Country Acres Saturday, November 18, 2023
Focusing on Today’s Rural Environment
Volume 10, Edition 17
Trim the
boughs, deck the halls
BY TIFFANY KLAPHAKE STAFF WRITER
GLENWOOD— Rows upon rows of green trees fill what will become a snow-covered yard, while gifts and seasonal decor fill the shop at Evergreen Park: A Christmas Tree Co. Phil Stumpf and his wife, Catherine, have owned and operated the tree farm near Glenwood since 2009. “We feel we sell the experience and memories, and the tree comes with,” Stumpf said. “Evergreen Park Tree Farm in our world is much more than a place to buy a Christmas tree.” Stumpf said one of the favorite styles of trees they offer is Victorian-style Christmas trees. These trees have not been sheared. No two Victo-
Evergreen Park offers trees, decor
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rian-style trees are alike, just like if they had been cut down in the woods. “No tree is perfect; these trees have personality,” Stumpf said. “What I might consider a Charlie Brown tree, another person will think that is the perfect tree.” Evergreen Park has multiple games, photo opportunities, hayrides, homemade cookies, hot apple cider and “Bucky” the resident squirrel. Bucky is a stuffed animal squirrel that has become the unofficial mascot of Evergreen Park, and as families are getting their tree shaken and bundled to take home, Bucky likes to appear and give children the opportunity to catch him in a pail. “Bucky the squirrel is a fan favorite,” Stumpf said. Stumpf’s tree farm is small compared to most, they have about 2,000 trees on site, but he would not have it any other way. This way he can focus on making meaningful memories for the families who
This month in the
COUNTRY: Watch for the next edition of Country Acres on December 16, 2023
stop by and stay true to who he is. “Every child leaves here with a small treat that has a PHOTO BY TIFFANY Christmas message on it KLAPHAKE about the reason for the Phil and Kathy Stumpf season,” Stumpf said. stand near the farm “Jesus is the reason for sign Sept. 28 at their tree the season.” farm near Glenwood. Stumpf’s wife, The Stumpfs opened Catherine, and daughter, Evergreen Park: A Megan, help with tasks Christmas Tree Co. and are in charge of the in 2009. gift shop. They take care of ordering the products and arranging the items throughout the gift shop. Catherine also between the Christmas trees makes over 3,000 homemade and porch pots, they touch cookies each year for all the over 500 families. guests. According to Stumpf, it “She starts in September takes seven to nine years to by making the cookie dough grow an average 8-foot tree. and freezing it,” Stumpf said. Meanwhile, for 14-foot trees, “Then she bakes them fresh it will take 12 to 15 years. The once we open. She makes first-generation tree farm ofmany different kinds.” fers balsam fir, Fraser fir, black Besides cut-your-own and hills spruce, blue spruce and pre-cut Christmas trees and scotch pine. items from the gift shop, Evergreen Park also offers wreaths Stumpfs page 2 and porch pots. Stumpf said,
5
Thanksgiving through FaceTime Tiffany Klaphake column
6
Raising turkeys Swanville
11 Conservation in the classroom Long Prairie
17 Using Jack pine cones Nancy Packard Leasman column
15 Reusing the old, making it new Nelson
20 Country cooking Long Prairie 21 The art of charcuterie Sartell
Page 2 • Country Acres | Saturday, November 18, 2023
Country Acres Published by Star Publications Copyright 2023 522 Sinclair Lewis Ave. Sauk Centre, MN 56378 Phone: 320-352-6577 Fax: 320-352-5647 NEWS STAFF Sarah Colburn, Editor sarah.c@star-pub.com Tiffany Klaphake, Assistant Editor tiffany.k@dairystar.com Jan Lefebvre, Writer jan.l@star-pub.com Herman Lensing, Writer herman@melrosebeacon.com Carol Moorman, Writer carol@melrosebeacon.com Natasha Barber, Writer natasha@saukherald.com Ben Sonnek, Writer ben.s@saukherald.com Hans Lammeman, Writer hans.l@star-pubs.com Alex Middendorf, Contributing Writer
