Dear Community Members,   Welcome to our April issue of the Knowledge For Life newsletter! As we are moving in uncharted waters within our everyday life, we are still working to serve our community to the best of our ability. Our goal is to be conscientious of the health and well being of our entire community. As our COVID-19 response has been a true test in flexibility we need to update our face-to-face programming, events and services protocol.   With new insight and guidance from the University we will postponing all face-to-face programming until May 16, 2020. Currently, our office is closed per the stay-at-home orders, which went into effective on March 24, 2020. We are hopeful to be able to open the office doors at the end of the stay at home order on April 24, 2020. Moving forward we are working on innovative ways to virtually offer educational programs through Zoom and other platforms.  Other ways to access our services other than coming into the office: ·          Website ·         Office number is 913-715-7000 ·         Garden hotline at 913-715-7050 or garden.help@jocogov.org ·          Facebook ·          Twitter & Instagram: @JoCoExtension We truly appreciate your understanding and patience as we navigate the next few weeks.  Tara Markley Johnson County Extension Director

Agriculture & Natural Resources

Getting Outdoors with a Stay at Home Order Maintaining your health is very important, not just physically but mentally. There are many different things that you can do to help maintain a healthy lifestyle, while still following the law.

Health and Home

Taking Care of Your Health During the Days of COVID-19 Right now is not a time that you want to get sick. Here are some steps to help keep your health up and out of the doctor's office during a pandemic.

Managing Your Finances During a Pandemic With businesses closing their doors and people working from home, there may be a drop in income. Here are some tips to help manage your finances.

VITA Suspended until Further Notice IRS has extended both the filing date and the payment deadline out to July 15, 2020 due to the current conditions. This means NO PENALTIES OR INTEREST WILL BE CHARGED UNTIL AFTER JULY 15th. It is our intention to reopen our site when it is deemed safe and remain open through July 15th. We will keep you updated as further information may become available. El IRS ha extendido la fecha de presentación y la fecha límite de pago hasta el 15 de julio de 2020 debido a las condiciones actuales. Esto significa que NO SE COBRARAN LOS PAGOS NI LOS INTERESES HASTA EL 15 DE JULIO. Nuestra intención es reabrir nuestro sitio cuando se considere seguro y permanecer abierto hasta el 15 de julio. Lo mantendremos actualizado a medida que haya más información disponible. If you would like to be notified when/if this site opens back up go to register your email .

Lawn and Garden

Composting in the City Food waste takes up about 20% of landfill space and is a big producer of methane gas. Composting is a great solution for that! But how can you compost if you are living in a small apartment with no backyard? Here are some helpful ways to compost when you are living in the city.

Time To Divide Perennials Early spring is the ideal time to tackle overgrown perennials in the garden. Timely divisions keep the plant healthy with more flowers and in their place. Dividing does take a little work but the rewards are worth the effort.

Spring Lawn Care Sometimes knowing what not to do is just as important as knowing what do to. Here are a few tips to help ensure your lawn is not just spring green but holds up during a stressful summer.

Garden Tour Cancelled To prevent the spread of COVID-19, we are postponing the Extension Master Gardener Garden Tour to be held in May. We are disheartened, but know this is the right step to protect the public. Our leadership team is in discussion with the garden owners about possibly rescheduling in the fall. Be sure to check our website for future updates. Thank you for your support.

4-H

Cherishing Family Time There are certain things that can trigger fond memories. Certain places, smells or tastes. Cooking and eating dinner as a family is a great way to build memories with your family.

Events

In light of recent events, we have made the very difficult decision to suspend all face-to-face programming and events until May 16, 2020. This decision was not made lightly. We are taking into consideration the health of our staff, volunteers, and community. We are currently working on different ways to bring you programming and classes virtually. We still have online resources! Visit johnson.k-state.edu or call 913-715-7000. Thank you all for your patience and understanding.

In Partnership Together

K-State Research and Extension is committed to making its services, activities and programs accessible to all participants. Reasonable accommodations for persons with disabilities may be requested by contacting Johnson County Extension at (913) 715-7000. Notify staff of accommodation needs as early as possible.

Johnson County K-State Research and Extension (913)715-7000 11811 S. Sunset Dr. Suite 1500 Olathe, KS 66061 Johnson.k-state.edu

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