ALEXANDER COUNTY CENTER
November 2018


What do I do with all these leftovers???  
Check out the video below:

Handling the Leftovers
Handling the Leftovers

Look for more helpful tips at the N.C. Cooperative Extension-Alexander County website.

November Healthy Eats!
Recommended Recipes to Try

With fall finally here, forget about trying to save those summer squash in the garden and switch your  veggies to winter squash. Winter squash matures on the vine and is covered with a hard rind that allows  you to store for a much longer period. Squash that falls into the winter squash categories are acorn,  butternut, Hubbard, and mammoth varieties.

Winter squash takes a lot longer to mature than summer squash, typically around 80 to 120 days but  they still pack the same nutritious values that summer squash does, if not more. Winter squash can  provide many nutritious health benefit to help reduce chronic disease such as heart and respiratory  disease, diabetes, and arthritis. They are high in vitamin C and alpha and beta carotene, is a healthy  source of fiber, and high in antioxidant and anti-inflammatory compounds.

Don't let those hard rind terrified you into trying them out. Winter squash are very easy to cook and can
be baked, boiled, or steamed. The quickest way to cook winter squash is by steaming. You will need to
peel the rind and remove the seeds but it'll okay take around 7 minutes to cook. If you decide to bake
the squash, you do not need to peel the rind or remove the seeds. Simply remove the ends and cut the
squash in half, lengthwise down the middle. Pierce the meat of the squash a few times and bake in a pan  until tender. The seeds and skin can be easily removed after it has been baked. 

This holiday, try out something new for your side dish. This recipe is from peasandcrayons.com


Farm-City Week
 
National Farm-City Week  is officiall y celebrated each year during the end of November around Thanksgiving.  Farm-City is a gra s sr oots organization of comm ittees e stablished in 1955 at the community, county and state levels to foster an und erstanding of the interdependence between rural and urban residents. 

Just think about what North Carolina would be without agriculture and agribusinesses.  Over 101 million dollars would be absent from our county's economy alone, approximately 18 out of every 100 jobs in our state wouldn't exist. Many of our comforts and our quality of life would be very different, and sweet potatoes and turkeys probably wouldn't be on our holiday menus.

In North Carolina, communities celebrate Farm-City Week in the fall with harvest festivals, dinners, farm tours, and fruit and vegetable picking.

The North Carolina Cooperative Extension is a partner in the state's Farm-City Week observation. On the local level, many Alexander County farmers and local business leaders will come together Monday evening ( November 19th) at the Alexander Senior Center to celebrate Farm-City Week. This event is organized by the N.C. Cooperative Extension-Alexander County Center and sponsored by Carolina Farm Credit and Farm Bureau.  These two organizations are the major contributors to Farm-City Week both at the state and national levels.

So, sit down to a meal and celebrate Farm-City Week during the Thanksgiving Holidays.  Think about what our lives would be like without this vital partnership...a partnership that grows all year long.  And remember, it is important for all Americans to understand the sources of their food, clothing and shelter. The more one learns how food makes its way from the farm to your table the more you'll learn about the deep partnerships between the farms and the North Carolina cities that helps drive our economy and our way of life.

Tickets for this event are $5 and can be purchased at the N.C. Cooperative Extension-Alexander Extension Center by Thursday, November 8th.

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4-H H oliday Craft Workshop

Date:  Wednesday, November 21
Time:  9:00 a.m.-2:00 p.m.
Ages:  6 and older
Cost:  $15.00 

Come kick off the holidays by making crafts to keep  or give as gifts to your loved ones.   Money is due at time of registration.  Spaces are limited!

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November Garden Calendar


Plants in Flower
  • Witch Hazel
Plants with Colorful Berries
  • American Beautyberry, burford Holly, Chinese Holly, Foster Holly, Nellie R. Stevens Holly, Nandina, Pyracantha, Washington Hawthorn, and Dogwood
Fertilizing
  • Use wood ashes around the vegetable garden, bulb beds, and around non-acid loving plants if soil pH is below 6.0.
Planting
  • Trees and shrubs can be transplanted in the autumn.
  • Plant one year old asparagus crowns in the vegetable garden this month.
  • Finish planting spring-flowering bulbs.
Pruning
  • Time to trim existing asparagus foliage. Cut to the ground after the foliage is killed by frost.
  • Cut back and clean up frost-killed perennials.
  • When cutting holiday greener, use sharp pruners to make cuts above a bud or side branch.
Lawn Care
  • Mow your cool season or tall fescue lawn as needed.
  • Keep tree leaves from collecting on your lawn.
Propagation
  • Water your cuttings in the coldframe as needed.
  • You may want to try your hand at air layering on some of your house plants like dieffenbachia or dumb cane.
Specific Chores
  • Soil test results should be back if samples were sent in September or October. Apply the recommended lime to the areas in need of liming. Wait until spring to fertilize.
  • Remember to water your evergreen trees and shrubs thoroughly before winter set in, particularly if weather conditions have been dry.
  • Look to see if screens or windbreaks are needed around your home.
  • Continue filling the compost bin with the fallen leaves.




Save the Date

NC Agritunity Conference & Tradeshow
Saturday, February 9th, 2019
Iredell County Agricultural Center

Join us for the 3rd annual NC Agritunity Conference and trade show for a day of agricultural education. We have a great lineup of speaker and vendors for this year. 

NC Agritunity is a one-day educational conference for farmers of all types, featuring a tradeshow and a keynote speaker. Large commodity producers, livestock producers, small farm managers, beginning farmers, and anyone just interested in agriculture are welcome to attend. Continuing education credits (CEUs) and pesticide training credits will be available in some of the presentations for existing license holders.  Our keynote speaker this year is Carol Coulter from Heritage Homestead Goat Dairy. She will be talking about To learn more about the educational session and feature vendors, please visit the website at Iredell.ces.ncsu.edu or contact your local Cooperative Extension Center. 

The event is free and open to the public but you register online via eventbrite.

Please  contact Matt Lendhart if you are interested in setting up as a vendor at 704.873.0507. For additional information on how to be a vendor please visit our website. 
 Read more N.C. Cooperative Extension news at >>
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