June 2023
June 2023
Growing Chatham
Growing Chatham
N.C. Cooperative Extension Chatham County Center
N.C. Cooperative Extension Chatham County Center
Podcast
Say Hello to "Growing UP Chatham"
A Fresh Series from the N.C. Cooperative Extension, Chatham County Center
Join us on this exciting new journey as we chat with special guests from the community, local government, and businesses. We will delve into various topics related to Chatham County in this engaging new series.
Our debut episode features former 4-H Agent Connie McAdams, who served in the role from 1976 to 1979. We can't wait to catch up and hear what she's been up to since leaving Extension in 1979.
Sunday, June 18, 2023
Our office will be closed for Juneteenth
on Monday, June 19th.
Meet Sarah Sessoms, Our Summer Intern!
4-H Embryology Program Concludes in Local Classrooms
Chatham County 4-H just wrapped up its annual Embryology Program in local schools across the county for Spring 2023! The 4-H Embryology Program teaches youth about the development life-cycle of a chicken through a hands-on experiential learning model, which begins with sourcing fertilized eggs through local heritage breed poultry producers. We had wonderful hatches this spring with eggs sourced from Stauber Farms, and our 4-H crew is extremely grateful for the participating educators and students who took part in this school enrichment program this year!
Betsy-Jeff Penn 4-H Center Featured in the May 2023 Issue of Our State Magazine
You don’t want to miss the 2023 feature article Where the Wild Campers Are in Our State Magazine! The article features the Betsy-Jeff Penn 4-H Center, with writing from journalist Jeri Rowe and photos from award-winning photographers Jerry Wolford and Scott Muthersbaugh. Also featured are campers from Chatham County - it's a must read!
Hurry, hurry! A few spaces still remain in our lineup of 4-H Summer Camps for 2023!
Camps are filling up fast, but a few spaces still remain. Due to the generous support of the United Way of Chatham County, need-based scholarships are available to qualifying families to assist with camp registration costs; inquire with 4-H staff for more info. We hope to see you this summer!
Chatham County 4-H Activity Day: A Fun-Filled Event to Showcase Youth Talents
On May 12th in Pittsboro and May 19th in Siler City, the Chatham County Activity Day provided a platform for young people to demonstrate their skills and talents through presentations and visuals. Every participant received a green participation ribbon, and winners will be announced in June. The successful individuals will advance to compete in the District Activity Day, scheduled for June 24th on the campus of N.C. A & T State University.
Pest, Disease, and Weed Management in Vegetable Gardens
Extension Gardener Workshop and Webinar
June 7, 2023
9:00-11:00 a.m. (in-person)
6:00-7:30 p.m. (Online)
What’s the Matter With My ‘Mater?
Diagnosis and Management of Pests
and Diseases of Tomatoes
7/5/2023 9:00 -11:30 a.m. (In-person)
6:00-7:30 p.m. (ONLINE)
Join Matt Jones (Extension Horticulture Agent) for a workshop and webinar on identifying and managing the most common pests, diseases, and physiological disorders of home-grown tomatoes. When feasible, organic management options will be emphasized. In the workshop, we welcome you to bring tomato samples for Master Gardener Volunteers to help you identify and manage! Otherwise, the content of the lectures will be identical in the online and in-person versions.
Join Matt Jones (Extension Horticulture Agent) for a workshop and webinar on how to manage pests, diseases, and weeds. Participants will learn how to distinguish among different kinds of insect damage, how to reduce weed pressure, and how the Master Gardener℠ volunteers can help you identify problems and make management recommendations, with a focus on organic management strategies.
Planting Basil? Extension Master Gardener Volunteers Recommend These Varieties!
Many thanks to the N.C. Cooperative Extension agents and Master Gardener volunteers including the Chatham County Master Gardener volunteers for their help conducting this research project!
Are you eager to serve caprese salad made with basil harvested from your own garden? Good news! Now that the threat of frost is over, it’s time to plant sweet basil. This easy to grow culinary herb can be harvested throughout summer and fall. However, the harvest season can be cut short by a disease known as basil downy mildew.
