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Spring Newsletter|
Schumacher Farm Park
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Dear Friends,
The cover photo on this newsletter of a horse-drawn seed planter, operated by Eveline Schumacher,
was taken in 1920. It seemed an appropriate image for this first full week of spring.
Although it's felt like the year got off to a slow start with the late April snowfall, the planning has been going strong and steady here at the farmhouse for months.
The figurative seeds we've been sorting and organizing and making plans for all winter are now ready to be planted.
As an example of one of the new event items this year, the first night walk at Schumacher Farm was held on a cool night in January. We expected about 25 people and received closer to 75 people that night, who came out to admire the full moon and sit by the fire, while sipping hot cocoa and listening to folk stories. If you missed it, please join us for another scheduled night walk, on a much warmer evening in the month of August.
This year continues to be an exciting time to be involved at the farm park. Plans in motion include expanding our programming partnerships with the Village Center of Waunakee and 4-H of Dane County, extending our summer camp session offerings, making visible progress in the north woodland restoration, developing a revised and more accessible website and the opening of the Center for Rural History.
And of course, our traditional annual events and a number of workshops continue to be offered, at popular demand.
Take a glance at our annual calendar for 2018 and no doubt, you will find something to your liking.
I've enjoyed seeing familiar faces back on the farm with the arrival of warmer weather, as if the hibernation fog has been cast off and everyone is again "bright-eyed and bushy-tailed". (An expression I always heard my grandmother say in reference to the grandchildren.) I also look forward to getting to the fun part of all this planning - the actual events! See you on the land soon.
Sincerely,
Amy Jo Dusick, Park Administrator
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Bluegrass Festival
Saturday, June 16 (1-8pm)
Soggy Prairie Boys
Down from the Hills
The Kristy Larson Band
Genesee Ridge
Enjoy music from five bluegrass bands on one large amplified stage. Local food, beer and wine vendors on site.
$20 Admission goes towards farm restoration projects and educational programming. This is a rain or shine event.
We are giving our Bluegrass Festival one more try! As some of you may recall, the music festival was held in May for the past two years. Each time we endured cold and wet weather. This year we will be doing things a bit different. We have moved the event to June 16th in the hopes of more cooperative weather. Due to construction work at the farm, we will also hold the event closer to the house, in the back yard. If weather does become an issue, we are prepared to host the bands inside the old barn. This should help us to keep everything scheduled as planned.
For complete details or updates, please visit our website's Event page. No advanced tickets sales. Tickets sold on day of event only.
As usual, we are looking for several fun spirited and energetic volunteers so please visit our 2018 Volunteer Opportunities page as well!
-Angela Webster, Event Coordinator
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Dreams are coming true at Schumacher Farm Park! Construction on the interior of the Center for Rural History is underway and completion is scheduled this fall. For years, old and new members have been dreaming, planning, and working hard toward this day. Thanks to all our members over the years for making this happen.
The first quarter membership results are in: membership numbers are up 32% compared to last year at this time! Wow and thank YOU for sharing your excitement with your neighbors and friends. We agree that it is so much more rewarding to be a member than to simply drive by and wonder---"What do they do there?"
Did you know... eight of our current members first joined Schumacher in the last Century? And they are still active members! Our membership system only goes back to 1989 - so if you have been a Friend of Schumacher Farm member longer than 29 years, please give us a call. We want to shake your hand in thanks!
And we want to hear your story. Why did you join the Friends of Schumacher? How do you feel when you are here...in the prairie...viewing the heritage garden...at the events? Send your story to Amy Jo's attention here at the Farm for us to share with visitors.
Yes, it is very invigorating to see all the excitement and growth at Schumacher Farm Park - all of which results from members being active, creative, volunteers and sharing the news. Do you have an acquaintance who would like to be our Friend? Invite them to the farm. Pick up a new membership brochure while you are there - and invite them to join you today as an active member of the Friends of Schumacher Farm. Share your excitement!
Not a member yet? You can apply on our website or download a member application. Do it today to begin your member benefits.
