Cherokee County Soil and Water Conservation District Office

11/07/2022

Yesterday, the official U.S. Capitol Christmas Tree made its initial stop in downtown Murphy! Every year, a Christmas tree is selected from a different national forest to appear on the lawn of the U.S. Capitol for the Christmas season.

This year is especially unique in that the selected Christmas tree was harvested here in North Carolina’s own Pisgah National Forest. This is the first time since 1998 that the chosen U.S. Capitol tree will come from North Carolina’s national forests.The chosen 2022 Capitol Christmas tree is a 78-foot-tall red spruce, nicknamed “Ruby.”

Ruby will be on the road for a two-week tour that will make its way from Cherokee County, across the state to New Bern at the North Carolina coast, up through Virginia and Maryland, and ultimately, to First Street in Washington D.C. on the west lawn of the U.S. Capitol.

Tourists and spectators from all around the world will have an opportunity to view this beautiful Christmas tree on display at our nation’s capital. And its journey started right here in the Old North State. A special thanks to my colleague, Rep. Sarah Stevens, NC 90 for visiting Murphy on this momentous occasion!

02/14/2022

***Attention High School Students***

The Resource Conservation Workshop (RCW) is an excellent opportunity for high school students to spend a week in the field at NCSU learning about our natural resources and their management in today's environment, meet and receive guidance from natural resource professionals, win cash awards and scholarship money, and so much more!

RCW involves the study and hands-on participation in the following subjects:

Soil characteristics and soil conservation
Wildlife and fisheries management
Forest management
Nonagricultural uses for soils
Water quality and watershed management

The dates for 2022 RCW are June 26-July 1. Cherokee SWCD is accepting applications now until April 28, 2022. Email me at- [email protected]

01/28/2022

It's Poster Contest time again! Teachers call me for a presentation and information about our contests.

01/28/2022

Camouflage is important for wildlife

01/28/2022

☀️A Year of Sunrises☀️ Does the Sun always rise in the same direction? No. As the months change, the direction toward the rising Sun changes, too. The featured image shows the direction of sunrise every month during 2021 as seen from the city of Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. The camera in the image is always facing due east, with north toward the left and south toward the right. As shown in an accompanying video, the top image was taken in 2020 December, while the bottom image was captured in 2021 December, making 13 images in total. Although the Sun always rises in the east in general, it rises furthest to the south of east near the December solstice, and furthest north of east near the June solstice. In many countries, the December Solstice is considered an official change in season: for example the first day of winter in the North. Solar heating and stored energy in the Earth's surface and atmosphere are near their lowest during winter, making the winter season the coldest of the year. J⭐️

Image Credit & Copyright: Luca Vanzella

Source: https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap220105.html

10/12/2021

09/29/2021

09/22/2021

We All Live in a Watershed

09/02/2021

I see you. Not the flashing lights or the giant tires. I see the farmer. I see you looking back every three seconds, trying to get over because I’ve been following you for three km and you worry I’m getting angry and impatient. I see you look back twice as fast because the oncoming traffic is gone but we’re coming up on a intersection and you hope I know that. You hope I know there’s already two crosses on the SW corner of that 4 way because the car in front of me didn’t and they flew by you right in the middle of it. Well I see you, and I see the standing water in the fields and I see it’s quarter to 7 and you’re still at work while I’m on my way home to see my family on a Friday night. You're not in my way; I’m in the middle of your office and your work and your livelihood. I’ll follow you all the way home, I don’t mind. It gives me time to slow down and breathe. Everyone can benefit from a few minutes spent behind that combine.