While fungicides available to home gardeners have little effect on controlling this disease, new BDM resistant varieties offer the promise of a season-long basil harvest. But how do these new disease resistant varieties compare in taste and garden performance to ‘Genovese,’ the tried and true favorite of cooks and gardeners that is unfortunately highly susceptible to BDM?
Extension Master Gardener℠ Volunteers Investigate
To answer these questions, over 80 NC State Extension Master Gardener℠ volunteers helped conduct a basil variety trial last summer. Working with horticulture agents at their local N.C. Cooperative Extension county center, Master Gardener volunteers in 18 counties from the mountains to the coast grew both ‘Genovese’ and the BDM resistant basil varieties ‘Rutgers Obsession,’ ‘Rutgers Devotion,’ ‘Rutgers Thunderstruck,’ ‘Rutgers Passion,’ and ‘Prospera’ as part of a research project with the NC State Department of Horticultural Science.
The Chatham County Master Gardener volunteers
participating the in Basil Downy Mildew Trial
Emergency Bumble Bee Nest Relocation!
A local beekeeper and flower grower recently contacted Sustainable Agriculture Agent Debbie Roos for help relocating a wild bumble bee nest that was inside her well house. The well pump had broken down and the nest was blocking access for the plumber.
NC Participates in the Great Southeastern Pollinator Census
We are very excited to share a new citizen science program for North Carolinians: the Great Southeast Pollinator Census. It was started in Georgia in 2019 and has since expanded into South Carolina and now to North Carolina!
Unlike iNaturalist or Bumble Bee Watch or Monarch Watch, this is a one-time contribution-type program, where citizen scientists of all
ages and types observe pollinators once during a two-day sampling period. This narrow, structured window allows scientists to see a concentrated snapshot in time across a wide geographic area and makes it easy for ANYONE to participate.
Mark your calendars for June 7 for our North Carolina-wide webinar about how you can participate in the 2023 Great Southeast Pollinator Census! Registration is required but is open to anyone in NC!
Southeast Bumble Bee Atlas Field Day at Pollinator Paradise Garden
Please join us in a collaborative effort to track and conserve the bumble bees of the southeast through a Southeast Bumble Bee Atlas Field Day training on Friday, June 16 from 9:00-11:30 a.m. at Cooperative Extension’s Pollinator Paradise Garden in Pittsboro.
The Southeast Bumble Bee Atlas is a large-scale community science effort aimed at gathering the
data needed to track and conserve southeastern bumble bees.
The June 16 Field Day is an opportunity to connect with other Southeast Bumble Bee Atlas volunteers and get some hands-on experience. Field Day participants will learn how to use an insect net, how to collect data according to project methods, and how to identify bumble bees.
Chatham County Sustainable Agriculture Agent Debbie Roos was so excited, and not at all surprised, when she learned that farmer Cee Stanley of Green Heffa Farms had won the 2023 UNC Ackerman Center for Excellence in Sustainability Distinguished Entrepreneur Award! Cee was chosen for this award by the students at UNC Chapel Hill. It's been thrilling watching Cee build her farm business in Liberty over the past few years. Cee grows tea and medicinal herbs and makes amazing premium teas. She is also a highly sought after educator and consultant and a genius marketer. Congratulations Cee...your hard work is being recognized! Visit her website at greenheffafarms.com
Chatham Farmer Wins UNC Award!
Anyone with an interest in bees and a desire to help them in a hands-on way is encouraged to attend – no prior experience needed!
Early Spring Snapshots from Extension’s Pollinator Paradise Garden
Cooperative Extension's Demonstration Pollinator Garden in Pittsboro is looking great with over 60 species currently in bloom! Agriculture Agent Debbie Roos has been busy leading garden tours and working in the garden with her volunteers.
Debbie has posted some of her favorite snapshots from early spring in the garden on her Growing Small Farms website...take a peek and come on out to visit the garden!
NC State University 2023 Organic Commodities Field Day
Registration is now open for the 2023 Organic Commodities Field Day on July 18. This in-person event will cover new research on organic sunflower production including variety trials, pest management, nitrogen rate, and plant densities. We will also highlight new work on soy, organic fiber hemp production, and more!
This event is located at the Cherry Research Farm in Goldsboro, NC. We will kick the field day off at 8:30 a.m. and end with lunch at 12 p.m.
