what is urban ag?

The  National  Association of Conservation District's Urban  Agriculture Conservation (UAC) Grant Initiative is designed to enhance  a districts’ urban agriculture conservation technical assistance activities in developed and developing areas of both urban and rural communities. Since 2016, NACD and NRCS have awarded over 5 million dollars to 122 different projects throughout the country, including twice to the Marquette County Conservation District,  in  2019 and 2022. 
Find details about each of our awarded projects below. 

Urban agriculture implementation grant 2022

PAIRING POLLINATORS WITH FOOD GARDENS In
​MARQUETTE AND ALGER COUNTIES

The National Association of Conservation Districts has awarded The Marquette County Conservation District a 2022 Urban Agriculture Implementation Grant to increase agricultural education and crop yield in Marquette and Alger Counties. The Marquette County Conservation District will be partnering with Alger Conservation District to:
  • Host 4 public workshops on pollinator topics.
  • Organize an educational field day for 5th grade students between both counties.
  • Distribute 50 pollinator gardens to residents with existing food gardens. 
  • Develop materials for a teacher's guide to promote pollinator education in the classroom. 

Teacher's guide to:
Teaching pollination in agriculture

WE CREATED THIS GUIDE TO PROVIDE EDUCATIONAL MATERIALS, INCLUDING SLIDESHOWS, WORKSHEETS, GAMES, & ACTIVITIES FOR TEACHERS TO INCLUDE POLLINATOR AND AGRICULTURAL EDUCATION IN THIER CLASSROOMS.
TEACHER'S GUIDE - Includes worksheets, games, activites, and additional resources. Pick and choose which materials are best for your classroom! 

SLIDESHOWS - Download these pre-made slideshows to teach about pollinators in your classroom. Accompany them with the corresponding worksheets included in the Teacher's Guide!

2022 WORKSHOP SERIES

FIND DETAILS ABOUT OUR WORKSHOPS BELOW, WE WILL HOLD 2 IN MARQUETTE COUNTY AND 2 IN ALGER COUNTY. 

WORKSHOP #1: wILD ABOUT WILDFLOWERS 

June  11th. 9:30am-12pm
alger county fair grounds

​For our first workshop, we will be joined by native plant expert Vern Stephens of Designs by Nature. Vern will be joined by our Produce Safety Technician, Landen Tetil, and together they will share the importance of native plants and their connection to local food production.  Vern Stephens will give advice on selecting the right native plants for your landscape, and how to care for them. The presentation will run from 10am-11:30, and native plants will be available for purchase from 9:30am-12pm. 

workshop #2: Produce and Polliantors: what you need to know! 

july 28th. 5:3opm.
​Belsolda Farm,
​488 mangnum road. 

Join us for our first Marquette County Workshop to learn the ins and outs of keeping a successful garden in the UP! We'll cover the important relationship between pollinators and our food, and go over the effects a good pollinator garden can have on your produce! We'll take a hands on look at how to care for your fruit trees, and even see a recent 1 acre pollinator planting! Guests from NRCS will join and share how you may be able to receive funding assistance through their programs. 

workshop #3: Let's plant a garden!

september 9th, 5:30pm.  
​Alger Conservation District's Chatham Parcel

WE WILL BE MEETING IN CHATHAM AT THE ALGER CONSERVATION DISTRICT'S PARCEL ON GLADSTONE ST, JUST SOUTH OF MARQUETTE ST. WE WILL PLANT A NATIVE GARDEN AND SHARE HOW WE PREPPED THE SITE. 

ALGER COUNTY GARDEN WINNERS! THIS WILL BE YOUR PICK UP TIME AND LOCATION, WE WILL BE THERE WITH POLLINTAOR KITS FROM 5-7PM. 

workshop #4: Seed start + Swap

April 22nd, 11am-1pm. Marquette Township hall.

Join us to learn everything you need to know about growing native flowers and garden varieties from seed! With lengthy UP winters, it's essential to make the most out of our growing season. One way to do this is to start seeds indoors! 

At this workshop, we will provide both native wildflower seeds and produce seeds. We also encourage participants to bring any of their extra seed that they are willing to swap and share! MCCD will provide soil, trays, seeds, and snacks! 
URBAN AGRICULTURE 2022

​we gave away 50
​pollinator gardens! 

To increase crop yield in both counties we are distributing 50 pollinator gardens to landowners in the area! To qualify, you must have an existing food garden on your land. Landowners, schools, businesses, and other organizations with existing food gardens are welcome to apply! We will be prioritizing customers who have received an NRCS high tunnel kit in the past, and landowners willing to host future workshops!

The rubric to the right shows how we will be prioritizing applications received. The application period will run from June 1st-July 1st, and gardens will be awarded in time for a fall planting.  Each garden will consist of one flat, 38 plants, selected for your yard and soil conditions, and a sign. 
THE APPLICATION PERIOD IS CLOSED.
PLEASE CHECK YOUR EMAILS - AWARD WINNERS HAVE BEEN NOTIFIED! 

GARDEN WINNERS HAVE BEEN SELECTED!

Recipients of our 50 pollinator gardens have been notified via email! If you were not selected and would like to see your rubric, please feel free to call or email us. We appreciate all who applied, and encourage everyone to continue their efforts toward increasing pollinator habitat! 

Agripalooza 2022

Agripalooza, a farm field day for local 5th graders, was hosted on September 30th, 2022. Learn more here!

photos from our 2022 urban agriculture project

Urban Agriculture Implementation Grant 2019

 
In 2019, MCCD was awarded a National Association of Conservation Districts (NACD) Urban Agriculture Conservation Grant to enhance urban agricultural activities in our community. With the funds, we hosted a series of four interactive workshops covering topics on season extenders, urban livestock and composting, invasive and native plants and pollinators, and mushroom cultivation.

New land use ordinances passed at that time in Marquette County allowed, for the first time, city residents to raise small livestock including bees, chickens, and rabbits, and allowed the construction of raised garden beds and season extension structures such as hoop houses. MCCD used this grant funding to support landowners looking to take advantage of the opportunities presented by the new ordinance. 
​
MCCD is dedicated to providing education and technical support to increase the growing potential of Marquette County residents.

​2019 Free Workshop Series

​Throughout the 2019 growing season, MCCD offered a series of workshops that provided technical, hands-on assistance to city residents.  Participants were given the opportunity to learn about:
  • Backyard mushroom inoculation
  • Seasonal extension for home gardens
  • Residential small livestock keeping & safe and proper composting practices
  • Identifying and eradicating invasive species & native gardening for pollinators
You can help shape the future of Urban Agriculture in Marquette County!  Please let us know if there is a topic that you would like to learn more about.  Stop by the office sometime and peruse our Urban Agriculture Resource binder.  Take a look at the slideshow below to catch a glimpse of the 2019 workshops!  

Special thanks to our partners!