A Gift to Your Land
By Denise Thornton This holiday season, have you considered adding a present under the tree for your land? If your woodland, wetland or grassland had…
Ownership 101
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A Green Investment: The Story of Our Land and Eco-Home
As a monthly contributing author to My Wisconsin Woods, I love sharing the stories of Wisconsin landowners. This issue I’ll be sharing the journey that my husband, Doug Hansmann, and I have been traveling as landowners of 44 acres near Dodgeville.
Greening Wisconsin: A Call to Landowners for Spring Seedling Orders
By Denise Thornton Now is a great time for Wisconsin land owners to order tree and shrub seedlings that will be shipped in the spring…
Women’s Chainsaw Safety Workshops in Wisconsin and Minnesota
Are you a woman looking to build your chainsaw skills and boost your confidence in handling this powerful tool? Look no further! UW-Madison Extension, the…
Five Books Every Landowner Should Read
As winter begins to give way to the first hints of spring, there is still time to settle down with a good book that could…
Forest Land Leasing Options
Landowners can lease their woodlands for sustainable purposes like maple syrup harvesting and hunting, and it’s worthwhile to address issues specific to each activity. MAPLE…
50 Years of Stewardship
About 50 years ago, Tom Wedel and his wife Eva were living in Crystal Lake, Illinois, north of Chicago. They knew they wanted to buy…
Getting to Know Your Forest Health Team: Linda Williams on Spruce budworm
By Denise Thornton Spruce budworm (Choristoneura fumiferana) has been causing defoliation in Wisconsin since 2012 according to Linda Williams, Wisconsin DNR forest health specialist. This…
Are YOU a Scientist?
By Denise Thornton Many Wisconsin landowners—the concerned and the curious—are joining the growing ranks of citizen scientists (CS) who collect information about their property to…
The Outstanding Vision of a Lady Landowner
By Denise Thornton The view from horseback connects Denise Marino to her land. “It was a dream to have land so I could have my…
Messengers Matter
By Steve Swenson, Program Director As a teenager, Peggy Timmerman would have characterized her mother’s interest in nature as over-enthusiastic. Plants individually labelled…
Quiz: When Can Someone Claim Your Property? Adverse Possession Defined
Everyone probably has a book on their shelf that is not actually theirs. Picked-up along the way and the rightful owner long forgotten. It’s now…
The Importance of Surveying Your Land – Rick and Susan Case’s Cautionary Tale
“Our neighbor surveyed a line and that’s when we realized half of our new barn was on their property,” stated Rick. “We assumed that land…
Ask the Expert: Should I Seek Forest Certification?
Nearly everyone and everything – from tax accountants to organic produce – can be certified, and the same is true of family forest owners. Certification…
How Big Is Rural Wisconsin?
Wisconsin’s population at the time of the 2010 census was around 5.6 million people. It will come as no surprise that most people (and Wisconsin’s…
Three Friends You Must Have
“It’s not what you know that counts, but who you know.” – Author unknown Imagine a race to solve an everyday rural problem, in which…
Rural Neighbors: Like Peanut Butter and Jelly
“Distance might separate rural neighbors, but relationships are still important.” –Jim Weber, rural woodland owner in Iowa County A simplistic look at rural landowners might…
Agricultural Leases: Handshake Agreement or Written Contract?
By Laura Paine, Grazing Broker, Southwest Badger Resource Conservation and Development “Experience teaches you that the man who looks you straight in the eye, particularly…
Can I Trespass On My Own Land?
Here’s the scenario: You own 40 acres of land, 20 acres of which is leased to a local farmer, and 20 acres in woodland. You…