The Tuesday Letter
Agricultural Experiment Station & Cooperative Extension Service
Tuesday, September 17, 2013
(Vol. 19 No. 45)
IN THIS ISSUE...
WORD FROM THE ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR - EXTENSION AND APPLIED RESEARCH
K-State Research and Extension provides practical education
you can trust, to help people, businesses, and communities solve problems,
develop skills, and build a better future. Our focus is on solving grand challenges in our state around water,
health, agriculture and foods systems that contribute to feeding the world, vitalizing our communities, and growing tomorrow’s
leaders. We are Kansas State University
in your local community. And, we have
all kinds of opportunities for you to get involved in making serious progress
on each of these grand challenges. Will
you join us?
Off to Galaxy IV Conference this week. Have a great week! --Daryl Buchholz dbuchhol@ksu.edu
ANNUAL CONFERENCE OFFERS A VARIETY OF LEARNING OPPORTUNITIES
The Wednesday afternoon schedule at annual conference has something for everyone. Visit the conference website for more information (session descriptions are linked to the schedule) and to register for the conference. Here is a look at the Wednesday afternoon schedule.
A dairy symposium “Is Kansas Positioned to Grow Its Dairy Industry?” will be from 2 to 6 p.m. at the Stanley Stout Center. - 2–2:05 Welcome and comments - Ken Odde, head of the K-State Department of Animal Sciences and Industry
- 2:05–2:45 Where will dairies be located in the future? - Normand St-Pierre, The Ohio State University professor
- 2:50–3:20 State of the dairy Industry in Kansas - Mike Brouk, K-State associate professor and extension specialist
- 3:20 –3:30 Break
- 3:30–4:10 Growth potential of the Kansas Dairy industry - Billy Brown, Kansas Department of Agriculture agribusiness development coordinator
- 4:15–5 Audience town hall Q&A, Panel: Steve Irsik, moderator, with Brouk, Brown, and dairy producers Justin Ohlde, Melissa Reed, Ken McCarty, Nathan Campbell, and Brent Buessing
- 5–6 - Mixer/social hour
These sessions will start 1:15 p.m. in the K-State Student Union.
- Climate in Kansas
- Health Care Reform and Extension
- Starting a Master Food Volunteer Program
- EntrepreneurShip Investigation
- Updates on the Ogallala Aquifer and the K-State Research and Extension Summit
- Cover Crops: Old Topic, New Fad or Sustainability Tool?
- How Do I Make a Difference?
- Infusing Creativity and Enthusiasm Back into Extension Programs: A Walk Kansas Case Study
The break from 2:30 to 3:30 will be chock full of learning opportunities with Call Hall ice cream; Communications Updates; one-on-one sessions with Health and Wellness and Family Resource Management teams; and recognition for Steve Fisher, 2013 National 4-H Hall of Fame inductee.
Sessions in the Union will resume at 3:30 p.m.
- Climate in Kansas continued
- Health Care Reform and Extension continued
- Addressing Critical Issues at the Local Level
- Smartphone Tablet App Roundtable
- Volunteer Management System 101
- Sunflower Supreme Replacement Heifer Program
- Board Leadership Series
- Integrating Gardening and Nutrition Programs to Expand Audiences and Impacts
--Maurice MacDonald, conference chair, morey@ksu.edu
TIME IS RUNNING OUT TO GET A NEW NAME BADGE
All
participants attending the upcoming Annual Conference, October 22-24,
2013, will be asked to wear their K-State Research and Extension
name badges.
If you have never received a name badge, if you
still have one of the old variety, or if you wish to purchase a new
badge, email Sue Robinson, srobinso@ksu.edu.
Be
sure to specify the kind of backing you want - magnet, clip or pin -
and specify how you want your name on the badge. There is not room for
titles, but department, area, county, district, or research center will
be shown.
Each new employee, at
the instructor level or above, receives his/her first name badge free
of charge. Counties, districts, areas and departments are encouraged to
order name badges for other employees and will be invoiced in the
amount of $4.50 for each name badge.
If a new name badge is
needed, please order right away so you can receive it in time for
Annual Conference. --Daryl Buchholz dbuchhol@ksu.edu
NATIONAL PREPAREDNESS MONTH
September is Disaster Preparedness
Month, and the recent storm damage in Oklahoma reminds us that a natural
disaster can strike at any time and it could happen to you. Are you prepared if it does?
A good resource for National
Preparedness Month is www.ready.gov. And if you are interested in being
part of a National Preparedness Social Media Campaign, Elizabeth Kiss has social
media messages that are being posted by Extension Agents across the state. Look for #PrepareKS and share them on you social media sites.
National Preparedness Month is also a
good opportunity to use the lesson, Get Financially Prepared: Take Steps Ahead
of Disaster. The PowerPoint is available here:
http://www.ksre.ksu.edu/fcs/p.aspx?tabid=116, and the handouts are available at
the KSRE Bookstore online.
Many people have smoke detectors, fire
alarms, dead bolts and have stocked
extra food in case of an emergency.
But what about your financial records?
Do you know the phone numbers for all
your credit card companies, your bank account numbers? Do you know where your safety deposit key is, your
birth certificates, passports, and social security cards are? And could you easily grab them if you had to
leave your home in the case of an emergency?
For most people, the answer is probably
no. To be financially prepared there are steps you can and should take now to
protect your family and possessions.
The lesson, “Get Financially Prepared:
Take Steps Ahead of Disaster,” can help you prepare your community for the
unexpected and help make the road to recovery easier if disaster does
strike. Learn how to prepare a household
inventory, review your insurance and create a grab and go box or notebook with your important documents.
