November 5, 2017
Daylight Savings Time ends. Set your clocks back 1 hour.
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Fun Facts About Thanksgiving
- The National Turkey Federation (NTF) estimates that around 88 percent of Americans eat turkey on Thanksgiving. That's approximately 46 million turkeys!
- Male turkeys, also called toms, are the only ones that can gobble. The females, or hens, make clucking or clicking sounds.
- The first official presidential pardon of a turkey occurred much more recently than most might think: President George H.W. Bush did it in 1989, and it's since become an annual tradition. Stories of unofficial pardons, however, go further back - perhaps even to President Lincoln's days, when he supposedly pardoned a turkey after an impassioned plea from his son Tad for the bird's right to live. (whitehousehistory.org)
- Minnesota produces more turkeys than any other state in the U.S.with North Carolina holding a close second according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
- Macy's flagship store in Manhattan's Herald Square did such a brisk business that it expanded in 1924 to cover an entire city block stretching from Broadway to Seventh Avenue along 34th Street. To showcase the opening of the "World's Largest Store" and its 1 million square feet of retail space at the start of the busy holiday shopping season, Macy's decided to throw New York a parade on Thanksgiving morning. In spite of its timing, the parade was not actually about Thanksgiving at all but the next major holiday on the calendar-Christmas. Macy's hoped its "Christmas Parade" would whet the appetites of consumers for a holiday shopping feast. (history.com)
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 4-H Update
November
Burke County 4-H delegates will attend State 4-H Council Conference in Raleigh. Teen delegates will attend workshops on citizenship and leadership.
November 18
Burke County 4-H and Extension Staff will have a food booth at the final Tractor Pull in Lincoln County on
Saturday, November 18th!
The Antique Tractor Pull starts at
12 noon and runs until the final competition is over. (approx.
8pm) This event is open to the public and there is no charge to come watch. The Tractor Pull will be held beside Honey's Supermarket on Hwy 10 in Vale, NC. There will be door prizes and a Kiddie Pull for youth 10 yrs. and younger with prizes.
Come out and support Burke County 4-H while enjoying the show!
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Burke County Beekeepers
November 14, 2017
6:30 pm
The Burke County Beekeepers Association (BCBA) meets monthly at the Burke County Agricultural Building located at 130 Ammons Drive in Morganton. There is a featured speaker each month and the public is invited to attend. The BCBA is a chapter of the North Carolina State Beekeepers Association.
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Fall is upon us and plans are in the making for the 2018 Extension Master Gardener class that starts in January.
The thirteen-week training starts in mid-January at the Burke County Agricultural Building. It meets on Wednesdays from 9:00 until noon. Classes are both lecture and hands-on and many knowledgeable speakers come to work with the class. After completion of the class, each new Extension Master Gardener is required to give forty hours of volunteer time to the Extension horticulture program during the next year. Volunteer hours can be earned in a multitude of ways and there are always activities to satisfy every interest. Class size is limited and applications are being taken now. If you would like more information or would like to have an application, call our office at 828-764-9480.
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Buttercup Control in Pastures
Buttercups are a problem in cool-season grass pastures, and are easily recognized in early spring by their bright yellow flowers. Buttercups possess several weedy characteristics that make it difficult to control in pastures. Populations are usually greater in low areas of fields that tend to remain wet for long periods, and in pastures with poor stands of grass. Overgrazing usually increases the buttercup populations.
There are many species of buttercups, each with different characteristics. The bulbous, hairy and small flower buttercups tend to be more common in pastures. Pasture management techniques promoting the growth of pasture grasses will provide competition and inhibit the growth of buttercups. These practices include proper soil fertility and pH, avoidance of overgrazing, timely mowing and herbicide treatments. It is important to treat buttercups with herbicides before flowering, as treatments after flowering require higher rates and will not prevent seed formation. Try to treat buttercups when in the rosette stage, during November or February, or both if needed.
2-4-D ester formulations at 1-2 quarts/acre provided 100% control in one University of Kentucky study, so costs can be kept to a minimum if properly timed. Weedmaster at 3 pints/acre also provided 100% control, as did Crossbow at 2-3 quarts/acre. With perennial weeds such as buttercups, there are many factors involved with herbicide control because of species variety, so control may involve several seasons.