-Ray Ropers
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Native pasque flower (
Anemone patens) in bloom on northwest side of Schumacher Prairie.
Photo: AJ Dusick
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Incredibly fuzzy leaves and stems. Cheery, blushing lavender petals and bright yellow centers. Featured right now at Schumacher Prairie with a limited showtime. The plant pictured above is a native perennial plant in the buttercup family called the pasque flower. As a spring ephemeral plant, it is one of the first flowers to bloom in spring, taking advantage of the available sunlight available before the trees leaf out and other flowers appear in early summer, making competition for light and soil nutrients really intense. Scouting for spring ephemerals is a wonderful way to ring in spring, but they will only be around for a short time. Once the tree leaves have unfurled, most of these early risers will already have gone to seed. Please note these plants are sensitive to disturbance and reproduce slowly. For the continued conservation and stewardship of our natural areas, please do not collect these plants. Take photos and allow others to enjoy them as well.
Want to see more ? Check out our
Facebook page album called 'Prairie Feature Photos' for updates throughout the growing season.
Also come on out to this Sunday's
Springtime on the Farm
(April 29th from 1-3 pm) and take a walk through the prairie and woodland.
-Amy Jo Dusick
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Summer camp has been expanded to a full week this year, with many unique activities to engage, entertain and understand our world a little better. Each day focuses on a different aspect of farm life, homesteading skills and conservation of the environment. On the last day, campers will put together and host a barn social for their parents and grandparents.
Thanks to several generous donors this year, we have a limited number of scholarships available to offer for qualified applicants.
If you know a child that enjoys hiking the trails, digging in the soil, making garden-harvested snacks, catching insects, working with simple tools and creating original crafts, then this is the camp for them!
Camp in session: June 25 - 29, 2018 (9 am - 3 pm)
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Dane County Parks News
Parks and Trail Unite Festival
June 2, 10 am - 7 pm
Lake Farm Park & McDaniel Park
Save this date to your calendar. Dane County Parks is teaming up with United Madison to host this one of a kind, FREE community event to encourage unity and celebrate our amazing parks and trails and the community connections that they provide.
Live music, food and beverage vendors and everything else you would expect from a quality Dane County Parks event. And Schumacher Farm will have a booth there. What more incentive can you need! Hope to see you there.
Bike accessible trails between both parks. Volunteer shuttle FREE from the parking area to the festival grounds.
Go the event webpage for more info and volunteering opportunities.
Parks 2017 Annual Report
Catch up on all the good works, great people and accomplishments happening throughout our county park network.
Dane County Parks
Annual Report
is now available online to view.
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Featured are two magazines from Dwain Schroeder of Waunakee called Farmer's Wife, 1929 and Farm Mechanics, 1924. The Farmer's Wife was first published in 1897 and ended in 1939 when it was sold and bound with Farm Journal until 1970. It had over a million subscribers nationally and featured articles on news, politics, gardening, clothing and cooking. Farm Mechanics started in 1919, a monthly farm magazine for farmers and dealers on tractors, farm machinery, building improvements, and modern agriculture. According to the cover and the sign, the idea that a woman might have the last word in a farm family was treated as humorous in 1924. However, in practice, farm wives played an important role on the farm, with cooking, cleaning, growing and preserving food, taking care of children and helping in the barn if necessary. Using an inflation calculator, the 20 cents cover price in 1924 equals $2.79 today. It is interesting that both these magazines were published in the Midwest.
-Photos & text submitted by Barb Johnanningmeier & Rosemarie Hodulik
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One last reminder for the spring garage sale happening here at the farm. Donations are still being accepted during park office hours. Please
no clothing or old electronics.
If you have questions regarding a donation, please call Rosa Ropers at 608-260-5335.
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What It Is & What It's Worth
Once again, Schumacher Farm is pleased to host an antique appraisal. We have invited Mark Moran to appraise items on
June 21st. Last year was a great time as attendees learned about their items as well as the others that were presented. If you have an item that you wish appraised, reservations must be made at the farm office on or before
June 18th. The cost of each item is $15. Please call the phone office at 608-849-4559 for an appointment.
