NCPR News Staff: Martha Foley
News and Public Affairs Director

Gardening catalogs are in the mailbox. Amy Ivy and Martha Foley are sorting through the glossy offerings. Today, best advice on making raspberries a success.

Warm spells can be a good time to catch up on garden chores. Horticulturist Amy Ivy tells Martha Foley you don’t have to wait until spring.

A decision is expected today in St. Lawrence County in the case of an Amish couple accused of neglecting their 1 1/2-year-old son by refusing medical treatment for a life-threatening heart condition. Todd Moe has more.

Martha Foley and horticulturist Amy Ivy talk about care of the yard and garden during the snowy months.

A case now in St. Lawrence County Family Court sets the county Social Services Department against religious beliefs of the old order Amish in the North Country. Family Court Judge Barbara Potter ruled this week that an Amish couple neglected their year-and-a-half year old son by refusing medical treatment for his life-threatening heart condition. Gideon and Barbara Hershberger of Winthrop say surgery needed to repair the defect violates their religious beliefs. Judge Potter will decide next Tuesday whether to allow the social services department to remove Eli Hershberger removed from his parents’ custody for the surgery. Public defender William Galvin represented the family. He declined to comment on the case.

Anthropologist Karen Johnson-Weiner has been studying Amish language and customs for 25 years. She’s also become with many North Country Amish families during that time. She doesn’t know the Hershbergers, or their son, but she testified at trial this fall on their behalf, particularly about the Amish sect they are part of: the ultra-conservative Swarzentruber Amish. Not all Amish live by the same rules; each church community sets its own. All Amish accept modern medical care, Johnson-Weiner says, but only to a certain point, and that point differs from community to community. Johnson-Weiner told Martha Foley Swartzentruber Amish draw the line at open heart surgery, and pacemakers. And that puts the Hershbergers at odds with the surgery doctors say Eli needs.

Gov. David Paterson will send his budget to the legislature tomorrow. Despite the administration's attempts to keep control of the bad news, details are leaking out. After opposing higher taxes for months, the governor wants to increase several taxes, from gasoline to clothing. Although Paterson won't seek to raise income tax rates, budget spokesman Jeffrey Gordon says he will eliminate legal exemptions he considers income tax "loop holes." Paterson's staff said the budget will include proposals to increase the welfare grant, while making government subsidized insurance available to more of the working poor. The governor projects deficits will total $47 billion over three years. The current budget is about $120 billion. Martha Foley spoke with capitol correspondent Karen DeWitt about the budget, disarray among Democrats in the state Senate, and the difficult days ahead in Albany.

Martha Foley and horticulturist Amy Ivy discuss visits to greenhouses, including the Montreal Botanic Gardens during the winter months.

Holidays may not start in the kitchen but all the good ones end up there, as families and friends come together to celebrate around food. At Potsdam's Beth El Synagogue the public is invited in, too — just before Chanukah — for the annual food festival. This year's festival is Sunday, Dec. 14. Before you get in the door you'll smell the latkes or potato pancakes frying in oil, and the matzo ball soup. Another staple of the event is the blintz... Martha Foley has today's Heard Up North. (Thanks to Lamar Bliss for recording and producing this piece.)

Martha Foley talks with horticulturist Amy Ivy for finding the freshest Christmas tree and ideas for alternatives to a traditional tree.

Canada’s Prime Minister, Stephen Harper, won a stay of political execution yesterday, but the opposition parties vow that they will be waiting when the House of Commons reconvenes next month. The Governor General agreed to suspend Parliament until late January. At that time, Harper's Conservatives will present a budget, and are expected to face a fresh confidence vote. Rallies have been held in several cities as Canadians voiced their feelings about the political standoff in Ottawa; more are expected this weekend.

Harper said an extended Christmas break will give all political parties a chance to work together and focus on the economy. But Liberal Leader Stephane Dion says only a "monumental change" by Harper would persuade the opposition parties from toppling his government. New Democrat Leader Jack Layton says he can't have confidence in a prime minister who would shutdown Parliament knowing he's about to lose a confidence vote.

Dr. Robert Thacker is director of the Canadian Studies program at St. Lawrence University. He joined Martha Foley in the studio this morning to help sort out the context, and the possible consequences.