Category: Uncategorized

O Tannenbaum: WOK Decorates for Festival of Trees

When WOK member Rebecca Glotfelty invited us to participate in the Keweenaw Storytelling Center’s Festival of Trees, there was no shortage of willing volunteers. But how to you decorate a tree without relying on all that fancy holiday bling? After all, Wild Ones is all about native plants, birds, and bugs. Shiny stuff? Not so […] Continue reading "O Tannenbaum: WOK Decorates for Festival of Trees"

Test indicates Hancock Beach bioswale protecting Portage Lake from runoff

The Hancock Beach bioswale, maintained in part by the Keweenaw Wild Ones, appears to be doing a great job keeping pollution out of Portage Lake, according to a recent test conducted by the U.S. Geological Survey. Completed in 2011, this island of vegetation was built by the City of Hancock to capture runoff from the […] Continue reading "Test indicates Hancock Beach bioswale protecting Portage Lake from runoff"

Project Wingspan, Part 2: Planting Milkweed at Boston Pond

It was dirty, buggy work, but someone had to do it: fulfill the final chapter of Project Wingspan and plant dozens of common milkweed seedlings at the Keweenaw Land Trust Boston Pond Nature Area. Armed with shovels, trowels, and other implements from the gardener’s toolkit, Keweenaw Wild Ones volunteers joined KLT intern Kyle Naparala and […] Continue reading "Project Wingspan, Part 2: Planting Milkweed at Boston Pond"

Plucking Seeds for Pollinators and Project Wingspan

Pre-dawn on Oct. 6, WOK members Marcia Goodrich (me) and Valorie Troesch packed Marcia’s Honda Fit with the requisite food, water, garden clippers and bug dope and launched ourselves southwest at the barely tolerable hour of 8 a.m. Two chatty hours later, after missing two turnoffs and getting well-meaning-but-not-all-together-helpful directions from a very nice guy […] Continue reading "Plucking Seeds for Pollinators and Project Wingspan"

Native Plants among the Turnips and Tomatoes

Keweenaw Wild Ones made appearances this summer at both the Houghton and Hancock farmers’ markets. While we sold a few plants—maybe $100 worth—the best part was connecting with members of the community who were unfamiliar with natives and our organization. Valorie Troesch, Kristine Bradof, Karen Cayce, Kathe Salmi and I (Marcia Goodrich) staffed the tables. […] Continue reading "Native Plants among the Turnips and Tomatoes"

WOK Donates Native Plants to Houghton High

Micaela Geborkoff, left, president of the Houghton County 4-H Service Club at Houghton High School, receives a flat of native plants from Marcia Goodrich, president of the Keweenaw Wild Ones. Micaela is the daughter of environmental science teacher Sarah Geborkoff, whose students are working with the 4-H Club to install a new pollinator garden at […] Continue reading "WOK Donates Native Plants to Houghton High"

Volunteer for Project Wingspan to Help Bees and Monarchs

Project Wingspan is a three-year, landscape-scale project designed to increase monarch and rusty patched bumble bee habitat. Locally, the Keweenaw Wild Ones are partnering with Project Wingspan to help gather seeds from native plants in the Ottawa National Forest. Those seeds will be used to increase the quality, quantity, and connectivity of pollinator habitat across […] Continue reading "Volunteer for Project Wingspan to Help Bees and Monarchs"