Portage Library to host Keweenaw Garden Club Sept. 8

HOUGHTON -- The Portage Lake District Library will host the Keweenaw Garden Club as it resumes its gardening programs for the public from September through May.

Rebecca Krans, Consumer Horticulture Educator from the Michigan State University Extension Office, will present "Winter Hardy Shrubs and Proper Pruning" at 7 p.m. on Monday, Sept. 8.

Krans will discuss proper pruning techniques to help shrubs look their best. She will also share "Smart Gardening" strategies for selecting the best winter hardy shrubs for the Keweenaw. Participants will also learn about gardening resources, programs, and events that are sponsored by the MSU Extension Office.

The Keweenaw Garden Club was established by and for gardening enthusiasts. They have meetings and presentations at the Portage Lake District Library on the first Monday of each month. Those who are interested in learning more about the club are welcome to attend the general meeting at 6:30 p.m. prior to the presentation at 7 p.m. or visit https://sites.google.com/site/keweenawgardenclub/. 

Library programs are free and everyone is welcome. For more information, please call the library at 482-4570 or visit www.pldl,org.

Senior Project Fresh offers coupons to eligible seniors for fresh produce, herbs, honey at farmer's markets

HANCOCK -- Again in 2013, the Michigan State University Extension, Houghton and Keweenaw Counties, in conjunction with the Portage Health Senior Meal Program and Michigan Department on Aging, is distributing -- to eligible senior citizens -- coupons to be used at farmer's markets for fresh vegetables, fruits, herbs, honey and wheatberries.

Gustavo Bourdieu sells his honey at the Tori in Hancock. Honey is among the fresh food items eligible for Senior Project Fresh coupons. (Photo by Keweenaw Now)

Any senior at least 60 years of age from either county who meets the income requirements is eligible to receive a voucher packet of coupons totaling $20. In addition, seniors will receive a short nutrition lesson.

For Houghton County, the coupons will be distributed between the hours of 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. next Wednesday, Aug. 7, 2013, at the Houghton County MSU Extension office at the Fairgrounds in Hancock. Coupons are on first come, first serve basis and limited amounts are available.

Seniors from Calumet and from Keweenaw County who have not yet received coupons may contact Kathie Preiss, SNAP ED Program Instructor for Ontonagon County MSU
Extension, by emailing her at preissk@anr.msu.edu or by leaving a message for her at the Houghton County MSU Extension Office at 906-482-5830.

John Lennington of Lake Linden offers a variety of fresh vegetables for sale at the Tori in Hancock. (Keweenaw Now file photo)

For eligible senior vendors at the Hancock Tori Market, Kathie Preiss will be available at the Tori from 9 a.m. to 9:45 a.m. next Wednesday, Aug. 7, to distribute coupons.

The coupons can be used as cash at participating farmers' markets, but vendors cannot give change for them. Coupons can be combined with cash for purchasing eligible items. The coupons expire Oct. 31, 2013, though some markets may not be open until that date.

At the Hughes Farm near Calumet, neat rows of vegetables and a large greenhouse for extending the season are evidence of the farm's successful production of authentic local food. Senior Project Fresh coupons can be used to purchase fresh produce at the Hughes Farm. (Keweenaw Now file photo)

Here is a list of the 2013 local participating farmer's markets for Houghton and Keweenaw counties:

1. Gierke Blueberry Farm -- 37915 Klingville Rd., Chassell, 523-6112. You pick only ... Call first.

2. Tori Market, Hancock (front lawn of former Hancock Middle School) -- Open 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Wednesdays and Saturdays, June through September. Call Sandy at 337-1391 for information.

3. Main Street Calumet Farmer's Market -- Local produce. Open 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturdays from July 1 through Oct. 14. Contact David Rheault at 370-0028. Located in Agassiz Park in good weather. Otherwise inside the lobby of the Merchants and Miners Building, 200 Fifth St. (corner of Fifth and Portland Streets).

