Otsego Conservation District “Your gateway to natural resource management”

Show us how you feel about the Otsego Conservation District.  Click "Like" below!

Michigan Conservation Districts are the local providers of natural resource management services that help our citizens conserve their lands and our environment for a cleaner, healthier, economically stronger Michigan.

What’s Going on Right Now

A New (FREE) Family Festival: CEE Art in the Garden Join us for the first ever "CEE Art in the Garden" (CEE = Conservational, Environmental, Ecological). "CEE Art in the Garden" is a conservation-based mini-festival held in the Otsego Conservation District Alternative Landscaping & Demonstration Gardens (AKA "the community garden") on June 23 from 12P-10P that features multiple workshops for adults and kids, informational displays, LIVE MUSIC, as well as local art on display. We will be showcasing local artists that have a natural theme to their work, as well as local and regional music such as Hipps-n-Ricco (Blues/Rock), The True Falsettos (Swing), and The Vermeers (Folk/Rock).  (Click to listen!) Some of the workshops to be held throughout the day include: • Mushroom Logs – create a mushroom log that you can take home and harvest.  • Hydroponics Demonstration/Workshop – build a small hydroponics system you can take home that is constructed from a pop bottle. • Butterfly wings – create wings from poster board, decorate them, and play all while discussing the lifecycle of butterflies. • Nutrition – A discussion of nutrition with local health food experts. • Card/Bookmarks – create cards and bookmarks from pressed flowers, leaves, and other natural items. • Natural jewelry – create necklaces and other jewelry from natural items such as seeds. • Root Beer Brewing – brew root beer on site to take home, and enjoy some root beer that has been home brewed just for the occasion. • Skulls and Furs – get an up close look at a collection of animal skulls and furs while learning about the anatomy of these creatures and other interesting facts. • Puddle stones – create a puddle stone for collecting water for wildlife in your yard (similar to a bird bath, but on the ground). • Forestry/Wildlife Nature Walk – Join a local forester for a walk through the woods to discuss multiple aspects of forestry and the wildlife contained in the forest. • Recycled crafts – build items such as birdhouses, bird feeders, wind chimes, and much more from recycled materials. • Campfire – stories told around the campfire full of Michigan folklore and regional stories. We are also arranging for an outdoor art gallery set up throughout the garden and forest site, on-site yoga workshops, local food vendors/farmers, green energy demonstrations, hoop house demonstrations, and much more! This is a FREE event open to the public. If you are an artist wishing to show their work, a musician hoping to perform, an educator looking to put on a demonstration, or just someone interested in being a part of our volunteer event team, contact Justin Burchett by calling (989) 732-4021 or emailing jburchett@otsegocountymi.gov. We hope to see you there!

Free Electronics Recycling in Otsego County - May 5th   Click on the picture below for more information!

Thank You! The Otsego Conservation District staff would like to thank all the volunteers that helped make this year's Spring Tree Sale a HUGE success! Also, thank you to all those that stopped out to purchase trees, shrubs, and other plants from us.   Your support helps us to keep providing environmental outreach to all of Otsego County.

2012 Native Plant Sale Our Native Plant Nursery will be opening for the season on June 2, 2012.  You can take a look at our initial list of plant offerings by clicking HERE. This brochure is best viewed by printing on both sides of the paper, folding in half, and arranging according to indicated page numbers.  We also have these lists available at our office.

Otsego County Resource Needs Assessment Available We are happy to announce that the Otsego County Conservation District 2012 Resource Needs Assessment is now available.  A big THANK YOU to everyone that took some time out of their busy schedule to complete our survey last Fall that helped us to develop the assessment. Click the image below to download a .zip file containing all the documents contained in the Otsego County Conservation District 2012 Resource Needs Assessment. (NOTICE:  This file is 18MB and may take several minutes to download depending upon your connection speed.)

• Children's Recycling Coloring Contest

The Otsego Conservation District is proud to announce the 2011 recycling coloring contest winners. Thank you to everyone who submitted a coloring page, we received many beautiful entries.

Winning Entries

4 &5 year olds                   6 &7 year olds                    8 & 9 year olds

Colored by Serena             Colored by Aden                  Colored by Riley

Special thanks go to Call of the Wild, Alpine Chocolate Haus, Little Caesars and Saturn Booksellers for donating prizes for this contest.

• Recycling Education for Otsego County

The Otsego Conservation District provides recycling education to the residents of Otsego County.

Click on the logo to the left to find out more about recycling in and near our county. Learn how to reduce your waste, save money, and improve your gardens and lawn by composting in your own backyard. Check out the Home Compost Demonstration Site in Gaylord, MI to learn how. For more information click here. Recycling education is supported in part by the Otsego Wildlife Legacy Society (OWLS), the County of Otsego and the Otsego County Community Foundation.

• Food Plot and Wildlife Habitat Enhancement Cost-Share

For the twelfth straight year in a row the Otsego Wildlife Legacy Society (OWLS) has approved to fund the Otsego Conservation District’s Food Plot and Wildlife Habitat Enhancement Program (WHEP). These funds allow the OCD to cover 65% of the cost for landowners to evaluate, plan for and manage habitat enhancements on their property. If you are interested in signing up to take part in either of these great cost-share programs or you want to learn more contact Justin Burchett by calling (989) 732-4021 or emailing jburchett@otsegocountymi.gov.

• Friends of the Garden

The Otsego Conservation District is seeking individuals interested in taking an active role in planning the future of the demonstration garden as part of the new Friends of the Garden group. The OCD is celebrating the 14th year since development began on the demonstration garden. In that time the site has transformed into three acres of beautiful butterfly, hummingbird, friendship, children’s, herb, rose, daylily and native plant gardens. The adjacent 16-acre woodlot has been managed as an educational tool and now boasts an extensive wildflower lined trail system where visitors can bike, walk and bird-watch. For more information, please call Patricia Osburn at (989) 732-4021 or click here to download a brochure.

Click here to learn more about the demonstration garden and to view a slideshow

Would you like to make a difference? We’re always looking for volunteers to help us plant at the greenhouse, maintain the community garden, help at tree sales, get mailings ready and so on. Please call us at 989-732-4021 to sign up! Help us improve our community!