http://www.axtora.com/homesites/us/wisconsin/deer-park/ Deer Park, WI News http://www.axtora.com/homesites/us/wisconsin/deer-park/content/2fb2bbc26deee108a8f1a8715a1e6d43.html DEER PARK When it comes to gardening Joe Ailts thinks bigHis 2acre garden contains some of Wisconsin's biggest fruits and vegetablesThe St Croix County gardener said growing giant pumpkins gourds and tomatoes combines his competitive streak with his interest in horticultureGiant pumpkins are his specialty The owner of Joze Giants Pumpkin Farm near Deer Park Ailts has been competing in giant pumpkin weighoffs across the Upper Midwest since 2000He's a twotime champion of the Nekoosa Giant Pumpkin Fest which is considered Wisconsin's premier pumpkin weighoffThe event held the first weekend in October draws 50 to 60 gigantic pumpkins each year Their owners vie for a top cash prize of 2000The whole reason we grow these things is to put them on the scale at that event Ailts saidThe largest pumpkin he has ever grown was a 1056pound state winner in 2003 He followed that up the next year with a 1016pounderAnything over 1000 pounds is kind of regarded as the Holy Grail he saidBut Ailts has his sights set higher: the state record He would have to grow a pumpkin weighing more than 1400 pounds to beat the recordThe world record is a 1600pound pumpkin grown in Rhode IslandGrowing seasonAlthough poor growing conditions have kept Ailts out of competitions the past couple of years he returned this fall He placed 12th on Oct 4 in Nekoosa with a 903pound pumpkin measuring 13 feet aroundThe winner was a 1323pound pumpkin grown by Glen and Margaret Martin of Combined LocksAilts took 10th place Sept 27 at the St Croix Growers Association weighoff in Stillwater MinnSize mattersHe stresses these are not beauty pageants it's all about size and scaleAilts has had a green thumb since childhood when he spent many hours pulling weeds alongside his greatgrandmother in her garden She grew everything under the sun he saidHe still gets satisfaction from digging in the dirt Working in the garden relieves stress after work he saidAilts who has a degree in biotechnology from UWRiver Falls is director of physician education at NeuroScience in rural Osceola He said his background in science helps him better understand many of the technical aspects of growing giant pumpkinsConsidering all the forces of nature working against those pumpkins such as weather disease insects and wildlife it's a miracle the pumpkins survive to reach such epic proportions Ailts saidHe begins planning for competition in the spring planting varieties that are known to produce ultraplump pumpkins such as Atlantic giantHe selects one pumpkin per plant and removes the rest Each pumpkin is allowed about 500 square feet of growing spaceA few years ago before his two young sons were born Ailts grew as many as 16 big pumpkins a year This year he grew fourWinning formulaPlant pruning and vine burying are keys to success he said Burying vines encourages root growth and directs the plant's energy into nurturing the pumpkinHis pumpkins are grown organically Compost cow manure and other natural fertilizers such as fish emulsion and kelp are used to enrich the soilWe don't feed it milk; that's an old wives' tale he said and I don't rotate itThe pumpkins grow fast Typically only the size of a marble in early July they can gain as much as 45 pounds a day at the height of the season Ailts saidGreat care must be taken when the fruits reach that size; their tender skin and hollow cavity make them vulnerable to damage so he moves cautiously to avoid separating the pumpkin from the vine too soonAilts said the biggest threats to the giants are his own clumsiness and vandalismWhen temperatures hover near freezing Ailts covers his prized pumpkins with blankets to trap the heat and ward off bugs and nibbling wildlife such as mice and deerThere's a lot of luck involved in this hobby It's kind of a crapshoot he saidAfter competition Ailts often sells the pumpkins to a professional carver for about 1 a pound to be transformed into largerthanlife jacko'lanternsHe's also experimenting with long gourds Big Zac tomatoes and dinner plate dahliasAn 865inch gourd from his garden took first place at Nekoosa this fall edging out the next nearest competitor by 5 inches His garden this year also has yielded a dahlia measuring 10 inches in diameter and a tomato weighing more than 2 poundsClausen writes for The Country Today a rural life newspaper published by the Eau Claire