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February 29:
Starting Seeds Indoors
March 10:
Field Crops & Pasture IPM Workshop
March 14:
Gardening with Containers & Bay-Wise Gardening
March 28:
Gardening for Your Health
April 3:
Online Private Pesticide Applicator Recertification
April 4:
Container Gardening & All About Monarchs
April 10:
Good Friday
Office closed.
April 17:
Online Nutrient Mgmt Voucher Recertification
April 25:
Growing Hostas from Seeds & Gardening for Hummingbirds, Butterflies and Moths
May 16:
Container Gardening & All About Houseplants
May 25:
Memorial Day
Office closed.
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January-February 2020
It is hard to believe that we are closer to spring now than to winter! Its been really energizing to watch the days grow longer and migrating birds return to our area showing up at feeders and in yards.
We will be offering many classes for farmers and gardeners as we move into spring. Please check out our web site for the latest Master Gardener and Extension educator offerings. It's also a great time to tune up your eating habits and "Spring into Health" :-) and 4-H will also offer new progams this spring.
Its also almost time to become more alert to the sun and start to wear your sunscreen again if you stopped for the winter months. Start working up your garden soil and plant some early flowers to prove its really almost spring!
Best to all,
Karol Westelinck Dyson
Capital Area Extension Director
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Mark Your Calendar!
Field Crops & Pasture IPM Workshop
Tuesday, March 10, 2020
Anne Arundel County Extension Office, Gambrills, MD
Make plans to attend the Field Crops & Pasture IPM Workshop, on March 10, 2020 at the Anne Arundel Extension Office, 97 Dairy Lane, Gambrills, MD from 6:00-9:00 PM.
This workshop will explore advanced concepts of pasture and field crop production in the Southern Maryland region from establishment to harvest, including animal utilization.
Private Pesticide Applicator Recertification & Nutrient Applicator Voucher Recertification will be awarded for full class participation.
Click
here
for more information.
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4-H "Inspire Kids To Do"
Gretchen Sumbrum, Agent
Looking for something new for your children, grandchildren, sports team, hobby club, and the list goes on? 4-H has programs under four umbrellas: STEM, Healthy Living, Agriculture, and Civic Engagement. 4-H Clubs meet once a month so youth can participate in experiential activities that align with their interests.
If you already lead a group, say a soccer team and are interest in adding a leadership component, 4-H has the guides, materials, and training to implement a youth led component. Youth learn how to plan, organize, and lead proper parliamentary meetings with a little help from caring adults, learning skills such as public speaking, record keeping, and self-discipline.
Looking for a new way to spark the interest of a group of youth? Form a new club that covers a variety of activities throughout the year. Allow youth leaders and members to take the lead on what topics will be covered; 4-H has projects from Animals and Aerospace to Zombie apocalypse and Zig Zag stitching.
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Do you have a plant question? Pests in your house? Not happy
with your lawn? The University of Maryland Home and
Garden Information Center can help. Visit their website:
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Love Your Heart!
Jeanette Jeffrey, Healthy Living Educator
Hearts are ever-present during the month of February and love is in the air! What better month than this to show your heart a little love by practicing these heart-healthy habits, provided by the U.S. Health and Human Services Department (HHS):
- Eat fewer saturated fats. Cut back on fatty meats and high-fat dairy products. Limit food like pizza, burgers, and creamy sauces or gravies.
- Cut down on sodium (salt). Read the Nutrition Facts label and choose foods that are lower in sodium. Look for the low-sodium or "no salt added" varieties of canned soups, vegetables, packaged meals, snack foods, and lunch meats.
- Get more fiber. Eat vegetables, fruits, beans, and whole grains to add fiber to your diet.
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Start the New Year with New Credit. Why Your Credit Score Matters.
Priscilla Graves, Extension Educator
When you apply for credit, insurance, phone service, or even to rent a place to live, providers want to know if you are a good risk. They use credit scores to help them decide. A credit score is a number. A high credit score means you have good credit. A low credit score means you have bad credit. The higher score means you are less of a risk and are more likely get the product or service, and may pay less for it.
