The Mike Nowak Show Podcasts

Guests: Authors, bloggers, Tweeters, podcasters and kibitzers Jean Ann Van Krevelen (@JeanAnnVK) and Amanda Thomsen (@KissMyAster) talk about their new book, Grocery Gardening: Planting, Preparing and Preserving Fresh Food. We even sneak in some conversation about the Chicago Flower & Garden Show. Local Foodies Jim Slama and Vicki Nowicki preview FamilyFarmed Expo. The continuing saga, "To Dump or Not To Dump" in DeKalb County continues. Dan Kenney of Stop the DeKalb County Mega-Dump is back to report on the week-long public hearing about whether to expand the county's landfill.

Guests: Foresight Design Initiative Executive Director Peter Nicholson; Dan Kenney, chair of a group called Stop the DeKalb County Mega-Dump; Joe Lill, Vice President of the Chicago Audubon Society talks about Birding America ViII. But who knew that he had prodigious musical talent? Check out the final ten minutes of the podcast to hear Joe wail on the trumpet...over the phone, no less.

Every week, Mike Nowak presents the Environmental Report on the Wisconsin Gardener radio show. In this report, he talks about the dozen kinds of produce that have the highest pesticide residues, according to the Environmental Working Group.

Guests: Robert Nevel and Gloria Needlman of KAM Isaiah Israel in Hyde Park talk about the KAM Isaiah Israel Congregation Food Producing Garden; Bob Vogl, president of the Illinois Renewable Energy Association previews the 9th Annual Illinois Renewable Energy & Sustainable Lifestyle Fair with Victor Zaderej and Ron Cowgill of Mighty House; Green Correspondent Leah Pietrusiak heads north to Milwaukee to jump in a compost pile with Sarah Christman of Growing Power.

Guests: Photographer Ernest J. Schweit of Wisconsin Barns, Jamie Henn of 350.org, local organizer Dave Lloyd of 350 DuPage--Sights and Sounds for Climate Action, John Didier and Gene McMullen of 2009 Great Pumpkin Weigh off at Didier Farms

Guests: Monarch butterfly correspondent and member of Monarch Watch Bob Erlich, Morton Arboretum Community Trees Advocate Edith Makra, Safer Pest Control Project's Steve Pincuspy

In the second hour of November 28, 2010 edition of The Mike Nowak Show, the holiday caroling group The Frozen Robins (of which Mike is a member, in the interest of full disclosure) get loose and funny.The highlight is their holiday "tribute" to Chicago mayoral candidate and former Obama Administration Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel.

Guests: Natural Resources Defense Council's Josh Mogerman talks about latest developments in the Asian Carp crisis; Mr. Brown Thumb invades the studio with his legion of Twitter followers; Chicago Tribune writer Monica Eng and Flora Confections Chief Operating Officer Lee Greenhouse discuss the heartbreaking action of the Chicago Health Department, which destroyed thousands of dollars of fruit purees in a licensing dispute. (This link contains the video that is posted on my home page.)

Guests: NeighborSpace Executive Director Ben Helphand talks about One Seed Chicago; Robin Schirmer of Churches' Center for Land and People and Rob Gardener of The Local Beet discuss Winter Farmers Markets in and around Chicago.

Laury Lewis previews the Sheffield Garden Walk & Festival; Dan Kosta plugs the Prairie State Bonsai Society's annual show next Saturday and Sunday at the Morton Arboretum; Mary DiCarlo from the TREE Fund talks about next week's broadcast of The Mike Nowak Show from Millennium Park for the 2010 STIHL Tour des Trees; Ann Molloy extolls the virtues of Neptune's Harvest fish fertilizer; Nina Newhouser invites folks to attend Andersonville Green Week; Woody Olsen touts next Sunday's Dearborn Garden Walk.

Guests: CMAP Executive Director Randy Blankenhorn talks about the launch of Go To 2040; Sandra Steingraber, Ph.D. discusses the release of the film Living Downstream, based on her book of the same name, with director Chanda Chevannes; the creation of the Chicago area national wildlife refuge Hackmatack is the mission of Cindy Skrukrud, a member of Friends of Hackmatack.

Guests: Purple Asparagus founder Melissa Graham talks about the Purple Asparagus Benefit on Sunday, August 29 at Uncommon Ground Restaurant in Edgewater; Rich and Susie Eyre and Rich's mom, Margaret, the Hosta Queen, preview next week's Hosta Happening at Rich's Foxwillow Pines in Woodstock; PLUS we catch New Orleans musicians Shamarr Allen & Paul Sanchez at the airport for a five minute conversation about their new album Bridging the Gap (and then we play as much music from it as we can during the show).

Guests: Chicago Gardener of the Year Ellen Moderhack and family, representing Franklin Fine Arts Center; Mike Mitchell, executive director of the Illinois Recycling Coalition, talking about America Recycles Day; Kay McKeen of SCARCE previews this Thursday's conference for people and organizations that want to learn about the new Illinois food scrap composting law.

Guests: Tayler Ulmer, Jose Bhagwandeen and Celeste Campos, winnders of CEDA's "My Backyard Garden: Keeping it Fresh" Contest; Greg Ecsedy from the Bobbex company on critter control in the garden; Lenny "Kaz" Kazlauskas from Artesa Home Visions--a sponsor of the "Ultimate Backyard Makeover" Contest--talks about improving your home's exterior; Mike Nowak Show reporter Leah Pietrusiak visits a farmers market in Beverly.

Discussion about Chicago Marathon and how tree trimmers can fight gangs in Chicago. Guests: Ryan Richardson of Richardson Farm in Spring Grove, Illinois, home of the world's larges corn maze; Stacey Pfingsten of No Foam Chicago.