2020 Wood Duck Box / Bluebird Box Maintenance

Wood Duck Box Ready for Nesting
in Wet Weather Pond - Feb. 2020

The outdoors calendar wanes some during the month of February, especially if we get the typical wet weather that the Lowcountry is experiencing in 2020. Duck season ended with a whimper and wood ducks might have been the only species in the bag for wingshooters. Waterfowlers and birdwatchers can make a difference for wildlife by taking time now to maintain nesting boxes that benefit woodies and bluebirds. There is always a sense of adventure when cleaning out existing bird boxes, and each year adds a new tale to tell.

            

Lots of projects can be accomplished using boot leather, sweat equity and by hitching an implement up to a tractor, but erecting and maintaining wood ducks boxes requires a more specialized approach. In most cases, the woodland manager must don hip boots or waders to access a wood duck box. A stepladder, work gloves and a five-gallon bucket with wood shavings must be hauled into the woods before wading out into the flooded area that is prime wood duck habitat. 

Setting up the ladder next to the wood duck box seems simple, but Lowcountry soils can become mushy when flooded and testing some weight on the first step to check for the sink-in factor is always important. It is not advisable to get three steps up on the ladder only to find that the back right leg is going to sink down 10-inches and tip you over, because the Lowcountry waters in February are very cold. While its possible to get soaking wet by accident, a combination of caution and experience can diminish such chances. Precarious is a good way to describe when you are standing atop a ladder in the swamp about to open the top of a wood duck box to reach down inside it and clean it out.

To view the entire feature article in the newspaper click on Colletonian. 

To view past blog entries on wood duck boxes click on 2016 - 2015 - 2014 

#TeamHouston Horse Show at Colleton Saddle Club

Two Youngsters supporting #TeamHouston

Roughly two months after a serious injury changed the life of young Colleton High graduate, his family is grateful to be receiving support from the community. A groundswell of grassroots efforts came together on Saturday February 15 when the Colleton Saddle Club hosted a horse show to benefit #TeamHouston. The beautiful spring weather on Saturday made for a full day of fundraising efforts including a raffle, petting zoo, t-shirt sales and a chicken bog dinner.

#TeamHouston receives warm welcome 

Colleton Saddle Club Ring

The equine enthusiasts from Colleton and Dorchester County turned out in force on Saturday to welcome Houston Barr coming back home to live after two months in the hospital. Parents James and Robin Barr live on a horse farm near Ridgeville and they are relieved to have Houston back at home. Houston, age 20, and his younger sister Maddie are longtime members of the horse community, and Houston was involved in 4-H activities. The show of support from the horse-owner community on Saturday was impressive, and is likely to have a unique and positive impact on #TeamHouston moving forward.

The Carr family arrived in their diesel crew-cab pick-up truck, towing a horse trailer around noon on Saturday. Event organizers had all the riders that arrived earlier to saddle up and formed a unique welcome line to wave and cheer to Houston as he drove onto the Colleton Saddle Club grounds. This display of kindheartedness carried over into the entire day of outdoor activity.

To view the entire feature article in the newspaper click on Colletonian. 

Lots of equine enthusiasts turned out for #TeamHouston

To view past blog entries with horses click on 2009 Middleton Place Hounds - 2011 Polo For The Point  - 2011 Yemassee Plantation Tour - 2011 Charleston Area Therapeutic Riding - 2012 DuBarry Boots at SEWE - 2012 Lowcountry Hunt at Airy Hall - 2012 Polo For The Point - 2013 Wild Horse of Corolla, OBX - 2013 Lowcountry Hunt / Hunt Weekend - 2014 Arrowmont Stables, NC - 2014 Barnsley Resort, GA -  2015 Rodeo at Double D Arena - 2015 Quail Hunt at Shenandoah Plantation, AL - 2018 World Equestrian Games  

2020 Late Goose Season Opener on Valentine's Day

Late Season Opening Day / Valentine's Day Harvest

I don't recall the late goose season opener ever falling on Valentine's Day before. In fact, some years the late goose season was already closed before mid-February. The dates for the 2020 late goose season run from Feb. 14 all the way until February 29 - giving late season waterfowlers an extra day to hunt due to the leap year! Shooting times are 1/2-hour before sunrise until sunset and the daily bag limit is five geese per hunter. The tale of my hunt is that a group of eight Canada geese came to the pond I was hunting and circled twice before I was able to make a clean kill shot and harvest two of the birds. One fell into the water with a splash and one fell onto land and made a THUD.