4. Wooden Spoon -- U.S. 41 Mohawk (Keweenaw County) 10 a.m. - 5 p.m. Monday through Saturday. Bruce Beaudoin, 337-2435.

5. Osma Acres Farm -- 53464 Osma Plat Road, Houghton (Past Oscar on Houghton Canal Road). After Aug. 1: green beans, greens, squash, corn. 8:30 a.m. - 6:30 p.m. Mon. - Fri. Contact Bill or Judith Lell: 483-0586 or 281-4949. NOTE: Does not use insecticides.

6. Hughes Organic Farm -- 53206 Golf Course Rd., Calumet. 337-5185. Open end of July.

7. Lake Linden Farmer's Market -- 10 a.m. - 2 p.m. Saturdays. Starts July 7 through early October. Ed Fisher, 296-9141. Located at Village Park, M-26 Lake Linden.

Click here for more information about Project Fresh.

Public Forums on November Ballot Proposals to be held Oct. 24, 25

HOUGHTON -- Two forums on November Ballot Proposals will be held Wednesday, Oct. 24, and Thursday, Oct. 25, in Houghton.

Michigan State University (MSU) Extension, in partnership with the League of Women Voters of the Copper Country, is hosting a Ballot Proposal Forum to provide factual, unbiased information on each proposal from MSU policy experts who will be present via webcam. This forum will be held at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 24, at the BHK Learning Center, Houghton.

Participants will have the opportunity to discuss the proposals with other citizens and the experts. To read 100-word summaries and analysis of each of the proposals, visit the Citizen’s Research Council website: http://www.crcmich.org.

A Public Forum on on Proposal 3: Michigan's Renewable Energy Ballot Initiative will be held from 7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 25, in Michigan Tech's Forestry Building Room G002.

Proposal 3, if approved, would require electric utilities to provide at least 25 percent of their annual retail electricity sales to be from renewable energy sources by 2025 (25x25).

The forum will feature a panel from Michigan Tech's College of Engineering: Associate Dean Leonard Bohmann, Associate Professor Joshua Pearce and Professor Ezra Bar-Ziv, who will discuss wind power, solar power and biomass electricity, followed by a Question and Answer session.

This event is sponsored by the Graduate Program in Environmental and Energy Policy, the Sustainable Futures Institute, the Power and Energy Research Center and the League of Women Voters of the Copper Country.

See also the pro/con statements in the League's Voter Guide on www.lwvmi.org.

UPDATED: Hancock Tori enjoys busy season; Project Fresh coupons help senior customers

Martha Sohlden of Chassell sells berries, vegetables and baked goods at the Tori farmer's market in Hancock on Wednesday, Aug. 1. Senior citizens 60 years of age and older who qualify can use Project Fresh/Market Fresh coupons to purchase fresh fruit, vegetables, herbs and honey at the Tori. (Photos by Keweenaw Now)

HANCOCK -- The Hancock Tori (tori is "market" in Finnish) is bigger and better this year with an increased number of vendors and visitors. The new canopy provides shade on a hot day and allows the vendors to sell their goods rain or shine.

Angela Jaehnig and her children -- from left, Liz, James, Sarah and Mary -- choose their favorites among Gustavo Bourdieu's engraved and decorated rocks. Bourdieu, a beekeeper for 46 years, also sells his natural honey (background), veggies and potatoes.

"More people are interested in eating natural, fresh locally grown food," says Gustavo Bourdieu, beekeeper and gardener, who sells his natural honey as well as potatoes and vegetables at the Tori.

John Lennington of Lake Linden offers a variety of fresh vegetables for sale at the Tori.

Thanks to the State of Michigan, senior citizens who qualify can also benefit from Senior Project Fresh/Market Fresh, which offers a booklet of coupons worth $20 (10 coupons of $2 each) that can be used to purchase fresh fruit, vegetables, herbs and honey -- not only at the Tori but at six other participating farm markets in the area: Gierke Blueberry Farm in Chassell (pick your own), Main Street Calumet Farmer's Market in Agassiz Park, the Wooden Spoon in Mohawk, Osma Acres Farm (Past Oscar on the Houghton Canal Road), Hughes Organic Farm in Calumet and the Lake Linden Farmer's Market at Village Park in Lake Linden.

