Inside Climate News - Last summer, the wild blueberry fields at Crystal Spring Farm turned red too soon. Severe drought had gripped most of the state of Maine. At his farm near the town of Brunswick, Seth Kroeck knew the leaves were changing color prematurely because the blueberry plants were stressed. Berries shriveled before they could ripen. The farm’s 2025 harvest was almost a total loss.
As the climate changes, these losses are getting more common for wild blueberry farmers. And, experts say, the solutions are pricey. .Wild blueberries are an iconic food in Maine, like lobster rolls or whoopie pies. But they aren’t the same as the fruits sold by the pint in a grocery store.
....Maine’s farms contribute almost the entirety of the United States’ commercially sold wild blueberries. The industry harvested nearly 88 million pounds of fruit in 2023, bringing $361 million in revenue to the state, according to the Wild Blueberry Commission of Maine.
Maine Morning Star - Gerald Talbot, a civil rights leader and the first African American to serve in the Maine Legislature, died Saturday at the age of 94. Talbot, who was born in Bangor in 1931, was an advocate for civil and human rights. He travelled to Washington, D.C. to participate in the 1963 March on Washington, and in 1964 he helped reestablish the NAACP in Portland, where he served as president for three terms. In that role he helped pass the Maine Fair Housing Bill and Maine Human Rights Act.
In 1972, he was elected to the first of three terms in the Maine Legislature. During his tenure, he introduced legislation related to an array of social justice and human rights issues including the treatment of migrant workers, tribal sovereignty, and creating a holiday to honor Martin Luther King Jr. He also sponsored the first gay rights legislation and passed a landmark bill to have the “n-word” removed from maps and place names in Maine.
Maine Morning Star - With the June 9 primary elections less than a month away, Maine voters can vote absentee in person at their municipal clerk’s office starting Monday. Under the state’s semi-open primary system, voters registered with an official political party can cast a ballot in their party’s primary election while unenrolled voters can choose to cast a ballot in either the Democratic or Republican primaries.
....While voters will be able to rank the primary candidates, the general election for governor and the Legislature do not use ranked choice voting. However, both primary and general elections for congressional races are ranked.
Patch - What your neighbors are talking about on social media
- 774-212-3816 50% off your first mow if you hire us for bi weekly mowing!!!! (Nextdoor Cushing Briggs-Pleasant Hill)
- The Gap, Inc. posted a job opening for Retail Sales Associate - Main St - Freeport in Freeport. Apply here.
- Circle K posted a job opening for Store Assistant Manager in Freeport. Apply here.
- You can search for other jobs near Freeport here.