Year: 2025

Maple syrup pours out of a metal valve with a blue handle into a large stainless steel urn with handles.

‘Sweet Business’ in the Hardwood Forest

Into the woods in search of Carlin’s Sugar Shack — and a sweet surprise! Alison Leathers teases us with syrup and more.

Poetry | “Love…” In Springtime

Original poems — and a doodle — by southeastern Minnesota artist and poet, Diane Knight.

A woman with blonde-brown hair reads a picture book to a child with red hair pulled back in a partial pony tail.

The READ Act: New Teaching Methods for Reading in Minnesota

Alison Leathers checks in on local schools as they implement a new comprehensive reading program through Minnesota’s READ Act.

A young child wearing a blue sweatshirt stand next to the trunk of a large maple tree. On the side of the tree is a silver metal bar holding a blue clear plastic bag that is half filled with clear maple sap. The sunshine peeks behind the tree and across the brown woods in early spring.

Essay | Maple Syrup–A Homesteading Tradition

An impulse-buy at a local farm store leads to a sweet new family tradition.

Root River Restoration Project: Major Milestone Achieved

An amazing feat is making progress. Colleen Froehrenbacher has a video update on moving a stretch of the Root River’s main channel back to an earlier bed near the Eagle Bluff Environmental Learning Center.

Profile | Joan Finnegan’s Dream Was Always to Be a Painter

Steve Harris interviews nationally known local artist, Joan Finnegan.

upper mississippi river backwaters photo

SE Minnesota’s Mississippi River Fisheries to Benefit from Proposed Legislation

Upper Mississippi fisheries and environmental quality could benefit from the proposed Mississippi River Basin Fishery Commission Act of 2025, reports the Mississippi River Basin Ag & Water Desk.

A black and white photo of women wearing long skirts marching in a parade under various Scandinavian flags.

Women Who Shaped Southeastern Minnesota History

On the occasion of Women’s History Month, Jane Skinner Peck reminds us of the rich history of the women’s civil rights movement in southern Minnesota.