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[Chex <ricechex@rocketmail.com>]

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Chris Rice
Zone 5a, IL

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97th Annual Meeting of the Northern Nut Growers
Association, Inc.

by Gary Fernald

Local Arrangements Team Leader

 The 97th Annual Meeting of the Northern Nut
Growers Association will be held at Western
Illinois University from July 23 through July 26,
2006. Bridget Hiel, Conference Coordinator and
Katherine Walker, Director of the Macomb
Convention and Visitors Bureau, have made us feel
very welcome. A Macomb visitors guide will be
sent to all registrants. This
agriculture-oriented community has loads of
things to see and do. We invite you to attend
this “fellowship of growing” and renew your
spirit and bonds of friendship with the
association of like-minded companions and kindred
spirits. The conversations following the programs
are truly as informational and inspirational as
the scheduled presentations. For those not
attending the technical sessions on Monday and
Tuesday, NNGA’s Complementary Alternative Program
committee (CAP) has organized alternative
activities. 

 The University Union is the site of all events
for the 97th Annual Meeting, starting with the
board meeting at 10:00 AM on Sunday, 23 July.
Everyone is invited to join the board in their
deliberations. Following registration Sunday
afternoon, join us at 5:00 PM for a welcome
reception and barbeque following which we will
gather at 7:00 PM for the ever popular Show and
Tell. 

 The schedule for nut growers on Monday and
Tuesday consists of technical presentations,
workshops and meetings starting at 9:00 AM each
morning. The exhibit area will also be open. The
annual Research Fund auction will be held at 7:00
PM on Monday evening following dinner, and the
annual Banquet and elections are scheduled for
Tuesday evening.

 The all-day NNGA Main Tour is planned on
Wednesday.

 Great effort has been made to hold down costs to
encourage broad participation in this annually
valued event. Plan now to attend; you will be
glad you did.

 Those of you belonging to other nut growing
organizations or interest groups, please share
copies of this article and registration form with
your fellow enthusiasts. This information will
also be posted on NNGA’s website at
www.nutgrowing.org.

Registration

 Register early and save. Use the tear-out
registration form in this newsletter and mail it
today. Registration forms are also available
online at www.nutgrowing.org.

 Registration/Sign-in and Illinois Welcome will
start at 1:00 PM on Sunday in the University
Union. The Registration/Sign-in Table will also
be open at specified times on Monday and Tuesday.

 In the event that it is necessary to cancel your
registration, all fees will be fully and
cheerfully refunded if your cancellation is
received before July 15.

Chestnut Growers of America

 The Chestnut Growers of America will be holding
their annual meeting in the Capitol Room at the
University Union on Saturday and Sunday, July 22
– 23. Interested nut growers should plan to come
early and attend their sessions and tour. For
more information about registration for this
meeting, please check the WCGA website at
http://www.wcga.net/cga06mtg.htm, or contact Ray
Young at P. O. Box 841 Ridgefield, WA 98642, Ph.
360-887-3669, or by email at
Ray@ChestnutsOnLine.com.

Emergencies

 The 24 hour emergency phone number is the
University switchboard at 309-298-3500

Lodging

 On Campus. There are two on-campus housing
alternatives. The first is Olson Hall, which is
the main dormitory residence and will also be the
site of our daily meals. All rooms are air
conditioned. It is the most economical rooming
alternative and is located a short walk (one
block) from the University Union. Olson Hall
offers dormitory-style accommodations. There is a
common lounge area and each floor has two
brightly tiled communal bathrooms with private
showers for men and women. Reservations for rooms
in Olson Hall can be made using the registration
form in this newsletter.

 The second on-campus housing alternative is the
Union Hotel, which is the third floor of the
University Union Conference Center. There is
elevator service making this the best option for
individuals with limited mobility or handicaps.
Rooms are $50/day for single occupancy and
$65/day for double occupancy. Two suites are
available at $85/day and $100/day which are
comparable to the finest accommodations in
Macomb. You must make you own reservations with
the Union Hotel. There are only 26 rooms, so make
them early. For reservations call the University
Union Service Center at 309-298-1941. Use
reservation #060721001; for handicapped
confirmation use #060721002. For additional
assistance, call Bob Livingston at 309-924-1361,
or Gary Fernald 309-255-3569

 All choices of rooms will be on a first
application first served basis. 

 Off Campus.  A Days Inn is located a short
distance from campus at 1400 North Lafayette St
(U.S. Hwy 67 and Hwy 136) in Macomb. A block of
25 rooms is being held for CGA/NNGA until July 2.
Our group rate is $50/day, including breakfast,
and the motel has an outdoor pool. Their local
number is 309-833-5511.