Stumpfs from front “At the end of the day, the firs are the most popular because of the long needle retention and great aroma,” Stumpf said. “Spruce trees are good for pet owners. A cat will only climb up a spruce tree
Story ideas send to: sarah.c@star-pub.com SALES STAFF Robin Brunette, 320-293-5911 robin@saukherald.com Missy Traeger, 320-291-9899 missy@saukherald.com Tim Vos, 320-845-2700 tim@albanyenterprise.com Mike Schafer, 320-894-7825 mike.s@dairystar.com Neil Maidl, 320-292-4454 neil.m@star-pub.com Jaime Ostendorf, 320-309-1988 jaime@star-pub.com Bob Leukam, 320-260-1248 bob.l@star-pub.com
one time because the needles are too prickly.” The Stumpfs are firm believers in giving back to their community. Every year, the tree farm makes a donation to Pope County Families in Need, Pope County Humane Society and the local food shelf. Back at the tree farm, Stumpf makes sure no one goes home without a tree, even if they cannot afford one. “We have a couple of generous donors who provide funds for families in need,” Stumpf said. “So many tears have been shared here; it is the best feeling to help those in need.” Another way the Stumps and Evergreen Park give back to the community is the firework display on the evening of Dec. 25.
SUBMITTED PHOTO Brian and Kristi Gruber stand with their child ren — Michael, Matthew, Mitchell, Mark, Marshall and Myle s — around their fresh Christmas tree at Evergreen Park near Glen wood. The Grubers have been regular customers of Evergreen Park for years.
“I am a licensed pyrotechnic,” Stumpf said. “The local church offers hot apple cider and hayrides. We have gotten up to 800 people for the show.” The Stumpf house, which is right next to the tree farm is also full of Christmas spirit. Every year the family uses 40,000 to 50,000 lights to decorate the exterior of their house. “We turn the lights on the eve of Thanksgiving, and we have a steady stream of cars rolling through,” Stumpf said. Stumpf said he has always loved Christmas. When he was growing up, he was the one who would pick out the family Christmas tree. He was active in FFA during high school, participating in forestry class-
es and contests. “The skill set I learned in FFA I am using now with the tree farm,” Stumpf said. A few years after the Stumpfs built their house in rural Glenwood, 14-acres across the road came up for sale. “A neighbor actually said, ‘Hey Phil, you like Christmas trees. Why don’t you start a Christmas tree farm,’” Stumpf said. “So, I did.” The Stumpfs planted their first trees in 2000 and opened to the public for the first time in 2009. Up until 2020, Evergreen Park had a temporary structure that served as a checkout and gift shop. In 2020, they built a permanent
Stumpfs page 3
PRODUCTION STAFF Amanda Thooft Nancy Powell Maddy Peterson Cheyenne Carlson Karen Knoblach Annika Gunderson Nadiia Zalitach
Deadlines: Country Acres will be published the first Fridays of April, May, June, September, October and November, and the third Friday of every month. Deadline for news and advertising is the Thursday before publication. ISSN: Print 2834-6440 Online 2834-6459
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SUBMITTED PHOTO
(Above) Luke Fremling carries a Christmas tree for his family at Evergreen Park near Glenwood. The business offers a wide variety of Christmas trees for any room size. PHOTO BY TIFFANY KLAPHAKE
(Left) Christmas trees stand tall Sept. 28 at Evergreen Park near Glenwood. Trees from 4 feet to 14 feet can be purchased at Evergreen Park.
Saturday, November 18, 2023 | Country Acres • Page 3 SUBMITTED PHOTOS
The light on the red barn glistens in the snow at Evergreen Park near Glenwood. The barn was built in 2020.
Stumpfs from page 2
red barn with space for precut Christmas trees and a gift shop. The gift shop opens the first weekend in November, and the tree lot opens the weekend before Thanksgiving. “The two busiest weekends of the year for us are the weekend of Thanksgiving — that Friday, Saturday and Sunday — and the first week in December,” Stumpf said.
