Ag & Natural Resources

Fruit Tree Grafting Demonstration & Strawberry Orders

The Breathitt County Extension Service is having a fruit tree grafting demonstration on Monday, February 27th, 2012 at 5:00 p.m. at the Breathitt County Extension Office. We will have supplies, including wax bands and scion wood for you to use. You may want to bring some scion wood from your trees to trade or give to others.

We are ordering semi-dwarf apple rootstock EMLA7, at a cost of $1.00 each and Old Home & Farming Dale 97-pear rootstock. The cost of the pear rootstock will be $1.00. They will be here in time for the grafting demonstration.

The Extension Service is also taking orders for Allstar strawberry plants at a cost of $4.50 for a bundle of 25 plants. You can place your order for strawberry plants or rootstock by calling 666-8812 by Friday, January 27^th or by stopping by the Extension Office located at 1155 Main Street, Jackson, KY. The strawberry plants will be here by March.

Home fruit plants are a good way to provide your family with a low cost and healthy food. However, nothing is more disappointing than fruit that is improperly cared for. If you are planning to start a home fruit orchard and haven’t grown fruit trees before, start small. Successful fruit production requires a certain amount of work. Fifty strawberry plants and four apple trees properly cared for will provide a family of four ample fruit that contains vitamin C, fiber, and good eating. Educational programs of the Kentucky Cooperative Extension Service serve all people regardless of race, color, age, sex, religion, disability, or national origin.

For more information, call the office at 666-8812 or stop by the Extension Office located at 1155 Main Street, Jackson, Kentucky.

Winter Feeding Areas for Livestock

Source: Steve Higgins, director of environmental compliance

As we move closer to cold weather, it is a good time to think about strategies for winter feeding of livestock, since it is a necessary part of nearly all operations. Choosing the right place for winter feeding can improve production and reduce threats to nearby water resources. A poorly chosen site for winter feeding can have negative impacts on soil and water quality.

A significant amount of pollution can occur if winter feeding is conducted around streams, water bodies or other environmentally sensitive areas such as flood plains and creek bottoms. Storm-water runoff from these areas can carry mud and manure into nearby water bodies, creating water quality problems. If these contaminants can be traced to a specific operation, the owner could be subject to fines from regulatory agencies.

To reduce water pollution and avoid fines, producers can follow a few simple steps. First, place winter feeding areas in well-drained locations. These areas should not allow runoff containing mud and manure to drain into neighboring properties, streams or sinkholes. The farther away a feeding area is from surface or ground water resources, the less likely water pollution is to occur.

Next, producers should consider using confined winter feeding that allows cattle to access a structure or paddock for feeding and then return to a larger forage pasture. Smaller “sacrifice” pastures reduce the area damaged from winter feeding and can be used as central hubs for multiple pastures as part of a rotational grazing system. By placing water and mineral supplements away from the structure, cattle will be enticed to eat in the structure and then move out and way. The volume of manure will be easier to manage because the animals will spread it throughout the fields.

Finally, heavy-use area pads around winter feeding areas can greatly reduce mud and rutting from tractor and hoof traffic. These pads are constructed using geotextile fabric, crushed stone and dense grade aggregate.

By making these considerations for winter feeding of livestock, producers can greatly reduce the potential to contaminate water resources and can improve production.

For more information, contact the Breathitt County Cooperative Extension Service.

Your Farm’s Hidden Asset: Its Woodlands

Source: Billy Thomas, UK extension forestry specialist

Maximizing every bit of profit from a farm is one of the keys to success. One thing that may not be at the top Kentucky landowners’ minds is their farm’s woodlands, but woodlands should be thought about and managed just like crops, fields, gardens or other agricultural endeavors. Farmers can benefit by understanding the industry and learning basic forestry concepts, such as how to control light and density, manage pests and steward a forest to make it healthier and sustainable. There also can be important tax benefits for timber owners, and secondary markets may be available for nontimber products such as hunting leases, ginseng, shiitake mushrooms and fence posts.

It may be a surprise to learn that timber, the majority of it privately grown and processed, is one of the largest agriculture and natural resource industries in Kentucky. The statistics are impressive: Kentucky ranks as one of the top three hardwood producing states in the United States. (Pennsylvania and Tennessee usually account for the other top spots in the hardwood timber business.) Twelve million acres, almost half of Kentucky’s land base, are forested. According to the U.S. Forest Service, the total economic impact of Kentucky’s forests and related industries contributes more than $8 billion each year to the state’s economy, and it employs more than 30,000 people. Most of Kentucky’s forests consist of hardwoods, with oaks, yellow poplar, hickories, ash, cherry and walnut contributing to the economic value of the forest industry. Woodlands also are valuable for providing habitat to a wealth of wildlife, from black bears to bobcats. These woodlands also serve as a backdrop for much of the recreational and tourist activities in the state. Another important contribution of woodlands, but harder to put a dollar figure on, are the ecosystem services such as water and air filtration, carbon sequestration and flood control they provide.