And if
you don't have time to give the lesson, it is still the perfect opportunity to
use the information in a news article or newsletter. Many don't realize
the importance of having their financial papers organized until it is too late,
so help spread the word! --Julianne Shoup jshoup@ksu.edu
COMM TIPS: FALL 2013 SERIES
Join us for a new season of COMM TIPS. This weekly series provides helpful information for your communication and technology skills. We cover a lot of diverse topics so mark your calendar and join us online for each of the programs.
COMM TIPS is offered online every Wednesday at 9 a.m. running between September 25 and December 4. Each program is only 20 minutes followed with 10 minutes for Q&A.
Next Program: Security for Mobile Devices - Wednesday, September 25, 9 a.m.
Presented by - Gary Kepka and Larry Havenstein, Department of Communications and Agricultural Education
COMM TIPS Fall 2013 Schedule: (Title: Presenter)
September 25 - Security for Computer Mobile Devices: Gary Kepka, Larry Havenstein
October 2 - Reporting the Value of Your Work: Pat Melgares October 9 - The Power of Visuals: Brad Beckman October 16 - PDF Tools For Free: Gary Kepka, Larry Havenstein October 23 - Annual Conference – no Comm Tips this week October 30 - How to Navigate the Bookstore: Mandy Wilson, Amy Hartman November 6 - Video Interview Tips: Brad Beckman November 13 - Poll Everywhere Tool: Sarah Caldwell Hancock and Linda Gilmore November 20 - Developing
Newsletters to Get Read: Donna Sheffield and Elaine Edwards
November 27 - Thanksgiving- no Comm Tips this week December 4 - KSRE YouTube: Gerry Snyder
This is a "live" online series. Simply log in to http://connect.ksre.ksu.edu/commtips as a guest with your name. These programs will be recorded in case you miss them.
For the Comm Tips schedule, program descriptions and previous programs, visit the Comm Tips webpage at http://www.communications.k-state.edu/communication-services/comm-tips/. --Gerry Snyder gsnyder@ksu.edu
2013 FALL FORESTRY FIELD DAY - OCTOBER 10 IN PARSONS
This year's Fall Forestry Field Day will take participants to
southeast Kansas and pecan country!
The October 10th event will be
located 10 miles east of Parsons on Bill Devlin’s 280 acre Tree Farm where
Hickory Creek meanders through groves of pecan, black walnut, pin oak, green
ash and shagbark hickory.
A native of Cherokee County, Devlin’s father purchased the
280 acre farm in 1960 for $30 an acre and Bill inherited the property in 1977. In 2012, Kansas Forest Service district
forester, Katy Dhungel, certified Devlin’s woodlands as meeting the standards
of sustainability required by the American Tree Farm System. Devlin has been harvesting pecans since he was seven years
old and has quite a bit of experience grafting improved pecan cultivars which
can be observed throughout the property.
He also encourages native pecan production and harvests nuts
annually. Devlin harvested the timber on
his property about 15 years ago and had another recent harvest in 2011 selling
around seven thousand board feet of sawlogs.
Most recently Devlin has planted 2 acres of black walnut and pecan and
is also releasing pole-sized pecan and walnut from competing lower quality
trees. Devlin also creates additional
income by leasing hunting rights and from 33 productive oil wells on the
property that are maintained by Sirius Petroleum.
The purpose of the field day is to provide landowners,
ranchers, farmers and natural resource professionals the opportunity to receive
expert’s best thinking in the cultivation and management of Kansas forests,
woodlands and related natural resources.
The day will begin with an overview of the Tree Farm by Bill Devlin, and
a grafting demonstration by Aaron Sterling, a young man that Bill has taught
this horticultural surgery. Bill Reid, K-State
Research and Extension, Pecan Experiment Field, and nationally recognized
expert in pecan management, will present a session on pecan plantation management
and best-performing cultivars. Local
pecan grower, Tom Circle, will provide a pecan tree “shaker” demonstration to
show how pecans are collected during harvest. Kansas Forest Service foresters will discuss how and when to release quality
trees within woodlands to maintain forest health. Jake Weber, K-State Research and Extension
Horticulturalist for the Wildcat District, will offer an update on diagnosing
common insect and disease problems and how to control them. Mike Simon, with the Hunting Lease Network,
will explain to landowners how they can create additional income through the
development of hunting lease agreements.
Water quality and quantity are significant issues for the people of
Kansas. Doug Blex, Coordinator for the
Middle Neosho Watershed Restoration and Protection Strategy group (WRAPS), will
share information about how these stakeholders are addressing concerns within
the Middle Neosho. Maintaining healthy
grasslands includes keeping unwanted woody encroachment from taking over. Jim Strickland, a local contractor, will
demonstrate how effective a mechanical tree shear can be in that endeavor.
State Forester, Larry Biles, will be on-hand to present John
Head, a Neosho County Tree Farmer, with the 2013 Forest Stewardship Outstanding
Tree Farmer of the Year award. Other
dignitaries scheduled to attend the field day include John Floros, Director of
K-State Research and Extension and Dean of the College of Agriculture at Kansas
State University. In addition to the
partners already mentioned, Neosho and Labette County Conservation Districts
are helping promote and sponsor the event.
A hot lunch will be provided as part of the $15 registration
fee. Registration and a brochure about the
field day is available on the Kansas Forest Service website at http://www.kansasforests.org by
clicking on News & Events and Events Calendar. Registration information may also be obtained
by calling the Kansas Forest Service State Office at 785-532-3300. Brochures will also be mailed directly to
people on the Kansas Forest Service mail list by mid-September. --Leah Rutledge lrutledg@ksu.edu
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