The Martha Wagbo Farm - wagbofarm

Drawing Raffle Tickets


Peacemeal String Band


Peacemeal String Band


Peacemeal String Band


Merchandise Table


Merchandise Table


Merchandise Table


Merchandise Table


Contra Dancers


Contra Dancers


Contra Dancers


Jan Fowler Calling Dances


Jan Fowler Calling Dances


Child-friendly Dance


Lined up for a Contra


Lined up for a Contra


Happy Dancers


Maria Gabbin


Quilt and WEEDS Table


WEEDS Table


WEEDS Table


WEEDS Table


WEEDS Table


Merchandise Table


Chris Bathgate and the Band


Father-Daughter Dance Duo


Graham Parson's Foot


Graham Parsons


Father-Daughter Dance Duo


Father-Daughter Dance Duo


Father-Daughter Dance Duo


Graham Parsons


Graham Parsons


Michelle Brosius on Fiddle


Graham Parsons Close-up


Chris Bathgate


Alana Talkin


Drawing Raffle Tickets


Peacemeal String Band


Peacemeal String Band


Dance Callers


Child-friendly Event


Peacemeal on Stage


Dancers


Fruit Bowl


Oil and Vinegar


Contra Dancers


Contra Dancers


Contra Dancers


Swing Your Partner!


Contra Lines


Contra Lines


Contra Lines


Long Lines


Happy Dancers


Contra Fun


Contra Dancing


Contra Dancing


Contra Dancing


Tuba


Contra Lines


Happy Dancers


Contra Lines


Silly Contra Line


Fun Dancing


Maureen of Peacemeal


Sugarbush Felted "Painting"


Handmade Placemats and Potholders


Baby-friendly Event


WEEDS Table


WEEDS Table


WEEDS Table


WEEDS Table


WEEDS Table


Merch Table


Merch Table


Taking a Rest


Maria of Wagbo

Canning Fish at Home: A photographic tutorial
Why can fish? Why not? It keeps for a LONG time w/o electricity (refrigeration/freezing), you can travel and camp with it, it even dissolves the bones making for a high-calcium meal, and its delicious! The next pictures are steps to canning fish at home.

Canning Fish at Home: A Photographic Tutorial
Step 1: Find a stream where the Mullet run. Ask locals and old timers. The fish will run from large lakes up small streams in early spring to spawn. Pictured is our stream that runs into Lake Michigan. Check local regulations for fishing laws.

Step 2: Catch 'Em!
Check your local laws on catching mullet (aka suckers). These were speared* all within about 20 minutes. 30+ lbs in that amount of time is a lot of fish.

"When the Europeans came here they literally were starving... Food sprang from the earth but they starved. So we brought them the sucker. And they survived. And then their memories fade. And they forget. And when the [Western] water crisis of 2001  occurred, they called it 'trash fish' - not god for anything. But our memories are intact. And we remember how they survived on the sucker. And we remember how we continually survive on this sucker. And they are not trash fish. They are light and flakey, and some of the best white meat you'll eat in your entire life."  
- Perry Chocktoot Jr., director of Culture and Heritage for the Klamath Tribes and president of the International Tribal Fish & Water Commission

*For spearing regulations in Michigan, see this table.

Freshwater Mullet
Also known as Longnose suckers (Catostomus catostomus) these fish have been part of the Native diet from northern North America to the rivers of Eastern Siberia for many many generations. They are often frowned upon by people because they feed off of insects and organic debris from the bottom, but in truth water contaminants are more prominent in predatory fish such as bass, pike and salmon because of biomagnification. Basically contaminants climb the food chain, and the Mullet are near the very bottom. So in reality, these fish are significantly cleaner than say trout or walleye, both commonly sought after fish. Plus they are delicious!

Step 3: Gut the fish
They say to scale the fish, but I found thru experimentation that the scales will dissolve with the bones while canning. This makes the whole process a LOT easier!

This female was full of eggs (roe)
The roe is very nutritious and useful. I really wanted to do something with the roe, but after spending all day cleaning fish, the last thing you want to keep doing is cleaning fish. So maybe if I have some extra help next year, we can get into some roe preservation and recipes. Plus, after finding out later that I don't have to scale them, I will have more time on my hands for some more experiments!

Step 4: cut off the head and clean out the kidney (bloodline)
Eeewww. But someones gotta do it. Rinse out with a hose after scraping this out until it looks like the next pic:

Kidney cleaned out
its starting to look edible now...

Step 5: Cut off fins and belly
a high-carbon steel cleaver makes this a lot easier.

Step 6: Steak Fish
Cut fish into sections about 1 inch thick. In this picture I had yet to remove the fins and belly, but found out later it was easier to do this before it was steaked. It is not necessary to remove any bones because they will dissolve in the canning process.

