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Letters to the Editor

Submissions reflect readers’ opinions and may be edited for length and clarity. Email Magazine@mdc.mo.gov or write to us:

Missouri Conservationist

PO Box 180

Jefferson City, MO 65102

Champion Trees

In your March Conservationist, the first thing that caught my eye was Jane Mudd’s painting on the cover. Spectacular!

Janice Ainsworth, Lathrop

As a child growing up in the middle of Kansas, it was an adventure to visit with grandparents in southwest Missouri and marvel at all the trees. I really enjoyed the articles and pictures about trees in the March issue [The Mighty Ones II, Page 10]. Keep up the great work of maintaining the outdoors for all.

Joyce Guth, St. Charles

What a wonderful surprise to see the work of artist Jane Mudd gracing the cover of the March Conservationist. I thoroughly enjoyed the illustrated story of Missouri’s champion trees as seen through this gifted painter’s eyes. Missouri is blessed with so many talented artists, and I’m hoping you’ll make use of this resource again in future issues.

Kevin Shults, Columbia

Conservation Superpower

Thank you for introducing us to James Karslake, a young Missourian with award-winning conversation superpowers [We Are Conservation, March, Page 8]. Please continue to spotlight other conversation-minded Missourians. Their stories are inspiring and make me proud to be from Missouri.

Teresa Burritt, Lee’s Summit

Learning to Fish

The image of the mother and her son fishing in the Learning to Fish article is so inspiring [March, Page 16]. You can see how the mother is working so diligently to teach her son how to fish, as she is so gingerly holding the rod, allowing her son to do the work. What a great mother! I liked this photo so much I downloaded it and placed it on my desktop.

David W. French, St. Charles

A Twist on Wild Edibles

Excellent article on wild edibles in your March issue [Wild Edibles, Page 22]. We construct many buildings with natural materials. Cattails’ mature fluff functions as an exceptional fiber that helps clay finishing plaster resist cracking as it dries. While not edible, it’s still a great way to appreciate our natural resources.

Kyle Yoder, Rutledge

Reaching Our Military

My husband and I have enjoyed reading the Missouri Conservationist for many years. Our son, John, is in the Navy, stationed in Pearl Harbor. He asks us to send him our copies of the magazine. Last year, John took several issues of the Missouri Conservationist on a naval submarine in the Pacific for a six-month deployment. Our son says the sailors enjoy reading about Missouri wildlife and seeing the beauty of our state through the wonderful photographs.

Julie Bantle, Fenton

Correction

In the March issue, we identified Dryad’s saddle mushroom as Pleurotus ostreatus [Wild Edibles, Page 26]. It is Polyporus squamous.