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THURSDAY MAY 31, 2018
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LAND-BASED LEARNING CENTERS: Schools, students and farms working together
Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education grants, carried out by Michigan State University Upper Peninsula Research and Extension Center, fund a variety of agriculture-focused projects, including one at Superior Central Schools in which students are designing a project to test different approaches to improving haying ground that has been overused and undernourished. Loading the seeder, from left, are Beau Rondeau, Will Carlson and Avery Lindgren. (Courtesy photo by Jim Isleib)
This 2018 3D computer rendering of a prospective residential property was done by Groundworks Landscaping, East Hampton, N.Y., in the spring of 2018. It provides a clear picture for homeowners to use for seeing their property's potential. Landscaping and gardening are being made easier via new technology and innovation. (AP photo)
From drones to phones, new tech is making gardening easier
By DEAN FOSDICK Associated Press New technology is easing the way we garden, store equipment, monitor watering and re-shape landscapes. And some of those tasks can be done remotely, using phones or tablets. The innovations extend well beyond downloading a few apps. New to the horticultural mix are 3-D modeling, GPS mapping, laser technology, drones, robotics, devices that can read the weather and moisture in the soil for precision planting and irrigation, and battery-powered and low- or no-emission equipment. “We are seeing an uptick in landscape professionals using advanced technology to plan designs for clients,” said Missy Henriksen, vice president of public affairs for the National Association of Landscape Professionals. “Today, professionals are using drones to survey homeowner properties to get a birds-eye view before and during the design-creation phase,” she said. “Drones can also help landscape companies save valuable operational and manpower time that can be used elsewhere on a project.” Three-D modeling also helps streamline landscape design. It can provide a clear picture for homeowners of their property’s potential, Henriksen said. Upgrades in battery technology have hastened the move toward lighter, easier-to-carry garden tools. “Cordless tools that use storage batteries offer the most flexibility and freedom to move around your yard because you don’t have to worry about cords getting in your way,” Henriksen said. A number of companies build multi-purpose engines that are used to equip a variety of implements ranging from walk-behind and rider mowers to power washers, snowblowers and more. At least two of these companies — Kohler and Briggs and Stratton — have introduced small engines that don’t require oil changes for the life of the engine. Simply check the dipstick and add oil as needed. No more tilting these walk-behind machines on their sides to drain the oil, spilling some around the driveway or onto your clothing in the process. Other innovations have further simplified small engines by eliminating manual chokes and purge bulbs. Just pull the handle once to start. See Garden p. 2D
This February 2013 photo provided by Dean Fosdick shows a hobby greenhouse in Langley, Wash., which was built in a sunny location capable of capturing an immense amount of summertime heat. It was later equipped with a timed irrigation system that automatically turns on early in the morning to water a wide assortment of potted plants. Smart devices are being introduced to make gardening less demanding and more efficient.(AP photo)
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SARE grant offers multigenerational approach to promoting sustainable agriculture in Upper Peninsula By ABBEY PALMER Education Coordinator MSU-Extension MARQUETTE — Upper Peninsula hay is in demand in other parts of the country, as our cool, moist conditions offer an ideal climate for lush grass growth. After years of cutting hay without a sustainable plan for regenerating that ground, hay yields begin to drop and farmers stand to make less money from the same ground. In a classroom at Superior Central, high school students in Tim Bliss’ environmental science class are gathered to learn more about the complicated relationship between the soil, hay and the local economy from farmers. “The life in the soil and a person’s health are similar — they both need proper nutrition and the right amount of exercise,” explains farmer Ben Bartlett. “If you’re tired, you can drink coffee to do the work you need to do. But after the caffeine wears off, you crash. When the soil life is stressed, you can apply synthetic fertilizer to temporarily boost yields — but it’s not a long-term solution. You can’t live on coffee.” He and his wife, Denise, manage Log Cabin Livestock, a longstanding sheep operation just a few miles from the school, where many of the students have seen the couple moving their animals from one grazing location to the next using border collies and ATVs. The Bartletts have been studying the relationship between soil health, economies and climate
Above, a herd of sheep are moved to new pasture at Log Cabin Livestock, Eben Junction. Owners Ben and Denise Bartlett are working with Superior Central students on a project to improve haying ground. (Photo courtesy of Denise Bartlett) Below, Noah Groulx, foreground, measures plots in the field with students, from left, Aurora Fisher, Ethan LaVallie, Josh Kulik, Beau Rondeau and Megan McLaury. (Photo courtesy of Tim Bliss)
change in New Zealand, Australia and South Africa in the context of regenerative agriculture. Regenerative agriculture emphasizes practices that increase the biodiversity of soil life, and research is mounting to support the idea that diverse soil delivers essential ecosystem services. It makes nutrient-dense plants that nourish animals, creates drought-protected soil that can retain water like a sponge, and perhaps most importantly, sequesters carbon to slow climate change.
