If Winter comes, it must be time to plan for Spring

Rainbarrel? Tumbling composter? Food plot seeds? Tree shelters? Tree and shrub sale?

What does it all mean?

It is part of the annual effort of the Sheboygan County Land and Water Conservation Department to be environmentally proactive, promote the saving of energy and energy dollars, and provide an important service to county residents. They do that by selling trees, shrubs and specialty products each year. The deadline to order is March 1.

Most people know that providing the right trees and shrubs at your home will provide protection from the cold in the winter and cool you during the summer heat. And these plants, added to open lands, protect the soil, slow the wind, provide habitat for birds and animals, and add beauty and value.

This year the Land and Water Conservation Department have added two new products that will save homeowners dollars in both water and fertilizer costs – and do it in an environmentally friendly way. These are a 55-gallon rain barrel and 60-gallon tumbling composter.

The rain barrel is intended to be placed underneath the gutter of your home so you can collect water for future use. Did you know that one inch of rain on a 1,000 square foot roof yields 623 gallons of water? Collecting rainwater reduces strain on wells and water systems during drought conditions, and you save real dollars by reducing your monthly water and sewer bills. The barrels come in blue or white and are fairly high-tech, including a 3-inch downspout adapter, mesh debris screen, overflow valve, and a brass spigot to connect to a watering hose.

The 60-gallon tumbling composter is built for ease-of-use. It requires no more effort than giving the bin a few turns a day that allows the grass and leaves to degrade fairly quickly. The barrels are made of a food grade plastic, mounted on a 1/4-inch thick rolled-steel frame. It has a screw-on lid with holes in the top and bottom to allow rainwater to moisten the compost. The composter itself has a metal cross-bar in the middle to allow the contents to be broken up every time it turns over. The compost will save the homeowner money on fertilizers as well as gasoline for hauling away the leaves and grass.

Prices for the composter and rainbarrel are listed on the order form.

Trees come in groups of 10 or 25 and include: Austrian, red, Scotch, and white pines; Black Hills, Colorado blue, Norway, and white spruce; balsam and Fraser fir; white cedar, American bittersweet, paper birch, black and Canada red cherry; Magenta crabapple, highbush cranberry, red osier dogwood; hazelnut, shagbark hickory, common lilac, Villosa lilac, red and sugar maple; nannyberry, burr, white, gobbler sawtooth, red, and swamp white oak; hybrid poplar, rose of Sharon, and black walnut.

They also have an orchard packet (two cherry and two apple), backyard bird and butterfly packet, and deer/habitat packet.

Plotted stock includes Austrian and white pine, Black Hills and Colorado blue spruce, and white cedar.

The wildlife food plot seeds come in six different selections; which one to choose depends on the goal of the landowner.

There are a number of planting aids available also; they include fertilizer pellets, root gel, layout flags, wood stakes, tree shelter tubes of different sizes and weed mats.

All materials mentioned, their descriptions, and quantity can be found in a pamphlet and order form on their Web site: www.co.sheboygan.wi.us, or by calling (920) 459-1370. Payment in full must be submitted with your order.

What is exciting, is that when it is time to pick up your order, winter will have passed and you will be ready to compost, collect rain water and plant your new trees and shrubs.