“The first Sunday in December, Santa comes to visit.” During their busy season, the Stumpfs hire four to six local teenagers to help. There will be one or two in the gift shop and three others assisting Stumpf in the yard. A favorite part of having
the tree farm, Stumpf said, is being able to provide meaningful moments for local families. “It’s not about the money; it’s about making memories,” Stumpf said. “We are seeing second generations (of families) coming back now.”
Tree care: Phil Stumpf, owner of Evergreen Park: A Christmas Tree Co. advises everyone to cut the bottom 2 inches off the tree right before it is placed in a tree stand filled with cold water. Also, for optimal lifespan, keep the tree away from direct heat or sunlight.
A Victorian-style Christmas tree is deco traditional Christmas Trees, trees in this rated and lit. Unlike style have not been sheared and have longer branches.
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Page 4 • Country Acres | Saturday, November 18, 2023
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Page 6 • Country Acres | Saturday, November 18, 2023
turkeys SUBMITTED PHOTOS
BY EMILY BRETH STAFF WRITER
SWANVILLE— Samantha Cofell said she wakes every morning ready and enthusiastic to continue the family tradition of raising turkeys for everyone to enjoy. “I do love the sense of it being family oriented,” Cofell said. “Now we are fortunate enough to be raising our children in it.” Cofell and her husband, Jon Paul Cofell, do their chores every day on their Samantha and Jon Paul Cofell gather with their children, Lawrence and Lillian, on their farm near Swanville. The Cofells raise turkeys with Samantha’s parents, John and Lynette Gessell.
farm near Swanville. Their children, Lawrence and Lillian, help when they don’t have school work to complete. Cofell’s parents, John and Lynette Gessell, also help out on the farm, continuing their part within the family tradition. The Cofells and Gessels operate under a partnership called Badger Creek Farms. Until 2020, Cofell used to work full time as a nurse as well, but she decided to focus even more on the family farm. “I need to be at home,” Cofell said. “It felt like the right time.” The decision has allowed Cofell more time with her kids, just like her father had with her. Cofell remembers being a young girl when her father would take her along to the turkey barns in the morning before she could go to
school. Now with six barns total — four on one site and two on another — Cofell and her family raise around 470,000 turkeys within a year. The tradition of farming goes all the way back to her great-grandpa and great-grandma, who passed on their work ethic to the next generations. “It’s our responsibility to make sure (the turkeys) are taken care of every day,” Cofell said. “It teaches that sense of responsibility.” A lot of that responsibility comes within the first few days of the process, which is also one of the busiest times for the family. “We hand feed the turkeys
Cofells/Gessells page 7
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A group of turkeys wanders in a finishing barn on the Cofell farm near Swanville. The poults stay at the farm until they are around 13 1/2 pounds.
Saturday, November 18, 2023 | Country Acres • Page 9
Cofells/Gessells from page 7 to enjoy over the holidays or at any time throughout the year. The Cofell family makes a point to celebrate the holidays themselves, enjoying a wonderful meal. “We always celebrate Thanksgiving with our (extended) family,” Cofell said. “We always make the turkey.”
Raising healthy turkeys is a top priority for turkey farmers across the state of Minnesota. To help ensure these healthy flocks, biosecurity is paramount. Since the winter of 2022, turkey growers in Minnesota have faced an outbreak of highly pathogenic avian influenza which was last seen in 2015. The disease is a global one and is spread through the droppings and nasal discharge of infected birds. Contaminated dirt can be brought in on clothing, shoes, equipment and vehicles. Waterfowl are also reservoirs of the disease. Ashley Kohls, the executive director of the Minnesota Turkey Growers Association, said the virus was first detected in February 2022. From there came a lull in the summer of 2022 before a resurgence was seen in the fall of 2022. From December 2022 through this summer, there were no cases of HPAI until it was detected this fall. HPAI does not pose a food safety risk or a human health risk, Kohls said. She said it is also not anticipated that there will be any shortage of turkey over the holiday season. HPAI is a virus that can be carried by migratory birds, so spring and fall pose a greater risk to turkey farms. Biosecurity is a protection against HPAI for farmers and their turkeys. Some biosecurity measures include changing clothes and wearing personal protective equipment in barns. “You want to make sure you don’t bring anything in, and it is also important that you don’t want to bring anything out,” Kohls said. Training employees, keeping barns in good repair and even installing bird deterrents on the roofs of barns are also biosecurity measures. “Commercial turkey growers focus on biosecurity yearround,” Kohls said. “They want to make sure that they protect the health and welfare of their birds.” HPAI is a serious disease for turkeys. If a barn of turkeys is infected, the turkeys are destroyed, and the barn is sanitized and quarantined before being tested for the disease before being used again. Kohls said turkey farmers are prepared. “Turkey growers are resilient people,” Kohls said. “They’re constantly evolving to ensure that they can better protect and take care of their turkeys.”