Step 7: Recruit Help
I'd say Maria really got "suckered" into this but that would be too cheesy.

Step 8: Rinse steaks


Step 9: Place into mason jars
Spice as desired. Leave 1" of headspace in each can and seal tightly.

Step 10: Pressure Can!

Place in pressure canner with 2-3" of water in the bottom being sure not to let jars touch. Close lid and vent all air from the canner for 10 minutes. Build up pressure for 11lbs (at my altitude) and start timing the canning procedure, adjusting the heat methodically to keep the pressure accurate.

Do not use this tutorial to learn how to use your canner. Refer to the instructions that come with the canner! Very Important.

Pressure canning


Step 11: Cool canner and vent
Once the time is up (100 minutes at 11lbs pressure) remove from heat and allow canner to cool down before removing weight or lid. Once pressure is at zero, remove weight to vent for a minute or two, then remove the lid.

Step 12: Remove Jars
Easy enough, but remember they are HOT and still cooking in there. Once they are cool they are ready to be stored in a dark place, or eaten! The last step is almost as fun as catching the fish:

Step 13: Feast!

The fish is now soft and the bones are mostly dissolved much like canned tuna. There are several vertebrae that weren't completely dissolved but these turned to calcium powder once pressed with a fork.

I served the fish over Rye bread and topped it with pickled Fiddlehead Ferns. Washed down with Mugwort Ale! The perfect spring meal.

snail eating coral mushroom
Always leave something for others

Harvesting Swamp Tea
Ledum palustre aka Labrador Tea

Milkweed Flowers
I love them in salads! Be sure to look out for monarch caterpillars.

Oyster Mushrooms


Hunting Morels
Unfortunately none grow on the Wagbo Property, so stay off...

Wild Strawberries!
Although smaller than their domestic counterpart, they are much more flavorful. 2010 was a great year for wild strawberries at the farm.

Elkie Knauf with Autumnberries


Inigo Knauf couldn't get enough autumnberries!
We had to keep him away from the bushes or no one would get any for themselves.

Autumberry harvest
The fruits are extremely high in lycopene, much more so than even tomatoes!

Picking Autumnberries at Raven's Roost Farm in Bellaire


Autumnberry Harvest.
The Autumnberry (aka Autumn Olive) is an invasive shrub that has edible and delicious berries which ripen in the autumn. It is known as one of the best fruits to make fruit leather from. Thanks to Linda and Dough of Raven's Roost Farm in Bellaire for sharing their invasive bounty!

Arlo jacked up on sweets
Autumnberry harvest, fall 2010

Once kids have sweets, they can climb anything
Autumnberry Harvest 2010

Mothers Day Mushroom Hunt
with Yvonne and Jason Stephens

the elusive black Morel
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a Wagbo Breakfast
Wild Leeks, Fresh farm eggs, venison, Morels and Chaga Mushroom tea!!

The Art and Science of Homebrewing
A workshop taught by Keith Kintigh and Jason Stephens of Bellaire. We learned to brew both Ale and Mead at home, plus got a good idea of the diversity of products thanks to their many samples!

Mead Samples!
Workshop: The Art and Science of Homebrewing. Jan. 15, 2011

Beer Ingredients
Barley and Hops

Instructor Keith Kintigh
With his Wort Chiller

Class Participation
Workshop: The Art and Science of Homebrewing. Jan. 15th, 2011. Brewing a Scottish Ale.

Antrim Co. Mead
Samples from Instructors Keith and Jason. Here is their Mead brewed with Dewey Arnot's local honey.

Meads
Two homebrews: Dandelion Mead and Elderberry Mead.

Sammmmples.....
Workshop: the Art and Science of Homebrewing.

snowshoe the hills

valley overlook.

Elke

If you're old enough to walk, you're old enough to snowshoe at Wagbo!

Sledding!


off to the sledhill


Storytelling w/ Chris Evans

During Snoblast Weekend. Thanks Chris!

Children's storytime
with Chris Evans

Children's storytime

w/ Chris Evans.

Tiger Swallowtail


Native Brook Lamprey
These native lamprey are non-parasitic and run up brooks in the spring to spawn and die.

Ninebark flower
a beautiful native shrub

Common Milkweed Flowers
Great in salad!

Headwaters


Moccasin Flower


Sugar Shack


Jordan Valley mornin


Headwaters of the Jordan
North Country Trail

Can you guess these tracks?
It had 4 feet, and landed in the middle of a field, far from any tree, then hopped away from the camera to a dead tree where the tracks ended... Think about it and we'll reveal the answer in the next pictures...

Mystery Trail
Same animal as above.

