Pine Community Connector
April 2022
Welcome to the Pine Community Connector!
The Pine Community Connector is published quarterly by the University of Minnesota Extension Pine County office. If you would like to be included on our mailing list, or to receive a print copy of this newsletter, contact the Pine County Extension office at 800-657-3813 or mnext-pine@umn.edu.
Pine & Isanti County Crop Management Update
Thank you so much to our presenters and specialists that took the time to speak to our counties about these important topics and prepared valuable information for extension education.
Fabian Fernandez, University of Minnesota Extension Soil Specialist
Dave Bau, Extension Educator, Agricultural Business Management
Dan Malvick, Extension Plant Pathologist
Seth Naeve, Extension Soybean Specialist
Dave Nicolai, Extension Regional Crops Educator
There was a great turn out, with 30 community members attending the event. Attendees agreed that they would recommend this program to others. Majority of attendees came to learn content and use the information to improve their business practices. Thom Peterson, Minnesota Agricultural Commissioner, also attended the event and gave an update on the current ag policies that are being worked on at the government level.
Again, thank you to all the presenters, attendees, and our Ag. Commissioner for attending our event. We look forward to seeing everyone again next year!
Pine County Master Gardener Annual Plant Sale May 25
The Pine County Master Gardeners Annual Plant Sale will be held on Wednesday, May 25 from 6:30 a.m. until sold out. The plant sale will take place in the 4-H Exhibit Building at the Pine County Fairgrounds during the Flea Market.
Funds raised are used for community events and educational training. For information: contact the U of M Extension Pine County office at 1-800-657-3813 Ext. #3. or, contact Roger & Linda Fischer at 320-629-2247.
Reserve a Plot at the Pine City Community Garden
Grow your own food, work with other gardeners, and save money by having a plot or raised bed at the Pine City Community Garden. Plots are 10 ft. x 20 ft. and raised beds each rent for $15 for the year. Pre-tilling, water, hoses, and a storage shed are available. Pine County Master Gardeners and other gardeners are available to answer questions.
For more information or to reserve a plot, please contact the Pine County Extension Office at 320-591-1651 or 800-657-3813 or email mnext-pine@mn.edu
The Community Garden is a partnership between the City of Pine City and the University of Minnesota Pine County Master Gardeners. It is located at Challeen Park at 10 S.E. 3rd St. in Pine City.
Pine County 4-H Celebrates Volunteers during National Volunteer Week
Each year, thousands of volunteers in Minnesota donate their time and energy to make their communities a better place to live. These volunteers will be among the millions across the country who will be spotlighted during National Volunteer Week, April 17-23, 2022.
One group that relies heavily on volunteers is the University of Minnesota Extension’s 4-H Youth Development Program. During National Volunteer Week and every week throughout 2022, Minnesota 4-H celebrates and appreciates its more than 6,700 volunteers - each one critical to the success of 4-H programs and making a difference in the lives of youth. In Pine County, 49 volunteers serve as club leaders, project leaders, committee members and in advisory capacities for the 4-H Youth Development Program. Research shows that Minnesota 4-H volunteers help youth gain leadership skills, serve their communities, improve their decision-making skills and develop career readiness.
The work of 4-H volunteers is continuous. Every day volunteers lend a helping hand to make 4-H programs more beneficial to the residents of Pine County. Those interested in joining the team of 4-H volunteers are invited to contact the Extension Office.
4-H Cloverbuds Meet Monthly
Soil Testing
Minnesota has a wide variety of soils throughout. In fact, there are 12 major units of soil in the world, 7 major units of which can be found in Minnesota! Major units can be broken down into suborders or families based on soil properties.
The largest factor affecting soil properties is how wet the soil remains throughout the year. In Minnesota we have numerous bodies of water and biomes so soil can change completely in less than a mile. This is why it’s important to collect soil samples in each area (garden, field, orchard, etc.). Every area is going to have different properties. When thinking about doing soil samples, everyone wants to know when, where, what, and how to do it.
