Author: Syme, Emily

CT Agriculture Expo 2022

Ag Expo logoRegister today for this ag expo showcasing the latest in ag innovation, farm
equipment, tractors, farm implements, seed & crop protection products, farm
supplies & services. This event is happening on Friday November 18th in Southington at the Aquaturf from 10AM till 4PM.

Registration includes
– Trade Show
– State-wide Networking
– Buffet Lunch
– Connecticut Wine & Beer Tasting
– Taste of Connecticut
– Pesticide CEU Credits

Pesticide CEU Credits
– 10:30AM – 11:30AM – Soil-Biodegradable Plastic Mulch for Specialty Crop
Production, Shuresh Ghimire, PhD, UConn Extension
– 1:30PM – 2:30PM – Integrated Pest Management for Fruit Growers, Mary
Conklin, Educator, UConn Extension

Friday, November 18 th
10:00AM – 4:00PM
Aquaturf, 556 Mulberry Street,
Southington, CT

Event Partners
– Connecticut Farm Bureau
– Connecticut Department of Agriculture
– Farm Credit East, ACA
– UConn Extension

Ticket Pricing

–  CFBA Standard and Limited members – $55
–  Non-members – $65
– Non-members can receive $5 off per ticket by purchasing before November
4 th or by registering 3 or more attendees

To Exhibit
Go to cfba.org, call 860-768-1100 or email traceym@cfba.org

For More Information or Questions
Go to cfba.org, call 860-768-1100 or email traceym@cfba.org

 

Places to Learn About and Enjoy Horses in Connecticut

Jennifer riding a horseJenifer Nadeau, an Equine Extension Specialist and an Associate Professor for the Department of Animal Science at UConn in Storrs, will be leading an outreach program about Places to Learn About and Enjoy Horses in CT. Come learn about the famous horses found in Connecticut as well as where to find horse-related attractions on July 21st at 11Am. We will also have a list of places you can go to take a trail ride or a lesson.

https://www.ctvisit.com/events/places-learn-about-and-enjoy-horses-connecticut

Greenhouse Biological Control Conference in August

UConn Extension is hosting a Greenhouse Biological Control Conference on August 16th.

Hosted by: Leanne Pundt and Rosa RaudalesUConn Extension

Target audience: Commercial growers producing ornamentals or vegetable transplants in heated greenhouses.

Location and Parking Information: Jones Auditorium, The Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station, 123 Huntington Street, New Haven, CT. The entrance to Jones Auditorium is on the north end of the building, on the side away from Huntington Street.  In addition to the parking lots on campus, there is street parking on Huntington Street and East Rock Road.

Registration:  $30 per person. Registration includes boxed lunch and five pesticide recertification credits for Connecticut and New England states for presentations marked with ♣. Online registration at Greenhouse Training Store. If you would like to pay by check, please contact Leanne Pundt (860 626 6855 or leanne.pundt@uconn.edu). Registration will end at 5:00 p.m. on Friday, August 12, 2022. The registration fee is refundable 48 hours before the event. Please note that we have a maximum capacity of 70 attendees. Walk-in registrations are not an option.

 

Time Description Speaker
9:00 – 9:30 AM Registration and Coffee.
9:30 – 10:30 AM Update on Banker Plants   How to create sustainable BCA systems so you have an environment to support and maintain BCAs at a higher level before pest problems become an issue.  Ron ValentinDirector of Technical Business

Anatis BioProtection

10:30 – 10:45 AM Break
10:45 – 11:45 AM Releasing Natural Enemies Suzanne will discuss how to effectively release your natural enemies so your biological control program can be effective.  Suzanne Wainwright EvansBuglady Consulting
11:45 -12:30 PM Tips on How to Effectively Integrate Biological Controls and Chemical Controls:

Elwood will discuss the challenges of developing and integrated biologically based program. 
Elwood RobertsTechnical Specialist

Plant Products/Biobest

12:30 – 1:15 PM Lunch
1:15 – 2:15 PM Enhancing Use of Biological Fungicides in a Biologically Based IPM Program:

Michael will discuss how to best apply and use biological fungicides to create a more resistant plant. 
Michael BrownbridgeBiological Program Manager

Disease Control, BioWorks

2:15 – 3:15 PM Grower Case Studies: What’s working? Suzanne will discuss proven biological control programs that are working for growers across the country based upon the latest research.  Suzanne Wainwright EvansBuglady Consulting
3:15 – 3:30 PM Discussion/Questions 

Five pesticide recertification credits have been requested for this program. 

If you have questions about registration or refunds please contact Carla Caballero at carla.caballero@uconn.edu. If you have any questions about the program or payment, please email Leanne Pundt at leanne.pundt@uconn.edu.