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Turkeys stand in one of the finishing barns on the Cofell family farm located near Swanville. Each year, the Cofell farm raises around 470,000 turkeys.
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average, the turkeys are 13 1/2 pounds when they leave the farm. “Our end goal is to raise a good product and to have a beautiful bird for someone to enjoy, especially with Thanksgiving coming up,” Cofell said. The biggest reward Cofell receives throughout the year, she said, is knowing she is providing other families with a delicious turkey, which is raised happy and healthy,
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Saturday, November 18, 2023 | Country Acres • Page 11
Conservation in the classroom
Middendorf named Todd County SWCD Teacher of the Year BY TIFFANY KLAPHAKE STAFF WRITER
PHOTO BY TIFFANY KLAPHAKE
Samantha Middendorf, a full-time teacher, feeds a calf Nov. 9 at her family’s dairy farm near Long Prairie. Middendorf feeds the calves every morning and evening around her teaching schedule.
Every other year, Middendorf coordinates a field trip to the dairy farm of school volunteer Char Blommel and her husband, Allen. “Char takes us on a tour of their farm, gives us hayrides, lets the kids feed calves and shows what cows eat,” Middendorf said. “It is fun giving the kids those experiences that they might not get anywhere else.” Middendorf was nominated by her school’s principal,
Cindy Iten, and dean of students, Sarah Becker. When nominating Middendorf, Iten noted how many of Middendorf’s lessons are hands-on. In the off year when the kids do not get to visit a working dairy farm, Middendorf brings them around to area businesses in the town of Browerville. The students visit places such as the meat market, post office and the bank to teach them about business and get them out in the community.
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“I have always loved working with kids and getting to see them learn and play,” Middendorf said. “Seeing them get so excited about the littlest things and hearing them take it home to their parents is good, too.” Middendorf has always wanted to be a teacher. She grew up on a dairy farm and on top of holding a fulltime job at the school, she lives on a dairy farm with her husband, Nathan, and two young
children, Logan and Noah. The Middendorfs milk 63 cows and farm 260 acres west of Long Prairie. Middendorf gets up at 6 a.m. every morning with her two boys to feed the calves before going to school, and they feed calves again together when she gets home in the afternoon. The young couple both grew up on dairy farms and wanted to raise a family of their
SUBMITTED PHOTO
Students plant flowers in the tower garden as part of Samantha Middendorf’s class at Christ the King Catholic School in Browerville. Middendorf teaches kindergarten and first grade at the school.
Middendorf page 12
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LONG PRAIRIE— Samantha Middendorf not only brings nature to the pre-kindergarten and kindergarteners in her classroom, she brings the kids to nature. “Being in a small town, children probably are going to get some interaction with nature,” Middendorf said. “But, giving them a deeper understanding and showing how things all work together is important.” Middendorf, who teaches at Christ the King Catholic School in Browerville, was named this year’s Todd County Soil and Water Conservation District’s Teacher of the Year. Her lessons include topics such as erosion and weather patterns, and how animals interact with the environment. She also teaches about how plants grow by utilizing an aquaponics tower garden. “Last spring, we planted flowers in the tower garden with the kids,” Middendorf said. “Then, we let the kids take them home at the end of year for Mother’s Day.”
