Planting for the Future
In the next 3-5 years, we aspire to expand our current summer internship program into RuralYear, a 9-month program on the Island that educates young adults in sustainable agriculture through classroom education and apprenticeships at Gathering Ground as well as local farms and farm-to-table kitchens. We imagine opportunities for participants to acquire hands-on experience in … Continue reading Looking to Grow: RuralYear
Chestnuts are called the Bread Tree as the nuts are similar to grain nutritionally. They can be eaten fresh or milled into a flour. Chestnuts were once a staple throughout much of the eastern United states, both for humans and wildlife, and today, they are a staple in parts of Europe and Asia. Chestnut trees can … Continue reading Why are we planting chestnuts?
This article first appeared in the Washington Island Observer. By Sheridan Ash, Gathering Ground intern. 2019 marks the second year that Gathering Ground is tending the vineyard on the Island. Because the organization’s mission is to educate youth and adults in sustainable agriculture and to strengthen the health of the environment and community, Gathering Ground … Continue reading Gathering Ground looking at solutions to destructive beetles
First published in the Observer By Russell Rolffs, Gathering Ground executive director Recently I saw a sign at the entrance of a garden that read: “If nothing is eating your plants, your garden is not part of the ecosystem.” The message to gardeners, I think, is to be proud when your plants are preyed upon … Continue reading Planning Ahead for the Rose Chafer
I’m Lucille Theodora Little, sophomore UW-Milwaukee student in Environmental Science and Geography. I am an avid fan of nature, data science, and cheese. There are many things I’m looking to learn in the future--language, cheesemaking, beekeeping, gardening, programming, painting, mapmaking, biology, ecology, cultural geography, and more. Certainly, this is quite a few things, and … Continue reading Meet our Intern Lucy!
My name is Nathan and I am one of the Gathering Ground interns staying on Washington Island for six weeks this summer. I am a senior studying biology with a minor in sustainability management and entrepreneurship at the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh. I have always loved gardening since I was little and when I heard … Continue reading Meet our 2018 Intern Nathan
This article was originally published in the Washington Island Observer Gathering Ground, a nonprofit dedicated to the education, celebration and practice of regenerative agriculture, is now in its second year on Washington Island. The season got off to a late start; with the April blizzard, GatheringGround had to postpone the Earth Day pruning and planting party until … Continue reading Gathering Ground kicks off a new season with Earth Day work parties; farmers markets, potlucks and more coming
This article was originally published in the Washington Island Observer By Jessica Dennis The beginning of May was a busy time for our fifth grade students! We took a field trip to Gathering Ground where Russell and Alessandra Rolffs taught the students how to plant apple trees. The students worked together in groups to dig holes, ‘dunk’ apple trees in a fungi solution,and plant appropriately without … Continue reading Planting up a storm at Gathering Ground
By Jessica Dennis This article first appeared in the Washington Island Observer The fifth grade students have been learning extensively about plants lately! We have been learning about the different classifications, ways plants reproduce, and why photosynthesis and cellular respiration are so important. We started a “mini-garden” in our classroom of Cosmo flowers, cherry … Continue reading Fifth grade students starting a mini classroom garden
Since 1889, the the U.S. Department of Agriculture has been publishing farmers’ bulletins to disseminate the latest in agricultural science and research. I was recently reading through the first bulletin and was surprised by its poetic language. In making a case for why the USDA was setting up research stations across the country (still recovering … Continue reading Elevating our thoughts and hopes