Another Mystery trail
Give up? Its a Flying Squirrel!! Congrats if you answered correctly. Some biologists believe these to be our most abundant squirrel, but they are rarely seen because they are totally nocturnal.

Bennet Crick
Most of Wagbo's Land is in the Bennet Creek Watershed, which flows into the Jordan River.

Cosner Preserve


Leaning Cedar


Oyster Mushrooms!
Some of our favorites!

Headwaters
Springfed Stream flowing into the Jordan River.

Jordan River


River Jordan


Jordan River


Puffball Mushrooms!
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Long Tailed Weasel Tracks


milk snake


poppin mushrooms

scaley philota poppin from an old yellow birch log

coyote den

a perfect view for a coyote - overlooking the sheep pasture. yumm.

icey field


frosty

morning overlookin the valley

frosted strawberry leaf
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grey fox!

perfect indirect-register trot of a grey fox in the orchard, just behind the barn. A rare treat.

Look at the detail in the hind pads. Even the fur registers. Grey Fox's are the world's only canine that can climb trees!

Nannyberries!

a unique and delicious fall edible

winter sunrise
as seen from our slumbering orchard

sunrise!
from one of wagbo's many spectacular viewpoints

mushroom hunt
not actually on Wagbo's property of course

Yellow-billed Cuckoo nest
amongst the Red-Berried Elder in our sugarbush

oh, say - can you see?
how many morels are in this picture?

growth
one of our many spectacular Beech Trees. Come check them out!

toad
Bufo americanus. On Wagbo property there are the two species of toad that live in Michigan. The American Toad (pictured) and Fowlers Toad.

natures Medicine
Ganoderma tsugae: A powerful Medicine!

Reishi Mushrooms!
The Mushroom of Immortality

Hexfly
the famous Hexagenia limbata, or Giant Michigan Mayfly. The swarming hatch of these elegant and gracefull insects to our crystaline waterways attracts huge hungry trout and fanatic flyfishermen from all over the midwest - and beyond.

killdeer nest!
barely a scrape in the gravel, these common birds disguise their camouflauged eggs amongst sticks and stones on the ground. When the nest is approached the mom and dad will do a 'broken wing display' trying to lure the potential predator away from the nest!

careful!
close-up of a killdeer egg. Dont try this at home!

Brenda
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Short-tailed Weasel tracks
Left hind track. Beautiful!

skyfire
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european mantis
the introduced mantis can be distinguished from our natives by the black dots on their inner front legs seen here.

1st snow.jpg
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white-footed mouse tracks

winter 2008-09

the Jordan River

across the street from Wagbo

blue jay imprint

perfection

indecisive weasel

a weasel came out from under the log here behind our orchard, stopped at the closest mark, then turned back.

stories in snow

A long-tailed weasel was snoopin around here, poppin in and out of the snow as (s)he tunneled looking for prey. It rooted out a Meadow Vole which pops out at the bottom right corner of the picture. It takes off (the 'dotted-line' tracks) and is followed in a few fast bounds by the weasel. Its caught at the top of the image and carried back.

murder scene

where the weasel (bigger marks) grabbed the vole (smaller trail) and turned back with it in the weasels mouth!

weasel and vole tracks

the bound of a Long-tailed weasel. The mark that is just barely registering on the top of the track is the imprint of a limp Meadow vole in its mouth! The next picture shows it clearer.

weasel and vole 2

same story as last pic.

1st Friday Potluck Demo
Our Potlucks are open to all, on the 1st Friday of every month, and following each is a program. Call for details or set up your own program! Shiitake Mushroom Cultivation with Yvonne and Jason Stephens

1st Friday Potluck Demo
Our Potlucks are open to all, on the 1st Friday of every month, and following each is a program. Call for details or set up your own program!Shiitake Mushroom Cultivation with Yvonne and Jason Stephens

Innoculating Logs
Our Potlucks are open to all, on the 1st Friday of every month, and following each is a program. Call for details or set up your own program! Here is Yvonne Stephens teaching Mark how to plug logs with Shiitake Mushroom spawn!!

log innoculation
Our Potlucks are open to all, on the 1st Friday of every month, and following each is a program. Call for details or set up your own program! Here is Mark Meier sealing the Shiitake mushroom spawn with wax.

Wild Edibles Hike
Our Potlucks are open to all, on the 1st Friday of every month, and following each is a program. Call for details or set up your own program! Here we are tasting Sheep Sorrel!

Wild Edibles Hike
Our Potlucks are open to all, on the 1st Friday of every month, and following each is a program. Call for details or set up your own program! Here is our May 2009 potluck and program with Maria Wesserle.

Flier pic

Juice and hard cider...mmm.

grinding

Keith will tell you the apples grind better when you stick your tounge out.

handmillin apples

Tom Brown and Pepper Bromelmeier's Apple Press. Indoors sure is messy! Thanks Tom and Pep!