 Other motel options are available and are
identified on the NNGA web page and in the Macomb
visitor’s guide, a copy of which will be sent to
all registrants. 

 Camping. Camping is available at two popular
area lakes, Spring Lake and Lake Argyle State
Park. 

Parking

 You will receive a parking permit at
registration, but must pay for metered parking if
applicable. Use designated student and visitor
parking areas as identified on the campus map. Do
not park in reserved parking slots.

Meals

 There are two meal packages. The six meal
package for $60 is intended for nut growers and
anyone not going on the CAP tours. It includes
Monday breakfast, lunch, and dinner, Tuesday
breakfast and lunch, and Wednesday breakfast.

 The four meal package for $40 is for anyone who
signs up for the CAP tours on Monday and Tuesday,
where lunch will be provided. The four meal
package includes Monday breakfast and dinner,
Tuesday breakfast, and Wednesday breakfast.

 The banquet is Tuesday evening and is priced
separately on the registration form. The CAP tour
fees, the Wednesday tour fee and the Wednesday
tour tag along fee include lunch.

 Meal package meals will be served in the Olson
Hall dining facilities.

Cookies

 The University will allow us to place cookies,
brownies, etc. on the coffee break table as long
as they contain nuts and fruits and are home
made. So bring a dozen or two of your favorites,
also bring extra nuts and another dozen cookies
for the research auction. 

Special Events

 Sunday—Barbeque. Sunday evening’s welcome
barbeque will start at 5:00 PM and features a
menu with BBQ pork chops or chicken, sweet corn,
potato salad, bean salad, ice cream. Relax and
renew old friendships and make new acquaintances.

 Monday—CAP Craft Show and Tour. Monday’s CAP
activities feature events on campus and shopping
in Macomb, IL.

 Please bring your craft hobbies to share with
the CAP Committee. Setup your pottery, quilts,
jewelry, handbags, nuts, Christmas ornaments, or
other crafts brought from home at 8:00 AM in the
Capitol Room. Contact Carol Totten at
309-482-6155 to ensure that a table is set up and
waiting for your crafts. CAP will then gather at
9:00 AM in the Capitol Room for a morning of
craft activities. 

 The downtown district a few blocks from campus
and is the site of Monday’s afternoon shopping
trip. We will leave WIU in time to arrive for
lunch, with shopping to follow.

 Tuesday—CAP Tour and Shopping. Tuesday’s CAP
activities, beginning at 9:00 AM, feature a tour
of the Carr Mansion, an 1877 historic register
home, followed by a tour of Fuzzy Bean Candle Co.
and the Maple City Pottery.  During your Monmouth
visit shopping opportunities include Exotic in
Nature, Monmouth Soda Works and Mercantile,
OFleeting Time, and The Maple City Candy Co.,
which includes Coconuts Restaurant, our lunch
site. 

 Tuesday—Banquet. The banquet will be held
Tuesday evening starting at 6:00 PM and is priced
separately on the registration form. The banquet
dinner will consist of a semi-formal buffet. The
menu includes shrimp cocktail, roast prime rib of
beef, tilapia, twice baked potatoes, green beans
almandine, and rolls. The menu also includes a
cheesecake dessert with fruit and nut topping.

 Wednesday—NNGA MAIN Tour. The tour arrangements
and schedule for Wednesday’s tour are not
complete. A list of the areas possible tour
destinations and or optional excursions, by
special arrangement, include Verne Luvall’s nut
orchard with hazelnut breeding project and the
monster chestnut, Totten’s greenhouse and
planting, Tom Wahl’s nursery and chestnut
operation, the Fernald’s nut ranch, Dallas City
chestnuts, Bill Brookhiser’s chestnut orchard in
Weaver Iowa, Historic Nauvoo Illinois with Oak
Arboretum, and Guy Sternberg’s Starhill Forest
Arboretum. Other options are also being explored.
If you have extra time, consider visiting nearby
sites of interest by special arrangement.

 CAP members are invited to join the orchard
tours.

Program

 Monday and Tuesday consists of technical
presentations, workshops and meetings starting at
9:00 AM each morning. The total program is not
yet complete, but thus far consists of the
following:

Organic Chestnut Growing, John Wittrig

Chestnuts, Dennis Fulbright

Rooted in the Nursery (Containers), Connor Shaw,
Possibility Place Nursery

The process for patenting, trade marking,
promoting, and propagating a new plant, Earl
Cully, heritagetrees@irtc.net

Intrigue, Mysteries, and the Passions of Nut
Growing! Bill Totten

Pawpaws, Neal Peterson

TBA, Guy Sternberg, author and proprietor,
Starhill Forest Arboretum

Hybrid Oaks, International Heritage

Trees Forever, Shannon Ramsay, Buffer
Partnerships 

Dreaming of Future Nut Growing, Gary Fernald

Lumber markets in Illinois, Steve Felt, Illinois
District Forester

The Value of a Tree, Tom Green, WIU

Sherlock Green Why Did My Plant Die, Tom Green,
WIU

Ginkgo Nuts, Oriana Kruszewski, Skokie, IL.