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The Bartletts use carefully planned grazing on their pastures to improve soil health, but some locations are too remote to move the sheep. In some cases, the hay fields are too remote even for the regular application of manure or fertiliz-
er. So the Bartletts approached students with the question: How can we regenerate this soil in the most practical way - for our farm as a business and for the environment? With their help, students are designing a project to test different approaches to improving haying ground that has been overused and undernourished. This project is one of seven across the U.P. funded by a Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education grant and carried out by Michigan State University Upper Peninsula Research and Extension Center. A team in each intermediate school district of the U.P. got together this spring to identify an on-farm project that is student-driven and place-based. Each team consists of a farm, a secondary education teacher and students, and MSU Extension educators. This project offers students the opportunity to tackle realworld issues in agriculture in a living classroom — a local farm — and also to follow the project through the summer via internships. “This is our first learning opportunity to actually face a problem that a full-size farm is experiencing, rather than on a test plot here at the school. As we got into it See SARE p. 2D
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2D The Mining Journal
Thursday, May 31, 2018
House to Home Mortgage Index 30-YEAR Rate-Fee/Pts.
15-YEAR Rate-Fee/Pt.
High rate
4.750
1
4.250
1
Low rate
4.375
1
3.750
1
Average rate
4.562
1
4.031
1
SARE
from 1D
more and more, we found out that a lot of farms are facing this across the Midwest,” says Bliss, the science teacher whose interest in place-based learning has supported a hoop house that supplies the Superior Central cafeteria with salad greens, an aquaponics lab that grows fish and a woodworking class that builds boats each year. This opportunity to use their environmental science class to learn about farming has students engaged with real-world problems. Superior Central student Josh Kulik explained that though their immediate research is about hay fields, “It’s important to keep soil healthy to keep yields high and have generational farms that can continue from one generation to the next. It doesn’t matter what you’re growing - the soil science applies to our food, too. Even if this is hay for livestock, you can follow that all the way up the food chain to us.” When it comes to experience with soils in the U.P., MSU Extension educator Jim Isleib, another member of the project team, is tough to beat. He has spent his career interpreting soil test results for farmers and gardeners all over the U.P. From teaching students how to set up test plots and the proper way to take soil tests, to offering information about the price of fertilizer and
Garde n
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Consumers want easy, and many of these innovations are boosting purchases, said Michelle Gross, a Briggs & Stratton marketing specialist. “Our own surveys of consumers indicate that ease of maintenance continues to be in the top 10 purchase factors for walk-behind mowers,” Gross said. “And the No. 1 thing people say they would like to improve after
This graphic represents a Tuesday survey of regional lending institutions. Figures are based on rates at Range Bank, First Bank of Upper Michigan, the Marquette Community Federal Credit Union and mBank.