To view past blog entries from late goose season click on 2017 -  2014 - 2013 - 2012 - 2011

Trusty canine companion inspecting the geese!

2020 Colleton Clemson Extension Advisory Committee Meeting

Colleton Advisory Committee on Feb. 4, 2020

The members of the Colleton Clemson Extension staff invite their Advisory Committee for a planning meeting at the beginning of each calendar year. The Committee members are made up of folks in our community that advocate for gardening, forestry, water quality, and healthy living practices. Alta Mae Marvin will have been with the Extension for 20 years in July, and she asks the committee members to bring forth any ideas about how the Clemson Extension can better serve the community in 2020. 

            

Ellen Comeau with the Water Resources Program Team from the Beaufort County Clemson Extension Office spoke about renewed focus on water conservation in 2020. “I’m always on the lookout for things that make a negative impact on water quality,” said Comeau. “Stormwater runoff strategies are important, but something simple like always picking up after your pet can make an impact too. Members of the public call me with questions about ponds they see, erosion issues, even about alligators and geese.” Comeau also introduced Rebecca Davis from Bamberg who is a new Water Resources extension agent that will cover Colleton County.

Karissa Ulmer is the Lowcountry District Clemson Extension Director and she thanked the committee members for coming out on Monday night Feb. 4 to join them for a chicken supper catered by the Old House. “The Clemson Extension has some high quality events coming up with the 4-H Livestock Day in Orangeburg and the Forestry workshop coming up in Charleston,” said Ulmer. “My own kids are involved in 4-H so I know from experience that this program provides life skills beyond the farm. Local agent Marion Barnes was shaped by 4-H livestock activities when he was a youth. The interactive livestock clinic will be held February 22 from 10 – 1 at the Orangeburg County Fairgrounds.”

To read the entire feature article in the newspaper click on Colletonian.

To view past blog entries from this meeting click on 2019 - 2018 - 2017 - 2016 

To view past entries about agribusiness in S.C. click on  Pasture Grazing - Beginning Farmer Program -Woodland Management - October Flooding - Hugh Weathers -  Tree Farm Lobby Day -  Benton's Peanuts - Fresh On The Menu 

Benton Hay Farm Featured in New Holland Video

New Holland hay baler on display in Colleton County

The New Holland agriculture equipment company does business all around the world, wherever farmers work. They have started a video series to feature family farming operations globally, and Colleton County’s Benton Hay Farm is selected to represent North America. Benton’s Hay Farm has been in business for 40 years now, and a little over 25 years ago when Benton’s Feed and Seed opened in Walterboro, to sell hay and other farm friendly products. Three generations of the Benton family are currently working on the farm today, and the recognition from New Holland Ag comes after decades of making hay while the sun shines.

            

The New Holland Agriculture “All In The Family” video series is available to view on YouTube. A few videos in this series premiered in 2019 featuring South America, Asia, India and Europe with the Benton Hay Farm video rolling out in early 2020. Each video starts with a map of the world, and then the featured continent is highlighted and the exact home town being filmed is listed. The production on these videos is super slick and each beginning is almost like a James Bond 007 movie, where any place in the world may be the next filming destination. A film crew came for New York last summer to film the hay farming operation in western Colleton County.

Clips showing Walterboro City Hall and downtown Washington Street at the beginning of the video helps share the front porch of the Lowcountry with viewers worldwide. The remainder of the video titled “A Life Well Farmed” talks about hay growing and baling and the importance of family farming. Mr. I.M. Benton is the elder statesman and he makes a brief appearance in the video, but his son Timmy Benton stars as the family spokesman. Hunter Benton and ‘little’ Timmy Benton represent the third generation. Sandra Benton and Michelle Benton get credit for working at the Feed and Seed Store in town.

To view the entire feature article in the newspaper click on Colletonian. 

To view past blog entries on New Holland click 2018.