Next month, a federal court judge will try to put a value on something that’s somewhat priceless: trees stolen from the Olympic National Forest.  The trees in question include old-growth fir, six feet across, that laid down roots before the Revolutionary War; they include intricately patterned maple destined to become high-end musical instruments; they include cedar for shingle or shake.  Read more about this issue. 

The number of confirmed gray wolves and wolf packs in the state nearly doubled during the past year, according a new survey, which based on field reports and aerial monitoring in 2012 found at least 51 wolves in nine packs, with five successful breeding pairs. Read more about this survey and what it means for wolf populations in the state.   

(full story here!) Just when we thought we had ended all that icky winter stuff for the gray, damp cool of a Northwest spring, we have this to deal with: rain and wind around Seattle, and snow measured by the foot in the mountains and an increased avalanche danger there. ATMO‘s Cliff Mass is quoted; read more here! 

(full story here!) Riz Reyes, who works part time as a gardener with the University of Washington Botanic Gardens, claimed the top prize at the Pacific Northwest Flower & Garden Show this week. Reyes, who earned his bachelor’s in environmental horticulture and urban forestry from the UW, owns RHR Horticulture in Shoreline.