Thursday, March 5, 2026

News and Ideas Worth Sharing

Judy Isacoff

Writer, naturalist, educator, and garden designer Judy Isacoff has published in regional monthlies, weeklies and dailies as well as professional journals in the field of environmental education. She is a columnist for the Battery Park City, New York Broadsheet Daily and The Broadsheet, and for five years contributed a weekly astronomy column to The Berkshire Eagle. A leader in nature study and curriculum-based gardening at schools in urban and rural settings, Isacoff is passionate about cultivating the sense of wonder through her teaching and writing. Her website: NaturesTurn.org

written articles

NATURE’S TURN: Catbirds in residence — a drama

I looked to the compelling triangle: baby, mother, father.

EYES TO THE SKY: Star-spangled heavens. Fireflies flash from treetops to terra firma

Summer’s brightest stars appear, echoing these Earth-bound lights, beginning around 9:20 p.m. through mid-month.

NATURE’S TURN: Timeless sense of wonder. Urgency to act to protect public lands

If stalk-eyed flies thrive along with skunk cabbage in the Berkshires, we might see them feeding on the remains of skunk cabbage blossoms, fungi and unseen bacteria which they scavenge from decaying vegetation.

EYES TO THE SKY: Summer stars rising. Earth’s star, the Sun, reigns

Our star, the Sun, rises at 5:17 a.m. E.D.T. (Eastern Daylight Time) from June 8 through June 22. Sunset is at 8:27 p.m. today and up to a few minutes later through July 1. The longest days of the year occur from June 19 through 22 when sunsets are at 8:33 p.m. and day length 15 hours, 16 minutes; shortest nights are eight hours, 44 minutes.

NATURE’S TURN: Spring wildflowers delight in Mount Washington State Forest. Flight of a swallow

The wildflowers identified herein may be found in bloom in woodlands throughout the northeast.

EYES TO THE SKY: Views from the International Space Station — a photo essay

"These proposed cuts will result in the loss of American leadership in science." — AAS American As-tronomical Society Board of Trustees.

NATURE’S TURN: Re-awakening awe

Let’s go out to greet the first ephemerals before their brief exuberance concludes as trees leaf out.

EYES TO THE SKY: We are all healthier under a starry sky

"Eyes to the Sky" comes to you as the Full Pink Moon, the first full moon after the vernal equinox, rises tonight, April 12.

NATURE’S TURN: Contribute to the vitality of the natural world — plant natives, uproot invasives Resources & Events Issue

In the wild, find a breathtaking expanse of hobblebush on the Bear Mountain Trail about half a mile from the East Street trailhead in Mount Washington.

EYES TO THE SKY: Don’t sleep on this — Total eclipse of the moon creates Blood Moon March 13 and 14

"During a total lunar eclipse the Moon takes on a variety of colors, the most obvious be-ing an orange tinge. This is an enthralling event not to be missed." — StarryNight7

NATURE’S TURN: Biodiversity, invasive species, and we the people

"We shall pay any price, bear any burden, meet any hardship, support any friend, oppose any foe to assure the survival and success of liberty." — President John F. Kennedy, Inaugural Address, January 20, 1961

NATURE’S TURN: Blizzard paints the high country

Every branch, twig, and evergreen leaf sported a white brushstroke before snow changed to freezing rain.

EYES TO THE SKY: Planet Venus, the Evening Star, closest, brightest mid-February

At peak magnitude, seek out the goddess of love planet in a clear blue sky in the west-southwest during daylight hours, being extremely careful to keep eyes diverted from the sun.

NATURE’S TURN: Turning the corner to spring — a Valentine for Earth

“A thing is right when it tends to preserve the integrity, stability and beauty of the biotic community.” — Aldo Leopold

EYES TO THE SKY: Contemplate the universe, planets in our sky, space for children in our lives

Let’s turn to the grandeur of our view of night skies away from light pollution.
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The Edge Is Free To Read.

But Not To Produce.