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Why did the chicken cross the road?
To get to the food and fun at Schumacher Farm Park, of course!
Last year we had a flock of 9 hens and one rooster taking up residence in the chicken coop on the farm from April-October. The rooster was a big bruiser with a German heritage. The added bonus last year was that one of the hens turned "broody", meaning t
he hen stayed on the nest 24/7 determined to hatch her "brood". She eventually hatched 7 ch
icks and proved to be a good mother hen. All the chicks g
rew and thrived.
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2018 chicken clutch & rooster
Photo: AJ Dusick
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This year we have eight hens and one rooster, again provided by Paul & Karen Hellenbrand of Lodi. We have one black and white barred hen that is similar to the black and white barred Plymouth Rocks that Marcella Schumacher Pendall talked about in the story "The Independent Hen". The other hens are an assortment of colors, with egg colors to match, and the rooster is a dandy. The chickens arrived on a sunny warm day in mid-April, and then winter returned. The snow and ice came, and the padlocks and water both froze. However, chickens are very hardy, and they weathered the storms.
Volunteer families are now taking care of the chickens and they can be viewed anytime. Chicken Wrangler responsibilities include cleaning, feeding and watering the chickens and gathering the eggs, which the volunteer for that day takes home for good eating.
-Bob Bennin, Head Wrangler
Anyone interested in being a Chicken Wrangler next season, please contact the farm at 849-4559 or email at [email protected]
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On the morning of April 1, about 95 people from Peace Lutheran Church made their annual Easter visit to the farm for their sunrise service. As a reminder, the temperature that morning was about 20 degrees F. Luckily, cold mornings make for spectacular sunrises and this fervent group must have been well rewarded by mother nature. Thank you, Peace Lutheran, for making the farm part of your seasonal spring tradition.
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Memory Cafe Visit
Former board members, Bob Forbess and Jim Elvekrog, took a little piece of the farm off site this April. They presented a program on spring activities of the 1920's farmer for a Memory Cafe session at the Waunakee Steeplechase Condo Association Clubhouse. Bob shared slides and stories of early farm practices and Jim spoke to typical crop seeds, how they were planted and tools that were used. The presentation topic opened opportunities for participants to talk about farm memories and to reminisce together about similar experiences. We enjoyed the visit and welcome the chance to do it again in the future.
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Event Sponsorships
For each of the Friends' three major events - Bluegrass Music Festival, Heritage Fest, and Halloween at the Farm, we solicit sponsors to help us cover the expenses. Most of our sponsors are local businesses, but individuals can also be sponsors. All sponsors are recognized during the event and the higher sponsorship categories are also recognized on our posters and other advertising.
This year, individuals or businesses can also sponsor our educational workshops or special events, such as our Monarch Butterfly Workshop, our Full Moon Hikes, or one of the Afternoon at the Farm events.
Profits from the events help us maintain our facilities and support our educational programming.
If you or someone you know is interested in being a sponsor, please contact our Park Administrator. Donations are also welcomed at any time.
-Jim Elvekrog
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Photo: Rona Neri-Bergmann
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In Memoriam
In memory of
Zeta A. Roby
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a long-time member of Schumacher Farm Park,
a teacher
and an ardent bird enthusiast,
who kept our
bird feeders full of seed.
Her legacy gift will be allocated to supporting
future environmental educational programming.
In memory of David F. Bleifield; architect, painter, sailor and supporter of youth programs and resource building within community networks.
Joanne Kirkpatrick made a donation in honor of Marcella Schumacher Pendall.
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Upcoming Events
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Springtime at the Farm
(Sun., Apr. 29th)
Garage Sale
(May 10th & 11th)
Bluegrass Music Festival
(Sat., June 16th)
Culinary Herbs Workshop
(Tues., June 19th)
Antique Appraisal Event
(Thurs., June 21st)
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Stay Connected
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Copyright © 20XX. All Rights Reserved.
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