TBA, Ward Mally, Elkhart, Iowa Nut Grower

TBA, Verne Luvall, Galesburg, Illinois Hazelnuts
Breeder, Nut grower

Forestry Management, Corps of Engineers

Preserving Genetic Diversity, TBA

GPS: Tomorrow’s Tools Today, Jeff Hudgens

GPS workshop, Mapping and Locating, Jeff Hudgens

Propagation workshop

 The committee is still seeking presentations
from hobbyists, home growers and professionals on
walnut, chestnut, hickory, pecan, hazel, pawpaw,
persimmon, almond, beech, ginkgo, pine nut and
related species. Presentations describing
personal experiences as well as professional
research on the selection, grafting, growing,
fertilization, disease and pest control,
marketing and consumption are being sought. “If
you have reached a point in your life when the
green knowledge caught is now the green knowledge
sought, share your thoughts that we all might be
taught.”

 If you are interested in making a presentation
or in recommending a potential presenter, please
contact:

André Flys

70 Jessop Ave.

Schomberg, Ontario L0G 1T0

Canada

Ph. (416) 285-1366

Fx. (905) 939-7343

andre@graphicperformance.com

 Presentations will be scheduled into 20 minute
time slots. Presenters will be asked to submit a
written report to Dennis Fulbright for inclusion
in the 97th Annual Report of the Northern Nut
Growers Association.

Show and Tell

 The annual Show and Tell session is scheduled
for Sunday evening at 7:00 PM following the
barbeque and will be held in Sandburg Theater.

 The Show and Tell session is an opportunity for
attendees to share their successes, findings,
experiences, disappointments, etc. These
presentations are usually made in 15-minute,
serious, and/or humorous increments and can be in
almost any format. Persons interested in making a
Show and Tell presentation should contact Jerry
Lehman at 812-298-8733 to make arrangements or
see him at the BBQ.

Auction

 The 14th annual NNGA Research Fund auction will
be held on Monday evening. The bidding will begin
at 7:00 PM and the auction will conclude when the
last item is sold and the last payment received. 

 If you have items for auction, our local contact
is Bob Livingston, who can be reached by phone at
309-836-6182, or by email at lmp1889@macomb.com.
Ernie Grimo is our national contact, and can be
reached at 905-934-6887, or by email at
nuttrees@grimonut.com.

Exhibits

 The exhibit area will be in the University
Union’s Capitol Room which will be available for
set up on Saturday and Sunday, July 22 – 23. We
expressly urge Nut Growers including CGA Members,
Nurserymen, and other Organizations to display in
this area. Any exhibits pertaining to growing,
processing or selling nuts, scion wood, trees,
tools, nutcrackers, displays, etc., are both
requested and welcome. Shipping is the same as
auction items. Please label as exhibit.

Group Photo

 This year we break from tradition. Attendees’
pictures will be taken individually and a collage
made. Each couple or single attendee will receive
a free copy at the conclusion of the meeting
along with a key identifying everyone in the
collage.

Location

 Macomb is located about 230 miles southwest of
Chicago and 150 miles north of St. Louis.

 Insert map…

 If you are coming by car:

At the north edge of Macomb, U.S. 67 intersects
with University Drive.  There is a traffic light
at this intersection.  Turn west onto University
Drive.  The next intersection on University Drive
is Western Ave.  Turn left and proceed south on
Western Ave. up the hill to Murray Street, which
is the next street going east. Turn east or left
onto Murray Street.  The third building on the
left side of Murray Street is University Union,
your destination. Watch for NNGA signs pointing
the way.

 If you are coming by plane, the University Union
in Macomb is approximately 75 miles from the Quad
City Airport, and 100 miles from the Peoria
Regional Airport.

 If you are coming by train, Amtrak’s Illinois
Zephyr services Macomb from Chicago once daily.
The train departs Monday through Saturday from
Union Station in downtown Chicago at 5:55 PM
Stops are made in La Grange, Naperville, Plano,
Mendota, Princeton, Kewanee, Galesburg, Macomb
and Quincy. The train arrives in Macomb at 9:12
PM. To make reservations call 1-800-USA-RAIL.
Tickets may also be purchased on board.

Weather

 Typically it is warm—but can be hot—and humid in
Illinois during late July early August.
Thunderstorms normally occur less than once per
week and are of short duration. 

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