Here is how it works: Lenders pull information from your credit report, like your bill-paying
history, how long you have had your accounts, outstanding debt, and collection actions.
A
scoring system awards points for each factor that helps
predict who is most likely to repay a debt. The total number of points - your credit score - helps predict the likelihood that you will repay the loan and make payments on time.
Credit scores can be used in a variety of ways. Here are some examples:
Insurance companies may use information from your credit report, along with other factors, to help predict your likelihood of filing an insurance claim and the amount you might claim. They consider this information when deciding whether to give you insurance and how much to charge you.
Utility companies use credit scores to decide if a new customer needs to make a deposit for service. Cellphone providers and landlords use scores when considering a new customer or tenant.
Different companies have different scoring systems, and the scores may be based on more than the information in your credit report. When you apply for a mortgage, for example, the rating system may consider the amount of the down payment, total debt, and income. To improve your credit score, focus on paying your bills on time, paying down outstanding balances, and avoiding new debt.
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What's Going On With Roundup®?
Jonathan Kays, Extension Specialist
The news media is full of offers to join class action lawsuits against glyphosate, the active ingredient in many herbicide formulations, including Roundup®. High profile lawsuits in California have successfully sued Monsanto, the original manufacturer of Roundup. The assertion was that their clients' long-term use of Roundup® caused the plaintiffs' cancer.
I am no toxicologist, but I am an extension forester and a faculty member at a land-grant university who is committed to looking objectively at the scientific data and making recommendations. In this case the lawsuits and media do not seem to jive with the science. So why is glyphosate so important? Controlling undesirable vegetation in forestry is critical to assuring a healthy forest, assuring forest regeneration, creating wildlife habitat, and controlling invasive species. Controlling undesirable vegetation is possible using prescribed fire, mechanical tools and equipment, and even goats, but herbicides are much more effective and efficient. In fact, mechanical control methods may pose a greater safety threat for human injury.
Glyphosate is a type of herbicide that has an active ingredient that interf
eres with plant growth. There are other herbicides with active ingredients that have their own unique way of disrupting or interfering with plant growth. In this case, glyphosate works by blocking the activity of an enzyme in the one of the biochemical processes so that the plant cannot grow. The process is found only in plants and not in humans and other mammals. Monsanto marketed glyphosate as Roundup® in 1974 and held the patent on the chemical until 2000. The patent expired in 2000, allowing companies to legally produce and sell glyphosate, and at lower cost, which is where we are today.
Glyphosate is found in many formulations and trade names, and is sold in big box stores and through agricultural dealers. It is widely used in forestry, agriculture and residential markets to control unwanted vegetation. It works on all types of plants, becomes inactive in the soil, breaks down quickly in sunlight, and poses little danger to the environment. Glyphosate, like every chemical active ingredient for any herbicide, goes through an assessment by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), which determined that it is safe when used "according to the label directions." The label is the law.
Some recent court verdicts in California have found glyphosate responsible for causing non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL). Scientists do not really know what causes this cancer. If glyphosate caused cancer at realistic exposure levels, then farmers and other applicators would be the first to show this effect. The largest study ever published, looking at farmers and other applicators, found no association between glyphosate and solid tumors, including NHL.
Anti-glyphosate advocates point to the 2015 report form the International Agency for Research and Cancer (IARC), an arm of the World Health Organization. The report labeled glyphosate a probable human carcinogen, a determination that was surprising to many. IARS responded to critics by clarifying their intent - to identify potential hazards. They asked, "Can it cause cancer under any circumstances?" They defer to others to do risk assessment based on expected levels of exposure and background cancer rates. Most governments (US, Europe, Australia, New Zealand, and Canada) have published risk assessments about glyphosate, finding it unlikely to cause cancer in humans when used according to label directions.
The EPA under the past four administrations found glyphosate to pose no risk to human health and was not a carcinogen. Likewise, the European Chemicals Agency determined glyphosate was not a carcinogen, and in 2018 the European Food Safety Authority determined the current exposure levels are not expected to pose a risk to human health.