When: Annual planted fields should be tested when you first cultivate or change crops every 2-3 years (fall or spring). Perennial crop fields or orchards should be tested every 3-5 years in early fall. All samples should be done during the same time of year for each field.
Where: Soil samples should be collected from multiple locations in each field/orchard, keeping samples or each field/orchard separate. Try to avoid extremely wet or dry conditions.
What: For most Minnesota crops, the analysis package should include phosphorus, potassium, soil pH, and zinc. For soil that has a pH higher than 7.5 use the Olsen P test versus the Bray - P test, which can be unreliable for soils with a higher pH.
How: Take samples from where the crop will be planted and avoid unusual areas (fence lines, former fertilizer piles, etc.). Take 15-20 subsamples from each field/orchard using the appropriate tools- soil probe and shovel. Avoid contaminating the sample by using cleaned tools between fields without vegetation or mulch in the sample. Also, soil samples should be at least 6 inches deep or the depth of tillage. After collecting soil samples from one field/orchard, mix the samples together (in a bucket) and send in the mixed sample labeled for that area (pasture, field, lawn, etc.).
Be sure to use the same soil lab test every year to get the most accurate and consistent results to compare from year to year.
Using and reading your test results accurately will help your crop management and profitability of your business. Use the soil test results as a road map to best select and invest your money in a fertilizer or nutrient to best help your crop and soil health.
Pine City Community Garden - A Hidden Treasure
The Pine City Community Garden is a hidden gem in the city of Pine City. A lot of long-time Pine City residents do not know where it is. It is located by a residential community at 10 SE 3rd Street in Pine City by the river and the fishing piers at Challeen Park.
With rising food prices and with more food becoming unavailable due to supply chain problems, having your own “victory Garden” is a good place to grow your own vegetables and fruit. If you grow your own food then you will know what was planted, where it came from, and what if any chemical products were used on your own produce. It is a great way to grow healthy produce!
The Pine City Community garden is also a beautiful place to enjoy the sun, breezes, and enjoy nature. It is also a place to meet like-minded gardening people who like to be outside and meet new friends. It is a community of gardeners in a community garden. We have a tilling day in the spring and a clean-up day in the fall and many gardeners help each other out with what needs to be done in the garden plots.
The garden has 29 ground plots that are 10 by 20 feet and 7 raised beds for rent. We have many returning gardeners who enjoy gardening year after year at the community garden. The cost of these plots whether they are ground plots or raised beds is only $15.00 per year. What we ask is that the gardeners take care of their rented plots with preparing the soil, planting, watering, weeding, harvesting and cleaning up their plot in the fall.
Other features of the community garden include: a fence surrounding the garden to help with security, plant recycling bins, a shed to store gardening tools as needed, and a pollinator garden to help add pollinators to the garden. Master Gardeners are available to answer gardening questions and concerns of the gardeners. Sometimes the Master Gardeners hold informational classes about timely topics in the garden.
We are looking forward to the warm spring breezes, the sun, and planting in the garden. If you are interested in joining our community garden with a garden plot you can call the University of Minnesota Extension Office at the Courthouse in Pine City at 1-800-657-3813 or email mnext-pine@umn.edu. See you at the garden!
By Carol Evans, University of Minnesota Extension Pine County Master Gardener
Horticulture Day Participants Alerted to Lyme Disease
Lyme Disease is a complex and significant illness that is a growing risk to people in Pine County, much of Minnesota, and Wisconsin. Prevention is the best way to avoid it. That was what Dr. Elizabeth Maloney told 100 people who attended the 18th Annual Pine County Master Gardener Horticulture Day at Pine City High School on Saturday, March 19th.
Maloney who is a consultant to government agencies and private organizations said that Lyme Disease is caused by a bacteria that is transmitted through a bite from a Black-legged Deer Tick to humans and animals. She added that it is important to identify if one has been bitten by a Deer Tick or a Dog Tick. Deer ticks are tiny, have a black area behind the head and red-brown body. If a person has one, the tick needs to be pulled out vertically with a tweezers and saved for proper identification.