Disclaimer:  Program format is subject to change based on the University of Connecticut and the State of Connecticut’s COVID 19 guidelines and policies. If access to the venue or seating capacity changes, the program will be changed to a virtual format.

This Program is Co-Sponsored by: USDA CCPM project number 2021-70006-35582

An Equal Opportunity Employer and Program Provider. If requested by a program participant at least two weeks in advance, every effort will be made to provide special accommodations. If you are an individual with a disability and need accommodations, please contact Carla Caballero at carla.caballero@uconn.edu.

UConn Extension Attends National Urban Extension Conference

UConn Extensionists Mary Ellen Welch, Jacqueline Kowalski, Jeantyl Norze and Heather Peracchio attended the National Urban Extension Conference at Rutgers Camden May 23-26. Educators and directors from across the country came together to share best practices in Extension and vision the future of Urban Extension. Norze led a presentation on “Academic Structure Versus Urban Extension Needs: Keep Tradition or Innovate” and Peracchio presented on “Reimagining Youth Nutrition Education and Teaching Outdoors During Covid-19”.

Norze and Peracchio had an opportunity to tour Philadelphia’s Common Market and view Myocopia Mushrooms growing practices. Common Market provides locally grown produce to Philadelphia’s highest need citizens where food access is limited. Myocopia Mushrooms grows a variety of unique mushrooms and sells them to restaurants and at local farmers markets.  Kowalski toured Bartram Gardens, the oldest surviving botanical garden in the United States.  This public garden is in Southwest Philly and is also the home of Sankofa Community Farm,  a 3.5 community farm celebrating the agriculture of the African Diaspora.  Additionally, the Gardens serve as an open green space in space in a formerly industrialized area of the city.

 

The conference concluded with a meeting for the Northeast Region Urban Extension personnel.  This meeting provided the opportunity for the group to discuss opportunities to strengthen regional partnerships and collaborations.

Northeast CT Farm and Food Guide

grown connected logoGrown ConNECTed has released a new Guide to Farm Fresh Food in Northeastern CT  for 2022. This guide is an attempt at creating a comprehensive listing of farms selling directly to consumers in the Northeastern CT region and that your constituents can use to find local food, grown and raised in Northeastern CT.  A digital copy available online can be accessed at https://media.cahnr.uconn.edu/extension/ag-food/farm-fresh-guide/index.html

magazine front cover

Urban Farmer Trainings in July

Hey Farmers!

We are lucky indeed because we have a whole series of Urban Farmer Trainings coming up!

Kicking it off on July 16 and 23rd, the I Got Next Farmers are teaming up with Keney Park Sustainability Project and UConn’s Solid Ground program to provide two full days of training (with lunch included!) from 8:30-4pm

Just sign up here: https://uconn.co1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_2hiL59DYTiKCTtk

Can’t make it to Hartford but still want to go? Check out the dates for Bridgeport and New Haven below!

Public comment sought on CT Shellfish Restoration Guide

Connecticut Sea Grant, the Connecticut Department of Agriculture and the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection are seeking comments from the public on a discussion draft of the Connecticut Shellfish Restoration Guide. The Guide is the state’s first and most comprehensive plan to lay the foundation for shellfish restoration in Connecticut’s navigable waters and tributaries of Long Island Sound. The discussion draft was developed by a task force comprising state and federal agencies and non-profit organization partners with the input of a diverse steering committee of scientists, policy makers, regulators, businesses and private citizens.

Information on the Guide:

WHEN to submit public comments:

The public comment period runs from June 8, 2022 to July 8, 2022. All comments are requested on or before July 8, 2022 at 5:00pm EST.

HOW to submit public comments:

You may submit comments on the Connecticut Shellfish Restoration Guide discussion draft via email to: shellfish@uconn.edu

WHAT kind of public comments:

The authors are looking for feedback on:

  • Key information that is missing
  • Proposed revisions to the Guide’s content, especially specific recommendations
  • How the Guide will impact your specific shellfish-based line of work or activities
  • If and how you and your specific affiliation may play a role in the implementation of the Guide and its recommendations

If you would like a response to your comments, please include your full name, email address and phone number in your email. Note that a response will not be sent until after the comment period has closed and the agencies have had time to review all submitted comments.

 

Post taken from Connecticut Sea Grant

CT Sea Grant featured on WNPR talk show

WNPR’s “Where We Live” show on June 10 focused on Connecticut’s kelp industry, with host Lucy Nalpathanchil interviewing CTSG Aquaculture Extension Specialist Anoushka Concepcion, Stonington kelp farmer Suzie Flores and David Standridge, executive chef at the Shipwright’s Daughter restaurant in Mystic, where kelp is on the menu.

