Bluebird Box Success at Tessentee

LTLT has received a report on the Success of the Bluebird Box houses that were erected at Tessentee Farm.

This past September, James Rish and his father Larry went to check on and clean out the bluebird box houses that James had erected at Tessentee Farm as an Eagle Scout project in December, 2006. James was pleased to find that all of the ten houses had nests in them with multiple nests in seven.

LTLT's Tessentee Farm has been a magnet for birders the past few years, with a bird list of well over a hundred species. Thanks to James, bluebirds and other box-nesting species have a few new homes at the site.

Last Week at LTLT

On Monday, January 21, a hearty crew of volunteers and LTLT staff planted 191 white oak seedlings at Tessentee Farm. This white oak planting is part of LTLT's ongoing restoration project for locally available raw materials for Cherokee artisans. In addition to the white oak, LTLT has planted butternut trees and cultivated the rivercane stands. See related article http://www.smokymountainnews.com/issues/01_08/01_30_08/out_fr_preserving.html

On Wednesday, January 23, the 1880 farm house at Queen Branch was sold through an agreement with Preservation North Carolina. The new owners will be restoring the house with the intention of living there once the work is complete. Not only is it wonderful to know that this charming house will again be a home, but the land around the home will be held by LTLT in a conservation agreement.

New Link to LTLT

LTLT has finally joined the 21st Century with our very own "blog" or web log. Our intention is two fold. First we want to provide you with information or news from the LTLT office about what we've been doing for conservation in Western North Carolina. Please check in every now and then to see what we've been up to or sign up to have an e-mail sent to you whenever there's a new posting.

Second we want to hear from you - give us feedback about the work we're doing; your experiences out on the land; questions you have about what we do or how you can get involved; suggestions, etc.

We're excited about this new form of communication and look forward to hearing from you.

Thanks,
Kate