Playdough and Repro
At our Chatham County Youth Livestock Team practice on Monday, the team learned about the female reproductive system in livestock, including anatomy and functions. They also built models of the reproductive tract and identified each organ. This knowledge will be very helpful for their upcoming competitions this year! Learn more about the reproductive system.
NCSU Grazing Workshop Small Ruminant Educational Unit in Raleigh NC
July 25, 2023
(more information coming soon)
In many parts of the country it has been much cooler than normal well into the month of May. Even here in Mississippi we have had a very pleasant spring. Nighttime temperatures in the 40s and 50s with daytime highs in the 70s. Our cool-season perennials and annuals have persisted far longer than in most years. In the South we are full bore into our 2020 grazing season. Many of you in the northern states are just getting started. Regardless of when your grazing season begins, here are my top 10 tips for grazing.
Dr. Allen’s 10 Tips for Summer Grazing Success
FAMACHA Certification Workshop
FAMACHA is a method for measuring the level of anemia in sheep, goats and camelids caused by the barber pole worm. FAMACHA scores can be utilized, along with other management practices, in making decisions about parasite control methods. At the end of this training you’ll be certified in the correct FAMACHA method and receive your own FAMACHA score card. This workshop will be divided into two segments: classroom education and hands-on learning. Both components are mandatory to satisfy requirements for FAMACHA certification. The registration fee is $25.
Register for the
FAMACHA Certification Workshop
The Chatham County Youth Cattle Working Team Participates in State Youth Cattle Competition
The Chatham County Youth Cattle Working Team (Emma Langley, Lilli Pilkington, Mykalah Pettitt, and Nathan Barbour) traveled to the State Youth Cattle Working Competition, after placing 3rd at the Regional Contest in November 2022. The contest was held at the Upper Mountain Research Station in Laurel Springs, NC. The team worked through breed ID, tool ID, and feed ID as well as a beef cattle husbandry test before working 3 animals through a chute giving vaccines and dewormer. Our team placed 10th in the state and we are very proud!
Decline in First Quarter 2023 Timber Prices
Dr. Robert Bardon (NCSU, Forestry & Natural Resources) reports that North Carolina average standing timber prices decreased across all major pine and hardwood products in the first quarter of 2023 compared to the first quarter of 2022. Decline in prices was reflective of the impact on demand that was hindered by the economic conditions that negatively impact most forest product markets.
Mini Fire Festival
Wed., June 7th
Carl Alwin Schenck Memorial Forest (Raleigh, NC)
12:30-5:00pm
Join in on a free family-friendly fire festival at Schenck Forest in Raleigh, NC. Come learn about prescribed fire with a small demonstration burn and educational booths representing several organizations. Pizza is provided!
Agenda:
12:30 - Pizza & Visit Booths
1:30 - K-12 FireWorks Activities
2:15 - Firescaping and Home Hazard Assessments
3:30 - Small Burn Demonstration
4:00 - Peers and Pros 360 Activity: A Group Discussion About Wildland Fire
Forest Landowner Resource Workshop
June 20, 2023
Fayetteville, NC
FREE resource event which will address the following topics: Prescribed Burn Associations, Taxes, NRCS Farm Bill (EQIP & CSP), Partners for Fish and Wildlife, Cooperative Extension, and the Forest Development Program. Supper is provided. Please register by June 13th by calling or emailing (benjy.strope@ncwildlife.org or 910-874-5562). Space is limited.
Invasive Insect Activity Is Heating Up! See Them? Report Them!
The warm weather seems to be here to stay and with that, last year’s new invasive insect arrivals are this year’s pests to watch for. Both the spotted lanternfly and elm zigzag sawfly have recently emerged in North Carolina and we need you on the lookout for them!
Spotted Lanternfly Be on the lookout for spotted lanternfly egg masses and nymphs. Spotted lanternfly nymphs were first documented this spring in the infested area in Forsyth and Guilford counties on March 27th. After hatching, nymphs stay on or near the egg mass shortly then move to new growth on plant hosts to feed. They prefer tree-of-heaven, but feed on at least 70 host plants in the US. Sightings can be reported through the NCDA&CS See It – Snap It- Report It system.