Listen to the show here. 

 

Post taken from Connecticut Sea Grant

 

CT Blue Heritage Trail launched with installation of 8 signs

The Blue Heritage Trail, a collaborative initiative developed by UConn Maritime Studies faculty and students with guidance and support from the Blue Heritage Trail Advisory Committee, has launched with the installation of eight informational signs at key sites in southeastern Connecticut.

The eight signs that were installed June 8 and 9 in Groton, New London and Waterford represent the first phase of the development of the Blue Heritage Trail. The signs can be found at: Bluff Point State Park and Coastal Reserve, Fort Trumbull State Park, Fort Griswold Battlefield State Park, Harkness Memorial State Park, Naval Submarine Base New London, New London Waterfront, Ocean Beach, and the University of Connecticut Avery Point campus. Partners in the project include Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, Connecticut Sea Grant, Connecticut State Parks, Thames River Heritage Park, and UConn Avery Point. Sign fabrication and installation for this stage of the project is supported by National Park Service Maritime Heritage Grant funding.

CT Sea Grant Research Coordinator Syma Ebbin stands beside the newly installed CT Blue Heritage Trail sign at Bluff Point on June 9. Ebbin was part of the group that led the project.
CT Sea Grant Research Coordinator Syma Ebbin stands beside the newly installed CT Blue Heritage Trail sign at Bluff Point on June 9. Ebbin was part of the group that led the project.

The Blue Heritage Trail project aims to raise public awareness of the critical importance of the marine environment and maritime economy and culture for Connecticut and for people everywhere. Connecticut’s maritime heritage, which is based on a productive and richly diverse marine environment, is long and varied. It encompasses an historical trajectory that begins with the relationship of Native peoples to the marine environment and includes the development of a robust maritime economy, significant cultural practices and meanings, recreational opportunities, and military activities. Public awareness and appreciation of this heritage is critical to develop a more complete understanding of the value of the marine environment and maritime heritage of the United States as a whole.

The Blue Heritage Trail will ultimately consist of a series of walking, driving, and boating tours (found on the IZI travel app) and curated information on individual points of interest at various sites in the Thames River watershed and nearby coast. The information will be available on signs installed at the sites as well as via an interactive website designed to link these individual components into a cohesive Blue Heritage Trail.

For more information contact:  Dr. Nat Trumbull, Maritime Studies Program, University of Connecticut;  (508) 540 0308; trumbull@uconn.edu.

Photos: Judy Benson / Connecticut Sea Grant

Post taken from Connecticut Sea Grant

Educational Program Assistant position open!

The UConn Extension Center located in Farmington, CT is seeking applications for one Educational Program Assistant 1. The full-time position is responsible for supporting and helping implement high-quality, comprehensive, Extension programming at different program sites throughout the region, with specific support to Forest Resources, EFNEP, Master Gardener, and 4-H programs. The Educational Program Assistant will report to the Center Coordinator to prioritize programmatic work assignments.

Duties and responsibilities include but are not limited to:

  • Assists and provides support to Extension Educators working with programs that may include but not be limited to Forest Resources, EFNEP, Master Gardener, and 4-H programs.
  • Assists in developing educational programs, recruiting, explaining, and providing program information and processes to Extension volunteers and participants.
  • Works with and helps develop and refine program databases using programs such as Excel and Access, to extrapolate relevant data sets, maintain program enrollments, membership, and volunteer records, and provide program reports to the Extension educators as required.
  • Maintains accurate records on each program and assembles databases and prepares statistical and/or historical reports for Extension educators/Program Coordinators based on program outcomes.
  • Performs office support functions in support of educational programs; processes paperwork, records, and files that may be computerized.
  • Supports Extension Educators/Program Coordinators in implementing and providing off-site educational activities in the community to improve practical understanding and accomplish program goals.
  • Provides assistance in assembling, arranging, organizing, and dismantling program event and activity set-ups and arrangements at various locations and venues, i.e. classrooms, fairgrounds, community centers, etc.
  • Supports media relations activities for various programs; works with others to write and edit program and promotional materials for hard and soft copy publications and social media platforms.
  • Assists Extension Educators/Program Coordinators in assessing clients’ capacity to participate in programs and helping to incorporate related knowledge into program activities for the greatest learning opportunities.
  • Assists Extension Educators/Program Coordinators in developing and implementing programs to enhance learning and provide appropriate content-based experiences to accomplish program goals.
  • Under supervision, provides educational training and conducts related support services on an ongoing basis, and assists in resolving problems in assigned area of responsibility.
  • Assists with increasing community collaborations with partner groups.

For more information visit https://jobs.hr.uconn.edu/cw/en-us/job/496413/educational-program-assistant-1-hartford-county-extension