The IARC determination put the following items in the same "probable human carcinogens" category as glyphosate: red meat, high temperature frying, and late night work shifts. "Known human carcinogens" in their list included processed meat, alcoholic beverages, and sunlight. The credibility of the IARC determination is questionable. Hazard identification is only the first step in assessing risk.
Final Thoughts
Glyphosate use in forest management is critical to controlling undesirable vegetation, and using it according to the label instructions minimizes any risk. As with any herbicide, risk is reduced by using the Personal Protection Equipment detailed on the EPA label, such as clothing, gloves, etc. To do otherwise is using the material illegally. Determinations by courts and lawyers do not necessarily reflect the science on this subject. Landowners can make their own determinations but if use of glyphosate can be banned based on the science available, the obvious question is, "What's next?"
Sources:
Andreotti, G., Koutros, S., Hofmann, J.N., Sandler, D.P., Lubin, J.H., Lynch, C.F., Beane Freeman, L.E. (2018). Glyphosate Use and Cancer Incidence in the Agricultural Health Study
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Gardening Resolutions 2020
At the beginning of January we typically think through what we plan to do better in the coming twelve months in all aspects of our lives, whether that's reading more books or committing to a
fitness program or eating healthy. Of course we don't always follow through, but it's still worth considering what might make our lives better-including our gardening lives!
Click here to learn more.
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Become an Anne Arundel County Master Gardener
Interested in becoming a Master Gardener? Master Gardeners are a group of gardening enthusiasts who are passionate about gardening, education, and volunteering in their community. The curriculum is presented by University of Maryland Extension faculty and trained Master Gardeners.
Click here for more information.
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Did you visit the Anne Arundel County Fair this year? Did you wonder what in the world 4-H is all about? Do you have children between 8 and 18 or know someone who does? If so, it's easy to learn more! Visit our website or email the Anne Arundel County 4-H office at [email protected]. "4-H makes the best better!" |
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Agriculture & Natural Resources
Interested in agriculture? There are many agriculture resources available on our website.
Agriculture Newsletters
Agriculture Calendar of Events
For more information, please contact
Dave Myers, Extension Educator, AGNR.
4-H offers plant and animal science programs for youth ages 8-18. See the
4-H website for more details.
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Healthy Eating - Corn Griddle Cakes
1 cup stone ground cornmeal
½ cup whole wheat flour
¾ cup unbleached flour
2 Tablespoons sugar
1 Tablespoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt (optional)
2 large eggs
3 Tablespoons canola oil
1 1/3 cups frozen corn kernels
2/3 cup low-fat milk or fat-free milk
Maple syrup or pumpkin/apple butter (optional)
Mix dry ingredients in a medium-sized bowl. Whisk the milk, egg and oil in a smaller bowl. Add the corn to the egg mixture, mixing just until combined. In a lightly greased non-stick pan or griddle, spread about ¼ cup of batter and cook the pancakes over moderate heat until golden brown on bottom and tops begin to bubble. Flip and finish cooking. Top with syrup or pumpkin/apple butter.
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Did you know...
Citizens can sign up for Alert Anne Arundel to receive alerts to their phone or email. Email
alerts may contain a picture pertinent to the situation (for example, missing person, crime suspect, etc.). Anne Arundel County will utilize the system in true emergency situations.
Click
here to learn more.
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Anne Arundel County Extension
97 Dairy Lane
Gambrills, MD 21054
410-222-3900
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Area Extension Director
Karol Dyson, AED
| Agriculture & Natural Resources
Dave Myers, Principal Agent
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Nutrient Management
Kayla Griffith, Nutrient Management Advisor
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Master Gardener Program
Nancy Allred, Interim Master Gardener Coordinator
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4-H Youth Development
Gretchen Sumbrum, Agent
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Food Supplement Nutrition Education Program
LaTasha Coleman, Principal Agent Associate
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Family and Consumer Sciences
Jeanette Jeffrey, Agent
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