Peppers mill


Pep Pressin


Juicy!


juicy 2


the Elkie staredown


bottoms up


Arlo&Apple


Jen & kids


Autumn Bounty


Josh & child

Grinding at Wagbo!! We rented a Press for a day. Had a 1hp motor on that grinder! We pressed near 70 gallons in 4-5hrs!!! This looks like it'll be a new Wagbo Tradition...

Juice it up

Grinding at Wagbo!! We rented a Press for a day. Had a 1hp motor on that grinder! We pressed near 70 gallons in 4-5hrs!!! This looks like it'll be a new Wagbo Tradition...

Family fun!

Grinding at Wagbo!! We rented a Press for a day. Had a 1hp motor on that grinder! We pressed near 70 gallons in 4-5hrs!!! This looks like it'll be a new Wagbo Tradition...

heavy duty press!

Grinding at Wagbo!! We rented a Press for a day. Had a 1hp motor on that grinder! We pressed near 70 gallons in 4-5hrs!!! This looks like it'll be a new Wagbo Tradition...

5 gals each pressin


Harvest


BYOApples


BYOApples
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Saving for Winter


Squeeeze!


Liquid Gold

Gettin to the sugarbush
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Paul Michael, Jean and Clayton Faivor


Doug leads the way
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Clayton Tapping trees


Jean tapping


Paul and Doug


Tapping Crew
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Brad Kik Tapping Maples
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Cleanin out the ash
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Brad
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sap lines
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sap lines 2
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Education
our 3000 gallon storage tank for the sap.

Doug, Thea and kids


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collection tank
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Elly Johnson
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Cleaning out the storage tank
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Scott Koch
Scott, thanks for the pics. When you comin back?

Sugarin Crew


northbush collection tank
full of sap

sugar shack
Anything can happen in the sugarshack, fires can catch, jokes are told, and, word has it, this was the inspiration for the B-52's smash it "Love Shack". Mostly, though, syrup is made.

Scott tending fire


Mmmmm
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I can smell the pancakes
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Volunteer payment
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Hard work is fueled by shorts beer


We can't work without Short's Beer
Try the Woodmaster! Its made with our Maple Sap instead of water, and sweetened by our Maple Syrup.

Paul workin, workin workin
New volunteer of the year award goes to...
We'll if we had this, my vote would be w/ Paul.

Mike Reddy


Carl Eklund


nonstop
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Sugarshack

well before the sap flow, obviously.

tapping trees
Jason Stephens out in the bush

Back from the sugarbush

Work away, Yeasties
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Edible Mushroom Hike
Fungi and Fermentation Skillswap

searching for toadstools
Fungi and Fermentation Skillswap

Fall Edible Wild Mushroom Hike
with Jim Provici, Vice President of the Michigan Mushroom hunters club.

Turkey Tail!!
Trametes versicolor - a powerful medicinal mushroom

Fungi and Fermentation skillswap
Mead Making with Nels from Yuba Creek Apiaries

Whole Grain Homebrewing
with Jerome Grskovic from The Center for Sustainable Brewing in Bloomington IN.

Fungi and Fermentation Skillswap
Sauerkraut making with Mark Meier from Tillers International

Sauerkraut!!
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A good turnout!!
despite the weather

Fungi and Fermentation Skillswap
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Fungi and Fermentation Skillswap
More Mead making!

mmmead..
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Nels' Rasberry Mead
Fungi and Fermentation Skillswap

honey wine
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we found some!!
Mushroom I.D. Fungi and Fermentation Skillswap

Cooking Grifolia frondosa
Hen-of-the-Woods Mushroom

Library
Fungi and Fermentation Skillswap

Fungi and Fermentation Skillswap
Cheese Making demo with Amanda Kik of I.S.L.A.N.D.

Fungi and Fermentation skillswap
Shiitake Mushroom Innoculation with Jason Stephens

Reishi Mushrooms

the Mushroom of Immortality!

grain grinding

homebrewing demo

Woodland Jumping Mouse

miniscule tracks

Ermine Tracks


a closer look

Paul examines a buck coming from the spruce plantation into the road, looking right and speeding up into the brush.

gait analysis

measuring deer movement

Art and Orin

measuring deer tracks and gaits

understanding movement


mimicry

understanding animal movement through action

orin as deer

creating a direct register walk

sand

damp sand is the perfect medium

Anne Wagbo Sugarin'


hay pile!


cleaning the car
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sugaring
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jacob farming
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sisters
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traffic jam

on soon-to-be M66

Jacob Wagbo
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J.W.
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overlook
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front yard pose
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from the old country
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horses
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tappin trees
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tree tappin
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snowy owl
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ann w/ owl
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