Lyme Disease can create a variety of symptoms that can be confused with other illnesses. Early symptoms include fever, chills, malaise, headache, fatigue, stiff neck, joint/muscle pain, numbness or tingling, sore throat. Signs include: a rash, swollen glands, red-colored throat. Different patients have different symptoms. Maloney said that certain antibiotics may reduce the risk of Lyme Disease if taken within 48 hours of a bite. Contact your doctor immediately after a bite to discuss this strategy. She said to ask your doctor to review the paper, “The Management of Ixodes scapularis Bites in the Upper Midwest”, published in the April 2011 edition of the Wisconsin Medical Journal.
Maloney emphasized that prevention focusing on pets, people and property is the best way to avoid Lyme Disease. She advised avoiding possible tick infested habitat including wooded areas, brush and long grass, golf course roughs, unmowed play fields, and leaf litter. She cautioned against sitting on a fallen log and advised staying in the center of trails.
Clothing for maximal skin coverage will create a barrier to ticks. That includes tucking pants into socks, wearing a hat, tying up a ponytail and treating clothing with Permethrin, but NOT the skin. She said that ticks can be killed in clothing by putting clothes into a clothes dryer on high heat until they are completely dry. Dry clothing requires 15 minutes while damp and wet clothing should be tumbled until completely dry, which could take 60 minutes.
Maloney also emphasized doing a thorough tick check of your body and of your pets after being in a potential tick infested habitat. She added that in your yard, deer prefer ornamental species over native species and to avoid thick dense plants which protect mice.
View Dr. Maloney's Lyme Disease presentation at: https://extension.umn.edu/news/horticulture-day-participants-alerted-lyme-disease
Other topics that were covered at the Horticulture Day included: Cool Weather Crops from the Kitchen Garden, Planting Trees and Shrubs for a Changing Climate, Japanese Beetles, Spring Blooming Bulbs and Flowers for Pollinators. More information on these topics is available from the Pine County Extension office; email mnext-pine@umn.edu or call 800-657-3813 Ext. 1 or 3.
4-H Intro to Livestock Day a Success
Conversations across Minnesota inspire Tourism Center priorities
Xinyi Qian, University of Minnesota Tourism Center director and state specialist, traveled to three regions in Greater Minnesota during the summer of 2021. During the trips, Qian met with folks from:
- Destination management organizations and chambers of commerce
- Workforce, economic, and community development professionals
- Small business and farm owners
- Event organizers
- Experts from nonprofit and arts organizations
The wide-ranging, inspiring, and timely conversations not only helped keep them grounded but also informed priority areas for the Tourism Center’s work going forward. A few themes also arose from our discussions. Learn more by visiting the University of Minnesota Extension website, Community news and insights.
Four ways to care for ourselves and our planet this spring
Starting within our own families and social groups can be a fun and logical first step when it comes to taking action to make a difference in our world.
“There are many kinds of health: physical, mental, social, occupational and planetary to name a few,” says Kelly Kunkel, University of Minnesota Extension family development educator. “And they all go together.”
Extension's family-friendly Earth care webinar series began in early March and continue through May. Read this article to learn about these and other webinars on how families can be healthy and resilient.
- Watch a webinar recording of the Reducing food waste
- Learn how to recycle food into fertilizer and avoid common pitfalls of composting food at the Composting 101 webinar on April 7 at 1 p.m.
- Watch a webinar recording of the Edibles and decoratives from the woods or backyards
- Watch for a webinar recording on webinar on Nutrition and physical activity for recovery
Contact
Katie Hagen, Ag Educator, 320-591-1662
Terry Salmela, Master Gardener Coordinator, 320-591-1653
Roxanne Orvis, Administrative Assistant, 320-591-1651
Susanne Hinrichs, NE Regional Director, 218-828-2286
Email: mnext-pine@umn.edu
Website: extension.umn.edu/local/pine
Location: 635 Northridge Drive Northwest, Pine City, MN, USA
Phone: 320-591-1650