The apple blossoms have emerged. Why is that important, you say? Well, it is a reliable indicator that tells me I now will find one of my most valued vegetables in Nebraska’s rural landscape — wild asparagus. The wild asparagus harvest season almost always overlaps with the emergence of apple blossoms in my eastern Nebraska area. Apple blossoms. Photo by Greg Wagner/Nebraska Game and Parks Commission. Sure enough, I was right! Wild asparagus emerging in early May in eastern Nebraska. …

You have just read the title to this blog and you’re thinking ‘Whoa! What? Wagner is way off base with this one!’ PL-EASE … Allow me, the avid forager, to explain. Now that spring has sprung and while you wait for your morel mushrooms to emerge, some of the more prolific, more accessible wild edible foods are making their initial appearances … in your yard! No kidding! This is the time of year when when edible wild plants emerge and …

Tersh Kepler of Omaha, NE, one of the Midwest’s foremost morel mushroom hunting experts, is hoping for two things these early spring days: More what he calls “liquid gold” and warm rays from BOB in the sky. The “liquid gold” would be more measurable precipitation in the form of rain and the warm rays from BOB would be the heat provided by the big orange ball in the sky, the sun. Kepler says the conditions have been very windy and …

We are in the first portion of spring on the calendar. Green grass shoots are sprouting in my Omaha, NE yard. The days are getting longer. Water temperatures are warming. The time is now to get ready for some early spring fishing action! Emma Wagner-Nichols, your blogger’s daughter, caught this crappie in chilly, sunny weather in a private sandpit lake in Dodge County, NE. Photo courtesy of Emma Wagner-Nichols of Elkhorn, NE Have you put new line on your reels? …

Spring has sprung! The amount daylight is increasing. The weather will be warming. In Nebraska, there are a multitude of activities that you can do in early spring. Here are eight to encourage you to step outside. (1) View Early Spring Birds. A wide variety of opportunities await Nebraska bird watchers in early spring. The migration of wild fowl is truly something to behold! The spring spectacle of the sandhill crane migration along the Platte River in south-central Nebraska should …

By Brian Peterson and Greg Wagner. Brian Peterson is a wildlife biologist at the University of Nebraska at Kearney and coordinates the M.S Biology Online Program. His research focus is white-tailed deer antler metrics.  He is also an avid hunter and outdoor enthusiast. In the outdoor space, there is a lot of information about deer shed or cast antlers. Knowing the science of them instead of the myths or misconceptions about them can increase your knowledge which may boost your …

Spring, open-water fishing is upon us in Nebraska and anglers are organizing their tackle boxes. Chances are they have an assortment of different colored artificial fishing lures in the trays of that tackle box; probably more than they’ll ever use. But if you want to get a good discussion going about fishing lures, start one on colors. WOW!  Anyone who fishes has an opinion about the color of the lures they cast for success. So, what about fishing lure colors? …

My wife thinks I am a hoarder. I believe I am a collector of things. I tell my wife, Polly, that a collector finds special value in one type of thing but the hoarder finds value in innumerable things, thus the reason for keeping everything. I don’t keep everything. Just the cool things of value, whether intrinsically or monetarily, that I find outdoors or outdoors-related to be displayed. I guess you could say that I am into ‘alternate de-cluttering.’ For …

You just read the title of this blog and I know what you’re thinking (or voicing aloud): “Come on, Greg, really? Us hunters and anglers need to be physically fit?” After all, aren’t we just sitting in blinds and boats or on the bank? Au contraire. Think about those long walks early in the morning or later in the afternoon getting to where you want to go. You’re tromping through muddy fields, taller grass, mucky marshland or dense woods … …

Bushcaft. Have you heard the term? If run in outdoor circles like I do you probably have. Do you know what it means? It was brought to my attention recently, and I did not have a good explanation of its definition. So, I turned to Nebraskan Sam Larson, who is a renown, well-traveled Bushcraft (there’s that word again) Instructor and Wilderness Skills Expert and winner of the popular TV show survival challenge ALONE – Mongolia on the HISTORY Channel. He …