How Milwaukee Gets Fresh Perch

Another successful urban aquaculture story. I really am starting to believe this could work in northern Michigan.

See:
NYT: Fish Farms, With a Side of Greens

WSJ: Fish Are Jumping—Off Assembly Line: Perch, Loved in Milwaukee but Decimated in Lake Michigan, Find New Life in an Old Factory; On the Side: Fresh Produce

[Via GLEcho: Great Lakes aquaponics farm receives recognition from New York Times]

Urban Aquaponics

- I have been hoping for someone in northern Michigan to start a Community Supported Fishery.

- Chef Eric Patterson of the Cooks' House recently wrote about his efforts with the Grand Traverse Band to source local fish.

- Many organizations are hoping to reap the benefits of small scale Urban Farming like in Detroit (See: Urban farming can succeed in Detroit, panelists say)

- U.S. farmed fish are considered safe and sustainable.

So here's an idea for Traverse City, combine all of these ideas and launch an Urban Fish Farming program. Chicago is considering the idea. See the ChiTrib: Urban fish farming: Will it catch on in Chicago?

If you want to try aquaponics in your backyard Home Depot sells this slick kit: Earth Solutions Little Tokyo Aquaponics Container Gardening without a Tank

Spring Chicken

Spring time, when people's thoughts turn to gardening and chickens. At my daughter's school they just had their baby chicks hatch. For Traverse City, Spring means the first ever Tour de Coup. The meeting is Saturday March 20th over at The Commons: TC's 1st Tour de Coup Meeting

Other chicken links to get your Spring going:
Grit: Keeping Chickens Healthy: What You Need to Know

Re-Nest: How To Build a Backyard Chicken Coop

New Sidewalks

Traverse City has been replacing sidewalks in some of the core neighborhoods this fall. And I have seen where existing trees have been given wide cutouts so they'll have room to grow.

As an alternative to cutours, I recently read about another option at Homegrown Evolution: Rubber Sidewalks Rescue Trees

Michigan's Future

Here are some links to recent news stories that by themselves do not seem like a big deal. But when viewed from the proper perspective it is clear that Michigan's resurgence will be based on agriculture and renewable energy.

See:
R-E: 'Potential is high' for offshore wind power

MLive: Despite poor economy, small family farms are taking root

Reuters: U.S. farmland fetches top dollar despite recession

Urban Farming In Detroit

What would make a good term to describe the establishment of farms in once urban areas? Re-ruralization?

Detroit is trying it.

See BB: GM's Bust Turns Detroit Into Urban Prairie of Vacant-Lot Farms

The city has more than 500 gardens and ``we plan to triple that every year,'' said Michael Travis, deputy director of Urban Farming, a Detroit-based nonprofit corporation that helps clear land and provides topsoil and fertilizer.

Chicks In The City

The Traverse City Commissioners are pretty good at avoiding innovation so this will probably not happen for a few more years, but backyard poultry is a growing trend. Here are some recent stories:

Does My City Allow Me to Raise Chickens?

Whole lotta clucking going on in cities

The communities of Fort Collins, Colo.; Ann Arbor, Mich.; and Wake Forest, N.C.; have passed laws allowing residents to keep a limited number of backyard birds. Other chicken-friendly cities include New York; Oakland, Calif.; Portland, Ore.; and Salt Lake City.

Fresh eggs for breakfast aren't the only benefit of raising chickens, say hobbyists. The birds provide organic fertilizer, and their appetite for pesky weeds and bugs helps gardens thrive.

"If our economy continues on the downward spiral," says Ms. Shell, a third-generation poultry hobbyist, "you're going to see a lot more people raising their own chickens in their backyards and starting up vegetable gardens."

A mostly complete list of chicken laws by city: Chicken Laws

Seattle's Example

Seattle Tilth

Seattle Tilth inspires and educates people to garden organically, conserve natural resources and support local food systems in order to cultivate a healthy urban environment and community.