lime, Isleib has been a key resource for students as they designed the project. “It’s giving them a look at basic agricultural research and giving them a glimpse of the challenges that farmers face. They’re getting a look at production agriculture and agricultural science,” Isleib said. One of the aims of the project is to inform students about careers in agriculture — whether that’s as a farmer, researcher, or educator. The next generation of agriculturalists will confront the question of soil health — with their livelihood and a well-nourished populace depending on their abilities to innovate and understand how farming practices affect the land. Getting students interested in careers in science and agriculture may not be easy, but farmer Denise Bartlett decided to engage in this project to simply “Ask the students. They are the ones we need to be talking with about how to accomplish the next generation of agriculture.” EDITOR’S NOTE: This material is based upon work that is supported by the National Institute of Food and Agriculture, U.S. Department of Agriculture, under award number 2017-38640-26916 through the North Central Region SARE program under project number LNC17-394. USDA is an equal opportunity employer and service provider. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the view of the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
owning a lawnmower is the sound level.” Mowers equipped with Briggs & Stratton’s Quiet Power Technology make roughly 50 percent less noise, meaning homeowners can do yard work any time of the day without disturbing neighbors, Gross said. Efficient storage for lawn and garden equipment makes for less garage clutter and creates space for recreational items like kayaks and mountain bikes.
Another new Briggs & Stratton design allows lawnmowers to be folded in half and stored upright without causing fuel or oil leaks. It reduces their footprint by up to 70 percent, Gross said. Scotts, meanwhile, recently introduced a series of devices for precision irrigation. The Environmental Protection Agency estimates traditional irrigation systems waste as much as 50 percent of their water by overwatering.
This photo provided by Fusion Gates shows one of the company's styled baby gates. A new generation of baby-proofing products aim to combine safety with chic. (AP photo)
Beyond the plastic gate: Baby-proofing in style By TRACEE M. HERBAUGH Associated Press It’s a headache known to many new parents: Suddenly, your stylish abode morphs into a menagerie of outlet covers and cabinet locks. While the phrases “babyproofing” and “kid-friendly” rarely conjure up images of elegance or sophistication, recent years have seen a range of more modern and stylish products available to those who want them. Baby-proofing has gone glam, so to speak. Parents can now cover the corners of their furniture with a variety of soft materials, or cordon off stove burners with a slick-looking adhesive guard. There are products for window-blind cords, door pinch protectors, locks for doors and toilet seats, covers for stove knobs, and more. No need any longer to block your stairway with a white plastic fence. A Georgia-based company, Qdos , sells a “crystal hardware mount gate,” a clear
acrylic panel that looks like a window. Qdos also sells outlet covers that can be slid open when you want to plug something in, and an adhesive stove guard that attaches around the front and sides of the four burners. An Illinois company, Fusion Gates , makes baby barriers that resemble stained-glass windows. They come with a satin nickel, white pearl or black finish. For table corners, the online retailer Ellas Homes makes clear orb-shaped covers. The products are made of adhesive plastic but look like gel. If you can’t find what you’re looking for locally, there’s always the Internet, says Philadelphia mother Danielle Cormier-Smith. “I live in an older home and we have narrow stairwells that need smaller gates,” she said. Stylish, inconspicuous baby-proofing was a priority for Rebecca Stanton, a New York City mom. “We sprang for a wooden safety gate and playpen that
looked nicer and wasn’t a giant hunk of plastic,” Stanton says. “We got magnetic, childproof cabinet locks that are invisible from the outside.” Such baby-proofing accessories are a boon to retailers. A 2016 report by market analysts Sandler Research said many parents are hiring child safety specialists to outfit their homes. Jeff Baril, who owns Safe Beginnings, Inc., a Billerica, Massachusetts-based baby-proofing and child safety business, warns against putting too much emphasis on chic. “Style and sophistication have improved, but stylish is not always safest,” he says. “Parents should evaluate for safety, which should always come first.”