Press Co She can be reached at clausenamerytelnet http://www.axtora.com/homesites/us/wisconsin/deer-park/content/023ffd9090ee15d4c57bed1ce2399fa7.html Photographer Bob Rashid best known for his book Wisconsin39;s Rustic Roads died suddenly Thursday when his aorta was torn He was 59 He always had a smile and a lightness of being that was just profound said Holly Cohn Rashid39;s wife of three years but partner of 21 years He was home to me I39;m devastated I39;ve lost my best friend and I39;ve lost the person who allowed me to be myself without judgments The two met as http://www.axtora.com/homesites/us/wisconsin/deer-park/content/0cc949c63169baf141f9b775e5ede442.html DEER PARK When it comes to gardening Joe Ailts thinks bigHis 2acre garden contains some of Wisconsin's biggest fruits and vegetablesThe St Croix County gardener said growing giant pumpkins gourds and tomatoes combines his competitive streak with his interest in horticultureGiant pumpkins are his specialty The owner of Joze Giants Pumpkin Farm near Deer Park Ailts has been competing in giant pumpkin weighoffs across the Upper Midwest since 2000He's a twotime champion of the Nekoosa Giant Pumpkin Fest which is considered Wisconsin's premier pumpkin weighoffThe event held the first weekend in October draws 50 to 60 gigantic pumpkins each year Their owners vie for a top cash prize of 2000The whole reason we grow these things is to put them on the scale at that event Ailts saidThe largest pumpkin he has ever grown was a 1056pound state winner in 2003 He followed that up the next year with a 1016pounderAnything over 1000 pounds is kind of regarded as the Holy Grail he saidBut Ailts has his sights set higher: the state record He would have to grow a pumpkin weighing more than 1400 pounds to beat the recordThe world record is a 1600pound pumpkin grown in Rhode IslandGrowing seasonAlthough poor growing conditions have kept Ailts out of competitions the past couple of years he returned this fall He placed 12th on Oct 4 in Nekoosa with a 903pound pumpkin measuring 13 feet aroundThe winner was a 1323pound pumpkin grown by Glen and Margaret Martin of Combined LocksAilts took 10th place Sept 27 at the St Croix Growers Association weighoff in Stillwater MinnSize mattersHe stresses these are not beauty pageants it's all about size and scaleAilts has had a green thumb since childhood when he spent many hours pulling weeds alongside his greatgrandmother in her garden She grew everything under the sun he saidHe still gets satisfaction from digging in the dirt Working in the garden relieves stress after work he saidAilts who has a degree in biotechnology from UWRiver Falls is director of physician education at NeuroScience in rural Osceola He said his background in science helps him better understand many of the technical aspects of growing giant pumpkinsConsidering all the forces of nature working against those pumpkins such as weather disease insects and wildlife it's a miracle the pumpkins survive to reach such epic proportions Ailts saidHe begins planning for competition in the spring planting varieties that are known to produce ultraplump pumpkins such as Atlantic giantHe selects one pumpkin per plant and removes the rest Each pumpkin is allowed about 500 square feet of growing spaceA few years ago before his two young sons were born Ailts grew as many as 16 big pumpkins a year This year he grew fourWinning formulaPlant pruning and vine burying are keys to success he said Burying vines encourages root growth and directs the plant's energy into nurturing the pumpkinHis pumpkins are grown organically Compost cow manure and other natural fertilizers such as fish emulsion and kelp are used to enrich the soilWe don't feed it milk; that's an old wives' tale he said and I don't rotate itThe pumpkins grow fast Typically only the size of a marble in early July they can gain as much as 45 pounds a day at the height of the season Ailts saidGreat care must be taken when the fruits reach that size; their tender skin and hollow cavity make them vulnerable to damage so he moves cautiously to avoid separating the pumpkin from the vine too soonAilts said the biggest threats to the giants are his own clumsiness and vandalismWhen temperatures hover near freezing Ailts covers his prized pumpkins with blankets to trap the heat and ward off bugs and nibbling wildlife such as mice and deerThere's a lot of luck involved in this hobby It's kind of a crapshoot he saidAfter competition Ailts often sells the pumpkins to