Read more about the Invasive Insects
Kitchen Creators Cooking Camp Starting July 2023
This summer, 11 to 14 year old youth can attend four days packed with hands-on learning in the kitchen! The camp will teach campers about safe knife skills, food safety, cooking techniques, and baking. Camp days will take place on Wednesdays starting on July 12th through August 2nd 9:30 a.m. – 3:30 p.m.
To learn more, please click on the flyer below.
Healthy Home Spring Cleaning Tips for the Kitchen
June is National Healthy Homes Month and a great time to brush up on home cleaning tips and safety reminders. Most kitchens stay pretty busy with food storage, food prep and cooking, meal clean-up and eating. With all that use, our kitchens need regular cleaning to keep everyone safe.
Take a look at our cleaning tips to keep your kitchen healthy and safe for all.
Chocolate Chip Cookies Made With NC Wheat
Did you know that you can cook at home with North Carolina wheat? North Carolina farmers grow the type of wheat that is best for baking cookies. If you would like to make homemade chocolate chip cookies using North Carolina grown wheat, we have a recipe and video for you! Here NC State Family and Consumer Sciences Agent, Andrea Sherrill, demonstrates how to make this recipe at home:
This publication is part of the When Your Income Drops series.
Part #2: What About Your Assets?
An asset is something you own that has value. Now that you are living on less, it is tempting to cash in your assets to pay the bills and make ends meet. Before you start cashing in, think about the types of assets you have and the long-term implications of cashing them in.
Your most important asset is the human capital of you and other members of the family. Your education, special training, skills, talents and other abilities can be exchanged for cash. Whether you use your human capital for barter, for odd jobs around the neighborhood, for a part-time job or a new job, it is the asset that will be most important in moving you forward and out of the current crisis.
In addition to human capital, you have three kinds of financial assets. Liquid assets can easily be converted to cash, like checking and savings accounts, money market accounts and funds, and short-term certificates of deposit (CDs). Investment assets are those you have set aside to earn income and gain value for the future, like stocks, bonds, mutual funds, real estate, and accounts specifically designed for education expenses or retirement. Tangible assets are not easily converted to cash and include your home, automobile, and other personal property. It is important to consider the type and value of your assets before you use them to help you make ends meet.
Ag History
A few years ago, my friend Jesse Fearrington gifted me a box of old books, which led to a surprising discovery. As I sifted through the contents, I stumbled upon a small blue book that initially appeared to be a Bible. On closer inspection, however, it turned out to be a "Handbook for Agricultural Workers" dating back to 1963. While flipping through the pages, I realized that this book was an invaluable resource for Extension Ag agents helping farmers with their problems.
Many thanks to Matt Jones, Brandi King, Kristina Britt, Sarah Sessoms, and Bobbie McLean for sharing their valuable insights and thoughts on video as well.
However, as I delved deeper, I also discovered some questionable content that is no longer acceptable today. Curious, I shared the book with my colleagues in Extension and the Farm Service Agency and asked them to take a look and share their thoughts on video.
After editing the footage and reviewing it, I found that our reactions were quite similar. Extension agent, Matt Jones, shared how Extension agents utilized these books until the 1990s. The video is a must-watch for a brief lesson in history and a good laugh. You won't want to miss Matt's reaction to the questionable content!
This little blue book may have been published over 50 years ago, but it serves as a reminder of how much has changed and how far we have come in terms of social progress.
I would like to extend my gratitude to Lori Andrews, Vonetta French, and Claudia Austin from the Farm Service Agency for being such good sports and permitting me to film their reactions.
A Double Look at the Little Blue Book
From our Community Partners
6th Annual Juneteenth Festival
Goldston Public Library Announces Programs and Events in June
CORE is hosting their 6th Annual Juneteenth Festival on Saturday, June 17th, from 11 am - 4pm in Pittsboro. This year will be a celebration of Black Arts with a headlining band, Liquid Pleasure, a drumline, step show, Black Business Expo, lecture series, kids' activities, food trucks, and more!
Visit the event Facebook page for more details.
GOLDSTON, NC—Goldston Public Library is thrilled to announce new programs and events during the month of June for the Chatham County community to enjoy. The following events are free and open to the public.
