Regional

Wisconsin Farmers Union members, delegates, and guests gathered Dec. 12-14 in Wisconsin Dells for the organization’s 95th Annual State Convention. The weekend brought together family farmers and rural advocates for grassroots policymaking, leadership development, member recognition, and a celebration of Wisconsin’s farm and food systems.

SSM Health has joined in a partnership with Chamberlain University to provide tuition assistance and employment pathways for those who are interested in nursing.

Woodpeckers are easily and cheaply attracted to feeders. A small wire cage and preformed cakes of suet with various additives including mealworms, seeds, fruits and nuts bring other birds and woodpeckers in close, too.

Now what? The poinsettia, best pronounced poyn-seh-tee-ah, is a perennial plant and can be carried over to another Christmas, but it takes some doing and a misstep may mean going back to the beginning and having to wait until 2027. But it can be fun, too. Poinsettia plants are short-day plants.

Attorney General Josh Kaul and the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection announced a $4.25 million multistate settlement with Menard Inc. d/b/a Menards, a home improvement retail chain.

The Wisconsin Department of Transportation (WisDOT) is urging drivers to stay alert and make safe choices behind the wheel as dangerous driving behaviors continue to be an issue on Wisconsin roads. Preventable behaviors, including wrong-way driving, contribute to an unacceptable number of crashes and deaths.

Bald eagles are getting together more with their mates, visiting their nest locations, and feeding on carrion in roadways and fields where deer hunters have left animal parts from their hunts.

Earlier this fall buck white-tailed deer began rubbing small trees and shrubs with their antlers.  This preliminary act for the mating season and beyond has continued with antler fights between the bucks and the tree. In many cases bark is stripped from the sapling to the point of causing deformity and death of the tree.

Gov. Tony Evers proclaimed Dec. 1 as Snowplow Driver Appreciation Day in Wisconsin to celebrate the men and women who brave winter’s worst to keep Wisconsin’s roads safe and passable.

It is that time of the season when horns and antlers get mixed.

Which is correct? Antlers and horns are not the same; antlers are bone that grew and are shed early the next years. While growing, beginning in April, antlers are covered with soft, fuzzy skin called velvet.