you can reach me at: tjkennelty@gmail.com