More than 11 million of Kentucky’s 12 million forested acres are classified as timberland, meaning they are capable of growing commercial timber at a rate of 115 board feet of wood volume per acre per year. (A board foot is 12 inches by 12 inches by 1 inch). Logging in Kentucky is renewable, as tree growth in the state exceeds annual timber removal. The industry also ensures that commercial operations have a Master Logger graduate on-site and follow best management practices for protecting water quality at harvest sites.

Sawmills and other industries produce much less waste than in the past, utilizing all but 5 percent of wood residue, down from 35 percent in the 1970s. Advances in machinery and utilization of sawdust and bark residue have fueled this significant reduction in waste. Now, mulch, fuel, composite wood products, charcoal and animal bedding are made from leftover wood, reducing the industry’s impact on the environment. Anyone who is interested in learning more about how to realize a potential economic value from forested land has many resources. The University of Kentucky Cooperative Extension Service offers technical training classes and wood center utilization programs, professional forestry workshops, technical publications, logger training and more. It also offers the Woodland Owners Short Course, a yearly learning conference, with two different experience levels.

For more information, visit www.ukforestry.org and www.ukwoodcenter.net or contact the Breathitt County Cooperative Extension Service.

Educational programs of the Cooperative Extension Service serve all people regardless of race, color, sex, religion, disability or national origin.

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Harvesting Blueberries and Blackberries For Full Flavor

Source: John Strang, UK extension fruit and vegetable specialist

Summer months are the harvest season for blueberries and blackberries, both of which have the potential to grow very well in Kentucky. Blueberries, which are native to North America, are harvested from early June through early August. Blackberries are harvested from mid-June to early October. These delicious fruits offer newly recognized health benefits, but best of all, they capture the essence of summer in their sweetness.

Blueberries can be excellent choices for both home and commercial growing. They have the advantage of being as long-lived as fruit trees, with few pests or diseases. They also have a late blossom time, so frost rarely causes damage on well-chosen sites. Blackberries also have a long fruit-bearing life and will produce for a decade or longer in Kentucky.

Blueberries require an acidic soil, which means that most soils in Kentucky will need to be amended to properly suit their needs. They also require a high organic material content, so peat moss (do not substitute other materials) should be mixed with the soil at the time of planting. Irrigation is necessary during the summer because blueberries have a shallow, limited root system. Insufficient irrigation can compromise both this year’s and next year’s crop.

Blackberries need to be pruned, fertilized and irrigated. Pruning varies, depending on the type of bramble; for specific information on the proper pruning for your blackberry canes, see the University of Kentucky’s publication “Growing Blackberries and Raspberries in Kentucky.” It’s available online at http://www.ca.uky.edu/agc/pubs/ho/ho15/ho15.pdf or by contacting your local office of the UK Cooperative Extension Service.

Blueberries in a cluster do not ripen at the same time, and only fully ripe berries should be picked. Fruit need at least one to two days after turning blue to develop full flavor and can be left on the bush for up to 10 days without a loss in size. Flavor does not improve once the fruit is picked; consequently, blueberries should be left on the bush for as long as possible to develop sweetness and flavor.

For best results at harvest, pick carefully, rolling blueberries from the cluster with the thumb into the palm of the hand. Handle as little as possible to avoid rubbing off the bloom (the light waxy finish on the skin) and reduce bruising. Harvest only when berries are dry. Refrigerate promptly to slow ripening and decay.

Blackberries picked for commercial sale are picked “firm ripe,” but home growers have the luxury of picking soft, fully ripe and juicy fruit. Pick fruit twice a week, and during hot rainy weeks, every other day. Harvest after the morning dew has dried. Pick carefully to avoid bruising the fruit, and, as with blueberries, refrigerate quickly to limit fruit rot. The sweetest, best tasting fruit is produced during dry sunny weather when nights are cooler.

For more information, see UK’s publications on growing blueberries and blackberries available online at http://www.ca.uky.edu/agc/pubs/ho/ho60/HO60.PDF and http://www.ca.uky.edu/agc/pubs/ho/ho15/ho15.pdf, or contact the Breathitt Cooperative Extension Service.

Educational programs of the Cooperative Extension Service serve all people regardless of race, color,

Agricultural News

Lowell Hamilton, CEA for Ag & Natural Resources

We Canoed Down the North Fork of the Kentucky River June 18, 2011

The Breathitt County Extension Service sponsored a canoe trip consisting of 65 people down the North Fork of the Kentucky River on June 18^th. The trip started at the Douthitt Park at 8:00 a.m. We had people from Cincinnati, Newport, Leslie County, Wolfe County, and Breathitt County! The canoe trip was fun and educational. Short programs were presented on water quality and the environment. Although we had to end the trip after lunch due to storms,everyone really enjoyed the program!