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Page 12 • Country Acres | Saturday, November 18, 2023
Middendorf from page 11
SUBMITTED PHOTO
Samantha Middendorf picks a flower from the tower garden as two students watch at Christ the King Catholic School in Browerville. Middendorf uses her knowledge of farming and land stewardship to create lesson plans.
own on a farm, passing on that same level of faith and appreciation for the land. “The farm is the best place to raise a family,” Middendorf said. “It is just fun to see the boys interact with everything. It is hard work, but it pays off with the lifestyle and knowing we are good stewards of the land.” Being good caretakers of their land is a priority for the Middendorfs. They utilize cover crops, manure management and annual soil sampling, and they have made modifications to their equipment to incorporate no-till practices, all to maintain and improve soil health. Nathan works with the county SWCD each time he makes upgrades to the farm. “Nate has done a few projects with the county SWCD like when we built our heifer shed and redid our manure
PHOTO BY TIFFANY KLAPHAKE
The Middendorf family — Nathan holding Noah and Samantha holding Logan — smile Nov. 9 at their farm near Long Prairie. Samantha Middendorf was named the 2023 Todd County SWCD Teacher of the Year.
pit to make sure we met all the water standards,” Middendorf said. Leading by example and utilizing conservation practices with her husband on their own farm, Middendorf said, further inspires her to
encourage students to be aware of the environment and ask questions about it. “Kids learn by getting hands-on experience,” Middendorf said. “It is fun seeing them interact with nature. Just
getting them talking about how we interact with things in our environment makes them more aware.”
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Page 16 • Country Acres | Saturday, November 18, 2023
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Kohnhorst from page 15 Northland Woolens receives, in bundles, wool sweaters from recycling centers. Kohnhorst and her team wash the sweaters and
then set them on racks to dry. Once they are fully dried, they are cut into various pieces for making mittens or hats and sorted by color.
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Along with getting sweaters from recycling centers, Kohnhorst found a sweater company to help expedite the process and get a direct source for more sweater material. “I found a sweater company that would be willing to use our yarn and, instead of making sweaters, will make sheets of sweater material for me because I will cut them all up anyway,” Kohnhorst said. Business is booming for Northland Woolens, so Kohnhorst has to regulate orders to keep up. “Now every mitten that is made is sold already,” Kohnhorst said. “Spring and summer are our busy times. Products being made now are for next season.” Besides selling custom mittens to farms, the Kohnhorsts also sells mittens and the other lines of products
Kohnhorst page 18
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Saturday, November 18, 2023 | Country Acres • Page 17
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In the three years that pine branches and stuffed I’ve tended the woodlot, I them in my pocket. think I’ve been over most When I started making of it. Yet, I was surprised Twiggers, I usually used to visit the area just west sections of small sticks of Silas’ garden to find for the bodies, but when I several Jack pine trees discovered the body-like down. One had a trunk cones of the Jack pines, I diameter of 8 inches; the began using them instead. others were smaller. The They have a natural curvaneedles were brown, the ture simulating the curve Working out – trunks on their way to rot. of a humanoid spine. These outdoors, that is Conifers on our land cones are easy to find, but by Nancy Packard have all been planted I’ve always felt a little Leasman sometime in the last 43 guilty taking them from years. There were none when we a living tree. However, here was an moved here. excellent supply, easily within reach. The fallen trees were smaller than To create a Twigger, I add twig the large ones surrounding them. It’s arms and legs, pine-cone-scale feet possible they had been shaded out. and an acorn head to the pine cone Or maybe it was just life and death body, and, voila, the natural materials progression. The woodland is a living have morphed into a little person! The organism, seasonally sprouting seedaddition of flower petals, seeds, hulls, lings, growing, aging, dying. scales and other dried plant materials I may have thought, when I started individualize each Twigger. cleaning up the woods in the fall of Twiggers have spread all over 2020, that I would finish the job at this area although they are fragile some point, but I now know better. and prone to needing reconstructive Trees of all ages die, dead branches surgery. One dog-walker Twigger and fall from living trees, and the evher two doggie companions were decer-present buckthorns continue to imated by a curious cat. They required sprout. intensive repair. New snow covered the ground I invested in glass Ball jars to when I found the dead pines. I tramhouse and protect some of the Twigpled a clean path from the trees to gers. In some ways, that doubles the the brush pile as I cut and stacked. fragility, so I started painting waterBuckthorns had come up among the colors of the Twiggers. branches of the fallen trees, so I pulled You might wonder why. Artists many of these small shrubs, still sport- don’t always have a why. They just ing green leaves, and tossed them on do and see what happens — just like the pile. I also pulled the gray, gnarly, cleaning up a woods. The woodlot immature cones from some of the Jack tender, and the artist, do what they do.
