Resource Enhancement and Protection
Our Quarterly Newsletter now On-line
Naturally Speaking is now available in PDF. Click here for Winter 2012 Edition - may take a while to load.
Past issues are also available:
Autumn 2011 Edition
Summer 2011 Edition
Spring 2011 Edition
Winter 2011 Edition
Autumn 2010 Edition
Summer 2010 Edition
(A PDF file requires Adobe Reader - click on the logo to download it). 
Swinging Bridge Fundraiser
If you haven't personally experienced crossing the swinging bridge located within Jefferson County park, chances are your child, grandchild or the child next door has! A big hit with young and old alike, the swinging bridge was installed in 1986 over a shallow ravine on a hilly trail linking the campground with the picnic area.
It has been determined, however, that to continue to provide a safe facility, the bridge must be replaced. The conservation board has approved a fund-raising measure, spearheaded by board member Kathy Tollenaere, entitled "Join the Jefferson County Park 'Swingers'!" to help cover the cost of the bridge replacement (approximately $10,000). Anyone making a $25 donation will be eligible to receive a t-shirt. All donations will be completely tax-deductible. T-shirts and contribution forms, containing t-shirt size and color preferences, are on display in the Jefferson County Courthouse lobby, the Jefferson County Health Center, and at the Jeff. Co. Park nature center. Or click here for a form available in PDF that you can print out.
Any interested club or organization desiring more information could request a "program" given by a JCCB representative. Please call Kathy at 472-9479 or Dennis at 472-4421 with your request.
Upcoming Programs
Whether you are an experienced bird watcher or just new to the sport, we've got six different bird watching adventures planned for you this spring. Each is co-sponsored by Jefferson County Conservation and the Southeast Iowa Audubon Society and will be led by Diane Porter. You can check out her website to learn more about her great love for birds. We also have a great wild edibles program planned for May along with a bow-making workshop, each led by experts in their field. Still in the planning stage is a flint knapping workshop, and two evening programs: one on frogs and toads and the other on meteors. And of course, we'll find time for a basket class or two. We hope you'll come join us.
Eagle Watch
Sunday February 19th, 1:30 p.m. - 5:00 p.m.
We'll load up the vans and head south to watch Eagles and other winter birds along the Des Moines River. This program, co-sponsored by the Jefferson County Conservation Board and Southeast Iowa Audubon Society, will be led by Diane Porter and Therese Cummiskey. Bring along your binoculars. Space is limited. Pre-registration is required. Fee: $3.00
Great Backyard Bird Count
Monday February 20th, 9:30 a.m. - 11:00 a.m.
The Great Backyard Bird Count is an annual four-day event that engages bird watchers across the country in counting birds. The information gathered helps researchers learn more about how birds are doing. Anyone can participate and it takes as little as 15 minutes on one day, or you can count for as long as you like each day of the event! This year's event runs from February 17th - 20th. To learn more about it or to find out how you can participate visit the official website at www.birdcount.org. Or consider joining ornithologist Diane Porter and naturalist Therese Cummiskey on our bird count on February 20th. Those interested can meet Therese at the Jefferson County Park nature center and from there we will caravan to Diane Porter's property for an hour of birding.
Waterfowl Watch
Sunday, March 11th 1:30 p.m.
Mid-march is a great time to watch migrating ducks and geese. Currently we are finalizing our location for our waterfowl watch so for more details check back to this webpage in the weeks ahead.
Pelican Watch
Tuesday, April 10th.
Pelicans stop only for a brief time at our wetlands and it's usually during the second week of April. We'll cross our fingers and hope they've arrived...or that we haven't missed them! Meet at the trailhead of Cedar View Trail at 7:30 a.m. Wear boots. Participants can expect to walk up to two miles.
Warbler Walk
Saturday, May 12th. 7:00 a.m.
The first two weeks in May are peak migration time for warblers. We'll meet at 7:00 a.m. at Ely Ford in Lacey Keosauqua State Park, one of the best warbler birding sites in southeast Iowa. Yes, I know that's early BUT it will be well worth it if you see even one warbler in its spring plumage.
