Cook County Extension News
April 2024
Greetings!
If you are wondering about the ongoing spruce budworm outbreak in our area and what may be in store for this summer, I encourage you to sign up and attend the spruce budworm workshop coming up this month. Read below for details on how to register.
This time of year many people are starting seeds indoors for their gardens and planning for the growing season. If you have gardening questions, I encourage you to utilize the Ask-a-Master Gardener service provided by our local Master Gardener Volunteers. Details on this and their newest recommendations for vegetable varieties for our region are below.
If you have an idea for a workshop or educational topic you'd like Extension to bring to our community, please reach out anytime!
Hope to see you soon,
Sarah
Local Cook County Extension Happenings
Northern Gardening Radio Show: Container Gardening
Listen on air on WTIP Thursday April 11th, 7-8 pm, Saturday April 13th 6-7 am, or online at WTIP.org anytime.
When you don’t have much topsoil to work with, or have limited space for gardening, container gardening can be a great option! Listen in as local Master Gardener Volunteers discuss the benefits and challenges of container gardening in Cook County. In addition, learn about the variety trials Master Gardeners are conducting this year to find out what varieties of peas, tomatoes, winter squash, and flowers grow well in containers in our area.
Spruce Budworm in Minnesota's Forests: 2024 Update
April 15th, 11-12:30 pm
Location: Cook County Higher Education building and on Zoom
Cost: Free
Registration is required, register online
Join us to learn about the identification, biology, and management of budworm in the forests of northeast Minnesota. Find out the latest information on the current spruce budworm outbreak and its impacts on our public and private forest lands into 2024 and beyond. Learn about local programs and resources that are available during spruce budworm management, such as tree planting and fencing programs. This workshop will be hosted by UMN Extension Educators with partners from the US Forest Service and the North Shore Forest Collaborative.
Cook County Earth Day Fair
Saturday April 20th
11 am-3:30 pm, at the ISD 166 School Building
Extension will be present at this great community event! Visit booths with local volunteers from the Master Naturalist and Master Gardener programs, and hear a talk given by your local Extension Educator, Sarah, on Food and Farming in Cook County: Exploring the Past, Present, and Future of Local Food. The talk will take place from 11:55-12:25 and is part of a day long series of talks for Earth Day.
Save the date: Tree Planting and Care for Beginners
May 14th, 1-3 pm, Free
At Sugarloaf Cove Nature Center in Schroeder
Register at: z.umn.edu/treeplanting2024
As the saying goes, “The best time to plant a tree is 20 years ago. The second-best time is now.” Planting trees on your land is a great idea for many reasons, but if you haven’t done it before it can be a daunting task! In this workshop we’ll cover the basics of sourcing trees, site selection, tree choices, and best practices for planting and caring for trees. If you want to plant a few trees in your yard, or hundreds in your woodland, you’ll gain tips and tricks to help you succeed. This workshop is co-hosted by Sugarloaf Cove Nature Center, Cook County UMN Extension, and Cook County Soil and Water Conservation District.
Master Gardeners' Corner
Time to think about starting seeds!
The Cook County Extension office has a Community Seed Library open to anyone to access to take or share seeds for gardening. The Seed Library is open during office hours Tuesday-Friday 8 am-4 pm, but if you can't make it during those hours just give us a call and we can make arrangements to get you some seeds. The Seed Library accepts seed donations year round. Seeds available include vegetables, herbs and flowers.
Recommended Vegetable Varieties for Cook County
Master Gardeners have reviewed and updated the Recommended Vegetable Varieties for Cook County booklet and put it in an online format. Take a look and use the booklet to guide you towards new vegetables to try in your garden this summer: Vegetable Varieties for Cook County
Ask a Master Gardener
Do you have a gardening question? Reach out anytime and one of our local volunteers will be happy to provide advice! You can reach us through our handy online question form, or by calling the Extension office at 218-387-3015.
Naturalist Book Club: No One is Too Small to Make a Difference
Book Discussion, April 18th, 6:30-7:30 pm, Free, Zoom
Register on the Higher Ed webpage
Facilitator: Olya Wright, Nordic Nature Group
No One Is Too Small to Make a Difference by Greta Thunberg
"Greta Thunberg was born in 2003. In August 2018 she started a school strike that became a movement called Fridays For Future, which has inspired school strikes for environmental action in more than 150 countries involving millions of students." "No One Is Too Small to Make A Difference" presents Greta's own words for the first time, compiling her speeches that have resonated across the globe, from the United Nations to Capitol Hill and large-scale street demonstrations. It serves as a call to action for all individuals, regardless of their perspectives or beliefs, urging us to awaken and contribute to the protection of our shared environment.
Join us for the last book club meeting of the season of this nature-focused book group hosted by the North Shore Chapter of MN Master Naturalist Volunteers.
Online Programs with Extension
Climate Change Impacts on Wildlife and Habitat Webinar Series
Register online: z.umn.edu/WildlifeClimateSeries2024
Learn about the impacts of climate change on various Minnesota wildlife species and what you can do to promote habitat for wildlife on land you steward.
Three Wednesday webinars in partnership with MN DNR, each webinar takes place from noon-1 pm:
Rusty's Cooking Club
This fun club is for preschool-aged children and their parents, grandparents, caregivers or others who spend time with them.
As a member of the club, you will receive a monthly recipe packet for you and your child to create special memories in the kitchen. You’ll have fun learning and talking about food and cooking. An added bonus is your child will be more willing to eat food that they help make!
The club is free to join and participate in. Each month features a new recipe, videos, ideas for activities to do with your child related to the recipe, and more.
Head to z.umn.edu/joinrusty to sign up!
Fridays with a Forester
Join Extension foresters to discuss some of the key issues and questions around forest and woodlands facing Minnesota land stewards. These online sessions will be very informal, open to the public and free of charge. Each session will start with a brief presentation followed by a discussion framed around participant questions on the topic.
All webinars will be from 9 to 10 a.m. Recordings from all webinars in the series will be made available on our Fridays with a Forester YouTube playlist.
April dates and topics:
Food Safety Foundations Webinar Series
Join food safety and food preservation experts from the University of Minnesota Extension throughout the year to learn how to safely handle and prepare food. Whether you are a grower, operate a food business, or preserve foods for your own use, these webinars are for you.
May 14th, 12-1 pm OR May 17th 5:30-6:30 pm- Preserves: Jams, Jellies, and Spreads
Invasive of the Month: Spiny Waterflea
Thanks to Amanda Weberg, the Cook County Aquatic Invasive Species Coordinator for this great factsheet on Spiny Waterflea. If you are interested in volunteering to help with monitoring water bodies for spiny waterflea, contact Amanda at amand.weberg@co.cook.mn.us.
© 2023 Regents of the University of Minnesota. All rights reserved. The University of Minnesota is an equal opportunity educator and employer.