Better Kansas – Ideas for Living, Growing and Succeeding

Tag: reading to children

Better Kansas – July 2, 2020

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Better Kansas – July 2, 2020

In today’s Better Kansas, we touch on unusual foods, reading suggestions for kids, Japanese beetles in lawns and gardens, irrigating crops and the effect of high temperature on corn. This is a small glimpse of what K-State Research and Extension across the state has to offer. Share on social media and subscribe! – Mary Lou Peter mlpeter@ksu.edu

Better Living, Better Communities

EVER HAVE THIS EXPERIENCE? YOU’RE LOOKING OVER THE MENU AT A NEW RESTAURANT and you come across an ingredient that has you stumped. You’re reluctant to ask your server what it is, but will you like it? Is it spicy? To help you know your spelt from your couscous and your chia seeds from your ugli fruit (apparently, there is such a thing :), check out Fixing Funky Foods. The article covers unusual fruits, vegetables and grains, including nutrition considerations, facts about food origins and cooking methods. For instance, spelt, also known as dinkel wheat or hulled wheat, has been around since 5,000 BC. This is not to be confused with smelt, a small fish I’d never heard of until I lived in the Chicago area. There’s actually a smelt season!

 

WE HAVE WEEKS OF SUMMER TO GO AND KEEPING YOUNG KIDDOS BUSY IS EVEN MORE CHALLENGING THAN USUAL. Many community pools and other recreational venues remain closed because of the pandemic, while others have opened but with increased restrictions. Now is a great time to nurture an interest in reading. Not everyone shares my love of reading, but this is always an easy sell for me. I once heard someone say they didn’t encourage their children to read during the summer because they were on vacation. Interesting … I’ve always thought of reading as “a vacation of the mind.” A book can take you places in your mind even when you can’t physically go to those places. Take a look at Suddenly in Charge: Reading with Young Children for suggestions, including specific books and related activities. The fact sheet is in both English and Spanish.

Better Farming, Ranching and Gardening

 THIS WARM, SUNNY WEATHER MAY BE SPARKING A QUIET INVASION ACROSS OUR LAWNS AND GARDENS … an invasion of Japanese beetles, that is. And they’re not exactly picky about what they eat. Flowers, trees, shrubs and turfgrass, they love it all and can cause a lot of damage to our lawns and gardens. To learn more, read the entry about this invasive pest in a recent Horticulture Newsletter, which also includes short entries on brown patch in tall fescue lawns, a lack of vegetables on otherwise healthy-looking plants, harvesting garlic and more. Additional information about Japanese beetles is available in the entomology blog. A reminder, if you have a problem with your lawn or garden and are not sure what it is, check with your local K-State Research and Extension office for help in identifying the culprit.

 

IRRIGATING HUNDREDS OF ACRES OF CROPS IS NO EASY OR INEXPENSIVE PROPOSITION, so farmers want to use that precious water as efficiently as possible. On a recent Agriculture Today podcast, a western Kansas-based K-State specialist offers considerations on striving for top efficiency in crop irrigation this summer. He suggests that producers look at the frequency of watering, touting the idea of irrigating more volume less frequently. Other podcast topics include a segment with a Farm Service Agency official on adjustments that have been made in managing USDA loans for existing borrowers, plus a reminder that the FSA continues to take applications for new direct and guaranteed loans. A segment on how the Kansas wheat harvest is progressing rounds out the program.

 

KANSAS TEMPERATURES ARE CLIMBING AND WE’RE NOT THE ONLY ONES AFFECTED. Livestock and crops get stressed, too, and corn is at a particularly vulnerable stage of development, especially in the southeast part of the state. For a discussion on heat stress in corn and what it means for vegetative phases, tasseling, pollen shed and silk extrusion, check out June Heat in Kansas, a part of the weekly Agronomy eUpdate newsletter. While you’re there, you might want to take a look at other crop production-related articles.

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For more resources and activities, contact the K-State Research and Extension office in your area. Check out our other blogs and subscribe to our weekly emails here: https://www.ksre.k-state.edu/news/blogs/

 

 

 

 

 

 

Better Kansas – Jan. 30, 2020

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Welcome to Better Kansas, where every Thursday we shed light on events, resources and other information designed to make your life, businesses, communities and state better. This is a small glimpse of what K-State Research and Extension across the state has to offer. Share on social media and subscribe! – Mary Lou Peter mlpeter@ksu.edu

Better Living, Better Communities

SOME YOUNG CHILDREN SEEM ARTICULATE BEYOND THEIR YEARS …. SURELY THAT WAS OUR CHILDREN, RIGHT?! We know it’s important to read to kiddos from the beginning, plus talking with them and playing with them as they grow helps them learn new words and important skills to interact with others. It may seem like so much extra effort, but such activities stimulate a child’s imagination and help them develop language and listening skills. For a quick reminder about how and why it’s important for all children from babies to toddlers to preschoolers, take a look at Talk, Read, Play.

HAVE YOU THOUGHT ABOUT TURNING THAT FAVORITE RECIPE into a business? Maybe the famous salsa you make that has the special secret ingredient? Or that amazing bread that your friends and family are always asking for? The Kansas Value Added Foods Lab can help walk you through the process of developing your product safely and stay in the lines when it comes to current regulations. You’ll find helpful resources and even questions everyone should ask themselves when making decisions along the way including screening, feasibility, test marketing and commercialization.

Better Farming, Ranching and Gardening

ORDERS ARE NOW BEING TAKEN BY THE KANSAS FOREST SERVICE FOR LOW-COST TREE SEEDLINGS to be planted for conservation purposes, according to a recent Horticulture Newsletter. Orders will be taken until May 1. Shipping starts in mid-March. Though not to be used for home landscapes, these trees can be used for wind breaks, wood lots, wildlife habitat, riparian areas along streambanks and more. We know how windy it can get in Kansas! Take a look at the newsletter or order here.

WHEN WE THINK OF GROWING CROPS THAT FEED THE WORLD, MANY STILL THINK of basic tractors and tilled fields – not really inaccurate but SO much more is happening on today’s farms. Growers know that taking care of the land and being efficient mean understanding how incredible new technologies can help pinpoint where part of a corn field is receiving too little moisture for instance, or which area of a soybean field has pests happily feasting on plants. Listen to this Agriculture Today radio segment to learn how new technology can help farmers sort wheat by protein — important because the amount of protein in wheat helps determine what food or feed product it’s best suited for. The radio segment also includes commentary on the grain market and other helpful information. A separate Agriculture Today podcast delves into the economic feasibility of autonomous farming systems. Listen in.

FROM THE EARLY DAYS OF DODGE CITY TO THE STOCKYARDS IN KANSAS CITY (okay, the stockyards were just over the border in Missouri 🙂 Kansas has been known for its cattle. But there are also a surprising number of sheep and goats across our state. We’re talking about 43,000 goats raised for meat and 6,000 for dairy, plus 74,000 head of sheep.  If you raise sheep or goats or are just interested in knowing more about them, check out the Sheep and Meat Goat Research and Extension Page. I used to work for a woman who was a force of nature from Scotland. Rosemary made the very best roast leg of lamb, plus grew her own mint for mint sauce. Soo good!

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For more resources and activities, contact the K-State Research and Extension office in your area. Check out our other blogs and subscribe to our weekly emails here: https://www.ksre.k-state.edu/news/blogs/