Backroads Birding
Saturday, May 26th.
We'll meet at 7:30 a.m. at Jefferson County Park and head out along the back roads of Jefferson County and Van Buren County to find birds of pasture and fence row. Space is limited. Pre-registration is required. Fee: $3:00.
Learn to Build Your Own Bow
Saturday & Sunday, May 5th & 6th. 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
The ancient skill of building bows from one piece of wood is an art form and this spring we are bringing back master bow maker Gene Winter, owner of Winter Bow Shoppe in Waterloo, for a two-day workshop. The workshop runs from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. on both Saturday and Sunday. Because of the time involved in making a selfbow and the one-on-one instruction required, this program is LIMITED TO 6 PARTICIPANTS. There is a $200.00 fee per student. The osage orange staves and everything needed for the class will be provided. Call 472-4421 to reserve your space. Lunch will be provided both days.
Wild Edibles
Saturday, May 19, 9:00 a.m. - Noon
Mike Krebill, vice president of the Prairie States Mushroom Club and a member in the National Wild Foods Association Hall of Fame, will take participants on a fascinating, mouth-watering exploration of Jefferson County Park. This workshop will involve identification of spring edibles and mushrooms, plant preparation, and sampling of wild foods, including some delicious dandelion dishes. PRE-REGISTRATION IS REQUIRED. Limited to 30 participants. Fee: $10/person. $20/family. For those interested Mike will have wild plant reference books for sale at a discount. To reserve your spot contact Therese by phone (641-472-4421) or e-mail (therese@jeffersoncountyconservation.com). Meets at the Jefferson County Park nature center.
Need more info? Call Therese at 472-4421, or e-mail to therese@jeffersoncountyconservation.com
From the Director's Desk
2010 - 2011 Annual Report
Every year the Jefferson County Conservation Board is required to submit an annual report to the County Supervisors. In December we submitted a report that summarized all projects and activities that took place from July 1, 2010 to June 30, 2011.
For an abbreviated version of that report go to front page of the Winter 2012 Newsletter. A copy of the complete report can be obtained at the office of the JCCB.
Park Management News... by Shawn Morrissey
Whitham Woods. This spring, weather permitting, a pond renovation project will begin at Whitham Woods on the west edge of Fairfield. This renovation may take several months to complete and it is the type of project where a big mess must be made in order to end up with a nice finished project.
For more details go to page 4 of the Winter 2012 Newsletter
Parks and Trails Update... by Bob Leazer
Trees Forever Tree Planing. As you hike or bike the Loop Trail you will notice some new tree and shrub plantings on the section of the trail north from the Cedar View Trail bridge to old Hwy 34. This was done in conjunction with "Trees Forever" to enhance that section of the trail. JCCB would like to thank all the volunteers that helped make the tree planting project a success (the photo to the right shows about 1/3 of our group). Over 140 trees and shrubs were planted on a cool, overcast day in early November.
Park Host News... by Ron Meyers
It's winter and the parks are no longer hidden by all the leaves and tall grasses so it's easier to see the wildlife and the lay of the land. Don't let Old Man Winter keep you indoors. It's another great time to really see the parks and they all have a trail waiting for you, so get out, get your exercise and see what they have to offer.
"Have an out-of-car experience. Walk, jog, bike and ski, feel the wind, meet friends, see wildlife and be part of nature. Support trails."
An article, "Trails and Railroads", is here.