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(Left) Watercolor “portrait” of Cone. (Right) Embellishments of burdock burrs, pine cone scales, hollyhock seeds and a broom of a Stella D’oro seed pod with pine needle bristles complete this Twigger named Cone.
Saturday, November 18, 2023 | Country Acres • Page 21
The art of
charcuterie Tips for creating festive, though simple, boards SUBMITTED PHOTOS
(Left) This brunch board for a birthday party at an indoor playground was created by Capri Loegering of Trendi Trays. Loegering creates themed boards including brunch boards, traditional charcuterie boards and dessert boards.
BY SARAH COLBURN | STAFF WRITER
SARTELL — Capri Loegering loved hosting friends and family at her home, but as a busy mom, she hated the preparation and cleanup of drawn-out meals. So instead, she started creating charcuterie boards. “I love the socializing piece of it,” Loegering said. “People sit on top of the boards and pick off them and grab, and there’s no clean up.” She liked the ease of preparation so much that she started taking them on the go, packing long, flat plasticware with charcuterie supplies, bringing them to her kids’ sporting events and activities to feed her family picnic-style or while shuttling back and forth in the car. Now, Loegering has turned her love for simplicity into a business. She makes and sells custom boards and teaches people how to make the boards themselves through her Trendi Trays business. For the holidays, she’s sharing some of her go-to tips and tricks for keeping the process easy. She begins by gathering fresh supplies from a variety of places but always starts with local farmers. She hits up farmers markets for her cucumbers,
peppers, tomatoes, pickles, strawberries, honey and sourdough bread. She works with local meat lockers to process deer to be made into venison sticks and, when she purchases a cow, she has a portion made into beef summer sausage for her trays. “Food is medicine, and buying things where you know where they come from is the number one thing,” she said. Loegering crafts not only traditional charcuterie boards of meats, cheeses and olives, but she also creates breakfast boards and dessert boards, depending on the occasion. Her customers often secure boards for anniversary parties, bridal and baby showers, birthday parties, bachelorette parties,
Loegering page 22
(Above) This charcuterie board made by Capri Loegering feeds more than 10 people and features not only meat and cheese, but fruits, chocolate and pickles. Loegering designs boards of all varieties.
Capri Loegering created this charcuterie board for a client who wanted to share a snack with co-workers after a relaxation day. This tray feeds at least eight.
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Saturday, November 18, 2023 | Country Acres • Page 23
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SUBMITTED PHOTOS
Capri Loegering teaches community education and in-home classes on how to build a charcuterie board. Her classes last about 90 minutes, and each participant goes home with a board.
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A tray of supplies is ready for a student in one of Capri Loegering’s charcuterie classes. People can take Loegering’s classes through local community education programs.
she said, have a way of bringing people together. It takes Loegering about 90 minutes to prepare a board, and she makes them two hours prior to an event to ensure everything is fresh. Her class instruc-
tion runs about the same length of time. She said anyone can create a charcuterie board. “You don’t have to be artsy or creative,” Loegering said. “It all just comes together because it’s a beautiful mess.”
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flair, she often cuts out summer sausage into star shapes using a cookie cutter. Loegering taught the art of charcuterie to herself by looking on Pinterest for meat art examples. She learned how to cut the cheeses and place the variety of goods. Growing up, her grandparents ran a catering business, and all through college and graduate school, she worked as a bartender and server and loved being around people. The charcuterie boards,
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