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Guest Columns

History Mystery #115: Antique Homestead Tools

Image of a mystery tool from an old homestead.

Submitted by Lynn Northrup, Raymond Museum. These two items were recently donated from two different homesteads near Raymond. We would like to know their uses and what decade they would be from. Follow-up to History Mystery #114: The Fine Gold Saloon There were no comments pertaining to the questions asked about this Mystery. Comments from SNO Facebook page: Janel Nielsen: ...

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Over the Garden Fence: To Seed or Not to Seed?

Image of a child's hand holding a seedling.

By Tery Susman, UC Master Gardener of Mariposa County. Our human tendency is to fix what we perceive as a potential problem or as something “broken” or “untidy.” Our first thought is to reseed flowering plants and grasses on our fire scorched property to speed up vegetation establishment and soil stability, to fix what is “broken.” However, recent research has ...

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Over the Garden Fence: Give Trees a Chance

Image of a beech tree with new growth.

By Michele Nowak-Sharkey, UC Master Gardener of Mariposa County. MARIPOSA — The impulse after a fire is to remove all evidence that the event occurred. This is understandable from an emotional perspective, however, if we shift to the nature lens we see a different approach. Although the landscape looks blackened with no visible signs of life, life nonetheless is rearranging, ...

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Over the Garden Fence: Scorched Earth and Soil Rx

Image of water runoff after a forest fire.

By Tery Susman, UC Master Gardener of Mariposa County. MARIPOSA — Wildfires can create immediate and potentially long-term soil erosion. However, there are a number of ways to mitigate this post-fire concern. The following has been adapted from the California Native Plant Society Fire Recovery Guide.  1. Leave the mess; keep it under cover. Much needed soil protection is provided ...

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Over the Garden Fence: Partnerships Between Humans & Nature

Image of a fern seedling growing after a fire.

By Michele Nowak-Sharkey, UC Master Gardener, Mariposa County This is the first part of “The Partnership between Humans and Nature during Fire Recovery.” MARIPOSA — Wildfire has entered our common vocabulary over the past 15+ years across California and Mariposa County. From the Telegraph Fire in ’08 to the Washburn, Agua, and Oak Fires, Mariposa County has experienced unpredictable blazes, ...

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History Mystery #114: The Fine Gold Saloon

Image of a sign from the Fine Gold Saloon.

Submitted by Connie Popelish, North Fork History Group. In a 2013 interview, Bill Vanderburg told the North Fork History Group about a saloon on the east side of Road 200 that was built to straddle Fine Gold Creek. He said it was a bar and dance hall with Fine Gold Creek flowing underneath it. Then some years later, the building ...

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History Mystery #112: The Traveling Mystery Cabin

Image of the Silver Knob cabin.

Submitted by Debby Carter, SHSA Librarian. According to articles in the Sierra Star, the cabin that is now located at Fresno Flats Historic Park & Village (see map below) was originally located west of Highway 41 and south of Sugar Pine, and east of Silver Knob. In 1969, a year after the Sierra Historic Sites Association (SHSA) was formed, the ...

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Congratulations to the UC Master Gardener Class of 2022

Image of the UC Master Gardener graduating class.

By Tery Susman. We are proud to introduce the new ‘crop’ of UC Master Gardeners of Mariposa County, Class of 2022! We graduated on May 13th after 17 weeks of extensive training both online and in-person. We had weekly zoom lectures on everything related to horticulture, from below the ground, up! We learned how roots, shoots, soil, water, insects, weeds, ...

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Sierra Art Trails 2022 Application Deadline is Coming Soon

Image of the Sierra Art Trail flyer.

A message from Sierra Art Trails.  Hello Artists, Art Lovers, and friends, There is still time to apply for Sierra Art Trails 2022! We are very excited to present our 19th annual exhibit featuring artists and artisans sharing their work across eastern Madera and Mariposa counties. The Call to Artists is live on Smarter Entry. The prospectus in on the ...

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History Mystery #111: North Fork Trading Post

Image of the North Fork Trading Post.

From the Madera Tribune, Volume 67, Number 83, 8 Sept. 1958 North Fork Store Burns As Community Threatened North Fork, CA. — A North Fork landmark for nearly 60 years burned to the ground Sunday afternoon. The Trading Post, a general mercantile store, caused this community’s most spectacular fire in years. The County Assessor’s Office valued the building alone at ...

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