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Featured Recipe
This recipe and many more can be found in our
#Extension Eats
Cookbook
Recipes, tips & tricks, cuts of meat and more are included in the cookbook. These make great gifts!
$15 each
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Report to the People 
November 28, 2017
Extension is Everywhere
Extension is NC State University's largest outreach function and largest non-formal educational outreach organization. In addition to Burke County Extension staff, more than 750 volunteers and citizens donate their time and resources to help better address local needs. Come discover how Extension is:
- FEEDING OUR FUTURE
- IMPROVING OUR HEALTH
- ENRICHING OUR YOUTH
The meeting will start at 6:00 pm with dinner, followed by a tour of interactive displays that show how Extension is at work in Burke County.
Pre-registration is required. Please RSVP by November 17th by calling our office at 828-764-9480 or emailing [email protected].
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Safe Food for the Holidays 
Holiday meals have been linked to many harmful pathogens, including Salmonella and Campylobacter.
Cooking for a large crowd, whether in the home or a community kitchen, can lead to mistakes at the expense of food safety.
Follow these tips to have a safe and happy holiday season:
- Clean and sanitize utensils and work surfaces after preparing raw turkey for roasting.
- Wash your hands after handling raw meat or poultry.
- Don't wash your turkey - research shows that when washing poultry, pathogens can be spread within 3 feet of the sink, where other foods may be prepared.
- Color is not an indicator of safety or doneness - the only way to know whether the turkey is done is with a tip-sensitive digital thermometer reading at least 165 degrees Fahrenheit
- Test temperature in multiple spots, without hitting the bone - hitting the bone could give an inaccurate temperature reading
- Refrigerate leftovers within 2 hours of taking it out of the oven - Turkey should be cooled to 41 degrees Fahrenheit quickly. This is best accomplished by slicing and placing it in small re-sealable bags and laying them flat in the refrigerator. Some spore-forming bacteria will grow and form toxins if kept at room temperature for too long.
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Pesticide Exam 
November 20, 2017
1:00 - 5:00
An NCDA Pesticide Inspector will be onsite at the Burke County Agricultural Building to administer Pesticide License Exams. For more information on the exam, including registration, study guides, and fees, visit the NCDA Pesticide Section website at http://www.ncagr.gov/SPCAP/pesticides/exam.htm
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Perennials
Perennials have the reputation of being the maintenance free answer to the busy gardener's lack of time. Most of us want to have attractive flowers around our homes but it does take a good chunk of time to keep them growing and blooming. Most gardening information deems the perennial as the answer to this problem.
It is true that perennials are less maintenance-needy than annuals, but to say that they require no care is not true. Most perennials need to be divided at least every three years. Overcrowding can seriously affect their performance.
Perennials may be successfully divided in the spring just as they begin to sprout, and in the fall as they begin to die back for the winter. The easiest way to divide is to dig up the entire plant and then separate it into pieces containing three to five shoots each. Plant the pieces back into the ground wherever more plants are desired.
Some perennials decline in vigor as the clump gets larger, so it is best to take only the side shoots from the clump. Plant these sections and discard the center of the clump. Remember also, that to keep the perennial garden looking full, do not divide all plants at the same time, but stagger plant division so that the garden will not be entirely redone at the same time.
Perennials can be a wonderful addition to any garden and by making use of divisions for planting new garden areas, the expense of purchasing new plant material is minimized.
Now is the perfect time to get into the perennial garden and divide any plants that might be in need of attention. Friends, family and neighbors can also benefit from this task as all gardeners welcome excess plants from someone else's garden.
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Managing Fire Ants
November 9, 2017
6:00 pm
On Thursday, November 9th at 6:00pm, N.C. Cooperative Extension will hold a workshop on managing fire ants. The workshop will be held at the Burke County Agricultural Building located at 130 Ammons Dr. in Morganton. Extension agents, Donna Teasley and Damon Pollard will talk about how to best control these insects, both in the home environment and in pastures and fields. This program is free but pre-registration is appreciated and can be done by calling 828-764-9480.
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Sustainable Agriculture Conference
November 3-5, 2017
Durham, NC
Regular registration rates end October 11, 2017
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NC Farm School 2018 - Catawba River
Make your farming dreams a reality!
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