Nature Talk... by Therese Cummiskey
Maple Syruping
You don't have to be part of a farming operation or have expensive equipment to take part in and enjoy the results of maple syruping. The sap from as few as 10 taps can provide more than enough syrup for a family for a year. And the tools required for a small maple syrup operation are found in most homes. They include: a drill (brace), a 3/8" drill bit, a rubber mallet or hammer, collecting containers such as coffee cans, milk jugs or plastic buckets, a large pan (perferably low and broad) a candy thermometer,and spiles (spouts). Spiles can easily be made from 1/2" dowel cut in 3" lengths. Drill a 1/8" hole in the length of the dowel and whittle down one end so the spile will fit snugly in a 3/8 inch hole. A groove should be cut on top of the wide end of the spile to support the sap container. To sanitize the spiles dip them in a 4 parts water to one part bleach solution. After drying, dip them in melted paraffin wax. (Or to simply things you can order your supplies, such as spouts and buckets,from a supplier such as the Leader Evaporator Company. Check out www.leaderevaporator.com.)
When the weather is right: daytime highs in the 40's and nightime lows in the 20s, and your materials are gathered, you're ready to begin. Maple syrup can be made from any type of maple tree, including box elders. Sugar maples are usually used in commerical syruping, as these trees have the highest concentration of sugar, thus requiring less boiling. Generally the ratio of sap to syrup for the sugar maple is 35 or 40 to 1, while it may take up to 60 gallons of box elder sap to make one gallon of syrup.
For each quart of syrup you want you'll need one tap hole. Too many taps can harm the tree so tap no tree less than 10 inches in diameter. A tree 10 to 18 inches in diameter can have one tap; 18 - 28 inches can have two; 28 inches or more - three. use the following information.
Drill your taphole about 1-1/2 inches into good wood, which means maybe 2-1/2 inches if the bark is heavy. This isn't a critical measurement. Just be sure you're into good wood, where the sap flows, and have a hole deep enough to accommodate your spout. Drill the hole at a slightly upward angle to help the sap flow outward, and keep turning the drill forward as you pull the bit out, in order to get as many shavings as possible. Remove any remaining shavings from the hole with a small screwdriver
Try to drill directly over a large root or below a large healthy limb since that's where a lot of the sap is headed from and to, and stay away from tap holes of years past. The sap flows best in healthy trees with an abundance of branches. Avoid sparsely limbed trees or ones with a lot of dead branches. Since the sun's rays speed up the thawing out process each day, you'll get better runs on the southeast to southwest sides of the trunk.
To make syrup from sap a simple boiling and straining process is used. Since substantial quantities of water will be cooked off, most of the boiling should be done outside. Since this process takes a lot of energy, wood is the best fuel. In boiling sap you want a good, roaring fire and you can expect to use up to a cord of good, dry wood for each 5 gallons of syrup (i.e. 20 taps). Maple sap can spoil and care must be taken to keep it as cool as possible and not to store it too long before boiling it down. Sap which has "spoiled" has an unclear, slightly milky look, and if boiled down it will produce a dark syrup.
Here at Jefferson County Park we'll start boiling once we've collected about 20 gallons of sap. We'll do most of our boiling outdoors, but when we've reduced the 20 down to about a gallon we'll take it indoors and finish it off in a smaller pan on a stove. When sap starts to boil, it looks very much like water boiling. Use a candy thermometer to measure its boiling point (it will vary each day with the atmospheric pressure.) Then, as the water is evaporated off, the color darkens and the sap gradually thickens, and it's temperature goes up due to the increased sugar content. As the batch approaches the syrup point the bubbles get smaller and smaller. You have syrup when the temperature of your batch has risen 7 degrees above the boiling point of your sap or when the small bubbles suddenly rises to the top of the pan! Watch it closely so it doesn't boil over.
To finish the syrup making process strain the syrup through cheese cloth, then pour into jars and refrigerate. Stop collecting sap and pull your taps when you: a) have made enough syrup to satisfy your needs; b) find that the syrup is getting dark colored (the result of warm or fermenting sap) or less sweet; and/or c) you notice that the sap has become cloudy or yellowish. After a while the sap just quits coming. There are no specific rules for pulling your spouts. The holes will heal up by themselves.
Need more info? Call Therese at 472-4421, or e-mail to therese@jeffersoncountyconservation.com
See some articles from our newsletter, Naturally Speaking.