a professional carver for about 1 a pound to be transformed into largerthanlife jacko'lanternsHe's also experimenting with long gourds Big Zac tomatoes and dinner plate dahliasAn 865inch gourd from his garden took first place at Nekoosa this fall edging out the next nearest competitor by 5 inches His garden this year also has yielded a dahlia measuring 10 inches in diameter and a tomato weighing more than 2 poundsClausen writes for The Country Today a rural life newspaper published by the Eau Claire Press Co She can be reached at clausenamerytelnet http://www.axtora.com/homesites/us/wisconsin/deer-park/content/8793d245098f4cc7961a4e33229e24fd.html Stages around Madison are bursting with theater and tunes over this final weekend of September starting with a final warm weather hurrah at the Snake on the Lake festival on the Memorial Union Terrace and the Pipers on the Prairie party at the Aldo Leopold center More live music on deck includes the MSO season opener Sing It Loud Chris Trapper Roster McCabe Lockjaw Bang Camaro Tom Paxton Marc Broussard Hayden Natty Nation The Bar Time Lovers and WorldInferno Friendship Society while theaters will see productions of 60;i62;The War of the Worlds60;i62; 60;i62;Run Faggot Run60;i62; and the new show by the Li ChiaoPing Dance Company http://www.axtora.com/homesites/us/wisconsin/deer-park/content/6debb5757095126be9cb1276fee30cee.html Richard Berkmeyer earned the top matchplay spot in the US MidAmateur shooting a 1over 71 at Milwaukee Country Club on Sunday for a onestroke victory over Tim Mickelson in strokeplay qualifying Berkmeyer from St Louis had a 2under 138 total He opened with a 67 on Saturday at Brown Deer Park Mickelson the younger brother of tour star Phil Mickelson shot a 70 also at Milwaukee Country Club He's from San Diego http://www.axtora.com/homesites/us/wisconsin/deer-park/content/4be210638a11ea50aabc9f0bd390fdb3.html Tim Mickelson and Jordan Byrd have a lot in common http://www.axtora.com/homesites/us/wisconsin/deer-park/content/136231be6d3739ec98fb31d33306273c.html Mark Scheibach has no illusions of winning the US MidAmateur Championship and earning the Masters Tournament invitation that goes with it http://www.axtora.com/homesites/us/wisconsin/deer-park/content/8b6ffcccdda3704dbaba4859d4e7b398.html Deer and elk exhibits in Chapman Park in Stanley could close next year if a proposal by a council member moves forwardAlderman Carl Edwardson suggested the council explore the possibility of eliminating the animal park which generally has about six deer and six elk The council talked about the idea at its meeting TuesdayIt was discussed but there was no decision at this time Mayor David Jankoski said They are looking at cost factorsThe deer park dates to the 1950s Jankoski said The city regularly culls the animals to keep the numbers at about six eachJankoski said he would want to know how much the exhibits cost the city in terms of labor feed and veterinary bills before moving forwardBefore we make a decision we want some opinion from the community Jankoski said We're gathering the information firstCouncil member Roxanne Caswell who is chairwoman of the parks and cemetery committee doesn't like the idea of eliminating the animals My feeling is we don't want to do anything like that Caswell said Because of the fears of chronic wasting disease a brain illness in deer the city has not been able to move any of its animals However that should change beginning next year because the city has been in the CWD monitoring program for six years Caswell saidI explained to Edwardson that in 2009 we can transfer deer in and out of the park easier Caswell saidChapman Park totals 81 acres and the pens for the deer and elk are small Caswell saidJankoski said a lot of children like to watch the animalsI know the elk are probably a bigger attraction to people Jankoski said They come up closer to the fence And I think the elk are more beautifulCity implements room taxThe council voted Tuesday to create a 3 percent room tax on hotels and motels in the city Jankoski said The money collected would go toward tourism and promotional events in the city from its Watermelon Festival to the annual Stanley Rodeo or pay for membership to local tourism groupsWe're looking to implement the tax in January Jankoski saidJankoski has appointed a fivemember tourism commission which will oversee how the hotel tax is spent Council member Lynn Mason was appointed to the commissionVetter can be reached at 7230303 or chrisvetterecpccom