Drought Task Force maintains drought watch status for all of Pennsylvania

Jul. 8—WILKES-BARRE — Following a meeting of the Commonwealth Drought Task Force this week, the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) will maintain a statewide drought watch.

While not required, residents and non-farm businesses are encouraged to voluntarily conserve water by reducing their non-essential water use.

At this time, 18 public water suppliers are asking for voluntary water conservation in their communities. For a map of daily drought status and a weekly list of public water suppliers that are requesting or requiring water use reduction, see the DEP drought web page.

Drought watch declarations are not based on one indicator alone, such as precipitation. DEP assesses information provided by public water suppliers and data on four hydrologic indicators: precipitation, surface water (stream and river) flow, groundwater level, and soil moisture.

While the recent rainfall has been welcome, there are still persistent precipitation deficits statewide. Persistent rain will be needed for more consistent meaningful improvement to groundwater levels.

DEP monitors the indicators in close partnership with the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), which maintains gauges in streams and wells in many locations across Pennsylvania.

There are normal ranges for all four indicators. DEP makes drought status recommendations after assessing departures from these ranges and comparing this information to historical data.

Drought emergency declarations follow the same process, with final approval by the Governor. No county is in drought warning or emergency status at this time.

Residents and businesses are encouraged to reduce their non-essential water use. For example, at home there are many simple ways to use less water:

—Run the dishwasher and washing machine less often, and only with full loads.

—Don't let the faucet run while brushing your teeth or shaving. Take shorter showers. For example, consider not washing your hair daily.

—Water your lawn only if necessary. Avoid watering on windy and hot days. Watering grass lightly and efficiently will encourage healthier, deeper grass roots. Over-watering is wasteful, encourages fungal growth and disease, and results in shallow, compacted root systems that are more susceptible to drought.

—When mowing your lawn, set the blades 2-3 inches high. Longer grass shades the soil, improving moisture retention.

—Water your garden less often. If necessary, water only in the cooler evening or morning hours, and direct the water to the ground at the base of the plant. Focus on new plantings, which have shallow root systems. Older plants may endure dry conditions longer.

—Skip the car washing. If you have to wash your car, it's better environmentally to go to a drive-through car wash that recycles the water.

—Sweep your sidewalk, deck, or driveway, instead of hosing it off.

—Check for and repair household leaks. For example, a leaking toilet can waste up to 200 gallons of water daily.

—Set up a rain barrel to be ready to re-purpose rain when it does fall. For helpful information, see this Penn State Extension guide. Or just set out a bucket to capture water in the event of rain, and reuse it to water plants or the bird bath.

The next Commonwealth Drought Task Force meeting is scheduled for July 26.

NBLT to host 'Botanical

Drawing Basics' July 14

On Friday July 14, North Branch Land Trust will host a "Botanical Drawing Basics" at the Back Mountain Bloomer's Pollinator Garden at the Dallas Township Municipal Building.

Botanical illustration, the art of depicting the form, color, and details of plants, has been a vital skill in artistic and ecological studies. Historically, identification guides for flora, fauna, and fungi used these complex illustrations almost exclusively, with many pre-industrial codices being individually hand inked.

Until the invention of the camera and high-quality printing, using illustrations was a matter of practicality — fine details could be engraved and printed in mass scale for both the expert and lay person.

But now just about all of us are walking about with a highly qualified camera in our pocket that can be used to identify the picture of a plant through an app, follow that app to a shop that sells you seeds which links you to a care guide for making sure that you can replicate a little piece of nature on your windowsill.

And even print identification guides seem unnecessary when our smartphones can tell us about almost any flower from Boston to Borneo.

What use do we still have for botanical illustrations?

Chase Taylor, visual arts major states, "Those who appreciate nature, in turn, appreciate art. Botanical illustration is both observation of the artistic capabilities of the natural world and an opportunity to highlight the visual aspect of our ecosystems in a way that photography simply does not."

Taylor will be guiding the Botanical Drawing Basics event with North Branch Land Trust. Her goal is help folks faithfully express what they see regardless of artistic capability.

These illustrations are also important in the sciences as well, especially when one is just learning to identify.

Karley Stasko, Director of Marketing & Development said, "I didn't know much about how to identify when I first started working at North Branch. I used the apps to know what I was looking at in the moment, but it didn't teach me the features that I should be looking for to identify it in the future."

Botanical illustrations, while not necessarily photo-realistic, can exaggerate the most important features used to identify a plant, fungi or whatever else might be growing in your garden or meadow.

