While we wait for the snow to melt...

Where has the time gone! It is already mid-March! But somebody forgot to tell Mother Nature – she keeps dumping snow on us like it’s going out of style.

Word to Mother Nature: it is going out of style.

No more snow! We've got work to do!

While we wait for the snow to melt, we are busy making plans! April will be a big month here on the Farm. We’ll be…

·         Hosting the Driftless Forest Network and special guests from the U.S. Forest Service, American Forest Foundation and Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources for a meeting and one of Joel’s infamous “Taste of Wisconsin” dinners.

·         Hosting 100+ students from Cambridge and Walbridge for an Earth Day celebration! We’ll be working with the Aldo Leopold Foundation, WDNR and Madison Audubon Society to provide informative, educational and fun morning for the kids.

·         Hosting the Aldo Leopold Foundation Board for an evening that will include moseying around the Farm on a laid-back tour and another tasty dinner creation by Joel.

·         And finally… hosting two inspecting judges as we are finalists for the Regional Outstanding Tree Farm of the Year award! We are honored and excited and maybe even a little nervous for this! We’ve had such great support in this process and are grateful for all the professionals, friends and family who have helped make the Farm what it is today.

Meanwhile, Arik is anxious to stop plowing snow and get busy in the field. We recently ordered a bunch of walnut whips and Kentucky coffeetrees that will go in the ground sometime next month (a good number will be planted when the students are here), and soon enough garlic mustard and all its invasive friends will be rearing their heads. We plan to work with MidwestPrairies on prescribed burns and are still prepping for our field of Black-eyed susans!

Extra hands will be appreciated for many of these projects, so we’re very excited to be working with the Aldo Leopold Foundation and UW-Madison on setting up summer internship programs for a few students!

That’s it for a quick report from the Farm. What plans are you anxious to get started on this spring?