Top Stories from NCPR

One of the joys of spring is the appearance, and fragrance, of lilacs. Most old farmsteads and gardens have at least one lilac tree. A Potsdam couple has started a second career of bringing lilacs back to more yards.About ten years ago, Janice and Cliff Westerling sold their home in the village of Potsdam and bought a 50-acre farm near West Potsdam. Now retired, they're focusing on growing and selling lilacs. Their gardens at Moore's Hill Farm include more than 30 varieties. One of the most fragrant flowers in the plant world, lilacs are available in lots of colors - including royal purples, presidential blues and creamy yellows.Todd Moe stopped by for a tour of the Westerling's nursery and display gardens. It's still too early for blossoms. Janice says the flowering season is typically Mother's Day to Father's Day, but she and Cliff love to show off the plants to curious visitors. So, why lilacs? Cliff says the hardy varieties are easy to grow in the North Country, despite pesky deer. [full story]

New York state will provide additional help to suburban Rochester towns where wind-driven floodwaters of Lake Ontario have been affecting hundreds of homes.Gov Andrew Cuomo was in Charlotte, at the mouth of the Genessee River, to make the announcement: "I am declaring a state of emergency today; what that allows are state agencies more flexibility and speed in actually being responsive to this situation." [full story]

Traditional Arts in Upstate New York is hosting a day for readers and writers on Saturday in Canton. NCPR is media sponsor for the one-day gathering of writers and publishers from across the region who have produced work about North Country and Adirondack culture and heritage, natural history and other topics. The event will also include readings, displays, panel discussions, book signings and a workshop for young writers.TAUNY's Varick Chittenden told Todd Moe that the overall theme for the event is "place-based" writing. [full story]

North Country Congresswoman Elise Stefanik could be one of the deciding votes on the Republican healthcare bill being debated in Washington. But Stefanik is refusing to say whether she backs the controversial measure. [full story]

This tale from India about pride, arrogance, and a parade of ants and comes from the Hindu holy text the "Brahma Vaivarta Purana."Story Traveler is unscripted storytelling from everywhere in the world, stories for the heart to hear and the mind to imagine. [full story]

State and local officials are moving forward with plans for a new rail-trail that would link Lake Placid, Saranac Lake and Tupper Lake. That would mean tearing up a 34-mile stretch of track. They're holding public information sessions this week and next to unveil a first draft of what the trail might look like. But there are still lots of questions about how the rail-trail will operate and the project also faces one more test in court. [full story]

Authorities say hundreds of homes along Lake Ontario's southern shore in western New York have been hit by wind-driven flooding. The lake is near or at flood stage in eastern Lake Ontario, too, but so far Jefferson County has been spared. [full story]

Those who go up to camp on an Adirondack lake or in the woods share a special bond. Camp life is about rest and relaxation, connecting with nature, and forming bonds with family and friends, but it's also about the objects that make vacation time comfortable.In the late 19th and early 20th centuries — the heyday of logging operations in New York state — manufacturers were exploring different ways to use all that wood to create new products. Paper was an obvious choice, but not just for newspapers, books and stationery. Pulpwood was also used to create practical objects, such as pitchers, urns and washtubs — for use in the home or a camp in the Adirondacks. [full story]

Assembly Democrats grilled Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s energy officials for more than four hours Monday about a plan executed by the Public Service Commission and a major energy company that will keep three upstate nuclear power plants alive for the next 12 years. [full story]

He was a millionaire who fixed a thousand pairs of feet a day, but he never overcharged. While this might sound like the beginning of a strange joke, it’s actually the very real details of a successful doctor named Mahlon Locke, who lived and worked just across the border in Williamsburg, Ontario. His is a story forgotten by most history books, maybe because it's almost too fantastical to believe. [full story]