These illustrations may also break down a plant into its constituent parts: the leaf, individual petal shapes, where stems connect the pieces, the depth or breadth of the root system, and even cross sections. Such elements are vital for identification and not always evident in even the best photographs.

There are plenty of reasons to carry around a pencil and notebook for botanical sketching, even if you're not an artist. Dead battery, low storage, bad lighting, and many other minor hiccups can prevent you from taking a picture of that interesting tree or wildflower you see on your hike.

"Botanical Drawing Basics" is free for members of North Branch Land Trust. Non-Members may make a small contribution to participate.

Visit — nblt.org/events — for more information and reservations.

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Back Woods Bass Results

Bob Strunk reports results from the Back Woods Bass Harveys Lake Wednesday night Lunker Tournament, the Back Woods Bass Harveys Lake Friday Night Tournament and the Monday Night River Tournament.

Week of July 3

Monday Night River Tournament

1st Place: John Centak/Ron Dopko, 7.69 lbs.

2nd Place:

Bob & Sheldon Strunk, 6.97 lbs.

Also won Lunker Award, 2.09 lbs.

3rd Place:Matt Miller/Matt Follmer, 6.94 lbs.

4th Placve: Frank Slymock/Ray Jones/Stephen Matello, 6.51 lbs.

5th Place: James Lacomis/Breandan Angley, 5.99 lbs.

—Back Woods Bass Harveys Lake

Wednesday Night Lunker League

1st Place: Matt Coller, 4.12 lbs.

2nd Place: George Gendler Jr., 3.37 lbs.

3rd Place: Cody Cutter, 3.21 lbs.

4th Place: George Hogan, 2.95 lbs.

5th Place: George Gendler Sr., 2.56 lbs.

6th Place: Lou Hughes, 2.35 lbs.

7th Place: Jake Rolands, 2.23 lbs.

8th Place: Greg Mikulski lll, 2.16 lbs.

9th Place: Frank Kline, 2.15 lbs.

10th Place: Greg Mikulski Jr., 2.07 lbs.

—Back Woods Bass Harveys Lake

Friday Night Tournament

1st Place: Duane Deno, 12.11 lbs.

2nd Place: Tom Williams/Terry Burkhardt, 8.02 lbs.

3rd Place: Josh Colarusso/Brian Murdock, 7.00 lbs.

Also won Lunker Award, 3.98 lbs.

4th Place: Aaron & Gary Hayman, 6.94 lbs.

5th Place: Jake Seymour, 6.92 lbs.

6th Place: Dennis Knecht & Eric, 5.82 lbs.

7th Place: Billy Bierbach/Aaron Wandell, 5.59 lbs.

8th Place: Dillon Serfass/Troy Freeby, 5.16 lbs.

9th Place: Dustin Sult/Bobby Avery, 3.11 lbs.

Pa. Game Commission seeks public

input in its annual turkey survey

The Pennsylvania Game Commission again is seeking input from the public in surveying wild turkeys this summer.

The Annual Pennsylvania Wild Turkey Sighting Survey is underway and runs through Aug. 31.

Participation is important for turkey population management. Survey data allow the agency to determine total wild turkey productivity and compare long-term reproductive success within Pennsylvania and across states, as this is a standard methodology used across the country. Data also are used in the turkey population model to track population trends.

Turkey sightings can be reported through the Game Commission's website — https://pgcdatacollection.pa.gov/TurkeyBroodSurvey. The mobile app is no longer available. The agency recommends saving this link to your favorites for quick access to report turkey sightings.

On the website, participants are requested to record the number of wild turkeys they see, along with the county, township, wildlife management unit (WMU), date and contact information if agency biologists have any questions.

Participants may also simply drop a "pin" on the map for the location data to automatically populate.

Location data are used only for the survey, not for law enforcement and are not shared.

Viewers can also access the raw data and reports from previous years.

"The turkey survey enhances our agency's internal survey, which serves as a long-term index of turkey reproduction and is used in our turkey population model," said Game Commission Turkey Biologist Mary Jo Casalena. "Participants should report all turkeys seen, whether gobblers, hens with broods, or hens without broods."

Many factors, including spring weather, habitat conditions, previous winter food abundance, predation, and last fall's harvest affect wild turkey productivity.

Like many other states this survey includes input from both agency personnel and the public.

"Thanks to the large sample size from all corners of the Commonwealth, we have high confidence in the results," Casalena emphasized. "Let's maintain these results in 2023 and even increase participation," she added.

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Reach Bill O'Boyle at 570-991-6118 or on Twitter @TLBillOBoyle