Scott Smith of Wintergreen Farm in Ontonagon holds up one of his beautiful tomatoes and displays his vegetables at the Tori. Scott and his wife, Andrea Corpolongo Smith, participate in CSA (Community Supported Agriculture). Under this program, consumers can purchase a share (aka a "membership" or a "subscription") and in return receive a box (bag, basket) of seasonal produce each week throughout the farming season.

The Project Fresh coupons can be used for unprocessed, Michigan-grown products from authorized farmer's markets and roadside stands throughout Michigan -- at any Michigan Farmer's Market that displays the sign "PROJECT FRESH ACCEPTED HERE." All coupons must be spent by Oct. 31, 2012.

Amy Rajala of Chassell sells cucumber salsa at the Aug. 1, 2012, Tori. The cucumbers are from a community garden in Milwaukee, where young people raise fresh vegetables.

UPDATE: The coupons are distributed from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Wednesdays at the office of Michigan State Extension, located at the Houghton County Arena in Hancock. A staff person will assist you in filling out an application. To qualify, you must be 60 years of age or older, have a total household income of 185 percent of poverty or less, and live in the county where the coupons are issued. (A representative of Project Fresh is sometimes available to visit Keweenaw County to sign up applicants who request the coupons; otherwise, Keweenaw County residents can sign up in the Hancock office.) The number of coupons is limited and they are distributed on a first-come, first-serve basis.*

Senior Project FRESH/Market FRESH originates from US Dept. of Agriculture (USDA) funding (from the federal Farm Bill).**

More photos ...

Tori vendors also sell their handicrafts and even books in Hancock's popular outdoor market. The Tori is open Wednesdays and Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. during the summer.

Carol Williams sells her handmade jewelry at the Tori. Some of the delicate pieces, including beadwork, require many hours of work. This is her fifth year as a Tori vendor.

Jean Medlyn of Boston Location shows the Jaehnig family some of the wool she spins into yarn to make scarves, mittens and other woolen items. 

Sarah and Mary Jaehnig watch intently as Jean Medlyn demonstrates spinning wool with her spinning wheel at the Tori.

Seamstress Carol Bird of Hancock displays a wide variety of items from purses to aprons to vests and other attractive, useful products of her professional sewing.

Sandy Fluegge of Baraga sells lovely handmade baby clothes at her Tori booth.

Dorn Dyttmer of Hancock sells his photos, note cards and other items he designs or makes himself.

Teresa Palosaari of Chassell, left, displaying her jams and jellies, chats with Jean Medlyn and Sandy Soring, right, Tori manager, who sells her handmade baskets.

Author Tony Stauton of Lake Linden sells his own books and those of friends. "I come here because you get more tourists," he says of the Tori. "You see more new faces."

* Click here for income guidelines. You may also receive coupons if you are a participant in the MDCH Wisewoman program.
UPDATE: Click here for directions to the Houghton County MSU Extension office. Click here to find the MSU Extension offices in other Michigan counties.
** Click here for more information about Senior Project Fresh/Market Fresh 2012.

MSU Extension to offer fruit tree pruning workshop Apr. 28 in Central

HANCOCK -- A fruit tree pruning workshop will be held from 10 a.m. to noon on Saturday, Apr. 28, at Central Location (four miles north of Phoenix on the west side of Highway 41) in Keweenaw County.

The presenter is Mike Schira, Extension Educator in the Houghton-Keweenaw County Michigan State University Extension Office. The public is invited to bring pruning implements if they have them, although these are not required. It will be both a demonstration and a hands-on workshop. The cost is $10 per person.

Pre-registration is necessary. Please call the MSU Extension Office at 482-5830 or email:
msue31@msu.edu.