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The Mining Journal 3D
Thursday, May 31, 2018
Real Estate Classifieds
Open Houses
4D The Mining Journal
Thursday, May 31, 2018
Northern
Michigan
Land Brokers
18489 M35, Little Lake
75 Acres and a camp surrounded by State land.
$117,000 MLS#: 1105422 BRIAN OLSON
2172 Werner Street, Marquette Updated 4 bedroom 2 bath home in a convenient Marquette Township location.
$179,900 MLS#: 1107578 NATHAN BRABON
344 Shot Point Drive, Marquette
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E4047 Cold Spring Road, Chatham
6343 F Road, Bark River
Eighty acres of rich, beautiful land with a pond, Black Creek, old farmhouse, old barn – perfect for a hobby farm or camp.
Upper Peninsula log home with 6000 sq. ft. of living space on three acres with additional acreage available.
$499,000 MLS#: 1106010 ROB SULLIVAN
$120,000 MLS#: 1108096 SUE FELDHAUSER
30 Acres, Diffin Road, Trenary
908 Blackbird Lane, Republic
30 acres of hunting land with year round county road access and power in Alger County.
Superb lake front cottage in Marquette County with 74 acres on Sundog Lake.
$39,000 MLS#: 1106795 ROB SULLIVAN
$239,900 MLS#: 1084633 BOB SULLIVAN
116 Riverdale, Harvey
380 Hemlock Street, Republic
Building lot on Lake Superior with year round access with 1.5 acres on Shot Point.
Stunning turn-key home in Chocolay Township with a pool!
Three bedroom home in South Republic with many updates. Investment rental.
E195 Sand Lake Road, Deerton
160 Acres off Keranen Road, Erwin Township (Ironwood)
23 Acres, County Road KCB, Big Bay
$130,000 MLS#: 1104094 SUE FELDHAUSER
$33,500 MLS#: 1107617 BOB SULLIVAN
$125,000 MLS#: 1105779 ROB SULLIVAN
Great waterfront camp on 500 feet of frontage on Sand lake and seven acres.
$179,900 MLS#: 1106362 BOB SULLIVAN
935 Patriot Street, Ishpeming Two bedroom two bath attached home featuring an open concept main floor layout.
$64,900 MLS#: 1106652 NATHAN BRABON
Lotto Lake Oriole Lane, Republic Rustic log cabin camp on a fabulous parcel of lake frontage.
$199,900 MLS#: 1096534 BOB SULLIVAN
Love the Land!
Bob Sullivan
Associate Broker/ Owner Cell: 906-361-4212
$328,000 MLS#: 1108143 BRIAN OLSON
Rustic camp located in Erwin Township on 160 acres of prime forest land surrounded on three sides by thousands of acres of corporate and County land.
TBD Silver Creek Road, Marquette
Beautiful 2.5 acre waterfront building site with nearly 450 ft of frontage on Silver Creek.
$70,000 MLS#: 1106565 BOB SULLIVAN/NATHAN BRABON
$53,000 MLS#: 1104935 NATHAN BRABON
23 acre parcel across the road from Lake Independence near Big Bay on a County Road that is paved with power and maintained year round
$184,900 MLS#: 1102103 BRIAN OLSON
TBD Big Garlic Headwater, Co Road 510, Big Bay
Lot A, D Road, Big Bay
Ten acre parcel with an estimated 400 feet of waterfront on Lake Independence near Big Bay and 200 feet on McKensie Bay.
28 acre building site with land on both sides of CR 510 and year round access.
$99,000 MLS#: 1095619 BOB SULLIVAN
$49,900 MLS#: 1108220 BRIAN OLSON
Rob Sullivan
Associate Broker, Office Manager Cell: 906-362-3337
Brian Olson
Associate Broker Cell: 906-869-6446
307 Lawson, Skandia
Well kept farm home with natural woodwork set like a picture postcard among the rolling hills, lush green fields, towering Maples and hearty apple trees in Skandia.
Nathan Brabon Agent Cell: 906-869-8451
Sue Feldhauser Agent Cell: 906-360-2891
Charles Drury Agent Cell: 906-235-3198
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