Welcome back to Walkin' on the Wild Side. Happy Holidays from Gabrielle and I, and we are in the Holiday spirit! This episode, we talk about one of the most recognizable songs and nut (actually more like a fruit), the chestnut. Chestnuts and Christmas just seem to go together, but sadly, because of a blight, the once dominant and massive tree that produced delicious nuts for wildlife, people, and generations of Christmas around the world was eliminated from the forests of eastern US in the blink of an eye (40 years). We'll talk about how chestnuts went from a holiday staple to just a verse in a song. What happened and can you still get chestnuts? Join us as we sit around the fire pit on the back porch and reminisce about what used to be and the possibility that one day, the chestnut will once again, return to it's former glory.

You can learn more about chestnuts from these websites:

Chestnut blight: https://tacf.org/history-american-chestnut/

Chestnut research: https://www.esf.edu/chestnut/index.php

https://www.finedininglovers.com/explore/articles/chestnuts-z-26-things-about-chestnuts

How chestnuts are used in Italian cooking: https://www.lacucinaitaliana.com/italian-food/how-to-cook/roasting-chestnuts-a-guide-to-the-cherished-italian-holiday-tradition

The Italian Chestnut Growers Consortium: https://www.consorziocastanicoltori.it/ (in italian, so please get google to translate)

Interested in having Marvin and Gabrielle speak at your event? Email us below for more information!

Email us at www.walkingonthewildside21@gmail.com
Follow us on our two webpages to see photos and blogs about our podcasts and nature in general. We will be posting our Yellowstone pics here:
Nature Nook Photography
Walkin' on the Wild Side

You can listen directly from our website at: https://walkinonthewildside.buzzsprout.com, or from any of the major podcast platforms, such as Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Audible, Spotify, iHeart Radio, TuneIn, Stitcher, and more!
Subscribe to our podcasts on any of these platforms and leave us a review!
We hope you enjoy listening to our podcast and welcome your emails, comments, and feedback. Hopefully, we will inspire you to get out there and start "Walkin' on the Wild Side"!

We'd love to hear from you with your questions and comments!

It's that time again and for this episode, we are chatting about one of the most deceptively beautiful birds that come to our area in the Fall, the cedar waxwing. These social birds are mostly seen invading fruit trees and flying from tree to tree in large flocks. Upon a closer look, these brown blobs suddenly reveal an amazingly beautiful bird. With beautiful coloration, a crest on its head, and a bold black mask, these birds reveal a ravenous appetite for fruit! Join us and learn more about this bold, beautiful, and quite interesting fall migrant.

Learn more about the cedar waxwing here:

https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Cedar_Waxwing/overview

https://www.aba.org/2020-bird-of-the-year-cedar-waxwing/

https://www.inaturalist.org/posts/108090-fun-facts-about-the-cedar-waxwing

Interested in having Marvin and Gabrielle speak at your event? Email us below for more information!

Email us at www.walkingonthewildside21@gmail.com
Follow us on our two webpages to see photos and blogs about our podcasts and nature in general. We will be posting our Yellowstone pics here:
Nature Nook Photography
Walkin' on the Wild Side

You can listen directly from our website at: https://walkinonthewildside.buzzsprout.com, or from any of the major podcast platforms, such as Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Audible, Spotify, iHeart Radio, TuneIn, Stitcher, and more!
Subscribe to our podcasts on any of these platforms and leave us a review!
We hope you enjoy listening to our podcast and welcome your emails, comments, and feedback. Hopefully, we will inspire you to get out there and start "Walkin' on the Wild Side"!

We'd love to hear from you with your questions and comments!

After a little hiatus and celebrating our 25th wedding anniversary, we're back! We had a great time celebrating with friends and family, but are happy to be back in the podcast studio! This episode is about some strange plants that you may have seen, but maybe didn't know what they were. We're talking about parasitic plants, but these plants aren't your run of the mill parasites, they are funky, spooky, and fascinating! Join Gabrielle and I on the back porch as we talk about these "sapsuckers" and "nutrient vampires" right after Halloween!

Here's some great websites to learn more:

https://www.fs.usda.gov/wildflowers/plant-of-the-week/conopholis_americana.shtml

https://www.psu.edu/news/research/story/traditional-forest-medicinal-plant-ghost-pipe-used-differently-today

https://www.illinoiswildflowers.info/woodland/plants/pinesap.html

https://www.scottarboretum.org/epifagus-virginiana/

https://www.fws.gov/media/dodder-invasive-species

Photos on Facebook are found at the following websites:

Pinesap: https://www.illinoiswildflowers.info/woodland/plants/pinesap.html

Dodder: https://homegarden.cahnr.uconn.edu/2025/09/01/dodder/

Ghost Pipes: https://www.fs.usda.gov/wildflowers/plant-of-the-week/monotropa_uniflora.shtml

American Cancer-root/Bear corn: https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/59980-Conopholis-americana

Interested in having Marvin and Gabrielle speak at your event? Email us below for more information!

Email us at www.walkingonthewildside21@gmail.com
Follow us on our two webpages to see photos and blogs about our podcasts and nature in general. We will be posting our Yellowstone pics here:
Nature Nook Photography
Walkin' on the Wild Side

You can listen directly from our website at: https://walkinonthewildside.buzzsprout.com, or from any of the major podcast platforms, such as Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Audible, Spotify, iHeart Radio, TuneIn, Stitcher, and more!
Subscribe to our podcasts on any of these platforms and leave us a review!
We hope you enjoy listening to our podcast and welcome your emails, comments, and feedback. Hopefully, we will inspire you to get out there and start "Walkin' on the Wild Side"!

We'd love to hear from you with your questions and comments!