Family business is awash in knowledge of lake and ponds

Weeds wash ashore on your sandy beach, muck squishes between swimmer’s toes and small, overabundant fish outstrip their food source.

Who you going to call? Northern Michigan Aquatics should be on your list.

Serving citizens and the environment of Northeast Michigan, Northern Michigan Aquatics works with both public officials and private individuals to restore nature’s balance in lakes, ponds and waterways by correcting and maintaining healthy water quality.

“Eighty-percent of our work is education,” said owner Ray Van Goethem. “We aren’t in the business of providing bathtubs-full of nothing but water. Lakes and ponds have, and should have plants, healthy bacteria, fish and other aquatic life. What we can provide is a healthy water body in which short and long term remedies are combined in the best interest of the over-all habitat.”

Generally, it takes a delicate balance of several techniques over time to restore and maintain a large natural body of water. Constant effects of weather, the introduction of invasive species, as well as over-use by boaters and pesticide run-off can have tremendous impacts to a waterway’s health.

Gardening golfers

By JERRY NUNN

LUPTON - With an uncertain upcoming summer golf season apporaching fast, owners of Green Briar Golf Course were scrutinizing their course improvement budget more intently than ever looking for places to trim excess. 

That was until a group of gardening golfers caught wind of the possible spending cuts. Bringing flowers from their own homes to plant about the course, those golfers soon had the black-and-white budget process overflowing with color. 

Front and center on their list was a memorial garden, complete with bench, dedicated to Frank and Stella Kirr, of Allen Park, parents of club member Mary Ann Stephens of Hale. A sometimes Green Briar golfer, whenever Frank Kirr came to Lupton he partnered up with the late, local golfer Ron Smart for an 18-hole round of golf. 

When Smart died a few years ago, a flower garden dedicated in his memory was planted at the foot of Green Briar's flag pole. 

Now a garden memorializing Kirr, surrounded by giant field stones, lies right next to it. 

"That's why we put the memorial garden where we did," said Stephans. "They golfed together. Now they are still together. We brought perennials from home so they don't have to be planted every year. There were other people out here planting flowers on the back of the course." 

Plants that went into the bed included columbine, iris and more. 

"The bed over on two is pink," said Lupton club member Chris Enszer. "Between six and seven is yellow and gold. And we haven't even seen the back nine yet."

As members of the club they'll get back there eventually. Meanwhile, the flowers will wait, pleasing the eyes of others who pass along that way first. Thanks to a giving band of gardening golfers.

"I think everyone is such good friends we just wanted to pitch in and make the golf course look nice," says Stephens.

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 Independence Day in the Trudell's garden  

As if Tom and Terri Trudell's flower-filled gardens were not reason enough to celebrate, along comes July 4th. Now Old Glory proudly waves from fence post and flag pole in the already colorful lawn. While Tom works at Jay's R.V. in East Tawas, Terri retired seven years ago but says her work is not yet done. The few large areas of lawn that remain on the property offer ample room for more flower beds. The hard-to-miss scene is located on U.S. 23 north of Baldwin Center.

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