MDC Offers Urban Woodsmen Event February 22nd

by Bill Graham, Missouri Department of Conservation

​     Sweet treats and warm feet, trees can provide both for those who develop a knack for tapping trees for syrup or swinging an ax to split firewood. Learn how when a free Urban Woodsman program is presented from 10:00am to 2:30pm on Saturday, February 22nd, at the Missouri Department of Conservation’s (MDC) Anita B. Gorman Discovery Center, 4750 Troost Ave., in Kansas City.
     This program for all ages will include a taste test with silver-dollar-sized flapjacks topped with maple or walnut syrup. The syrup is made from sap tapped from trees in the Discovery Center’s outdoor garden. Visitors can learn how to tap trees to make their own syrup.
     Trees and wood are featured at the event, including tips for making firewood. Visitors can learn how to swing an ax to split firewood. Firewood is often sold in a stack labeled a cord.
     Experts will talk about what type of firewood burns best, and how to measure a complete cord when purchasing wood.
     Participants can try their hand at lighting a fire using flint and steel. Demonstrations will include how to make a Swedish log fire and how to make rope from native plant fiber.
     Children will find tree limbs stacked as shelters and hideaways at the Center’s Sycamore Station outdoor play area. They can explore mammal pelts and participate in kid craft activities geared to nature and enjoying the outdoors in winter.
     The free Urban Woodsman program is offered as a walk-in event, registration is not required. For more information, call the Discovery Center at 816-759-7300, or visit http://mdc.mo.gov/discoverycenter.
 

MDC's free Urban Woodsman program from 10 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 22, will give visitors a chance to taste maple syrup and see how it is made. Tips on utilizing firewood and skills related to trees and wood will be presented in activities open to all ages.
Photo credit: MDC